The national flag of Canada.

Flag Day in Canada is observed on February 15 each year, commemorating the inauguration of the national flag of Canada by Governor General Georges Vanier on that date in 1965. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Events 590 - Khosrau II is crowned as king of Persia 1637 - Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor The National Flag of Canada, also known as the Maple Leaf, and fr l'Unifolié ( French for "the one-leafed" is a red Flag The Governor General of Canada ( French: Gouverneure générale du Canada, or: Gouverneur général du Canada) is the vice-regal representative Major-General Georges-Philéas Vanier DSO MC & Bar CD ( April 23, 1888 - March 5, 1967 ^[1] The day, officially called National Flag of Canada Day, is marked by flying the flag, occasional public ceremonies (especially in 2005, its 40th anniversary), and educational programs in schools. It is not a public holiday, although there has been discussion about creating one.

The banner replaced the Canadian Red Ensign, which had been in use, if not officially, in one form or another since 1868. The Canadian Red Ensign is the former flag of Canada, used officially by the federal government though it was never adopted as official by the Parliament of Canada The new flag was passed by the House of Commons on December 15, 1964, by the Senate two days later, and was proclaimed by Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, to take effect on February 15 of the following year. The House of Commons (Chambre des communes is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign (represented by the Governor General) and The Senate of Canada (Le Sénat du Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the sovereign (represented by the governor general For the ship see RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Context States headed by Elizabeth II TalkCommonewalth realm.-->The monarchy of ^[2] The flag first flew on Parliament Hill on that date. Parliament Hill (colloquially The Hill, French Colline du Parlement) is a scenic location on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown

Flag Day was instituted in 1996 by an Order-in-Council from Governor General Roméo LeBlanc, on the initiative of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien. An Order-in-Council is a type of legislation in Commonwealth Realms. The Governor General of Canada ( French: Gouverneure générale du Canada, or: Gouverneur général du Canada) is the vice-regal representative Roméo-Adrien LeBlanc PC CC CMM ONB CD (born December 18, 1927 in Memramcook, The Prime Minister of Canada ( French: Premier ministre du Canada) is the primary Minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien, (generally known as Jean Chrétien) (born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian politician who was the twentieth Prime Outside of the federal government, its official title is little used. The official name could be interpreted as suggesting there is a national flag for Canada Day. Canada Day (Fête du Canada formerly Dominion Day, is Canada 's national day, a federal statutory holiday, celebrating the anniversary of the The somewhat awkward official name, with insertion of the qualifying words "of Canada," likely stems from the problem of using the word nation or national in Canada, where it is invoked by various groups such as aboriginal peoples, called First Nations, and by the province of Quebec, which is sometimes referred to as a nation (e. Aboriginal people in Canada, also known as Canadian aboriginal citizens, are people who belong to recognized indigenous groups in the Canadian Constitution Act First Nations is a term of Ethnicity that refers to the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis people Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk g. , National Assembly of Quebec). The National Assembly of Quebec (Assemblée nationale du Québec is the name for the legislative body of the province of Quebec, Canada. At the official level, it was decided National Flag Day would not be acceptable. Despite this, National Flag Day, and especially Flag Day, are commonly used.

At the very first Flag Day ceremony in Hull, Quebec, Chrétien's speech was drowned out by a group of demonstrators upset by proposed cuts in the unemployment insurance legislation. Hull is the central and oldest part of the city of Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. Chrétien left the stage and while walking through the crowd he encountered Bill Clennett, one of the demonstrators who was shouting "Chrétien, au chômage" ("make Chrétien unemployed"). Chrétien grabbed Clennett by the neck and pushed him aside. Chrétien was criticized for this incident, which came to be dubbed the Shawinigan Handshake, after Chrétien's town of birth Shawinigan, Quebec. Shawinigan Handshake is the Nickname of a Chokehold executed by Jean Chrétien, who was Prime Minister of Canada at the time on anti-poverty

Numerous Canadians feel that Flag Day should be declared a national statutory holiday, as there is a long period early in the year (between New Year's Day and Good Friday) without any holidays, except in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario (see Family Day). In Canada, public holidays are legislated at the national provincial and territorial levels New Year's Day is the first day of the Year. On the modern Gregorian calendar, it is celebrated on January 1, as it was also in ancient Rome (though Good Friday, also called Holy Friday or Great Friday, is the Friday preceding Easter Sunday ("Pascha" Alberta (ælˈbɝtə is one of Canada's prairie provinces. It became a province on September 1 1905 Saskatchewan (səˈskætʃəwən) is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of 588276 Manitoba (English ˌmænɨˈtoʊbə French /manitoba/ is a province of Canada, spanning 647797 square kilometres (250116  sq mi of North America Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec Family Day is the name of a public Holiday in South Africa, in the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Ontario, and Saskatchewan That suggestion grew louder as the flag celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2005. On Flag Day in 2007, New Democratic Party Member of Parliament Peggy Nash introduced a private member's bill to make Flag Day a national statutory holiday. Principles policies and electoral achievement The NDP grew from populist, agrarian and democratic socialist roots A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a Parliament. Peggy A Nash (born June 28, 1951 in Toronto) is a federal Canadian politician with the New Democratic Party. Nash said her bill would have made Flag Day a federal holiday and it would have been up to the provinces to decide if they also wanted the statutory holiday.

See also

• Flag of Canada
• Great Flag Debate
• George F.G. Stanley
• List of Canadian flags
• National flag

Footnotes

1. ^ Department of Canadian Heritage: The National Flag of Canada
2. ^ Department of Canadian Heritage: Birth of the Canadian flag

External links

• National Flag of Canada Day
• Birth of Canada's National Flag