By Alan Hamilton. The Times
THE Americans have Independence Day, the French have Bastille Day and every year on November 28 the Albanians commemorate liberation from the Ottoman Empire in 1912. Almost every country in the world has its National Day, often to celebrate the throwing-off of some old colonial yoke. Two of the very few that have no patriotic holiday allowing citizens a day off to bask in their own identity are the Democratic Republic of Congo and the United Kingdom. If we were to have one it ought to be on June 15, according to a survey carried out by BBC History magazine. That is the day in 1215 that the English barons forced King John to sign Magna Carta, the first tentative step from absolute monarchy to the will of the people.
More than a quarter of the 5,000 readers polled voted for this milestone in English constitutional history. It beat other popular suggestions, including the victories of Nelson and Wellington, the Second World War, the birth of Churchill, the abolition of slavery, the First Reform Act and Cromwell’s republic.
Magna Carta curbed the power of the monarch, safeguarded the Church and gave ordinary people rights under common law. Although not regarded as enormously significant at the time, it set down basic ideas of liberty, democracy and constitutionalism which, after 800 years, are taken for granted.
But as a cause for celebration of the modern British State, it has one big flaw: it is not British. Linda Colley, British-born Professor of History at Princeton University and author of a book on British identity after the 1707 Treaty of Union, said: “The problem with a Magna Carta Day is that this was originally very much an English, not a British, significant event.â€
The patron saints’ days celebrated in the four parts of the UK are clearly useless as excuses for a united nationhood. Burns Night in Scotland and Battle of the Boyne Day, a public holiday in Ulster, will patently not do either. And the Celtic Fringe will certainly not accept July 30, the date of the 1966 World Cup Final.
We need something like Spanish National Day (October 12), which marks Columbus’s discovery of America, or Australia Day (January 26), commemorating the date on which the first English ship sailed into Sydney Cove. The trouble with Britain is that, at a mere 299 years, it’s such a new nation. Give us another couple of centuries and we’ll think of something British.
NATIONAL DAY: TOP TEN DATES
June 15 Magna Carta, signed by King John in 1215
May 8 VE-Day, 1945
June 6 D-Day, 1944
November 11 Armistice Day, 1918
October 21 Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar, 1805
March 25 Abolition of the slave trade, 1807
June 18 Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, 1815
November 30 Birth of Churchill, 1874
May 19 Cromwellian republic established, 1649
June 7 Reform Act passed, 1832
Take care,
Gordon
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
-
gordonartist
- Posts: 434
- Joined: Wed Apr 05, 2006 11:55 pm
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
gordonartist wrote: By Alan Hamilton. The Times
THE Americans have Independence Day, the French have Bastille Day and every year on November 28 the Albanians commemorate liberation from the Ottoman Empire in 1912. Almost every country in the world has its National Day, often to celebrate the throwing-off of some old colonial yoke. Two of the very few that have no patriotic holiday allowing citizens a day off to bask in their own identity are the Democratic Republic of Congo and the United Kingdom. ........
NATIONAL DAY: TOP TEN DATES
June 15 Magna Carta, signed by King John in 1215
May 8 VE-Day, 1945
June 6 D-Day, 1944
November 11 Armistice Day, 1918
October 21 Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar, 1805
March 25 Abolition of the slave trade, 1807
June 18 Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, 1815
November 30 Birth of Churchill, 1874
May 19 Cromwellian republic established, 1649
June 7 Reform Act passed, 1832
Take care,
Gordon
No VJ Day?
I'd have thought the logical date would be Union day - July 2nd.
THE Americans have Independence Day, the French have Bastille Day and every year on November 28 the Albanians commemorate liberation from the Ottoman Empire in 1912. Almost every country in the world has its National Day, often to celebrate the throwing-off of some old colonial yoke. Two of the very few that have no patriotic holiday allowing citizens a day off to bask in their own identity are the Democratic Republic of Congo and the United Kingdom. ........
