State occasion

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A state occasion or act of state is an official state ceremony usually marking an important event or honouring a person. Characteristics of a state occasion are a grand ceremony, a representative framework and the presence of high state officials, such as heads of state and government.

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When honouring a deceased person it typically takes the form of a state funeral, although it can also be a separate ceremony which takes place before or after the actual funeral. Acts of state honouring deceased persons, but which are not actual funerals themselves, are found in a number of European countries and at the European Union level.

Germany

In Germany, only the President of Germany has the authority to authorise an act of state at the federal level. Acts of State are typically held for former Presidents, Chancellors, Presidents of the Bundestag and sometimes for Presidents of the Federal Constitutional Court and members of the federal cabinet. [1]

European Union

In 2017 the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker announced the first ever European Act of State in honour of Helmut Kohl, to take place in Strasbourg. [2]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johannes Rau</span> President of Germany from 1999 to 2004

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helmut Kohl</span> Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998

Helmut Josef Michael Kohl was a German politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and Leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) from 1973 to 1998. Kohl's 16-year tenure is the longest of any German chancellor since Otto von Bismarck, and oversaw the end of the Cold War, the German reunification and the creation of the European Union (EU). Furthermore, Kohl's 16 years and 30 day tenure is the longest for any democratically elected chancellor of Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">President of Germany</span> Head of state of the Federal Republic of Germany

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mourning</span> Sorrow (and its conventional manifestation) for someones death

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horst Köhler</span> President of Germany from 2004 to 2010

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard von Weizsäcker</span> President of Germany from 1984 to 1994

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Military funeral</span> Memorial or burial rite given by a countrys military

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">State funeral</span> Ceremony for nationally significant people

A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements of military tradition. Generally, state funerals are held in order to involve the general public in a national day of mourning after the family of the deceased gives consent. A state funeral will often generate mass publicity from both national and global media outlets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Marine Band</span> Premier band of the United States Marine Corps

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guard of honour</span> Military honour guard unit

A guard of honour (GB), also honor guard (US), also ceremonial guard, is a group of people, usually military in nature, appointed to receive or guard a head of state or other dignitaries, the fallen in war, or to attend at state ceremonials, especially funerals. In military weddings, especially those of commissioned officers, a guard, composed usually of service members of the same branch, form the Saber arch. In principle, any military unit could act as a guard of honour. However, in some countries certain units are specially designated to serve as a guard of honour, as well as other public duties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Großer Zapfenstreich</span> German military ceremony

The Großer Zapfenstreich is a military ceremony performed in Germany and Austria. It is similar to the military tattoo ceremony performed in English-speaking countries, and is the most important ceremonial act executed by the German federal armed forces, the Bundeswehr, and by the Austrian federal armed forces Bundesheer. The Zapfenstreich is performed only during national celebrations and solemn public commemorations, to honour distinguished persons present at such special events. Examples are the farewell ceremony for a German federal president, or at the conclusion of large military exercises. It takes place in the evening hours and consists of a military formation of at least one military band, two platoons of armed infantrymen, and two lines of soldiers carrying torches, in total about 400 men.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Signing ceremony</span>

A signing ceremony is a ceremony in which a document of importance is signed (approved). Typically the document is a bill passed by a legislature, thus becoming a law by an executive's signature. However, the document may also be, for example, an executive order, international agreement, or a veto statement that invalidates a legislative measure.

A funeral procession is a procession, usually in motor vehicles or by foot, from a funeral home or place of worship to the cemetery or crematorium. In earlier times the deceased was typically carried by male family members on a bier or in a coffin to the final resting place. This practice has shifted over time toward transporting the deceased in a hearse, while family and friends follow in their vehicles. The transition from the procession by foot to procession by car can be attributed to two main factors; the switch to burying or cremating the body at locations far from the funeral site and the introduction of motorized vehicles and public transportation making processions by foot through the street no longer practical.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European act of state in honour of Helmut Kohl</span>

The European act of state in honour of Helmut Kohl was an act of state to honour former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl following his death, and took place at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France on 1 July 2017 from 11 AM to 1 PM. It was announced by the European Commission on 18 June 2017, and was the first European act of state in the history of the European Union. It was co-organised by the European Commission, the European Parliament and the European Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death and funeral of Helmut Kohl</span>

Helmut Kohl, the former Chancellor of Germany, died on the morning of Friday, 16 June 2017 in the Oggersheim district of Ludwigshafen, his home town, aged 87. In office from 1982 to 1998, he is widely regarded as the "father of the German reunification" and as a principal architect of the Maastricht Treaty which established the European Union (EU) and the euro currency. In 1998 he became the second person to be named an Honorary Citizen of Europe. Following his death, he was lauded by world leaders as "the greatest European leader of the second half of the 20th century" and was honoured with an unprecedented European Act of State in his honour in Strasbourg, France, attended by the leaders of the EU's nations and other current and former world leaders. Subsequently, a Catholic requiem mass was celebrated in the Speyer Cathedral in Speyer, Germany, after which Kohl was interred in the nearby Old Cemetery.

In Korea, the marking of traditional milestones in life is known as The Four Ceremonial Occasions, or Gwanhonsangje. The four rites of passage celebrated in this tradition are the coming of age, marriage, death, or the funeral rites, and rites venerating the ancestors. The word Gwanhonsangje is a generic term made up of the first letter of each word.

References

  1. "Anordnung über Staatsbegräbnisse und Staatsakte vom 2. Juni 1966" (PDF).
  2. "EU executive seeks official commemoration of Germany's Kohl". www.msn.com.