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Proclamation Day is the name of official or unofficial
holiday A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or t ...
s or other anniversaries which commemorate or mark an important
proclamation A proclamation (Lat. ''proclamare'', to make public by announcement) is an official declaration issued by a person of authority to make certain announcements known. Proclamations are currently used within the governing framework of some nations ...
. In some cases it may be the day of, or the anniversary of, the proclamation of a monarch's accession to the throne. A proclamation day may also celebrate the independence of a country, the end of a war, or the ratification of an important treaty.


South Australia

Proclamation Day in
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest o ...
celebrates the establishment of government in South Australia as a British
province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...
. The province itself was officially created and proclaimed in 1834 when the
British Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...
passed the South Australia Act, which empowered King William IV to create South Australia as a British province and to provide for its colonisation and government. It was ratified 19 February 1836 when King William issued Letters Patent establishing the province. The proclamation announcing the establishment of Government was made by Captain
John Hindmarsh Rear-Admiral Sir John Hindmarsh KH (baptised 22 May 1785 – 29 July 1860) was a naval officer and the first Governor of South Australia, from 28 December 1836 to 16 July 1838. Family His grandfather William Hindmarsh was a gardener in Co ...
beside
The Old Gum Tree The Old Gum Tree (also known as The Proclamation Tree) is a historic site in Glenelg North, South Australia. Near this tree on 28 December 1836, the British governor John Hindmarsh delivered the proclamation announcing the establishment of Go ...
at the present-day suburb of
Glenelg North Glenelg North is a seaside suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in both the City of Holdfast Bay and the City of West Torrens. Demographics The 2011 Census by the Australian Bureau of Statistics counted 5,699 persons in Glenelg ...
on 28 December 1836. The proclamation specified the same protection under the law for the local
native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...
population as for the settlers. The proclamation was drafted aboard by Hindmarsh's private secretary, George Stevenson, and printed by Robert Thomas (1782–1860), who came from England with his family on , arriving at
Holdfast Bay The Holdfast Bay is a small bay in Gulf St Vincent, next to Adelaide, South Australia. Along its shores lie the local government area of the City of Holdfast Bay and the suburbs of Glenelg and Glenelg North European settlement on Holdfast Bay ...
on 8 November 1836. Thomas brought with him the first printing press to reach South Australia. The press was a Stanhope Invenit No. 200, and was on display in the
State Library A national library is established by the government of a nation to serve as the pre-eminent repository of information for that country. Unlike public libraries, they rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuab ...
until 2001. It may be surmised that, from the quilled text of the proclamation provided to him by the officials, it was Thomas himself who made a more striking layout for print, later most familiar to the public. It was signed by the Colonial Secretary,
Robert Gouger Robert Gouger (; 26 June 1802 – 4 August 1846) was one of the founders of South Australia and the first Colonial Secretary of South Australia. Early life Gouger was the fifth son of nine children of George Gouger (1763–1802), who was a pr ...
, who had also travelled on the ''Africaine''.


