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📅 holiday

National Remembrance Day

Thursday, July 23, 2026

— days to go

National Remembrance Day in Papua New Guinea is celebrated on 23 July each year. It is a memorial day designed to honour PNG soldiers who died during military engagements, including World War I and World War II. In 2026, National Remembrance Day falls on Thursday 23 July. The holiday will be on Friday 23 July in 2027. More than 600 Australians were killed and more than 1,680 wounded during the Battle of Kokoda which began on 23 July 1942. The Japanese were attempting to capture Port Moresby, the main base in Australia which was located in New Guinea. Over the next few days, the Australians fought to protect Kokoda, but the village fell to the larger Japanese force. Conditions were extremely uncomfortable as the battle continued over the next four months. Australian soldiers not only fought to keep the Japanese from reaching Port Moresby, but also to push them over the Owen Stanley Range to the northern coast. The battle was so fierce that the date was chosen as a day to remember fallen soldiers in Papua New Guinea. The battle sealed the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea as the countries fought side-by-side to block the Japanese advance. It was one of the bloodiest campaigns of the war. Had the Japanese been successful, the mainland of Australia would have been threatened. Kokoda was Australia’s most significant campaign in World War II with more Australians dying in the conflict in PNG than any other campaign. The average age of the Australian soldier was 18 and many are now buried at the Bomana War Cemetery. An official ceremony is held at Remembrance park in Port Moresby. The ceremony is held in front of a war memorial that depicts Raphael Oimbari aiding a wounded soldier. Raphael Oimbari was one of the “Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels,” a group of people who assisted and escorted wounded Australian troops down the Kokoda trail. Many were villagers who knew nothing about war and some had never even seen Australian patrol officers. During the Battle of Kokoda, the villagers carried supplies and seriously wounded soldiers as far as Owers’ Corner. The men named them their “Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels,” a title that has remained and is emblazoned on the memorial dedicated to their service. There is also a poem written in their honour by Sapper Bert Beros. Wreaths are placed on the graves of fallen soldiers and the day is spent honouring their memory at cemeteries like the Bomana War Cemetery.

History

National Remembrance Day in Papua New Guinea is celebrated on 23 July each year. It is a memorial day designed to honour PNG soldiers who died during military engagements, including World War I and World War II. More than 600 Australians were killed and more than 1,680 wounded during the Battle of Kokoda which began on 23 July 1942. Conditions were extremely uncomfortable as the battle continued over the next four months. The battle was so fierce that the date was chosen as a day to remember fal

How It's Celebrated

National Remembrance Day in Papua New Guinea is celebrated on 23 July each year. It is a memorial day designed to honour PNG soldiers who died during military engagements, including World War I and World War II. In 2026, National Remembrance Day falls on Thursday 23 July. The holiday will be on Frid

Other Years

2026 Thu
23 Jul
2027 Fri
23 Jul
2028 Sun
23 Jul
2025 Wed
23 Jul
2024 Tue
23 Jul

Countries

🇵🇬 PG

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📅 holiday Nov 30

St Andrew's Day

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GB
📅 holiday Dec 26

Shaheed Udham Singh Jayanti

The birth anniversary of freedom fighter Udham Singh, called “Shaheed Udham Singh Jayanti”, is a public holiday in the Indian state of Haryana. In 2026, Shaheed Udham Singh Jayanti falls on Saturday 26 December. The holiday will be on Sunday 26 December in 2027. From the British perspective, Shaheed Udham Singh was an assassin who killed their lieutenant governor of Punjab province on 13 March 1940. He shot Michael O’Dwyer to death at a meeting in London. He did not try to escape and was immediately arrested. In jail, he went on a hunger strike for over 40 days but was force fed to keep him alive until his execution on 31 July, 1940. In India, he is sometimes called “Shaheed i Azam”, which means “The Great Martyr”. The reason is that Michael O’Dwyer had supported a massacre of over 1,000 people over 20 years before he was assassinated. In 1919, riots broke out against British rule in Punjab, which were ultimately put down by firing on civilians, including women and children. There had been riots a few days before that had killed four Europeans and burned down some British banks, but the crowd fired upon is considered to have been a group of peaceful protesters. Mahatma Gandhi condemned the assassination, but many others, especially in his native province of Punjab, approved of it. There is a national memorial in the garden of Jallianwala Bagh in the Punjabi city of Amritsar, where the 1919 massacre took place, which mentions him honourably.

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📅 holiday Aug 15

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📅 holiday Feb 25

EDSA Revolution Anniversary

The EDSA People Power Revolution Anniversary occurs every 25 February in the Philippines. It commemorates the peaceful demonstrations that occurred in 1986 and led to the overthrow of the corrupt rule of President Ferdinand Marcos. In 2027, EDSA People Power Revolution Anniversary falls on Thursday 25 February. The holiday will be on [Error: Data not found] in [Error: Data not found]. Note: Since 2010,The EDSA People Power Revolution anniversary has been a school holiday in the Philippines. This means that both public and private schools close down, while businesses remain open. In previous years, 25 February was a work holiday, but today, the Monday nearest that date is a holiday only for schools. The revolution is also known as the “Yellow Revolution” and the “EDSA Revolution” due to the colour worn by the original protesters and the street, Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue, where the protests took place. The demonstrations celebrated by this day were the culmination of unrest that began years earlier in 1983 and were immediately triggered by the assassination of opposition senator Benigno Aquino, Jr., and the widespread belief that elections had been rigged to keep Marcos in power. At the time, these were the largest non-violent demonstrations in the world, and they succeeded in toppling an oppressive autocrat without shedding a drop of blood. Today, the EDSA People Power Revolution Annversary is celebrated to remember when democracy was restored in the Philippines and as “the revolution that surprised the world”. The name of Marcos has remained synonymous with corruption to the present time, though there have been some efforts at historical revisionism. There are also those who decry the revolution as an example of “Imperial Manila” at work because few from outside the capital took part in the overthrow of Marcos. It is true that most People Power Revolution celebrations take place in and around Manila, but there are also celebrations throughout the country, showing that the Imperial Manila criticism is not held by all who live outside the capital. Many celebrate People Power Revolution by gathering in EDSA, wearing yellow, and attend concerts and church services in the vicinity to commemorate the 1986 events. The political party that led the revolution is known as “LABAN,” which means “fight,” and the crowds hold their hands up in an L-shape while gathered in EDSA to show support. Television and other media cover the event profusely each year, and documentaries on 1986 and general patriotic programming abound.

PH