NATIONAL DAY: TOP TEN DATES
June 15 Magna Carta, signed by King John in 1215
May 8 VE-Day, 1945
June 6 D-Day, 1944
November 11 Armistice Day, 1918
October 21 Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar, 1805
March 25 Abolition of the slave trade, 1807
June 18 Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, 1815
November 30 Birth of Churchill, 1874
May 19 Cromwellian republic established, 1649
June 7 Reform Act passed, 1832
Take care,
Gordon
No VJ Day?
I'd have thought the logical date would be Union day - July 2nd.
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
We have a National Day, the first Friday of May. Christmas Day is allowed to be a national holiday even when it fails to touch a weekend, but no other does, it would be too disruptive.
Nullius in verba ... ☎||||||||||| ... To Fate I sue, of other means bereft, the only refuge for the wretched left. ... Hold no regard for unsupported opinion.
When flower power came along I stood for Human Rights, marched around for peace and freedom, had some nooky every night - we took it serious. [Fred Wedlock, "The Folker"]
Who has a spare two minutes to play in this month's FG Trivia game! ... My other OS is Slackware.
When flower power came along I stood for Human Rights, marched around for peace and freedom, had some nooky every night - we took it serious. [Fred Wedlock, "The Folker"]
Who has a spare two minutes to play in this month's FG Trivia game! ... My other OS is Slackware.
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
spot wrote: We have a National Day, the first Friday of May. Christmas Day is allowed to be a national holiday even when it fails to touch a weekend, but no other does, it would be too disruptive.
?Que?
?Que?
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
Bryn Mawr wrote: ?Que?¿Que?, dingbat.
Not quite technically May Day as the yeomen of old would have known it perhaps, but the May Day Bank Holiday anyway. The UK National Day.
Not quite technically May Day as the yeomen of old would have known it perhaps, but the May Day Bank Holiday anyway. The UK National Day.
Nullius in verba ... ☎||||||||||| ... To Fate I sue, of other means bereft, the only refuge for the wretched left. ... Hold no regard for unsupported opinion.
When flower power came along I stood for Human Rights, marched around for peace and freedom, had some nooky every night - we took it serious. [Fred Wedlock, "The Folker"]
Who has a spare two minutes to play in this month's FG Trivia game! ... My other OS is Slackware.
When flower power came along I stood for Human Rights, marched around for peace and freedom, had some nooky every night - we took it serious. [Fred Wedlock, "The Folker"]
Who has a spare two minutes to play in this month's FG Trivia game! ... My other OS is Slackware.
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
spot wrote: ¿Que?, dingbat.
Not quite technically May Day as the yeomen of old would have known it perhaps, but the May Day Bank Holiday anyway. The UK National Day.
Excuse me, I hate to point this out, but that's the Monday!
Not quite technically May Day as the yeomen of old would have known it perhaps, but the May Day Bank Holiday anyway. The UK National Day.
Excuse me, I hate to point this out, but that's the Monday!
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
Bryn Mawr wrote: Excuse me, I hate to point this out, but that's the Monday!Good lord, so it is. I got the principle right.
Nullius in verba ... ☎||||||||||| ... To Fate I sue, of other means bereft, the only refuge for the wretched left. ... Hold no regard for unsupported opinion.
When flower power came along I stood for Human Rights, marched around for peace and freedom, had some nooky every night - we took it serious. [Fred Wedlock, "The Folker"]
Who has a spare two minutes to play in this month's FG Trivia game! ... My other OS is Slackware.
When flower power came along I stood for Human Rights, marched around for peace and freedom, had some nooky every night - we took it serious. [Fred Wedlock, "The Folker"]
Who has a spare two minutes to play in this month's FG Trivia game! ... My other OS is Slackware.
-
DesignerGal
- Posts: 2554
- Joined: Tue Aug 30, 2005 11:20 am
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
And now the Namibians have a national holiday celebrating Brangelinas birth.
