Here is an interesting
historical fact that you probably didn't know,
(I sure didn't).
Just have a look at the
calendar for the month of September 1752.
(If you think I'm joking, you
may search it on Google and see it for yourself.)
In case you haven't noticed,
11 days are simply missing from the month.
Here's
the explanation: This was the month during which England shifted from the Roman
Julian Calendar to the Gregorian Calendar.
A
Julian year was 11 days longer than a Gregorian year. So, the King of England
ordered 11 days to be wiped off the face of that particular month. (A King
could order anything, couldn't he?)
So, the workers worked for 11
days less that month, but got paid for the whole month. That's how the concept
of "paid leave" was born.
In
the Roman Julian Calendar, April used to be the first month of the year; but
the Gregorian Calendar observed January as the first month. Even after shifting
to the Gregorian Calendar, many people refused to give up old traditions and
continued celebrating 1st April as the New Year's Day. When simple orders
didn't work, the King finally issued a royal dictum; which stated that those
who celebrated 1st April as the new year's day would be labelled as fools.
From then on, 1st April
became April Fool's Day.
Courtesy: M S Sachdev
