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Around our campuses, tulips are starting to bloom. They aren’t just a welcome pop of colour after a bleak winter. Tulips have a special meaning for the Civic Campus — and Ottawa as a whole.

So, why is Ottawa the tulip capital of North America? Well, the story began more than 80 years ago during the Second World War.

Following the Nazi occupation of her country, Princess Juliana of the Netherlands accepted an invitation to come to Canada in 1940. And on January 19, 1943, she gave birth to seven-pound, 12-ounce Princess Margriet at the Ottawa Civic Hospital. To ensure the newborn princess would hold exclusively Dutch nationality, the Canadian government temporarily declared the room where she was born extraterritorial — outside Canadian jurisdiction.

With the 100^th anniversary of the Civic coming up in the fall, Her Royal Highness Princess Margriet of the Netherlands has sent us this lovely message of gratitude just in time for the Canadian Tulip Festival.

As a token of gratitude, an annual gift of tulips from the Dutch royal family is planted in two flower beds in Ottawa, at our Civic Campus and in Commissioners Park. The tulips bloom in shades of pink and purple, Princess Juliana’s favourite colours. The rest of the tulips you see around the city are planted and cared for by the National Capital Commission and local residents and businesses.

During the first week of May this year, the Netherlands honoured our hospital’s care teams with bouquets of tulips. The Ottawa Hospital warmly thanks Princess Margriet and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands for this generous gift.

From now until November 27, 2024 — the Civic’s 100^th birthday — we will look back at 100 unique moments from the past century. Follow along and share your personal stories about the Civic Campus at 100moments.ca.

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