01/08/2008 02:00:00
The 34th annual Yorkshire Day is being celebrated with a series of special events.
Occurring each year on August 1, the first Yorkshire Day was held in 1975 in honour of soldiers from Yorkshire regiments who fought in the Battle of Minden in Germany. The day is a tribute to the soldiers that picked white roses from bushes close to the battlefield as a tribute to fallen comrades.
Although Yorkshire Day officially takes place on August 1, the celebrations are expected to carry on over the weekend. One of the main events is the three-day festival at Harewood House, near Leeds.
Visitors to the festival will partake in Yorkshire food tasting, visit arts and craft stalls, sample Yorkshire's many ales and see some of Yorkshire's sporting celebrities.
There will be a reading of the Declaration of Integrity, which involves those born within the county announcing their solidarity with others as a region.
Many Yorkshire residents will show their support by wearing a white rose and displaying Yorkshire Day posters in their windows. At the York maze, the annual Yorkshire Day straw bale race will take place.
The BBC reports that the minister for Yorkshire and the Humber and MP for Doncaster, Rosie Winterton, said: "Yorkshire Day is an excellent opportunity to reflect on many of the great things there are about living here.
"Yorkshire is a great place where National Parks sit side by side with vibrant and exciting cities."
The festivities follow last month's Great Yorkshire Show, which celebrated its 150th anniversary with displays of animals, agricultural products, music and arts and crafts.