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'''Victoria Day''' ({{lang-fr|links=no|Fête de la Reine|lit=Celebration of the Queen}}) is a federal [[Public holidays in Canada|Canadian public holiday]] observed on the last Monday preceding May 25 to honour [[Queen Victoria]], who is known as the "Mother of [[Canadian Confederation|Confederation]]". The holiday has existed in Canada since at least 1845, originally on Victoria's natural birthday, May 24. It falls on the Monday between the 18th and the 24th (inclusive) and, so, is always the [[penultimate]] Monday of May ({{DatesWD|-2|1|5|format=%B %d}} in {{CURRENTYEAR}} and {{DatesWD|-2|1|5|format=%B %d|{{#expr:{{CURRENTYEAR}}+1}}}} in {{#expr:{{CURRENTYEAR}}+1}}). Victoria Day is a federal statutory holiday, as well as a holiday in six of Canada's ten provinces and all three of its territories. The holiday has always been a distinctly Canadian observance and continues to be celebrated across the country
The same date is also, since 1952, recognized as the currently reigning [[Monarchy of Canada|Canadian monarch]]'s [[King's Official Birthday#Canada|official birthday]] (though, previously, that event had been marked in Canada typically on each monarch's actual birthday).<ref>{{Citation |title=Government of Canada; Canadian Heritage |date=October 16, 2017 |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/important-commemorative-days/victoria-day.html |access-date=May 18, 2020 |archive-date=May 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521234143/https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/important-commemorative-days/victoria-day.html |url-status=live}}</ref> In [[Quebec]], before 2003, the Monday preceding May 25 of each year was unofficially the {{lang|fr|Fête de Dollard}}, a commemoration of [[Adam Dollard des Ormeaux]], initiated in the 1920s to coincide with Victoria Day. In 2003, provincial legislation officially created [[National Patriots' Day]] ({{lang-fr|links=no|Journée nationale des Patriotes}}) on the same date.
==History==
Royal birthdays for members of French and British royal families were commemorated in various parts of Canada since the 17th century. These were ad hoc commemorations, rather than holidays enshrined in law. Early commemorations were typically marked by an official ceremony, such as a [[Levee (ceremony)|levee]] and military review, banquets, and sporting events. Several different days were used to celebrate a sovereign's birthday. The
Shortly after [[the Canadas]] were united into the [[Province of Canada]], the [[Parliament of the Province of Canada|Parliament]] sought to create a new public holiday that would form common ground between English and [[French Canadians]], helping them transcend their religious and cultural differences. The birthday of [[Queen Victoria]] was selected to be transformed into a public holiday, as it was a date that appealed to both English and French Canadians. At the time, loyalty to the Crown was seen as a key trait that distinguished Canada from the United States and the monarchy was viewed as a "guarantor of minority rights" in the colony.<ref name=canenvicday/> The Queen's birthday was officially designated as a public holiday by legislation passed in 1845, transforming the date from a military event to a civilian holiday<ref name=Macleans/><ref name=G&M/><ref name=DCH>{{citation| url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/jfa-ha/victoria-eng.cfm| title=Ceremonial and Canadian Symbols Promotion > Victoria Day > Sovereign's Birthday| accessdate=May 12, 2009| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205141327/http://pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/jfa-ha/victoria-eng.cfm| archive-date=February 5, 2009}}</ref> and making it Canada's now-oldest official holiday.<ref name=CBCNews>{{citation| url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/victoria-day-2015-24-facts-about-may-24-long-weekend-1.3072164| last=Butler| first=Colin| title=Victoria Day 2015: 24 facts about May 24 long weekend| date=May 14, 2015| publisher=CBC News| accessdate=April 11, 2023}}</ref>
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A traditional, short song about Victoria Day went as follows: "The twenty-fourth of May / Is the Queen's birthday; / If they don't give us a holiday / We'll all run away!"<ref name=G&M/> The holiday is referenced in the song "[[Lakeside Park (song)|Lakeside Park]]" by Canadian rock band [[Rush (band)|Rush]], from their 1975 album ''[[Caress of Steel]]''. The song features the line, "everyone would gather on the 24th of May, sitting in the sand to watch the fireworks display".
==Petition to change name==
In 2013, an online petition was circulated to rename the holiday "Victoria and First Peoples Day",<ref>{{Cite news| url=http://www.theobserver.ca/2013/05/19/group-wants-victoria-day-holiday-to-be-renamed| last=Davidson| first=Terry| title=Group wants Victoria Day name change| date=May 19, 2013| newspaper=Sarnia Observer| accessdate=May 19, 2013| archive-url=https://archive.today/20130616004858/http://www.theobserver.ca/2013/05/19/group-wants-victoria-day-holiday-to-be-renamed| archive-date=June 16, 2013| url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news| url=http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/05/19/prominent-canadians-back-petition-to-rename-victoria-day-to-honour-aboriginals/| last=Shingler| first=Benjamin| title=Victoria Day: Prominent Canadians back petition to rename holiday| date=May 19, 2013| newspaper=National Post| accessdate=May 20, 2013| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220603000744/https://nationalpost.com/category/news/| archive-date=June 3, 2022| url-status=live}}</ref> to provide Canadians with an opportunity to honour both the Crown and the [[Indigenous peoples of Canada]],<ref name=CBCNews/> which [[Monarchy of Canada and the Indigenous peoples of Canada|share a relationship]]. While a group of prominent Canadian actors, authors, and politicians sent the petition to [[Prime Minister of Canada|Prime Minister]] [[Stephen Harper]], in total the petition did not get enough traction for any change to occur.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/victoria-day | title=Victoria Day }}</ref>
==See also==
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[[Category:1845 establishments in Canada]]
[[Category:Recurring events established in 1845]]
[[Category:Birthdays by person]]
[[Category:Birthdays of heads of state]]
[[Category:May observances]]
[[Category:Monarchy
[[Category:Monday observances]]
[[Category:Monuments and memorials to Queen Victoria]]
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