Oak apple 29 May that commemorated the Restoration of Charles II in 1660. The popular name refers to the event during the English Civil War when Charles hid in an oak tree. The commemoration persists in some areas today, although festivities have little to do with the Restoration. Oak apple Oak apple or oak gall is the common name for a large, round, vaguely apple-like gall commonly found on many species of oak. Oak apples range in size from in diameter and are caused by chemicals injected by the larva of certain kinds of gall wasp in the family Cynipidae. The adult
Oak Apple Day to God, for the great Blessing and Mercy he hath been graciously pleased to vouchsafe to the People of these Kingdoms, after their manifold and grievous Sufferings, in the Restoration of his Majesty..." The public holiday was formally abolished in the Anniversary Days Observance Act 1859, but the date retains some significance in local or institutional customs. It is, for example, still observed as Founder's Day by the Royal Hospital Chelsea, which was founded by Charles II in 1681. Traditional celebrations to commemorate the event often entailed the wearing of oak apples (a type of plant gall, possibly known in