Christmas Crackers

In 1844, Thomas Smith, an English candy maker, visited France and saw
cosaques, or crackers, sugar-coated almonds wrapped in squares of colored
paper that were twisted at one end. He returned to England and began
making crackers that contained candy, mottoes, jokes, and riddles. By the
turn of the century, Thomas Smith's firm was selling 13 million crackers
each year. Today's cracker is a crepe-paper-covered tube with small
trinkets inside. At Christmas dinner a cracker is placed beside each plate,
and when its tabs are pulled, a chemically treated paper strip breaks and
makes a popping or cracking noise.

Christmas Cards

The distiction of having created the first Christmas card is usually given to
John Calcott Horsley, but there are some who disagree. Horsley printed his
card in 1843 for Sir Henry Cole, the friend who had given him the idea. The
card looked much like a postcard and consisted of three panels. The central
panel pictured the typical English family of the day enjoying the holiday:
this panel caused some controversy, as it showed a child drinking wine. The
other panels depicted acts of charity, so important to the Victorian
Christmas spirit. The card's inscription read "Merry Christmas and a Happy
New Year to You". A thousand copies of the card were printed, selling for
one shilling apiece.

But around the same time as Horsely, two other men, W.A. Dobson and
Edward Bradley, were designing cards and sending them to their friends.
These cards, however, were hand-created instead of printed.

Christmas cards soon became the popular means of sending holiday

greetings among the Victorians. Most of the cards were not particularly
religious. The onset of the "penny post" in 1840 had made it affordable for
people to send greetings by mail, and the invention of the steam press
made mass production of these cards possible. At one time in Britain the
Post Office delivered on Christmas Day, which is when most people received
their cards. As could be expected, this process soon became too much for
postal workers, who eventually got the day off.

The Kissing Bough

Though its name might suggest otherwise, the kissing bough was not made
just out of mistletoe, but includes holly, ivy, and other evergreens. Shaped
in a double hoop with streamers flowing from the top, the kissing bough
was decorated with apples, pears, ribbons, and lighted candles. As with
plain mistletoe, anyone found under the bough was to be kissed forthwith.
The kissing bough was very popular in England before the heyday of the
Christmas tree.
The Lord of Misrule and the Mummers

The Lord of Misrule played a major part in the Christmas festivities in

medieval England. He was the leader of many holiday activities and had
real power; his whims had to be obeyed by all, even the King. The Lord of
Misrule was a strictly secular figure, appointed by the King and nobility to
reign over the Twelve Days of Christmas. The man chosen for this position,
however, was generally wise enough not to abuse his power when dealing
with the nobility. Much of the custom surrounding the Lord of Misrule and
the Mummers had parallels with the Roman Saturnalia, during which
masters and slaves changed places, with general rowdiness abounding.

Out on the streets among the common people, the Lord of Misrule was head
of the Mummers, a traveling band of rowdy players who roamed the streets
in costume performing plays, songs, and so on. Though they stuck to the
streets for the most part, the Mummers were sometimes known to barge
into churches and disrupt the service, an act that did not sit well with
church officials.

The Mummers, roving street carousers all, offered just about anything that
would win the attention of passersby. The classic Mummer's play has a
number of variations, but it always focuses on the death and revival of one
of the principals.

Like carolers, Mummers would often perform in exchange for goodies,

though their performances were often disruptive. When the Puritans came
to power, they did away with the Lord of Misrule and his companions.
Though the restored monarchy reinstated most of the Christmas traditions
outlawed by the Puritans, the Lord of Misrule remained an outlaw. He and
the Mummers never again enjoyed the freedom and popularity they had in
medieval England.

Scotland

The first person to set foot in a residence in a New Year is thought to

profoundly affect the fortunes of the inhabitants. Generally strangers are
thought to bring good luck. Depending on the area, it may be better to have
a dark-haired or fair-haired stranger set foot in the house. This tradition is
widely known as "first footing."

I was having quite a bit of trouble finding information on Christmas in Scotland, but then I found
out why. The Scottish don't celebrate Christmas as their main winter holiday. They still celebrate
it, but their main holiday is called Hogmany. This is celebrated on New Year's Eve and New
Year's day. On Christmas day, some of the Scots do exchange presents and sing carols around
their decorated tree. They do hang mistletoe and lovebirds are known to sneak their kisses
underneath them. They usually eat roasted turkey for their Christmas feasts. On Hogmany day,
they believe that if a visitor comes into your house you will have good luck. Your whole year
depends on whether this visitor is a lucky one or if he is cursed with bad luck. It matters what
type of hair color the visitor is in certain parts of Scotland. So quite frankly it doesn't matter if
your naughty or nice because they don't have a Santa Clause or a Father Christmas as said in
Europe to be good for. No matter what your getting presents.
The Scottish people have their big celebrations on New Year's Day, called Hogmanay. A long
time ago There is a superstition that it is bad luck for the fire to go out on Christmas Eve, since it
is at this time that the elves are abroad and only a raging fire will keep them from coming down
the chimney.

On Christmas day, people sometimes make big bonfires and dance around them to the playing
of bagpipes. Bannock cakes made of oatmeal are traditionally eaten at Christmas.

In Scotland, Christmas had traditionally been celebrated very quietly, because the Church of
Scotland - the Presbyterian Church - has never placed any great emphasis on the Christmas
festival, However, the Scots are members of the Church of England or other churches generally
celebrate Christmas in the same way as the English people disapproved of Christmas for they
believed that there was too much riotous festivity that went on. Nowadays these things are held
at Hogmanay, but they do celebrate Christmas with some very interesting customs.

