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Memorial Day is an American holiday honoring the men and women who lost their lives serving the United States military. It is observed on the last Monday of May and originated in the years following the US Civil War, before becoming an official federal holiday in 1971. Americans observe Memorial Day by visiting memorials and cemeteries of those who lost their lives in military service along with holding family gatherings and festivals that are often based around parades.

Memorial Day got its beginning after the Civil War ended in 1865 and had claimed so many lives, more live than any conflict in U.S. history, that it required the establishment of the nation's first national cemeteries.  The Civil War ended in the spring which began a tradition in many American towns and cities where people would hold tributes at the cemeteries for the countless soldiers that lost their life in the line of duty. These tributes were performed by decorating their graves with flowers and reciting prayers to honor the graves of those who had fallen.

There is no record of the true origin of these tributes, and many agree that they were independently created by local communities.  The earliest account of a Memorial Day style commemoration to the fallen soldiers of the war is a group of freed slaves in Charleston, SC less than a month after the war ended. However, in 1966 the federal government declared Waterloo, NY as the official birthplace of Memorial Day.

The Waterloo celebration was first held on May 5th, 1966 and was chosen as the birthplace as it hosted an annual, community-wide event, that was also recognized by the closing of all local businesses during the celebration. In 1968, General John A. Logan was the leader of an organization that aided northern civil war veterans and called for the creation of a national holiday to remember the fallen. Decoration Day was the original name chosen for the holiday to be celebrated for the first time on the 30th of May in 1968.

On the first Decoration Day, future president General James Garfield made a speech at the Arlington National Cemetery and approximately 5000 participants decorated the graves of the 20,000 civil war soldiers buried there. Many northern states held similar commemorative events and by 1890 every northern state had made Decoration Day an official state holiday. Southern states would also adopt commemorative holidays for the fallen veterans of the civil war but would celebrate on different days than the north.

Confederate Memorial Day was the holiday created in the South, and is still celebrated in several states today, also commemorating the fallen veterans of the civil war but with a heavy focus on the confederacy. Today this holiday has become highly controversial, and it is only celebrated in a select few states.

During World War 1, the United States found itself in a new war that resulted in a heavy casualty toll on the men and women serving the U.S. military. This war was the beginning of a trend to change Decoration Day into a holiday that commemorates all American military personnel who died in all wars. The holiday slowly became known as Memorial Day and continued to be observed on May 30th with even the southern states now adopting the holiday.

In 1968 the U.S. government passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, as an attempt to standardized Holidays and create a three-day weekend for federal employees to celebrate those events. In this act, Memorial Day was officially recognized as a national holiday and began being celebrated on the last Monday of May. This change went into effect in 1971 and created the Memorial Day holiday that we know of today.

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Mother's Day is a holiday that honors motherhood and is celebrated in numerous different formats and on different days around the world. In the United States, Mother's Day is a single day event where children will often present their mother with flowers and other gifts of appreciation. The holiday has also been known to be associated with numerous women's rights activist movement in recent history.

The earliest accounts of a holiday or celebration of motherhood can be traced to the ancient Greeks and Romans who often held festivals in honor of the mother goddesses Cybele and Rhea. However, when it comes to the actual traditions of modern-day Mother's Day, it is often associated with the early Christian festival known as Mothering Sunday. Mothering Sunday was once a major tradition in Europe, primarily the United Kingdom, and fell on the 4th Sunday during Lent.

The tradition was based around faithful Christians returning to their “mother church” (the main church around their home) for a special service provided at the church. This tradition slowly transitioned into a holiday where children would present their actual mothers with flowers and other gifts. Mothering Sunday slowly fell out of popularity and eventually merged with the American Mother's Day in the 1930s.

In the United states Mother's Day got its start from clubs called Mother's Day Work Clubs that taught local women childcare and other motherly skills. These clubs became a unifying force during the civil war and in 1868 Ann Reeves Jarvis organized Mother’s Friendship Day which mothers of both union and Confederate soldiers gathered to promote reconciliation. In the late 1800s numerous movements and celebrations began appearing to celebrate motherhood and even world peace, like Mother's Peace Day.

