Victorian Christmas Traditions

I recently had to give a five-minute presentation on a topic of my choice for a job interview.  I thought I'd let you all read my presentation below as I think that the topic is of interest to all.  Happy reading!

The Victorian era holds special fascination for me because it is often thought of as a time so different and old-fashioned from our own that there is nothing to relate to.  However, when I look at the Victorian era I see so many similarities.  I would like to explore one of these similarities today – specifically that of Victorian Christmas traditions that we still practice today.

One of the most enduring Christmas traditions to come out of the Victorian era is the Christmas tree.  Setting up Christmas trees in one’s home and decorating them was a German tradition.  When Queen Victoria married the German Prince Albert, one way for the royal couple to make Albert feel at home in Britain was to adopt some of his traditions, one of them being to set up a tree in Buckingham Palace at Christmas time.  In 1848 the Illustrated London News published an image of the Royal couple around their tree with their children.  Because Victoria was the equivalent to a modern movie star in her ability set trends and to make the public go wild over her, when the British public, and in turn the British colonies, learned of this practice they had to imitate their Queen.  And so happened the adoption of a German tradition into not only British practice, but into a world-wide phenomenon.  We don’t all necessarily decorate our trees with paper chains, popcorn & cranberry strings, candles, and placing presents in the boughs as was common in the Victorian era, but we do modern equivalents of tinsel garlands, electric Christmas lights, and putting presents under the tree.

1848 image of Queen Victoria, Prince Albert and their children that was published in the London Illustrated News

Another wildly popular Christmas tradition that began in the Victorian era is the sending of greeting cards to friends and family.  The first-ever Christmas card was commissioned by the Londoner Sir Henry Cole and sent in the year 1843.  The card was designed by John Callcott Horsley and showed a family drinking wine together.  The card may have started out as a marketing trick by Cole, trying to drum up more business for the penny post that he had been influential in establishing (another great Victorian invention), but the practice stuck and millions of modern families still send cards to loved ones far and near as a way to keep in touch.

First-ever Christmas card that was made and sent in 1843

 The Victorian era also lives on in the Christmas carols we sing, so many of which were penned in the 19^th century.  Some examples of carols that have their origins during Queen Victoria’s reign are: Angels from the Realms of Glory (1816), Angles We Have Heard on High (1862), Away in a Manger (1865), We Three Kings of Orient Are (1863), and Good King Wenceslas (1853).  I know that, for me, the Christmas season really begins when I decide to start listening to carols at home, and we would be much poorer for choice were it not for the Victorian carol writers.

 The last issue I want to discuss is Santa Claus.  Santa Claus is an interesting figure who has roots in many cultures and is known by many names, but I would argue that the modern, western perceptions of who Santa Claus is and what he does were solidified in the Victorian era.  St. Nicholas was made popular in the 1823 poem, A Visit from St. Nicholas, which appeared anonymously in the New York Sentinel.  The poem was later attributed to Clement Clarke Moore and we now know it as ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas’. It establishes the modern ideas that Santa travels by sleigh pulled by reindeer, comes down chimneys, and is plump.  In 1881 the famous cartoonist Thomas Nast drew an image of Santa Claus that was published in Harper’s Weekly that even further cemented the image of Santa as a plump, jolly old bearded man who brings gifts to children on Christmas Eve.

Nast's famous 1881 cartoon of Santa Claus that appeared in Harper's Weekly

 

I hope that because of these examples you too can see the relevance of the Victorian era and how its traditions and ideas continue  to live on in our everyday 21^st century lives.

Having Fun in Our Own Backyard

Matthew & I had wanted to visit Craigmillar Castle for a while, but after we got our Historic Scotland passes, we finally had enough motive to actually figure out how to get there and so we planned an expedition.  One sunny Sunday afternoon, five of us intrepids set out to walk there from the city centre, picnic lunches in hand.

None of us had been, so we felt like quite the explorers as we first had to brave a long, dark, seemingly endless tunnel (that had very atmospheric damp and dripping walls) before we tumbled back into the sunshine of an expansive meadow on the other side. We walked along the tramped-out path admiring the wildflowers and the brave among us scrambled up rocks until we finally came to the castle itself.

We are not so sure about the tunnel we have to journey through...

Those of us not afraid of heights scaled this rock on our meadow walk.

Finally, we see our destination - Craigmillar castle.