HBIC
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
But as a cause for celebration of the modern British State, it has one big flaw: it is not British. Linda Colley, British-born Professor of History at Princeton University and author of a book on British identity after the 1707 Treaty of Union, said: “The problem with a Magna Carta Day is that this was originally very much an English, not a British, significant event.â€
Arguably it wasn't an english day either-norman barons curbing the power of norman kings.
As a major step on the way to a nation and the mother of all parliaments, (french word that) then perhaps yes.
I don't think we need a British day, the idea is absurd. One of the main things of being british is perhaps the sheer eclectisism of the people. We have a distinct sense of nationhood as it is. Trying to quantify it is unnecessary and the road to ruin. "I am more british than you" is a load of cobblers. Quite simply we don't need it it's a daft idea much beloved of sad gits that don't like things to change and cling to a romantic notation of what the past was like and delude themselves that everybody should agree with their point of view and somehow what they think is more worthy than anyone else.
May Day used to be a pagan festival, so that's good let's annoy the christians, then it was hijacjked by the christian church at about the same time they pinched easter, then it was labour day for a while but that snmacked too much of power to the people so it was changed back.
How about 27th of january the day in 1649 a bunch of soldiers in the new model army lopped off the head of a scottish king. Both as a subtle way of reminding those in power they rule only with our consent and believing thay have a right to rule will result in a sticky end and also a reminder of what religious as well as political extremism can lead to if we let it. Not only has no king ever got too much power since then without it being taken off him, neither has the military or religious fanatics.
It would typify a delightfully British sentiment (Fiou yiu yoiu B*^&*(D who do you think you are.
Seriously the day we let someone tell us what britishness is we are no longer british.
If you had a statue of a typical briton standing next to britannia it should be some scruffy wee nyaff with two fingers up to the world taking on all comers regardless of the odds not some poncy angst ridden academic worried about what it is to be british and probably appalled by such loutish behaviour on the part of his compatriot.
Arguably it wasn't an english day either-norman barons curbing the power of norman kings.
As a major step on the way to a nation and the mother of all parliaments, (french word that) then perhaps yes.
I don't think we need a British day, the idea is absurd. One of the main things of being british is perhaps the sheer eclectisism of the people. We have a distinct sense of nationhood as it is. Trying to quantify it is unnecessary and the road to ruin. "I am more british than you" is a load of cobblers. Quite simply we don't need it it's a daft idea much beloved of sad gits that don't like things to change and cling to a romantic notation of what the past was like and delude themselves that everybody should agree with their point of view and somehow what they think is more worthy than anyone else.
May Day used to be a pagan festival, so that's good let's annoy the christians, then it was hijacjked by the christian church at about the same time they pinched easter, then it was labour day for a while but that snmacked too much of power to the people so it was changed back.
How about 27th of january the day in 1649 a bunch of soldiers in the new model army lopped off the head of a scottish king. Both as a subtle way of reminding those in power they rule only with our consent and believing thay have a right to rule will result in a sticky end and also a reminder of what religious as well as political extremism can lead to if we let it. Not only has no king ever got too much power since then without it being taken off him, neither has the military or religious fanatics.
It would typify a delightfully British sentiment (Fiou yiu yoiu B*^&*(D who do you think you are.
Seriously the day we let someone tell us what britishness is we are no longer british.
If you had a statue of a typical briton standing next to britannia it should be some scruffy wee nyaff with two fingers up to the world taking on all comers regardless of the odds not some poncy angst ridden academic worried about what it is to be british and probably appalled by such loutish behaviour on the part of his compatriot.
-
gordonartist
- Posts: 434
- Joined: Wed Apr 05, 2006 11:55 pm
If only Britain had thought of something like Magna Carta
the brits are accentric. That's why they win wars in the end. Perhaps you could celebrate on accentric's day
Take care.
Gordon.
Take care.
Gordon.