Spirit of Christmas Past~

John Passfield, Lorna Walker, Neil Paul
Cottonwood Mansion Christmas Past



Christmas as we know it today would probably be a very different occasion but for the Victorians.  The Puritan rejection of the festival, although short-lived, was successful in that it changed forever the medieval idea of Christmas.  Hugely sumptuous feasts, exciting tournaments, good fellowship, playing the fool and gambling were never fully revived.  When Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837, Christmas, at best a social event where neighbours and communities came together, had deteriorated to a little-remembered occasion. 

Yet Christmas offered everything that the socially and family-conscious Victorians could desire.  All the ingredients were there ~ strong family feeling, piety, sentimentality, alms-giving, fun and games, feasting and drinking ~ they just needed to be revived and mixed in the right way, with a few things added.  The German custom of decorating a fir tree was imported to Britain and popularized by Victoria and, especially, her husband, Prince Albert.  Father Christmas, metamorphosed from St. Nicholas, arrived, laden with gifts, and was then transformed into Santa Claus by the Americans.  The Christmas card was invented.  Singing carols regained popularity.  Turkey took over from beef and goose as the centrepiece of the Christmas feast.

~ The Spirit of Christmas Past, Linda Clements,  Todtri Productions Ltd., 1996.