It is in ruins, its battlements wind and rain-swept.  This made it all the more fun to have a picnic inside its walls while still being able to enjoy the warmth of the sunshine.  Plus, that particular day boasted a visiting falconry display!  Matthew got to hold a falcon, which was a dream of his.  I was in charge of the photographic evidence since there was NO WAY I was about to hold a falcon!

Enjoying the sunshine on full stomachs after our picnic.

A very pleased Matthew holding a falcon.

We enjoyed scrambling bout the ruins and found lots of fun nooks and crannies on our way up to the ramparts.  When we finally made it up to the top we were rewarded with stunning views of the city. We were all quite impressed with how far we'd walked... and we all resolved that we'd take the bus home!

The intrepid adventurers!

Any guesses as to what this wee, chained chamber was?

A cupboard?  Maybe?

Three lassies in a fireplace.

A view from the top.

A roof in ruin.

Look how far we walked!  Arther's Seat with the City Centre off to the left.

 After our view from on high, we took a tour round the outside at ground level.  I do so love a ruined castle!  They seem to have so much more character than intact ones.  Plus I am a sucker for all things Romantic and Tragic.

I really liked how the foundations look kind of like tree roots here, anchoring the castle through the winds of centuries in their firm grasp.

I liked the outline of this bit of wall.

Oh, and they have a really great gift shop that we had a little too much fun in. :)

We didn't really see how they justified selling viking helmet in the shop, but we had fun with them anyways!

Historic Scotland Passes + The Hoskins + Friends = Good Times!

Matthew and I have now been members of Historic Scotland for a month.  What is Historic Scotland, you say?  It is an organisation that runs hundreds of sites across Scotland consisting of everything from castles, churches and abbeys to brochs, broughs and stone circles. For an annual fee, you can gain unlimited access to all these sites in Scotland and can take in their special events as well.  Not bad, eh?

We had been considering buying the passes for a while, but because it is kind of expensive and because we hadn't ever really needed to, we had never got round to it.  But we finally took the plunge and bought them on July 2nd while a fellow Canadian was in town to celebrate Canada Day and suggested that we take in the jousting at Linlithgow Palace .  How could we resist such an offer?  So on that beautiful, sunny day we took the 15 minute train ride to the picturesque town of Linlithgow (where an entire bungalow can be rented for the same monthly fee as our flat) and took in the ruined palace.  The palace is open to the sky as a fire several centuries ago destroyed everything wooden, making it quite picturesque and also allowing the visitor to take in the surrounding loch and fields of rapeseed (canola).

Linlithgow Palace with a wee Matthew in front.

Detail of a mermaid on the Linlithgow Palace courtyard fountain - the oldest still functioning in Scotland.

The loch and town as seen from the palace tower.

The beautiful countryside and detail of the ruins.

Matthew and I up high in the sky!

Matthew and Felicity find a niche whose purpose we could not fathom.

I find a bake oven big enough to bake Hansel & Gretel in.

The parish church is within the grounds of the palace and is open to the public.  I enjoy its interesting steeple and it has a gorgeous stained glass window in it that I could stare at for hours!

Because I had to work on July 2nd I missed most of the jousting that day, Matthew and I decided to go back again the next weekend so that I could see the jousting.  And why not?  It would be FREE to get in!  We invited everyone we knew and about 14 of us met up for the festivities.  It was a great day.  First we took in the jousting:

And then we took in the palace...

Watch out, Sean! Megan's coming for you!

A hearth big enough for 7 ... and then some!

We ladies show off our amazing variety of boots!

Just can't get enough of that fountain!

The ruins of Linlithgow Palace

Palace courtyard from above.

Matthew with side view of Palace.

I am quite excited about our passes, as they now give us incentive to go places and see things.  This is a beautiful country that we are living in and it just got a tad more accessible. :)  I am sure many more photos of palaces and such will crop up over the next year.

The Scottish Thistle - a force to be reckoned with!

Before moving here, I had once heard a comedian say that a Scottish thistle, "could beat a man up."  Well, seeing is believing and I am now convinced that that may be a distinct possibility!  I wouldn't want to get on this thistle's bad side:

Me begging for mercy.

The Scottish thistle.  Beautiful...

... but deadly.  Or at least dreadfully painful!