In the early 1990s Anna Jarvis, the daughter of Ann Reeves Jarvis, conceived Mother’s Day after the death of her mother as a way for children to honor the sacrifices their mothers make. The first Mother's Day celebration was in May of 1908 funded by a Philadelphia department store owner John Wanamaker and took place as a celebration at the Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia.  During that day thousands of people also attended a special Mother's Day event at one of Wanamaker’s retail stores in Philadelphia.

Following the success of the first Mother's Day celebration Jarvis committed her life to getting the holiday added to the national calendar. Her argument was that American holidays were biased towards male achievements and as early as 1912 many states and local areas had adapted Mother’s Day as an annual holiday. In 1914 president Woodrow Wilson officially signed Mother's Day as a national holiday on the 2nd Sunday in May.

After it became a national holiday, Jarvis began to protest the commercialization of the holiday in the 1920s when commercialization of flowers and other gifts seemed to outweigh the original celebration of motherhood. By the time of her death in 1948 Jarvis had disowned the holiday altogether after years of actively lobbying the government to remove it from the national calendar.

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Mother's Day is a holiday that honors motherhood and is celebrated in numerous different formats and on different days around the world. In the United States, Mother's Day is a single day event where children will often present their mother with flowers and other gifts of appreciation. The holiday has also been known to be associated with numerous women's rights activist movement in recent history.

The earliest accounts of a holiday or celebration of motherhood can be traced to the ancient Greeks and Romans who often held festivals in honor of the mother goddesses Cybele and Rhea. However, when it comes to the actual traditions of modern-day Mother's Day, it is often associated with the early Christian festival known as Mothering Sunday. Mothering Sunday was once a major tradition in Europe, primarily the United Kingdom, and fell on the 4th Sunday during Lent.

The tradition was based around faithful Christians returning to their “mother church” (the main church around their home) for a special service provided at the church. This tradition slowly transitioned into a holiday where children would present their actual mothers with flowers and other gifts. Mothering Sunday slowly fell out of popularity and eventually merged with the American Mother's Day in the 1930s.

In the United states Mother's Day got its start from clubs called Mother's Day Work Clubs that taught local women childcare and other motherly skills. These clubs became a unifying force during the civil war and in 1868 Ann Reeves Jarvis organized Mother’s Friendship Day which mothers of both union and Confederate soldiers gathered to promote reconciliation. In the late 1800s numerous movements and celebrations began appearing to celebrate motherhood and even world peace, like Mother's Peace Day.

In the early 1990s Anna Jarvis, the daughter of Ann Reeves Jarvis, conceived Mother’s Day after the death of her mother as a way for children to honor the sacrifices their mothers make. The first Mother's Day celebration was in May of 1908 funded by a Philadelphia department store owner John Wanamaker and took place as a celebration at the Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia.  During that day thousands of people also attended a special Mother's Day event at one of Wanamaker’s retail stores in Philadelphia.

Following the success of the first Mother's Day celebration Jarvis committed her life to getting the holiday added to the national calendar. Her argument was that American holidays were biased towards male achievements and as early as 1912 many states and local areas had adapted Mother’s Day as an annual holiday. In 1914 president Woodrow Wilson officially signed Mother's Day as a national holiday on the 2nd Sunday in May.

After it became a national holiday, Jarvis began to protest the commercialization of the holiday in the 1920s when commercialization of flowers and other gifts seemed to outweigh the original celebration of motherhood. By the time of her death in 1948 Jarvis had disowned the holiday altogether after years of actively lobbying the government to remove it from the national calendar.

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Cinco de Mayo, or translated as the Fifth of May, is the Mexican holiday that celebrates the Mexican victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla during Franco-Mexican war.  The day is sometimes referred to as Battle of Puebla Day and always falls on the 5th day of May.  Cinco de Mayo is often referred to in the United States as Mexican Independence Day, but this is an incorrect reference as it is a minor holiday in Mexico and is the celebration of a single battle. Mexican Independence Day, or Día de la Independencia, is celebrated on September 16th as the commemoration of Mexico’s declaration of war against the Spanish government in 1810.

