h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Armada day. Even Napoleon Bonaparte didn't pose as much of a threat to this country as the Spanish Armada. Besides, if Catholic Spain had annexed England and tightened its grip on the Low Countries it's pretty safe to say there would have been no (or at least a severely delayed) Enlightenment, no Anglican church, possibly no British Industrial revolution (spurred on of course by the Enlightenment) and no United States of America as we know them today.

If Drake hadn't pulled a fast one in the Channel, the world in which we live in would be very, very different.

The Navy celebrate Trafalgar Day, I've had to cook at several 'Traff Night' dinners

Fact still remains that in a historical context, the defeat of the armada was much more significant than Trafalgar, and as such is more deserving (in my opinion anyway) of a national holiday.

In that case why not make every battle win a holiday, we'd get about 6 months of holidays

There's a case for the really important ones in British history, and by those I mean the Defeat of the Armada (reasons listed in post 1), Badajoz (defeated the French penninsular army, allowed Empire to grow at the expense of France and Spain, cost tremendous amounts of british lives hence a rememberance aspect) and the Battle of Britain. Every battle might be a bit much though, and I don't think Trafalgar makes the cut.

The RAF celebrates the Battle of Britain, I've done dinner's for that too

Yeah, the organisations do, but isn't this forum about whether there should be a national holiday??

Yes but I don't think in this day of total PC-ness that a national holiday celebrating a battle win is high on the list of forthcoming national holidays

Probably not, but it should be.

Does any other country have holidays celebrating battle wins

Bastille Day is technically celebrating the victory of a street battle in Paris, American Independence Day celebrates the victory of British forces in a number of battles. I'm sure there's more if I could be mithered looking into it

Bastille was a civil dispute tho?

Well technically not after they let out all the prisoner's....one at the time.

I've never been one for french history

I study it...well,medeval history in general.

Irelaand has no holiday celebrating a battle,we do have loads of bank holidays though.

Is a lot of it religious holidays?

not really....saint patricks day,christmas,easter.

What about church holidays, saints days, that kind of thing

Oh ya there's tonnes of saints days and church holidays,its just that you don't get off work for them.

I guess you'd be on holiday for about 3 months