December 26th-Boxing Day in Great Britain

Boxing Day is a national holiday in England, Ireland, and Australia. It is celebrated

on December 26th. Legend tells that on this day the noblemen "boxed up" gifts for
their servants.

Boxing Day is also called St. Stephen's Day. Stephen was a martyr who was stoned
to death shortly after Christ's crucifixion. Boxes that were placed in the churches
throughout the year are opened this day. Payment for special services that were
done during the year are distributed on this day. Children also go from house to
house asking for contributions.

Suggested Activities on Boxing DayCollect canned goods for a local food

charity organization. Collect used clothing for needy families. Decorate the
collection boxes and prepare information sheets about your collections.

Write a thank you card or letter to someone who has helped you at some time.

Christmas Day is on 25 December

 It is the day when Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ
 Christmas Day and Boxing Day (December 26) are traditionally days when families spend time
together at home

CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS

 Evergreen plants are used as Christmas decorations - the most popular ones being holly and ivy
 Before Christianity these plants were thought to be magical and were hung up to
protect against evil spirits and to encourage Spring to come. Christians used these
plants in their customs to remind people that the prickles on the holly were like the
crown of thorns that Jesus wore when he died
 Welcome wreaths - a welcome wreath of evergreens is often placed on front doors and dates
back to the Roman times when a garland of leaves signified good luck

Mistletoe is a parasitic plant that grows on the branches of trees. Druids used mistletoe as a symbol
of fertility. Victorians bound the mistletoe to a frame to make a "kissing ring." Each time a
gentleman caught a lady under the mistletoe, he was allowed to claim a kiss. When the branches
were bare, the kissing had to stop! A traditional rhyme about mistletoe is:
'Pick a berry off the mistletoe
For every kiss that's given.
When the berries have all gone
There's an end to kissing.'

 It is still customary to kiss someone under the mistletoe

THE CHRISTMAS TREE

 Evergreen fir trees are usually adorned with lights (as symbols of eternal life and hope)
and decorations

The use of Christmas trees began in the 17th century in Strasbourg, France and spread
throughout Europe

 They were made popular in Britain by Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's husband, who had
a Christmas tree at Windsor Castle from 1840

CHRISTMAS PRESENTS

 Christmas presents are put under the Christmas tree and opened on Christmas Day

CHRISTMAS CARDS

 Christmas (and New Year) cards are given at Christmas time

CHRISTMAS STOCKINGS

 From 1870 children have hung up Christmas stockings at the ends of their beds or along the
mantelpiece
 The stockings (or sacks) are filled during the night by Father Christmas whilst the children are
asleep, ready for Christmas Day

 Children write letters to Father Christmas to let him know what they want. Usually they
"post" these letters a few weeks before Christmas Day by leaving them in the fireplace for
Father Christmas to collect

FATHER CHRISTMAS

 The tradition of Father Christmas began in the Netherlands with the custom of celebrating St
Nicholas' Day and St Nicholas' Eve, when gifts were given to children
 The British took over the tradition as part of their own Christmas Eve celebrations
 St Nicholas (the Dutch 'Sinterklaas') became Santa Claus/Father Christmas - the jolly man
dressed in red with a white beard

 Santa has flying reindeer and a sleigh and travels all the way from Reindeerland in the Frozen
North
 He has to climb down chimneys to bring children toys
  So that Santa is kept well fed, children leave him mince pies and something to drink (hopefully
a good glass of scotch). Children also leave carrots or apples for the reindeer

CHRISTMAS DINNER

 It is traditional to have turkey with stuffing, sprouts, carrots, peas, and bacon/sausages for
Christmas dinner, and Christmas plum pudding and/or mince pies with rum butter for desert
 The Christmas pudding has brandy poured over it and is lit. The flaming pudding is brought to
the dinner table. A coin is often placed in the pudding - bringing "good luck" to the person who
finds it

CHRISTMAS CRACKERS

 A London sweet maker, Thomas Smith, invented Christmas crackers in 1846

 The idea of these crackers were taken from the French bonbons - sweets wrapped in twisted
pieces of coloured paper

Thomas Smith added love notes to the bonbons and then had the idea of making the
sweets go bang

 Paper hats and small toys were also added to the crackers
 Christmas crackers are usually pulled around the dinner table before the meal
starts

FESTIVE GAMES

 A popular game for families to play at Christmas time is charades

 In charades, players have to act out words (usually the names of films, books, or song) in mime
 The other players who are watching the mime have to guess what the charade is
 Whoever guesses the charade first has to perform the next charade

PANTOMIMES

 Pantomimes (usually shortened to "pantos") are traditional Christmas plays put on in

theatres for children to watch
 Most pantos are based on popular children's stories such as Jack and the Beanstalk,
Mother Goose, Aladdin

 In pantos, ugly women are always played by men, and handsome young men are always played
by pretty young women!
 It is traditional for the audience to join in with the panto - cheering the hero or heroine and
hissing at the villains

CAROLS

 Carols (French 'noel') are popular religious songs usually sung at Christmas
 Carols are sung to remember the singing of the angels who sang 'Gloria in Excelsis Deo' in
heaven to give thanks for Christ's birth
 Since Victorian days, singers and musicians have visited houses at Christmas time. The
Carollers sing carols and collect money, which is usually given to charity. The Carollers are
normally given drinks made of warm ale, apples, and spices - if they're lucky!