Text of the Proclamation

By His Excellency John Hindmarsh, Knight of the Royal Hanoverian Guelphic Order, Governor and Commander-in-Chief of His Majesty’s Province of South Australia. In announcing to the Colonists of His Majesty’s Province of South Australia, the establishment of the Government, I hereby call upon them to conduct themselves on all occasions with order and quietness, duly to respect the laws, and by a course of industry and sobriety, by the practice of sound morality and a strict observance of the Ordinances of Religion, to prove themselves worthy to be the Founders of a great and free Colony. It is also, at this time especially, my duty to apprize the Colonists of my resolution, to take every lawful means for extending the same protection to the Native Population as to the rest of His Majesty’s Subjects and of my firm determination to punish with exemplary severity, all acts of violence or injustice which may in any manner be practiced or attempted against the Natives who are to be considered as much under the Safeguard of the law as the Colonists themselves, and equally entitled to the privileges of British Subjects. I trust therefore, with confidence to the exercise of moderation and forbearance by all Classes, in their intercourse with the Native Inhabitants, and that they will omit no opportunity of assisting me to fulfil His Majesty’s most gracious and benevolent intentions toward them, by promoting their advancement in civilization, and ultimately, under the blessing of Divine Providence, their conversion to the Christian Faith. By His Excellency’s Command,
Robert Gouger,
Colonial Secretary.
Glenelg, 28th December 1836.
God Save the King.
The colonising fleet prior to ''Buffalo'' consisted of 8 vessels which had first arrived at
Nepean Bay Nepean Bay is a bay located on the north-east coast of Kangaroo Island in the Australian state of South Australia about south-south-west of Adelaide. It was named by the British navigator, Matthew Flinders, after Sir Evan Nepean on 21 March ...
on
Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island, also known as Karta Pintingga (literally 'Island of the Dead' in the language of the Kaurna people), is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest ...
before being directed to
Holdfast Bay The Holdfast Bay is a small bay in Gulf St Vincent, next to Adelaide, South Australia. Along its shores lie the local government area of the City of Holdfast Bay and the suburbs of Glenelg and Glenelg North European settlement on Holdfast Bay ...
on the mainland. The first vessel to arrive at Nepean Bay was ''Duke of York'' on 27 July 1836 which did not proceed to Holdfast Bay but instead set off on a whaling expedition. ''Africaine'' was the seventh to arrive at Nepean Bay (4 Nov 1836), discharging settlers at Holdfast Bay on 9 November 1836. Seven of these earlier ships preceded Governor John Hindmarsh on ''Buffalo'' to enable preparations in advance of his formal arrival on 28 December. Thomas's wife
Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
(1787–1875) published ''The Diary of Mary Thomas'', in which she described the journey on ''Africaine'' and the early years in South Australia. An extract from the diary reads: One of the children of Robert and Mary Thomas was a surveyor who assisted
Colonel William Light William Light (27 April 1786 – 6 October 1839), also known as Colonel Light, was a British- Malayan naval and army officer. He was the first Surveyor-General of the new British Province of South Australia, known for choosing the site of ...
in the survey which led to the founding of the
City of Adelaide The City of Adelaide, also known as the Corporation of the City of Adelaide and Adelaide City Council is a local government area in the metropolitan area of greater Adelaide, South Australia and is legally defined as the capital city of South ...
. In 1876 Parliament decreed that the Proclamation Day holiday, a gala occasion when thousands descended on Glenelg, would henceforth be celebrated on 27 December in lieu of the 28th, in order to make a three-day Christmas holiday. H. J Moseley, proprietor of the Glenelg's Pier Hotel, was the first and loudest protester against the move which was rescinded. The Proclamation Day
public holiday A public holiday, national holiday, or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. Sovereign nations and territories observe holidays based on events of significance to their history ...
is prescribed in the South Australian ''Holidays Act, 1910''. Originally the Act provided that the day was to be observed on the 28th December, except when that day occurred on a Saturday or Sunday, at which times it was to be celebrated on the following Monday. On 4 November 1993, the ''Holidays Act, 1910'' was amended by the ''Holidays (Proclamation Day, Australia Day and Bank Holidays) Amendment Act 1993'', changing the date for observance of the day to the day following the Christmas Day holiday. The change was made primarily as a response to the recommendations of the South Australian Industrial Relations Advisory Council, which had advised that the holiday should be changed to avoid stop/start work patterns, particularly in the retail industry. The change was also said to be consistent with national uniformity arrangements in relation to certain public holidays. Formal ceremonies involving the most senior current officials and politicians, followed by public celebrations, continue to be held at the still-extant
Old Gum Tree The Old Gum Tree (also known as The Proclamation Tree) is a historic site in Glenelg North, South Australia. Near this tree on 28 December 1836, the British governor John Hindmarsh delivered the proclamation announcing the establishment of Gov ...
at Glenelg North on 28 December, or one day earlier on 27 December in some years.


Western Australia

Proclamation Day also refers to 21 October 1890, the day that
Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to t ...
achieved
self-government __NOTOC__ Self-governance, self-government, or self-rule is the ability of a person or group to exercise all necessary functions of regulation without intervention from an external authority. It may refer to personal conduct or to any form of ...
, with its own constitution and self-elected
parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
. Proclamation Day was originally a public holiday, but its significance was overshadowed by the celebrations of the Eight Hours Day, which were held on the same day, and by 1919 the public holiday had been replaced by
Labour Day Labour Day (''Labor Day'' in the United States) is an annual holiday to celebrate the achievements of workers. Labour Day has its origins in the labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for ...
.


References


External links

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transcript
{{Authority control Public holidays in Australia History of South Australia History of Western Australia October observances December observances Proclamations