The Franco-Mexican war was a joint military response by France, Britain, and Spain who sent military forces to Veracruz, Mexico demanding repayment of loans and other finances due to Mexico’s ongoing financial troubles and defaulting on recent payments. Britain and Spain never engaged in military combat due to negotiations with the Mexican government, however, France decided to use the opportunity to expand their empire into the Mexican owned territory. The Battle of Puebla was a final stand made by a ragtag Mexican military force that was vastly outnumbered and underequipped to face the French army but managed to hold the line against the French invasion. After this battle The United States, who was finally recovering from the Civil War, began to apply political pressure to the French and support for the Mexican military causing the French forces to withdraw.

While in Mexico, Cinco de Mayo is primarily observed in the state of Puebla, where the victory had occurred, the United States began celebrating the holiday around the 1960s as a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage within the United States. Since the 1960s Cinco de Mayo has rapidly grown in popularity within the United States with numerous festivals and events celebrating Mexican traditions and culture within the nation. While the holiday is still officially the commemoration of a victory in a military battle, it is widely regarded has a cultural celebration in modern times here in the United States. Many people connect this holiday with the association of Mexican traditions due to the high number of indigenous Mexicans that fought in the Battle of Puebla.

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Cinco de Mayo, or translated as the Fifth of May, is the Mexican holiday that celebrates the Mexican victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla during Franco-Mexican war.  The day is sometimes referred to as Battle of Puebla Day and always falls on the 5th day of May.  Cinco de Mayo is often referred to in the United States as Mexican Independence Day, but this is an incorrect reference as it is a minor holiday in Mexico and is the celebration of a single battle. Mexican Independence Day, or Día de la Independencia, is celebrated on September 16th as the commemoration of Mexico’s declaration of war against the Spanish government in 1810.

The Franco-Mexican war was a joint military response by France, Britain, and Spain who sent military forces to Veracruz, Mexico demanding repayment of loans and other finances due to Mexico’s ongoing financial troubles and defaulting on recent payments. Britain and Spain never engaged in military combat due to negotiations with the Mexican government, however, France decided to use the opportunity to expand their empire into the Mexican owned territory. The Battle of Puebla was a final stand made by a ragtag Mexican military force that was vastly outnumbered and underequipped to face the French army but managed to hold the line against the French invasion. After this battle The United States, who was finally recovering from the Civil War, began to apply political pressure to the French and support for the Mexican military causing the French forces to withdraw.

While in Mexico, Cinco de Mayo is primarily observed in the state of Puebla, where the victory had occurred, the United States began celebrating the holiday around the 1960s as a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage within the United States. Since the 1960s Cinco de Mayo has rapidly grown in popularity within the United States with numerous festivals and events celebrating Mexican traditions and culture within the nation. While the holiday is still officially the commemoration of a victory in a military battle, it is widely regarded has a cultural celebration in modern times here in the United States. Many people connect this holiday with the association of Mexican traditions due to the high number of indigenous Mexicans that fought in the Battle of Puebla.

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Easter, the Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, is one of the oldest Christian holidays and is often considered a convergence of Christian, Hebrew, and Pagan cultures. The New Testament of the Bible states that Jesus was crucified by the Romans in roughly 30 A.D. and was resurrected on a Sunday that has become Easter Sunday. Easter day is also the conclusion of a series of events called the “Passion of the Christ”, that is a 40-day long period of fasting, prayer, and sacrifice that begins with Lent.

Officially Easter is one of the most religious and celebrated holidays within the Christian culture however it is also mixed with many traditions that pre-date Christian beliefs from earlier Pagan times and the Jewish holiday of Passover. The origin of the word Easter is still a debated topic and was not the original name for the holiday. The most widely accepted origin of Easter was from the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility, Eastre (or Eeostre). However, one of easter's earlier names was “hebdomada alba” which meant “white week” and it is believed that due to translation issues particularly with people speaking Old High German mistakenly translated the word as “Osteun” (which is a plural for the word “dawn”) which became Easter in English.

