Why are they called bank holidays and who decides when they are?

In the UK, bank holidays are usually associated with barbecues, trips to the beach and an obsession with checking the weather forecast (if you're lucky enough to have the day off, of course). But where did the idea of a bank holiday come from, and why are they called that?

Why are they called bank holidays?

The term 'bank holiday' comes from the Bank Holiday Act of 1871, which established four public holidays in England, Wales and Ireland and five in Scotland. On these days, banks were legally required to close. Other types of businesses and schools followed suit and started to close their doors on these days as well.

The Bank Holiday Act

The Act was brought into parliament in 1871 by politician and banker Sir John Lubbock. It designated four bank holidays in England, Wales and Ireland (Easter Monday; Whit Monday; the first Monday in August; Boxing Day if it fell on a weekday) and five in Scotland (New Year's Day, or the next day if a Sunday; Good Friday; the first Monday in May; the first Monday in August; and Christmas Day, or the next day if a Sunday). Good Friday and Christmas Day were considered as traditional days of rest, so these were not included in the Act. The Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 supersedes this Act and remains in place today.

The bank holidays brought in by the 1871 Act generally followed a holiday calendar that had been celebrated for hundreds of years. For example, May Day, Beltane, Boxing Day, and Easter Monday.

Can bank holidays be moved?

In the UK, bank holidays can only be changed by Royal Proclamation (an official announcement from the monarch). This was done in 2020 to change the early May bank holiday to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day.

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Why are they called bank holidays and who decides when they are?