A Holiday Down South

I feel somewhat like a turncoat for saying this, but I absolutely, positively fell in love with England.  While my parents were visiting the four of us piled into a car, braved the narrow, twisting roads, managed to stay on the correct side, and wound our way down South.

We were going to see my mum's family in Keighley, West Yorkshire who my mum has visited in England and I have seen on their visits to Canada, but this was to be a first for me.

I think that I fell in love with England for the simple reason that I got to spend so much concentrated time in a car staring at the countryside.  We took different routes there and back and while in Yorkshire drove all over to different villages.

On the way there we took the big carriageway, as it would be easier to get used to driving on the "wrong" side of the road there.  Twice we stopped at a Road Chef and I will forever remember it as the first place I saw wild heather in bloom.  This was both exciting and slightly sad as I did not first see it in Scotland.  But Yorkshire was full of heather, most of it still black and dead not ready to bloom again until August.  Road Chefs are kind of like any big eating complex off of a 400-series highway back home, except that they come with patios and stunning views, and in both our cases, ponds.  We walked out the back to rolling hills and water birds and I just couldn't get over the juxtaposition of the beauty of the scenery and the fast food inside.

Scenery behind the Road Chef.

Heather in Bloom!

We made it to Keighley on the 28th of April, later than planned, but that was only because we were having such a good time stopping off along the road.  :)  Upon arrival, Barbara took us on a walk along a nature trail where we got great views of the town and got to make some furry friends.

I eventually got near the cow, but wasn't brave enough to let it lick me!

For once I am the tallest!

On the 29th our day was dedicated to watching the Royal wedding, visiting family and eating a lot of delicious food.  I contentedly watched all the guests arriving at the abbey, admiring dresses and exclaiming over hats (I wish people still wore hats to church on Sundays so that I would have an excuse to buy one... maybe I'll just have to get myself invited to a Scottish wedding).  Near the end of the entrance of all the guests one of the announcers got a little too excited and exclaimed, "This has been a fan-bloomin'- tastic day for British fashion!"  So we adopted that as our catch phrase for the day.  :)  Everything from Kate's dress to the exquisite evening meal Barbara prepared for us got called "fan-bloomin-tastic".

Mom and I having fun watching the Royal Wedding.

Look at the great view we had!  It was like we were there.  :)

Day 2 in England consisted of visiting the picturesque village of Grassington where we wandered all around the cobbled streets and poked our noses into any interesting shops.  We lunched at the Devonshire Hotel and then were off to Skipton to see the castle.  The castle is impressive because, although empty, it is intact! :)  That was Matthew's favourite part of the trip.

The Devonshire Hotel where we ate lunch.

Grassington. Note the bunting that was up everywhere because of the Royal Wedding.

This is Rose Cottage, for all you fellow Road to Avonlea fans.

Giant doors!

Matthew and Skipton Castle.

Skipton Castle: this portion is closed off to the public because it is still a private residence!

Matthew and I with the giant yew tree in the courtyard of Skipton Castle.

Yew tree in the courtyard of Skipton Castle.

 My favourite part of the trip came the next day when we went to Haworth on the steam train.  The main attraction there was the parsonage where the Bronte sisters lived and wrote while their father was the parson.  Unfortunately I don't have any photos of the inside of the parsonage because photography is not permitted.  I did, however get one shot of Matthew dressed up in the modern exhibit.

Waiting for the steam train.

The steam train!

The graveyard outside Haworth parsonage was singularly peculiar because it was full of these full-size gravestones laid directly on the ground.

Matthew gears up.

The Bronte Parsonage.

The Haworth parish church where Mr. Bronte ministered.

The next day we headed home, but this time took the scenic route and stopped off several times.  The  feather in our cap was hunting down Hadrian's Wall.  It was like a dream come true to pull off the tiny road and clamber into a farmer's field where the wall just...is.  Lying there with sheep one field over with no fuss made about it whatsoever other than a sign.  We climbed up on it and ran along it and just generally had a blast walking all over history.  Other highlights of the drive back north were all the frolicking lambs and the yellow fields of rapeseed (canola) in full bloom.  In some ways, going to England was like having all the childhood nursery rhymes you'd ever heard all come true all at once.  This made the whole trip somewhat magical and I hope to return someday for a bit more magic.

Walking all over history. Hadrian's Wall, Planetrees location.

The pasture right beside Hadrian's Wall.

Rapeseed in bloom.

Home again, home again.