May 24 Holiday
Yippee, it’s a holiday! It’s the Victoria Day Long Weekend. But do you know what we’re celebrating? What is May 24, really?
Other than an excuse to watch fireworks and stay home from school.
It’s Queen Elizabeth II’s birthday. But only kind of.
Queen Elizabeth was born on April 21, but her official birthday is on May 24. Kings and queens in Britain, where the Queen lives, usually have two birthdays: one just for them and their families, and a second one for the public. That’s what May 24 is: Queen Elizabeth II’s second birthday.
Two birthdays sounds pretty great, right? It gets better: in Britain, the Queen’s official birthday is in June. That brings the birthday count up to three. SO MANY BIRTHDAYS.
Think of all the cake!
You may have heard that today is Queen Victoria’s birthday. That’s also true! Queen Victoria actually was born on May 24, all the way back in 1819. That’s where this holiday gets its official name, Victoria Day.
But at the end of the day (literally! Ha ha!), we’re just here for the fireworks. If you don’t get fireworks in your area, you can check out a cool fireworks vid below:
How do you celebrate May 24, readers? Let us know in the comments!
-Katie, owlblog@owlkids.com