Remembrance Day
Remembrance Day
Every year at eleven o’clock, November 11, most workers, authorities and officials stop performing their tasks and share a minute of silence. On this date and hour, in 1918, the Allied forces signed the Armistice Act with the Germans, which meant that the Great War was over. The UK and the Commonwealth adopted it as Armistice Day, but gradually, after World War II, decided to change the name to Remembrance Day, which would commemorate all the people deceased in war, not only the ones who died during the second decade of the 20th century.
In Australia and New Zealand, this holiday is less significant than ANZAC Day, which commemorates the special troops of these countries. Yet Great Britain and Canada still emphasize the importance of November 11, insofar as many other, non-English speaking countries also recognize it.
Remembrance Day is a statutory holiday in all territories and six provinces of Canada, but neither the UK nor Australia celebrate it as a public holiday.
On November 6, 1919, King George V appealed to establish a two-minute silence on Nov 11 as a yearly observance; however, he was supposedly forestalled by the Canadian MP Isaac Pedlow, who wished the Armistice Day to fall on the second Monday of the month. The United Kingdom went on to celebrate the occasion on a Sunday closest to November 11, while Australia simply held on to the historical date. Meanwhile, the Canadian government struggled for Armistice Day not to fall on the same date as Thanksgiving; on March 18, 1931, MP A. W. Neil proclaimed that the holiday will be observed on November 11. The British performed their first moment of silence on November 12, 1919, and both the Australian and Canadian citizens followed. Canada’s first Remembrance Day was observed by that name in 1931. The country’s Holiday Acts of 1970 and 1985 adopted the date as a national holiday, but Ontario, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Quebec do not recognize it as statutory.
The main symbols of that day are the red poppy, national anthems, and “The Last Post” which is a bugle call common for the countries of the Commonwealth. The poppy represents resilience, as its seeds can survive the winter, and blood, as the flower is red. The tradition to decorate graves and clothing with poppies originated in the fields of Flanders, a Belgian territory which was the background to many World War I battles. It used to be filled with these red flowers. Since they are a very important symbol, the Commonwealth countries sometimes call November 11 “poppy day”. The anthem and musical pieces mentioned above are always played during commemoration ceremonies. The British national ceremony is held at Whitehall in Central London, where all authorities are gathered, including the Royal Family. Big Ben strikes precisely at 11 o’clock. Similar events take place at the National War Memorial in Ottawa, where appear Governor General of Canada, the prime minister and other country’s dignitaries. In Australia and New Zealand there are no customary national ceremonies, but churches make special masses and schools organize assemblies.
The United Kingdom does not celebrate November 11 as a day-off, especially that the major ceremonies are held on a Remembrance Sunday. Similar is the case in Australia, but both countries choose to observe the moment of silence at 11 o’clock.
Canada, on the other hand, recognizes Remembrance Day as a federal holiday, which means that most government offices are closed. In addition, six provinces and all territories call it a statutory holiday. On that day, employees receive a regular pay even though they are not expected to come to work. The provinces that do not recognize Remembrance Day as a statutory holiday, regulate their full-pay days individually.
Although, as one may note, most Commonwealth territories do not celebrate November 11 as a day off, it is still a very significant part of their history and it is always remembered.