Citylife in Lichfield February 2020

Seize the
(Extra) Day!
............................
This year we experience something that only comes around
once every four years – we have what is known as a Leap Day,
when the month of February has 29 days instead of its usual
28! Charlotte Benton takes a look at the science behind this
phenomenon, and explores some of the fascinating customs that
are associated with it.
The Gregorian calendar, the most commonly used calendar around the
world, measures a year to have 365 days following the Earth's orbit
around the Sun. However, the Earth's orbit takes precisely 365.24 days to
complete its solar orbit. Thanks to the help of Julius Caesar and his team
of astronomers noticing their 365 day Roman calendar had somehow
slipped out of sync with the seasons, every four years February gains an
extra day, February 29th. This additional day enables our calendar year to
remain synchronised with the astronomical, or seasonal, year. If we failed
to accommodate this extra day, the seasons would alter their position in
the calendar, with June eventually finding itself in the middle of winter.
However, a Leap Year doesn't just bring an extra day to add to our
calendar, but also a whole host of Leap Year superstitions and traditions,
including the well-known tradition of women proposing to men on this
Leap Day!
Unlucky for Some
Many places across the world worry that the Leap Day brings bad luck.
Scottish farmers worry about their livestock, with an old saying warning
of how “leap year was never a good sheep year.” Whilst in Italy, the
superstition of the Leap Day bringing bad luck stems from Roman times
as the month of February was traditionally associated with the dead; the
addition of the Leap Day seems only to add to the morbid month.
Meanwhile, a Greek superstition holds that it is unlucky for couples to
marry in a Leap Year, suggesting that the marriage will end in divorce.
Cheers to the Occasion
Despite many superstitions of bad luck, there is still a toast to be made
to the Leap Day. Harry Craddock, a bartender at The Savoy in London,
invented a cocktail in 1928 to toast the hotel’s celebrations of Leap Day,
which is still around today. In fact, the Savoy Cocktail Book states that
this gin-based drink is “responsible for more proposals than any other
cocktail that has ever been mixed." Perhaps create your own Leap Day
Cocktail from the recipe below and enjoy a toast to the quirk of an extra
day!
Leap Day Cocktail
1¾ oz citrus gin
½ oz Sweet Vermouth
½ oz Grand Marnier
¼ oz lemon juice
Shake all the ingredients with ice and serve
straight into a martini glass. Cheers!
Women Proposing
Unlike nowadays, centuries ago it was thought to be a gentleman’s
prerogative to propose to their loved one. Tradition reveals that once
every four years, on February 29th, roles are reversed and women have
the chance to get down on one knee and pop the question. The tradition
is thought to have begun in Ireland in the 5th century.
A man is expected to pay a penalty if he does not accept the proposal
of marriage from his partner. This forfeit is thought to be anything from
a monetary penalty to a European tradition dictating that any man who
refuses the proposal on February 29th, has to buy their partner 12 pairs
of gloves! The motivation behind the gloves is to prevent the women’s
embarrassment of not wearing an engagement ring.
32