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Victoria Day
23 May 2022
An event every year that begins at 12:00 am on of [month], repeating indefinitely
Celebrated as the official birthday of Canada’s sovereign
The beginning of the summer season in Canada
Give cheers to the queen
Traditions include a gun salute at midnight, pre-dawn serenades, picnics, athletic competitions, a display of illumination, and a torch-lit procession
Major tragedies: In 1881, the passenger ferry Victoria overturned in the Thames River, and on May 26th, 1896, the Point Ellice Bridge collapsed under the weight of a streetcar.
Canada is the only country that commemorates Queen Victoria with an official Holiday.
This holiday is also known as “May Two-Four”, Canadian slang for a case of Twenty-Four beers.
A traditional song about Victoria’s Day went as follows: “The Twenty Fourth of May/ Is the Queens Birthday; / If they don’t give us a holiday / We’ll all run away!