A red letter day (sometimes

hyphen The hyphen is a punctuation mark used to join words and to separate syllables of a single word. The use of hyphens is called hyphenation. The hyphen is sometimes confused with dashes (en dash , em dash and others), which are wider, or with t ...

ated as red-letter day) is any day of special significance or opportunity. Its roots are in classical antiquity; for instance, important days are indicated in red in a

calendar A calendar is a system of organizing days. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months and years. A calendar date, date is the designation of a single and specific day within such a system. A calendar is ...

dating from the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

(509–27 BC). In medieval manuscripts, initial capitals and highlighted words (known as

rubrics A rubric is a word or section of text that is traditionally written or printed in red ink for emphasis. The word derives from the Latin , meaning red ochre or red chalk, and originates in medieval illuminated manuscripts from the 13th century or ...

) were written in red ink. The practice was continued after the invention of the printing press, including in Catholic

liturgical book A liturgical book, or service book, is a book published by the authority of a church body that contains the text and directions for the liturgy of its official Church service, religious services. Christianity Roman Rite In the Roman Rite of ...

s. Many calendars still indicate special dates, festivals and

holiday A holiday is a day or other period of time set aside for festivals or recreation. ''Public holidays'' are set by public authorities and vary by state or region. Religious holidays are set by religious organisations for their members and are often ...

s in red instead of black. In the universities of the UK, scarlet days are when doctors may wear their scarlet 'festal' or full dress gowns instead of their undress ('black') gown. In Norway, Sweden, Hong Kong, South Korea, Indonesia and some Latin American countries, a public holiday is sometimes referred to as "red day" (rød dag, röd dag, 빨간 날, 紅日, ''tanggal merah''), as it is printed in red in calendars.

Legal

On red letter days, judges of the English High Court (King's Bench Division) wear, at sittings of the Court of Law, their scarlet

robe A robe is a loose-fitting outer garment. Unlike garments described as capes or cloaks, robes usually have sleeves. The English word ''robe'' derives from Middle English ''robe'' ("garment"), borrowed from Old French ''robe'' ("booty, spoil ...

s (see

court dress Court dress comprises the style of clothes and other attire prescribed for members of court, courts of law. Depending on the country and jurisdiction's traditions, members of the court (judges, magistrates, and so on) may wear formal robes, g ...

). Red letter days for these purposes are a fixed selection of saints' days (sometimes coinciding with the traditional start or end dates of the legal terms during which sittings of the High Court take place) and of national celebrations, mostly associated with senior members of the British royal family (and, therefore, changing from generation to generation).

Current red letter days in the United Kingdom

The list of red letter days currently observed in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

(and on which, if a weekday, judges of the English High Court (King's Bench Division) traditionally wear, at sittings of the Court of Law, their scarlet

s) is as follows: October * 18th ( St Luke) * 28th ( St Simon and

St Jude Jude the Apostle (Ancient Greek: Ἰούδας Ἰακώβου translit. Ioúdas Iakóbou Syriac/Aramaic: ܝܗܘܕܐ translit. Yahwada) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. He is generally identified as Tha ...

) November * 1st ( All Saints) * 14th ( King Charles III, born, 1948) * 2nd Saturday in November ( Lord Mayor's Day) * 30th (

St Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( ; ; ; ) was an apostle of Jesus. According to the New Testament, he was a fisherman and one of the Apostles in the New Testament, Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus. The title First-Called () used by the Eastern Orthodox Chu ...

) December * 21st ( St Thomas) January * 25th ( Conversion of St Paul) February * 2nd (

Candlemas Candlemas, also known as the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or the Feast of the Holy Encounter, is a Christian holiday, Christian feast day commemorating the presentation of ...

) * 6th ( Queen's Accession, 1952) * Moveable (

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent: the seven weeks of Christian prayer, prayer, Religious fasting#Christianity, fasting and ...

) * 24th ( St Mathias) March * 1st ( St David) * 25th (

Lady Day In the Western liturgical year, Lady Day is the common name in some English-speaking and Scandinavian countries of the Feast of the Annunciation, celebrated on 25 March to commemorate the annunciation of the archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mar ...

) April * 21st ( Queen Elizabeth II born, 1926) * 25th (

St Mark Mark the Evangelist (Koine Greek, Koinē Greek: Μᾶρκος, romanized: ''Mârkos''), also known as John Mark (Koine Greek, Koinē Greek language, Greek: Ἰωάννης Μᾶρκος, Romanization of Greek, romanized: ''Iōánnēs Mârkos;'' ...

) May * 1st (

St Philip Philip the Apostle (; Aramaic: ܦܝܠܝܦܘܣ; , ''Philippos'') was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Later Christian traditions describe Philip as the apostle who preached in Greece, Syria, and Asia-Minor. In ...

and St James) * Moveable (

Ascension Day The Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Christ (also called the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, Ascension Day, Ascension Thursday, or sometimes Holy Thursday) commemorates the Christian belief of the bodily Ascension of Jesus into Heaven. It ...

) June * 2nd ( Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, 1953) * 2nd Saturday in June (

Queen's Official Birthday The King's Official Birthday or Queen's Official Birthday is the selected day in most Commonwealth realms on which the birthday of the monarch is officially celebrated in those countries. It does not necessarily correspond to the date of the m ...

) * 10th ( Duke of Edinburgh born, 1921) * 11th ( St Barnabas) * 24th (

St John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

) * 29th (

St Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the early Christian Church. He appears repe ...

) July * 25th ( St James) Days which will never fall within the legal term are not red letter days (examples being Christmas Day and Easter Day).

Former red letter days in the United Kingdom

A comparison can be drawn with the Red Letter Days listed 100 years ago in ''Dress and Insignia Worn at His Majesty's Court'' (1921), which are on the same principle (a fixed selection of saints’ days, plus days honouring senior members of the Royal Family), except that the modern list adds the national saints of Wales and Scotland (St David and St Andrew, not listed in 1921) although not the national saint of England (St George). The 1921 listing, in full, is: Red Letter Days on which the Judges of the High Court (King's Bench Division) wear, at Sittings of the Court of Law, their Scarlet Robes: * January 25. (Conversion of Saint Paul.) * February 2. (Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary.) * February 24. (Saint Matthias.) * Ash Wednesday. (Movable.) * March 25. (Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.) * April 25. (Saint Mark.) * May 1. (Saint Philip and Saint James.) * Ascension Day. (Holy Thursday.) (Movable.) * May 6. ( The King's Accession.) * May 26. ( The Queen's Birthday.) * June 3. ( The King's Birthday.) * June 11. (Saint Barnabas.) * June 22. ( The King's Coronation.) * June 23. (

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

's Birthday.) * June 24. (Saint John the Baptist.) * June 29. Saint Peter. * Celebration of His Majesty's Birthday. (Movable.) * June 25. (Saint James.) * October 18. (Saint Luke.) * October 28. (Saint Simon and Saint Jude.) * November 1. (All Saints.) * November 9. (Lord Mayor's Day.) * November 30. (Saint Andrew.) * December 1. (Birthday of

Queen Alexandra Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was List of British royal consorts, queen-consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 Januar ...

.) * December 21. (Saint Thomas.)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Red Letter Day Color in culture Color symbols Observances

Legal

Current red letter days in the United Kingdom

Former red letter days in the United Kingdom

See also

References