The Dutch royal family brought 100,000 tulip bulbs to Ottawa in 1945 as a token of appreciation for the Canadians’ three years of protection of future Queen Juliana and her family during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands during World War II. The birth of Princess Margriet at the Ottawa Civic Hospital in 1943 was the most notable occasion that occurred while they were in Canada. The Canadian government briefly designated the maternity ward extraterritorial, allowing Princess Margriet’s citizenship to be determined exclusively by her mother’s Dutch citizenship. [4] [5] Juliana requested that a display be made for the hospital in 1946 and sent another 20,500 bulbs along with a commitment to provide 10,000 more each year.
Why does Canada receive flowers from the Netherlands?
Since then, Canada has received an annual gift of tulip bulbs as a heartfelt “Thank you!” to the country and its World War II veterans for the significant role they played in Europe, particularly in the liberation of the Netherlands.
The Netherlands gave Canada 100,000 tulip bulbs for the year 2020, which marks 75 years since Canada liberated the Netherlands. In September 2019, Princess Margriet reaffirmed her mother’s gift by giving Mr. Don White, a Canadian veteran, a box of “Liberation75” tulips.
What is sent to Canada from the Netherlands?
If you’ve ever had the chance to travel to Ottawa in the spring, you know that the city’s parks literally burst with colorful tulips every single year. The history of this event is vast and incredibly fascinating, and the Netherlands, widely known as the world’s tulip capital, has a significant part to play in this 75-year-old custom.
Princess Juliana gave Canada 100,000 tulip bulbs in 1945 as a token of appreciation for aiding in the liberation of the Netherlands during World War II. The tulip has represented friendship between the Netherlands and Canada ever since. The Dutch royal family continues to give 20,000 tulip bulbs to Canada each year.
Let’s get started and explore the details of how and why this very amazing international custom came to be!
Why is Canada so beloved in the Netherlands?
Due to activities taken during World War II, when Canadian forces oversaw the liberation of the Netherlands and welcomed the Dutch Royal Family in exile, Canada and the Netherlands have a special bond. As evidence of the special relationship, the Canadian government refers to the Netherlands as “one of Canada’s most important trade, investment, and innovation partners.” [1] The Canadian Tulip Festival still pays homage to this connection in part.
According to a 2019 proclamation, Dutch Heritage Day will henceforth be celebrated in Canada on May 5 every year, which also happens to be the Netherlands’ Liberation Day.
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What gift does the Netherlands annually give to Canada?
Juliana, the Dutch Princess, and her family were compelled to leave the country when the Netherlands was invaded during World War II. Juliana embarked on a ship with her two young kids for Canada, an ally and safe haven away from the violence. In Ottawa, where the three resided throughout the war, they were welcomed with open arms. When the Princess’ third child, Margriet, was born at the Civic Hospital in Ottawa in 1943, the relationship between Canada and the Netherlands became even closer.
The Dutch people endured hardship, repression, and famine in the occupied Netherlands. Their ordeal ended in 1945 as the Allies advanced throughout the nation. The liberation of the Netherlands was a major accomplishment for which the Dutch still hold Canada in high regard.
After the war, the Dutch and Princess Juliana sent thousands of tulip bulbs to the Canadian capital to thank them. The Giving of Tulips evolved become an annual custom. Each year, Ottawa receives 10,000 bulbs from the Dutch Royal Family and the Dutch populace.
Two flower beds in Ottawa have The Gift planted in them. At the Civic Campus of the Ottawa Hospital, one bed honors Princess Margriet’s birth. The Queen Juliana Gift Bed in Commissioners Park is the alternative. The tulips that were planted in these beds are in Julia’s favorite colors, pink and purple.
How are tulips used in Dutch culture?
Following Tulip Mania, people all throughout the Netherlands started cultivating and harvesting this flower due to the enduring popularity of it.
Flowers are finest produced and exported from the Netherlands. The nation is a major exporter of bulbs, ornamental trees, plants, and flowers. The Netherlands exports over 75 percent of the flower bulbs grown worldwide.
Tulips are the flower that the Netherlands exports the most. The Netherlands exports more than 2 billion tulips to various regions of the world every year. In the Netherlands, tulips can be purchased in Aalsmeer, Naaldwijk, and Rijnsburg.
The largest flower auction in the entire world is held in the Netherlands. Here, potential purchasers from around the world can place bids on lots of flowers and plants, which are then transported to the appropriate buyer.
The Netherlands is also referred to as the “tulip capital of the world” for this reason. As a result, there is a good likelihood that many of the tulips you see in other parts of the world originated in the Netherlands.