For those curious, the reasoning Easter is centered around a bunny, or hare, is due to the holiday's heavy Pagan based history. When Easter was first celebrated by Christians its celebrations were based off Pagan festivals and Easter was a festival within itself. In Pagan tradition bunnies are a symbol of many beliefs, but most prominently fertility, and it is logical to utilize them as a symbol for celebrating new life. Bunnies are also an ancient symbol of the moon and the date of Easter is based around the moon. This association with the moon and an association with the bunny’s burrow being connected as a symbol of Jesus emerging from his tomb has kept the bunny well within Easter's traditions.

Easter eggs on the other hand have a less solid of a connection to Easter, although there are many associations to the eggs that could connect them to the ancient holiday. Many ancient cultures believed the world began as an enormous egg, and with many of these cultures having contact with early Christians it is highly plausible the eggs became a symbol of new life just like the bunny. There are also sources that state many ancient cultures, again many that were directly associated with ancient Christians, utilized eggs as gifts during festival's along with some sources stating eating dyed eggs was a common practice during spring festivals and likely just transitioned into an Easter tradition.

While bunnies and eggs are possibly the most common association with Easter, the most Christian association with Easter would be the Easter lamb. The lamb is connected to the Jewish holiday of Passover where families killed a lamb as a sacrifice. According to beliefs, when Jesus Christ became the “Passover Lamb” for everybody the lamb itself became a symbol of his sacrifice.

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Easter, the Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, is one of the oldest Christian holidays and is often considered a convergence of Christian, Hebrew, and Pagan cultures. The New Testament of the Bible states that Jesus was crucified by the Romans in roughly 30 A.D. and was resurrected on a Sunday that has become Easter Sunday. Easter day is also the conclusion of a series of events called the “Passion of the Christ”, that is a 40-day long period of fasting, prayer, and sacrifice that begins with Lent.

Officially Easter is one of the most religious and celebrated holidays within the Christian culture however it is also mixed with many traditions that pre-date Christian beliefs from earlier Pagan times and the Jewish holiday of Passover. The origin of the word Easter is still a debated topic and was not the original name for the holiday. The most widely accepted origin of Easter was from the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility, Eastre (or Eeostre). However, one of easter's earlier names was “hebdomada alba” which meant “white week” and it is believed that due to translation issues particularly with people speaking Old High German mistakenly translated the word as “Osteun” (which is a plural for the word “dawn”) which became Easter in English.

For those curious, the reasoning Easter is centered around a bunny, or hare, is due to the holiday's heavy Pagan based history. When Easter was first celebrated by Christians its celebrations were based off Pagan festivals and Easter was a festival within itself. In Pagan tradition bunnies are a symbol of many beliefs, but most prominently fertility, and it is logical to utilize them as a symbol for celebrating new life. Bunnies are also an ancient symbol of the moon and the date of Easter is based around the moon. This association with the moon and an association with the bunny’s burrow being connected as a symbol of Jesus emerging from his tomb has kept the bunny well within Easter's traditions.

Easter eggs on the other hand have a less solid of a connection to Easter, although there are many associations to the eggs that could connect them to the ancient holiday. Many ancient cultures believed the world began as an enormous egg, and with many of these cultures having contact with early Christians it is highly plausible the eggs became a symbol of new life just like the bunny. There are also sources that state many ancient cultures, again many that were directly associated with ancient Christians, utilized eggs as gifts during festival's along with some sources stating eating dyed eggs was a common practice during spring festivals and likely just transitioned into an Easter tradition.

While bunnies and eggs are possibly the most common association with Easter, the most Christian association with Easter would be the Easter lamb. The lamb is connected to the Jewish holiday of Passover where families killed a lamb as a sacrifice. According to beliefs, when Jesus Christ became the “Passover Lamb” for everybody the lamb itself became a symbol of his sacrifice.

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President’s Day, or more appropriately called George Washington’s Birthday, is a federal holiday in the United States in honor of first president of the United States.  George Washington was born on February 11th, 1731 using the calendar of his time or on February 22nd, 1732 according to the modern calendar, with the later considered his official birthday in most references.

