Tony Abbott inspecting Australias Federation Guard January 2015

Foundation Day is a designated date on which celebrations mark the founding of a nation, state or a creation of a military unit. This day is for countries that came into existence without the of gaining independence. The term overlaps with national days.

Background

Older countries that use some other event of special significance as their national day. This signals the use of a "class" of National Days, that are equally important in the foundation of the nation, and a "class" of less important official public holidays. This holiday can be symbolised by the date of becoming republic or a significant date for a patron saint or a ruler (birthday, accession, removal, etc.) as the starting point of the nation's history. Often the day is not called "Foundation Day" but serves and can be considered as one.

Examples

Asia

* Double Ten Day: outbreak of the Wuchang Uprising China and founding of the Republic of China (1911) * Gaecheonjeol: (English- National Foundation Day) public holiday in South Korea Also, celebrating the creation of Modern-day Korea in the year 2333 BCE * Hong Kong Foundation Day on 26 January, the anniversary of the founding of Hong Kong as a British colony (until 1997) * National Foundation Day, national holiday in Japan, celebrating the founding of the nation and the imperial line by its first emperor * Republic Day in India: becoming the first republic in the British Commonwealth of Nations, 1950 *

Saudi National Day Saudi National Day ( ar, اليوم الوطني للمملكة العربية السعودية ''al-Yawm al-Waṭanī lil-Mamlaka al-ʿArabiyya as-Saʿūdiyya'') is celebrated in Saudi Arabia every 23rd of September to commemorate the renaming ...

: the end of the 30-year campaign to unite the central Arabian lands to found the modern state, 1932 * Day of the Foundation of the Republic (North Korea): commemorates the foundation of the DPRK in 1948

Australasia

* Foundation Day, one of the precursors of Australia Day, celebrating the day the

First Fleet The First Fleet was a fleet of 11 ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia. It was made up of two Royal Navy vessels, three store ships and six convict transports. On 13 May 1787 the fleet under the command ...

landed at

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

1788 (also used separately to mark the foundation of two states) *

Norfolk Island Foundation Day Foundation Day is an annual public holiday in Norfolk Island commemorating the arrival of the original British settlers on 6 March 1788. Background Because the United States stopped accepting convicts from Britain after gaining independence, Bri ...

Norfolk Island Norfolk Island (, ; Norfuk: ''Norf'k Ailen'') is an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head and about from Lord Howe Island. Together with ...

on March 6, commemorating the First Fleet settlement under Philip Gidley King in 1788 *

Western Australia Day Western Australia Day or simply WA Day (formerly known as Foundation Day)King, Rhianna (2012)– WA Today. Published 10 April 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2012. is a public holiday in Western Australia (WA), celebrated on the first Monday in June ea ...

, a public holiday in Western Australia held on the first Monday in June, formerly known as Foundation Day

Europe

* German Unity Day: unification of West Germany and East Germany and the foundation of the modern German state, 1990 * Statehood Day (Lithuania): commemorates coronation of the first king, Mindaugas *

Swiss National Day The Swiss National Day (german: Schweizer Bundesfeiertag; french: Fête nationale suisse; it, Festa nazionale svizzera; Romansh: Festa naziunala svizra) is the national holiday of Switzerland, set on 1 August. Although the founding of the Swis ...

: alliance of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden against the Holy Roman Empire and the foundation of the Swiss state, 1291

References