Anyway, in honour of the recent celebration of Thanksgiving in America I thought I would share some cultural boxes I've been working on.
These look at the seven most prominent cultural and national celebrations, besides Christmas and New Year, within the British Empire.
Memorial Day, also known as
Decoration Day or
Veterans Day, is a British imperial bank holiday for remembering the people who died while serving in the British Armed Forces and for honouring military veterans who have served in the forces. The holiday is observed annually on the last Monday of May, although prior to 1970 it was observed on 30 May, and marks the unofficial start of the summer holiday season. On Memorial Day many people visit cemeteries and memorials, particularly to honour those who have died in military service, and many volunteers place British and dominion flags on each grave in national cemeteries.
Although the practice of decorating soldiers' graves with flowers is an ancient custom, the modern tradition of Memorial Day can be traced to the aftermath of the Republican Rebellion (1848-1851). The first "decoration days" took place in the early 1850s, as families placed flowers on the graves of soldiers killed during the rebellion, and by the later 1860s the tradition, in various forms, had become established across Britain-in-America and Texas, mainly as a commemoration of those killed in the wars fought across North America. In 1876, with the formation of the United Empire, Memorial Day became a recognised imperial day of remembrance, to be observed nationwide annually on 30 May. The date of Memorial Day remained the same until 1970, when the SDP government of Norman Kirk moved Memorial Day to the last Monday of May.
Historically the main date for remembrance of war dead, since the First World War and the birth of Remembrance Day, Memorial Day has become a much less prominent event at the imperial-level. Instead it is seen as a quieter day for commemorating British and Texan war dead and veterans, usually family members or friends, and is observed through parades and extended family gatherings, that is centred around cemeteries where family members who died in combat or served in the armed forces are buried. Many people also attend religious services and picnic-like "dinner on the grounds" at places of worship, and although the ceremony is secular it is observed by all religions.
Britannia Day, also referred to as the
Fourth of July or
Union Day, is a British imperial bank holiday commemorating the adoption of the Acts of Union on 4 July 1876. The date marks the creation of the United Kingdom and Empire of Great Britannia from Great Britain, Ireland and the British American dominions. It is celebrated across the Empire and is marked with a day off work for all non-essential institutions, often part of a three day weekend.
As it takes place during the northern hemisphere's summer, Britannia Day celebrations often take place outdoors and consist of fireworks, parades, barbecues, carnivals, fairs, picnics, concerts, baseball games, family reunions, and political speeches and ceremonies, in addition to various other public and private events celebrating the history, government, and traditions of the United Empire. Decorations are always in the red, white and blue colours of the British flag. Britannia Day is also one of only a few occasions when both the Queen-Empress and the Prime Minister make public addresses to the nation.
Families and communities often celebrate Britannia Day by hosting or attending street parties, picnics or barbecues. Many people take advantage of the day off, and occasional long weekend, to visit distant friends and relatives. Parades, carnivals and fairs usually take place in the morning, with family gatherings and picnics in the afternoon followed by bonfires, concerts and firework displays in the evening. At noon local time, military bases and naval vessels fire a single gun salute for each dominion of the Empire, called a "salute to the union". Many families will also attend celebratory sports games, usually some form of football, rugby, cricket or baseball, depending on the region. These games are usually charity matches to raise money for local causes.
Labour Day is a British imperial bank holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September. It honours the British labour movement and the contributions of workers to the country, and is a celebration of the industrial heritage and strength of Britain. It is the Monday of the long weekend known as
Labour Day Weekend, and is considered the unofficial end of the summer holiday season, with most schools in the Northern Hemisphere resuming on the following Tuesday.
The origins of Labour Day can be traced back to December 1872 when a parade took place in Toronto, Ontario in support of a workers' strike for a 58-hour work-week. Trade unions in Toronto would hold simidlar events every spring, and their popularity spread, with events taking place in New York, Chicago, Detroit and other major industrial cities across Britain-in-America, until 1890 when the Liberal government of Adlai Stevenson I made Labour Day an official holiday to be held on the first Monday in September. Although proposals were made for Labour Day to be held on the first Monday in May, to coincide with International Workers' Day, this was already recognised as the May Day holiday, so British Labour Day is held in September.
While Labour Day street parades, followed by a festival and picnic for workers and their friends and families, are organised by unions, many Brits regard Labour Day as the Monday of the last long weekend of summer. Non-union celebrations include picnics, firework displays, and public art events. Since the new school year generally starts right after Labour Day, families with school-age children take it as the last chance to travel before the end of summer. Labour Day has also become an important weekend for discounts by many retailers in the Empire, especially for back-to-school sales.
Remembrance Day is a memorial day observed by the members of the Commonwealth of Nations since the end of the First World War to remember the members of their armed forces who have died in the line of duty. Beginning in 1919 when King-Emperor George V inaugurated the tradition, the day is observed annually on 11 November to remember the end of hostilities with the Central Powers on that date in 1918. The day is also marked by war remembrances in many non-Commonwealth countries, such as Japan and many European nations.
The memorial evolved out of Armistice Day, which continues to be marked on the same date, when George V hosted a banquet in honour of King Philippe VIII of France on 10 November 1919, followed by the first official Armistice Day held on the grounds of Buckingham Palace the following morning. The red remembrance poppy has become the most prominent emblem of Remembrance Day due to the poem "In Flanders Field" by Canadian physician Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, and is now worn by people across the Commonwealth from the middle of October until Remembrance Day, or Remembrance Sunday, which is the Sunday nearest Remembrance Day.