Both people from the Netherlands and those who are not are fond of tulips. Every year, celebrations of this lovely flower are held all around the world; we shall go into more detail about these celebrations in a later section. Tulips are unquestionably one of the icons of the Netherlands, which is famed for many other things as well.
Are tulips a universal flower?
Tulips were not originally from The Netherlands, despite the fact that Holland is known for its tulips and that the soil in the provinces of Flevoland, Drenthe, Zeeland, and Groningen has proven ideal for growing tulips on a big scale. They originated in the mountains of Kazakhstan and traveled through Persia, China, Turkey, and Antwerp before arriving in the Netherlands.
Tulipmania in Holland
The tulip initially appeared in The Netherlands around 1593. The beautiful flowers were initially only grown in the Hortus Botanicus in Leiden, where only visitors were permitted to see them. However, as tulips quickly spread throughout the nation, Tulipmania resulted. In fact, this time period is regarded as official Dutch history. During this time in the Dutch Golden Age, the contract prices for the wildly popular tulip bulb rose to absurdly astronomical heights. One tulip once cost as much as the average man made in ten months during this time period. In 1637, the market fell apart. Tulipmania is regarded as the first financial bubble.
Which nation delivers flowers to Canada?
Every spring, Ottawa, the nation’s capital, is covered in tulips. These lovely flowers are a special thank you present from the Netherlands. In the Second World War, Canadian soldiers contributed to the liberation of that nation.
By asking Princess Juliana and her kids to reside safely in Ottawa during the crisis, we also assisted the members of their royal family. In Ottawa, they received a cordial greeting. Margriet, the Dutch Princess, was even born here! The name of the new princess was Daisy of Freedom. During the war, daisies grew across the Netherlands, and people wore them as a sign of freedom and hope.
It was a challenging time for the locals in the Netherlands during the war.
What occurs to Ottawa’s tulip bulbs?
There are three outcomes for tulips. Some fortunate tulips survive the winter and appear in the display the following year. After the flowers and foliage wilt, we leave these bulbs in their beds. Then, on top of the tulip bulbs, we plant annual flowers with shallow root systems for the summer and fall displays so as not to disturb the bulbs.
As part of our bulb donation program, we also provide select additional bulbs to schools or nonprofit groups. The remaining bulbs, which cannot be grown as perennials in our environment, are composted and used as fertilizer in our numerous gardens throughout Ottawa and Gatineau.
Did reading this blog inspire you to get a better look at these magnificent tulips? Visit our tulip website to see our most recent creations and learn where to find them.
Do Canadians have a place in the Netherlands?
The Netherlands is a member of the Schengen region. Travel to nations in the Schengen region is not subject to visa requirements for Canadian citizens. Travel without a visa is only permitted for durations of up to 90 days throughout any 180-day term. Any nation in the Schengen region may be visited during a stay; stays are cumulative.
You will require a visa if you intend to stay in the Schengen region for an extended period of time. Prior to departure, you must make contact with the embassy or high commission of the country or countries you are visiting and secure the necessary visa(s).
Canada, did you save the Netherlands?
As the Allies closed in on Germany from all sides, the liberation of the Netherlands from September 1944 to April 1945 was crucial to the end of the Second World War. The liberation of the Dutch people, who had endured severe privation and hardship at the hands of the increasingly desperate German occupiers, was greatly assisted by the First Canadian Army.
The Scheldt estuary (tidal river), which serves as the entrance to the port of Antwerp in Belgium and the Netherlands, was also opened by the First Canadian Army. As the Allies continued to advance into Germany in an effort to defeat Adolf Hitler’s army and liberate Western Europe from the four-year Nazi occupation that had started in April 1940, access to this port was crucial to preserving supply lines to the Allied armies.
A military truck carrying evacuees. Prized bicycles may be seen hanging from the truck’s rear on November 20, 1944, in Nijmegen, Netherlands.
Allied offensives of 1945
Winter provided a time of less intense warfare following the end of the Battle of the Scheldt in November 1944 in preparation for the assault over the Rhine River in the coming year. The First Canadian Army contributed to the liberation of the northeastern and western Netherlands when the new Allied offensives got underway in 1945, up until the German Army’s formal surrender in early May.
Do tulips grow naturally in Canada?
Family: The Lilys (Liliaceae) Flowers: Summer; 5 pieces; Red/Pink; Orange (petals) Meadows, open fields, and other habitats Grows in Shade/Sun:
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