England New Year

New Year's Day
in England and Scotland


New Year's Day has not always been on 1st January. In Anglo-Saxon England the year started on Christmas Day - 25th December. It has, at various times, been: 1st March, 24th September and 25th March.
In the mediaeval Europe (from 1175 ) the legal year started on Lady Day - 25th March. By 1560 most countries had changed and started the year on 1st January. Scotland carried out this change in 1600. In England and Wales an Act of Parliament was needed to effect the change from 1st January 1752.
However the Roman year had started on 1st January, and this day was still celebrated throughout much of the mediaeval period as "New Year's day" - in effect there were two. Probably in much the same way as in the 21st century we still happily mix: financial years, tax years, academic years and legal years along with the conventional calendar year.
Each 31st December Samuel Pepys commented on the passing of the old year in his diary, but 24th March could pass with never a word - and this was 80 years before England moved the start of the year from 25th March. Evidently, although the legal year started on 25th March, 31st December was still "New Year's Eve".
Interpretation of Dates
When interpreting dates in documents you should always attempt to discover which method of reckoning your source employed before accepting the chronology as it stands. When looking at original material, the chronology can sometimes be checked by examining the record to discover at what time of the year the year number changes.
The year in which these changes were made in various countries can be seen in the table of changes. In Calisto, when applicable, two year numbers are shown in the year box, and colour is used to differentiate the days.

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2010-01-04 21:00:34 補充：
More details
http://www.travour.com/new-year/new-year-around-the-world/britain/england/

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