Canada might be getting a national holiday to mourn Queen Elizabeth II
The passing of Queen Elizabeth II at the age of 96 has sent shockwaves across the United Kingdom and Commonwealth nations, and if you need a day off of work to process the end of her 70-year reign, there will almost certainly be a national holiday to mourn the fallen monarch.
The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 8, 2022
The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/VfxpXro22W
Unless the Government of Canada decides to break from longstanding tradition, the day of Queen Elizabeth II's funeral will be deemed a national holiday as the nation observes an official "Day of Mourning."
According to the Government of Canada's Manual of Official Procedure, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will convene parliament and pass a resolution of loyalty to the incoming monarch.
In every other instance of a monarch's passing since the Statute of Westminster was enacted in 1931, prime ministers have issued orders declaring a "Day of Mourning" observed on the day of the funeral.
Though it has been seven decades since the passing of King George VI in 1952, and attitudes toward the monarchy and colonialism have shifted during this time, experts consider it unlikely that the Federal Government would step away from past procedures.
Canadian protocol expert and author Christopher McCreery told the National Post in 2017 that "It would be a pretty significant break with tradition for there not to be a day of mourning that is a holiday."
blogTO has reached out to the Prime Minister's office about a possible national holiday, though there has been no confirmation as of writing.
And there could even be a second national holiday to celebrate the coronation of the new King.
Queen Elizabeth II's 1953 coronation was celebrated across Canada, with the country's first Canadian-born Governor General, Vincent Massey, declaring a national holiday that featured parades and fireworks displays.