Wreath-laying ceremonies, organised by the Royal and Imperial British Legion, are held on Remembrance Day at war memorials across the Empire at 11 am, followed by two minutes of silence. The Sunday nearest Remembrance Day is known as "Remembrance Sunday" and is the main observance of remembrance in the Empire. Poppy wreaths are laid by representatives of the Crown, the armed forces, political leaders and other organisations. While the main national commemoration is held at Whitehall in Central London, where senior members of the Royal and Imperial Family lay wreaths, followed by the Prime Minister and leaders of the major imperial political parties, Commonwealth High Commissioners and Dominion Resident Envoys, commemorations also take place at dominion, state and provincial capitals across the Empire.
Thanksgiving is a national and cultural holiday celebrated in the United Empire, Texas, Accra, California, and some parts of the Commonwealth. It is celebrated on the second Monday in October and began as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. Although Thanksgiving began as a religious festival, it has evolved into a secular cultural holiday. Historically, prayers of thanks and special ceremonies were common amongst most religions after harvests, but history of the modern British celebration of Thanksgiving is rooted in the English traditions of the Protestant Reformation, as well as sharing aspects of a harvest festival.
The the modern British celebration of Thanksgiving is generally accepted to have begun in the 1610s/1620s in the early English colonies along the North American Atlantic coast. The first documented occurrence of a thanksgiving feast and celebration took place in 1621 in the Plymouth colony, part of modern Massachusetts, as a result of a good harvest. However earlier documented events in New France and Virginia may represent similar feasts of thanks. The date for Thanksgiving was variable up until 1879, although it usually occurred in either late October or early November, and afterwards was set at a Thursday in November. Following the First World War and the establishment of Armistice (Remembrance) Day, both holidays were celebrated on the same date until 1931 when the date of Thanksgiving was set to the second Monday in October, in order to better correspond with the traditional harvest festivals.
While the actual Thanksgiving holiday is on a Monday, many British families gather for their Thanksgiving feast on any day during the long weekend. The celebration of Thanksgiving usually involves extended family reunions, parades and sports games, particularly gridiron football, as well as religious services. Traditional food served on Thanksgiving includes roast turkey with stuffing, and pumpkin pie, as well as many of other foods and vegetables that are native to the Americas. Although originating in continental North America, the celebration has spread to all parts of the Empire, although it’s popularity outside the American dominions varies significantly, it is celebrated as a national holiday in every dominion, with their own regional variations.
Hallowtide, also known
Allhallowtide,
Halloween or
Hallowmas, is a British cultural holiday celebrated throughout the nation as a "time to remember the dead", that emerged from the Western Christian triduum of Allsaintstide, which lasts from 31 October to 2 November every year. British hallowtide is a syncretic festival, incorporating elements of the Christian Allsaintstide, the ancient Gaelic festivals of Samhain, and the Mexican/Californian Day of the Dead, the latter itself originating in Aztec festivals.
The multi-day festival focuses on the remembrance of the dead, with family and friends gathering to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. Traditionally this takes the form of a candlelit vigil at graveyards, cemeteries and churches, but also in the home and public places. Offerings are also made at the graves of deceased friends and relatives, usually in the form of food or drink, pumpkins are carved to make "jack-o'-lanterns" and displayed outside houses, and bonfires are lit. People will also visit graveyards and cemeteries where friends and family are buried and attend church services.
In recent years, Hallowtide has taken on a more commercialised aspect, partly due to the rise in popularity of the horror and gothic genres in books and films. On 31 October children will dress in costume ("guising")and go around their local neighbourhood, knocking on doors and saying "trick-or-treat", threatening some form of mischief unless a treat is given. Many adults will also attend costume-themed parties during the Hallowtide celebration.
Bonfire Night, also known as
Guy Fawkes Night or the
Fifth of November, is an annual celebration observed on 5 November in parts of the British Empire and the Commonwealth. It commemorates the events of 5 November 1605, when Guy Fawkes, a leading member of the Gunpowder Plot, was arrested in the Palace of Westminster with barrels of gunpowder. It originated as a day of thanksgiving for the failure of an attempt on the life of King James VI & I, and historically had sectarian significance as a Protestant celebration and a focus for anti-Catholic sentiment.
Settlers in North America and Oceania exported the celebration to the overseas colonies, where it was sometimes known as Pope Day. During the Commonwealth period the celebration continued in a reduced form, but was resumed with the Restoration. In the 1850s, with changing attitudes to Catholics, in part due to growing integration of the American dominions and the increasing Catholic population across British America, resulted in the toning down of the anti-Catholic rhetoric and the emergence of the generally secular social commemoration. Bonfire Night in the 21st century is usually celebrated at large events in towns and cities across the Empire, centred on a bonfire and extravagant firework displays.
Although celebrated across the Empire, areas with large Catholic populations generally see more subdued celebrations than those in Protestant areas. It is uncommon to see a bonfire night celebration outside of the larger cities of Ireland, with the exception of the Protestant-majority north, and in Acadiana, Quebec and other Francophone Catholic regions of Britain-in-America the bonfires do not burn effigies of Guy Fawkes. Still Bonfire Night remains one of the most popular celebrations in the British calendar.
. I will aim to post a set of wikiboxes or a map or some other infodump at least once a fortnight (hopefully once a week) but please bear with me 