The United States Congress implemented February 22 as a day to honor the former president in 1879 and in 1971 the date of the holiday was changed to the third Monday of February via the Uniform Monday Holiday Act by Congress.  Oddly, the new date will always fall between February 15th and February 21st, which will never include Washington’s original or updated birthdays.  

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President’s Day, or more appropriately called George Washington’s Birthday, is a federal holiday in the United States in honor of first president of the United States.  George Washington was born on February 11th, 1731 using the calendar of his time or on February 22nd, 1732 according to the modern calendar, with the later considered his official birthday in most references.

The United States Congress implemented February 22 as a day to honor the former president in 1879 and in 1971 the date of the holiday was changed to the third Monday of February via the Uniform Monday Holiday Act by Congress.  Oddly, the new date will always fall between February 15th and February 21st, which will never include Washington’s original or updated birthdays.   

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Valentine’s Day, also called Saint Valentine’s Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is a Western Christian holiday honoring the early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine.  Numerous martyrdom stories connect multiple Saint Valentines to the holiday with the early adaptations referring the saint to the miracle of sight in a blind daughter of his own jailer and later adaptations focused on romance and the addition of “Your Valentine” letters.

Officially the holiday stated as the Feast of Saint Valentine by Pope Gelasius I in 496 AD to honor the passing of Saint Valentine who died February 14th 269 AD.  It is estimated that the event became associated with romance and love in the 14th and 15th centuries when the notions of “courtly love” became a basic concept within the event.   The event started to become fully associated with love in 18th century England as couples started presenting gifts and flowers to each other and started a tradition of giving cards to their loves known as “valentines”.

Since the 19th century, mass produced valentine’s day cards have become the standard and many now consider the event a “hallmark holiday” as couples spend small fortunes on exchanging gifts.  The holiday is celebrated every February 14th but is not a public holiday in any nation.

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Valentine’s Day, also called Saint Valentine’s Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is a Western Christian holiday honoring the early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine.  Numerous martyrdom stories connect multiple Saint Valentines to the holiday with the early adaptations referring the saint to the miracle of sight in a blind daughter of his own jailer and later adaptations focused on romance and the addition of “Your Valentine” letters.

Officially the holiday stated as the Feast of Saint Valentine by Pope Gelasius I in 496 AD to honor the passing of Saint Valentine who died February 14th 269 AD.  It is estimated that the event became associated with romance and love in the 14th and 15th centuries when the notions of “courtly love” became a basic concept within the event.   The event started to become fully associated with love in 18th century England as couples started presenting gifts and flowers to each other and started a tradition of giving cards to their loves known as “valentines”.

Since the 19th century, mass produced valentine’s day cards have become the standard and many now consider the event a “hallmark holiday” as couples spend small fortunes on exchanging gifts.  The holiday is celebrated every February 14th but is not a public holiday in any nation.

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Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day!  “I have decided to stick to love...Hate is too great a burden to bear.”

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Uncrowned Empire has entered the last phase of our beta as things start to come to a completion.  Check below for notes on the changes and a list of new features.  Feel free to report any bugs you find here or via our support system.  Thank you for all of the support!

Uncrowned Empire

• Fixed error preventing user registrations.
• Fixed system wide email problems.
• New header image has been added with logo.
• Added holiday effects.
• Added new social media sharing images.
• Added new favicon and app icons.
• All social media accounts have new matching graphic sets.

Uncrowned Addiction

• Fixed error preventing user registrations.
• New header image has been added with logo.
• Forum has been revamped for better usage.
• Added holiday effects.
• Added new social media sharing images.
• Added new favicon and app icons.
• All social media accounts have new matching graphic sets.

Uncrowned Gaming

• Fixed error preventing user registrations.
• New header image has been added with logo.
• Added new social media sharing images.
• Added holiday effects.
• Added new favicon and app icons.
• All social media accounts have new matching graphic sets.

Known Issues

• All sites Mobile icons are not displaying correctly.

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