This Day in History: 1 April 1700
1 April 2020
320 years ago, today, English pranksters begun to popularise the annual tradition of April Fool's Day, as they played practical jokes on one another. Although this date has been celebrated for several years by many cultures, its exact origins are a mystery. 1582 is a speculated date, which was when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar. People were slow to get this news or had failed to recognise the new date of new year's, and so continued to celebrate it the event during the last week of March, through April 1, causing it to become the date of jokes and hoaxes.
The pranks on this date included having paper fish placed on people's backs, which was referred to as 'poisson d'avril', meaning the April fish. This was also said to symbolise a young, easily hooked fish, or a gullible person. The tradition spread throughout Britain in the 18th century, and in Scotland, the tradition became a two-day event. On the first day, they would start with 'hunting the gowk', meaning people were sent on misleading errands. Tailie Day would follow, involving pranks played on people's lower reign, such as fake tails being pinned or the popular 'kick me' signs.
Want to find out more about April Fool's Day and its history? Click here for more information.
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