When is Sint Maarten's Day?
Sint Maarten's Day is a public holiday in Sint Maarten that is always celebrated on November 11th.
This holiday commemorates the sighting of the island by Christopher Columbus on this day in 1493.
History of Sint Maarten's Day
Saint Martin of Tours was a Christian who served as a cavalryman in the Roman army in the 3rd century.
He left the military and became the third bishop of Tours, France in 371 AD.
The most famous legend about Martin was that while a soldier, he had cut his cloak in half to share with a beggar during a snowstorm, to save the latter from the cold.
That night, Martin dreamt of Jesus, wearing the half-cloak and saying to the angels, "Here is Martin, the Roman soldier who is now baptised; he has clothed me." Martin's part of the cloak became an important relic in the middle ages. The location of the relic and the priest who looked after the cloak (latin: cappa) are the source of the words 'chapel' and 'chaplin'.
On his second voyage to the Americas, Christopher Columbus arrived at the island on November 11th 1493, and he named it after Saint Marten, whose feast day is November 11th.
The island is split in two, with the Dutch and French sharing it. This day is a holiday in both parts of the island. On the French side, November 11th has officially been a public holiday for Armistice Day since 1918.
In the early 1950's the local elected officials of both Dutch and French side got together to establish a celebration that acknowledged Christopher Columbus' sighting of Sint Maarten on November 11th, establishing St. Maarten Day as a shared holiday that alternates on both sides.
According to the Prime Minister, Sint Maarten Day, by law, is celebrated only on November 11th, and unlike other public holidays, there is no provision for an alternate date if the holiday falls on a weekend.
