Emancipation Day is a public holiday in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, on August 1 each year. The holiday commemorates the anniversary when slavery was abolished on this day in 1834.
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is an island country in the Caribbean Sea. Indigenous people inhabited the islands for thousands of years. Christopher Columbus first saw the islands in 1498 during his third voyage. Indigenous people aggressively prevented the English and Dutch from claiming the island in the following years until 1719, when the French successfully colonized it. The French brought slaves to work on the sugar and coffee plantations.
In 1763, France ceded the island with Grenada to Britain after the Seven Years' War. Although the French captured the islands 6 years after, the British restored them in 1783. The local people supported by the French had the war in 1795, but the British successfully put it down two years later.
Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 received Royal assent in the British Empire and took effect in 1834. As one of the British colonies, slavery was abolished in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines on August 1, 1834.
The following is the list of Emancipation Day in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines from 2022 to 2026.
| Holiday | Date | Weekday |
|---|---|---|
| Emancipation Day | Aug 01, 2022 | Monday |
| Emancipation Day | Aug 01, 2023 | Tuesday |
| Emancipation Day | Aug 01, 2024 | Thursday |
| Emancipation Day | Aug 01, 2025 | Friday |
| Emancipation Day | Aug 01, 2026 | Saturday |
Please check more public holidays in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: