Nottinghamshire Day is August 25th, a date selected in recognition of the raising of the royal standard at Nottingham Castle in August 1642, signalling the start of the Civil War. Originally hoisted over the castle itself, on August 22nd, the standard was taken, three days later, to the open field on the north side of the Castle wall,

on what is now Standard Hill in Nottingham, as the King and his counsellors thought that its placement within the Castle walls was likely deterring ordinary people from joining the king’s ranks.

The selection of a county day was first announced with a tweet from the county council on July 22nd 2021

the aim of the event being to highlight the area’s heritage and boost tourism.

Although the inaugural county day was planned for just over a month later, allowing little time for much preparation, the occasion itself was, nonetheless, marked with significant publicity

       

and a fine ceremonial raising of the county flag,

               

by County Council Chairman, Mike Quigley

took place at County Hall, attended by a gathering of civic dignitaries

and county officials.

Adding flavour to the occasion were a couple of archers,

recalling the county’s favourite son, Robin Hood, whose image, of course, is present on the county flag.

Speaking of the occasion, Mike Quigley, declared

“The inaugural Nottinghamshire Day provides us with a fantastic opportunity to celebrate everything that is great about our historic county, from our unique association with Robin Hood to our industrial heritage, from our sporting excellence to our wonderful tourist attractions.”

and County Council Leader and Mansfield MP, Ben Bradley, seen below

with his county flag, earlier in the day, stated

“It is only right that we should be proud of our unique history and this is a date which can now be put in our diaries to celebrate in future years on a much broader and grander scale.”

Celebrations also took place across the county including at the Castle House headquarters of Newark and Sherwood District Council,

where, Sue Saddington, vice chairman of the body, left below, was joined by the county’s Deputy Lieutenant, Sir Andrew Pulford, centre and Penny Rainbow, chairman of the authority

and David Lloyd, leader of Newark and Sherwood District Council, commented that

“Most counties have a county day, so it’s good that we now have one as well. “This year is flag raising but in future years, hopefully we can do some charity events or something to try and build up some knowledge and enthusiasm. It’s celebrating an attachment to locality.”

The county flag was also raised at Trent Bridge Cricket Ground;

Retford Town Hall;

Worksop Town Hall;

Nether-Langwith Parish Council green;

and most fittingly, given the history behind the date, Nottingham Castle itself.

And even the city prison got in on the act!

The flag was also presented

by Executive Mayor of Mansfield Andy Abrahams (right) and Strategic Director, Mike Robinson, at the town’s civic centre and. Independent councillor, Richard MacRae was busy taking his flag to several county locations

and displayed

by Ruth Edwards MP. There were also a number of individual celebrations

and Nottingham business, Custom Casuals, which specialises in customised trainer designs, created a pair in county flag colours!

The county flag also flew for the county day, at the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government in London

and at Parliament.

Despite the comparative success of the day, given the limited time available for planning events, Nottinghamshire County Council said it hoped bigger events will be held to promote the area, in future years, including displays and street parties.