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Queen's Birthday in Australia

Quick Facts

Many Australians celebrate the Queen's Birthday each year, as Australia is a constitutional monarchy.

Name

Queen's Birthday

Alternative name

Volunteer's Day (South Australia)

Queen's Birthday 2012

Monday, June 11, 2012 (All except Qld, WA)
Monday, October 1, 2012 (Western Australia)
Monday, October 1, 2012 (Queensland)

Queen's Birthday 2013

Monday, June 10, 2013 (All except WA)
Monday, September 30, 2013 (Western Australia)
List of dates for other years

The Queen's Birthday is a public holiday in Australia, as the country is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, with the monarch of the United Kingdom being head of state.

Many Australians celebrate the Queen's Birthday holiday. ©iStockphoto.com/David Newton

What do people do?

Many Australians have a day off work on the Queen's Birthday. For many, it is a chance to do something with their family or to visit a sporting event. Some people take advantage of the three-day weekend to make trips to visit friends or relatives.

Some well-known sporting events are held on the second Monday of June. These include an Australian Football League game played at the Melbourne cricket club between the Collingwood Magpies and the Melbourne Demons. It is also traditionally seen as the opening weekend of the snow season in Australia, although it is often not possible to really ski for another few weeks.

Traditionally, many public fireworks displays were organized on the Queen's Birthday. However, these have been overshadowed by the New Year's Eve displays in recent years. People in many communities can only buy and set off fireworks on the Saturday, Sunday and Monday of the Queen's Birthday weekend in the Australian Capital Territory. This is illegal at all other times of the year.

Public life

The Queen's Birthday is observed on the second Monday of June in most of Australia. Schools, post offices, and other organizations are closed in most parts of Australia, except Western Australia, on this date. Stores that are open may have restricted opening hours. There may be some congestion on roads as many people use the long weekend to make trips. Public transport services may be reduced or not run at all.

The Queen's Birthday is a holiday in Western Australia at a different date to that observed by other parts of the country. The governor in Western Australia proclaims the holiday's date for this state. There are no fast rules about when it will fall but it is often on the last Monday of September or the first Monday of October. Western Australian schools, post offices, as well as many organizations, are closed when Western Australia celebrates the Queen's Birthday. Stores that are open may have restricted opening hours in the state. There may be some congestion on roads as many people use the long weekend to make trips. Public transport services may be reduced or not run at all.

Background

Australia is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and the official head of state is the Monarch of the Realms. This is currently Queen Elizabeth II. She is also the head of state of many other countries and territories, including Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Canada and New Zealand. She was born on April 21, 1926, although her official birthday is celebrated on a range of dates in the different countries of the Commonwealth of Nations.

The Monarch's Birthday was first celebrated in Australia in 1788. In that year, King George III was the Monarch and Governor Arthur Phillip declared a holiday to mark his birthday. Originally, the Monarch's birthday was celebrated on the anniversary of the actual date of birth of the King or Queen. However, after the death of King George V in 1936, the date remained close to his birthday, which was June 3.

On the second Monday in June, the Queen's Birthday honors list is released. This contains the names of the new members of the Order of Australia and other honors issued by the Australian government or the Queen. These are generally for exceptional service to Australians, Australia or humanity as a whole.

About Queen's Birthday in other countries

Queen's Birthday Observances

Weekday	Date	Year	Name	Holiday type	Where it is observed
Mon	Jun 9	1980	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 29	1980	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 8	1981	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 28	1981	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 14	1982	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 27	1982	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 13	1983	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 26	1983	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 11	1984	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Oct 1	1984	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 10	1985	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 30	1985	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 9	1986	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 29	1986	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 8	1987	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 28	1987	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 13	1988	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 26	1988	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 12	1989	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Oct 2	1989	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 11	1990	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Oct 1	1990	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 10	1991	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 30	1991	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 8	1992	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 28	1992	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 14	1993	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 27	1993	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 13	1994	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 26	1994	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 12	1995	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Oct 2	1995	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 10	1996	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 30	1996	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 9	1997	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 29	1997	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 8	1998	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 28	1998	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 14	1999	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 27	1999	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 12	2000	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Oct 2	2000	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 11	2001	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Oct 1	2001	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 10	2002	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 30	2002	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 9	2003	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 29	2003	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 14	2004	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 27	2004	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 13	2005	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 26	2005	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 12	2006	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Oct 2	2006	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 11	2007	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Oct 1	2007	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 9	2008	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 29	2008	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 8	2009	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 28	2009	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 14	2010	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 27	2010	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 13	2011	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Fri	Oct 28	2011	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 11	2012	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except Qld, WA
Mon	Oct 1	2012	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Oct 1	2012	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Queensland
Mon	Jun 10	2013	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 30	2013	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 9	2014	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 29	2014	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia
Mon	Jun 8	2015	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	All except WA
Mon	Sep 28	2015	Queen's Birthday	Common Local holidays	Western Australia

Other holidays in October 2012 in Australia

Labour Day ―Monday, October 1, 2012
Labour Day ―Monday, October 1, 2012
First day of Sukkot ―Monday, October 1, 2012
Feast of St Francis of Assisi ―Thursday, October 4, 2012
Daylight Saving Time starts ―Sunday, October 7, 2012
Last day of Sukkot ―Sunday, October 7, 2012
Family & Community Day ―Monday, October 8, 2012
Shmini Atzeret/Simchat Torah ―Monday, October 8, 2012
Eid-al-Adha ―Friday, October 26, 2012
Halloween ―Wednesday, October 31, 2012

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