About the history and traditions of Christmas

History of British Christmas traditions
From decorating the tree to eating mince pies and kissing under the mistletoe, here is our guide to British Christmas traditions and their origins.

Although Christmas will be very different for many of us this year, we can still enjoy festive activities such as decorating the tree, eating and drinking festive food and drink and refreshing winter walks.
Christmas has a long history in the UK, but we have the Victorians to thank for many of our most loved festive traditions, including sending cards and decorating Christmas trees. In fact, before the 19th Century, Christmas was barely celebrated in Britain.

How did the Victorians celebrate Christmas?
Much of our understanding of a merrie old English Christmas has more to do with the writings of Charles Dickens or Washington Irving than our real medieval ancestors. For the early Victorians, Christmas was an antiquated curiosity, but one that the English bourgeoisie were beginning to remember. Dickens’s A Christmas Carol is more an idealised romance based on his own childhood memory rather than a chronicle of what was happening at the time. But when the Victorians did rediscover Christmas they couldn’t stop themselves and soon we had Christmas cards, crackers and the sense that Christmas was a time for family. And, as Tiny Tim observed: “God bless us, every one.”

A 19th Century engraving of Victorian Christmas by Davidson Knowles (1852-1901) a British landscape painter (Photo by: Getty Images)

When did Christmas become Xmas?
The first examples of the abbreviation Xmas being used can be found in 15th century ecclesiastical writings. The X originally represented the first letter of the Greek word Xριστóς, meaning Christ. Of course, its prominence in the 20th century probably had more to do with the fact that Xmas has the same amount of letters as the word sale.

History of Christmas decorations
Why do we have Christmas trees?
In the UK the Christmas tree was first introduced in 1800 by the wife of King George III, Queen Charlotte, who brought the tradition from her native Germany, where it was common custom to have a Christmas tree in your home Yew. She requested a Yew tree be brought to Queen’s Lodge in Windsor, which she decorated herself.

Why is mistletoe hung at Christmas?
Before it became a romantic symbol, Mistletoe was considered so sacred in ancient Britain that it could only be cut by druids with a golden sickle. The plant had connotations of peace, and people who met underneath it were forbidden from fighting, even if they were bitter enemies. Homes decorated with mistletoe offered shelter and protection to anyone who entered.

Who was the real Father Christmas?
St Nicholas, a 4th-century archbishop in what is now Turkey, is the patron saint of girls and boys thanks to various stories of his miracles raising children from the dead, saving girls from prostitution and giving presents. Over the years, in Britain he has become associated with the figure we now know as Father Christmas and, for the last 150 years, the Americanised Santa Claus. The figure of Father Christmas first appeared during the 1650s, when the Puritans banned the festive season.

Decorating houses

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year !!!