Alexandra Day
Preserved but no longer current.
To celebrate the fiftieth year of her residence in England, Queen Alexandra (1844-1925) inaugurated a fund for the assistance of hospitals, convalescent homes, etc., to be raised by the sale of artificial wild roses made by the blind and cripples. On a day in June these are sold in the streets, the buyers wearing the roses as a sign of having contributed to the fund.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Alexandra Day” mean?
To celebrate the fiftieth year of her residence in England, Queen Alexandra (1844-1925) inaugurated a fund for the assistance of hospitals, convalescent homes, etc., to be raised by the sale of artificial wild roses made by the blind and cripples. On a day in June these are sold in the streets, the buyers wearing the roses as a sign of having contributed to the fund.
Is “Alexandra Day” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.