Victorian Christmas Celebration

Reagan Sims, Alexis Shields, Kaden Moore, Hollie Thornton, Emily Frederick, Eryn McCoy, Sarah

Peek. 6th period

Alexis Shields

History of Victorian Christmas

• Between 1837-1901 many new foods were being made.

• Some of these inventions are canned food, sauces, self-raising flower, quick-acting yeast, and baking powder.

• These inventions made cooking much easier.

History of Victorian Christmas

• The poor ate contaminated foods that contained diseases and many other harmful things that killed them.

• The working class diet was simple. They ate bread, butter, potatoes, bacon, corn, beer/tea.

• The upper class ate desserts like pudding, ice cream, and jellies regularly.

The Christmas Dinner

• First, you would get up and go to church.

• Afterward, you would come home to the meal that you prepared the best way that you could.

• When making the pudding batter, they would put a ring in it and whoever got it was to get married soon or have a great destination.

People and Animals

• Grandmothers all around the world would get up early in the morning on Christmas Eve and start their baking. They would make everyone in the household stir the pudding batter at least one time.

• Dickens believed that everybody should eat, drink, and pray.

• The major birds of Christmas are the peacock’s, swans, geese, and turkeys.

Recipes

• Only a few recipes were written down during the 1800-1900.

• Most were sent down generation by generation.

• Back then, cooks never relied on recipes. They relied on the touch and feel.

The Christmas Table

• You sat down with your family and celebrated Jesus’ birthday together.

• The table had flowers, ferns, mosses, candles, and a long cloth covering the table.

• The table was decorated the best way that the person could afford.

• The halls were lined with lights and greenery.

Foods

• Foods were put together and set on a outstanding table to celebrate Christmas day.

• Wassail, geese, turkey’s, cookies, cakes, and many other thing were what people made.

• Pudding was a famous dish, mostly for those only that could afford it.

Reagan Sims

Christmas Past and Present

• In 1908 McCall’s Magazine stated “very few of us cannot afford to give to give something of the trifle we possess.”

• Most people could not afford to buy expensive gifts so they had to make them by hand.

• Like us the Victorians wanted to give generously during the holiday season but like us most had to stay within a budget.

Evergreens

• Decorating churches, store’s, homes, and taverns with evergreens is a popular tradition to all families.

• Every room throughout the house was decorated and Christmas stockings were hanging from the fireplace mantel.

Homemade Decorations

• Christmas Crackers began in 1846,by Thomas Smith. During a visit to Paris, where he came across the Bob-bon Sugar almond wrapped in tissue paper.

• Christmas Crackers are bright colored tube, twisted at both ends. Inside there is a “banger” when two people pull it will create a “crack” or “bang” noise.

Holiday Traditions

• Many homes have Nativity Scenes they include a manger, Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, and animals.

• The origin of hanging a Christmas stockings is obscure, St. Nick would leave some small items in the stockings.

Emily Frederick

The Tree’s History

• The first tree was brought to Windsor Castle in 1834 by Prince Albert.

• The tree originated in Germany but, thanks to them its one of the best, and well known traditions of the season.

• The custom had spread throughout Europe in the middle ages.

Legends of the Tree

• There are many legends about the trees origin, here are a couple:

• One tells that on the very first Christmas Eve the winter trees bloomed as if it were spring time.

• The other tells about Martian Luther, a stern reformer, lit small candles on the fir tree.

The Tradition of the Tree

• The tradition of the tree caught on more quickly with the recent European Settlers.

• Once tree’s were accepted into Victorian homes , their popularity grew immensely.

• Many Americans during this time regarded the idea with suspicion.

• It boarded on the practice on the “pagan ritualism”. Which not all of them viewed the tree with as much suspicion.

Ornaments• There were many ornaments, some of them

being;• Glass ornaments, wax ornaments, wooden

toys, miniature toys also dollhouse furniture.

• One of the most famous were the cornucopias, they were ornaments shaped like ice cream cones with candy treats for children.

Eryn McCoy

The First Christmas Card

• The first Christmas card was designed by J.C. Horsley and sent by Henry Cole.

• Cole had Horsley design the card because he didn’t have time to write to all his friends and family.

Christmas Card Themes

• Santa has many variations from country to country.

• Americans show him as a jolly old man with a red coat, sack full of toys, and a sleigh with 8 flying reindeer.

• Germans show a more sober Santa with either a fir tree or a sack full of toys.

More Card Themes

• Many types of food, such as ham or plum pudding, were often shown steaming on the front of cards.

• Germans showed a “Little Piggy”, often dressed in fancy clothes, on the front of their cards.

• Carolers were also popular themes for cards, often shown struggling through the snow.

Christmas Carols

• Victorians got some of their carols from song that started when Jesus was born.

• They also wrote some of their own such as “Silent Night” , “O Christmas Tree” , and “I Heard Bells on Christmas Day,” were popular songs of the era.

More Christmas Carols

• “Here We Come a Wassailing” is a four verse song commonly sung by wassailers.

• “Angels We Have Heard on High” is a three verse song about the angels that appeared on the night that Jesus was born.

• “Silent Night” was written by Father Joseph Mohr on December 23 in Oberndorf, Austria.

Kaden Moore

Victorian Games

• Checkers• Reindeer Game• Pantomime Puzzles

Dressing Up

• During balls, women wore loads of make-up and mask.• Women that were single called,

“Mummers”, wore ragged costumes to disguise themselves.• At Grand Balls women wore extra make-

up, jewelry, and fancy clothing for the host and other men.

Kissing Bough• Until the Christmas Tree

was introduced this type of greenery was the main decoration of Christmas.

• If a woman walked under this mistletoe she was to be kissed by the nearest man! Pucker up!

• A sprig of mistletoe was hung from its center.

Sarah Peek

Salvation Army

• William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army. Likely to be one of the most signal figures in human history.

• The thought of an army fighting sin, made more and more people want to become a part of the Salvation Army.

Florence Nightingale

• Florence devoted her life to nursing and campaigning for better health. She began investigating, the health of the British army in India.

• By 1859 she had $45,000 at her Nightingale training school.

Givers

• Anthony Cooper reduced the children's work hours to keep them from working underground.

• Robert Owen, a part owner of a huge spinning mill, provided houses and cheaper foods for the poor.

Red Cross

• The Red Cross was founded in 1882 by Clara Barton.

• Through the efforts of Clara the United States adhered the treaties governing the Red Cross.

Toynbee and Octavia Hill

• Toynbee considered charity a science and a religion.

• They both built houses of all kinds at no cost.

Hollie Thornton

Before the book

• Dickens began work on A Christmas Carol in late 1843.

• With the publication of this book, 6,000 copies weren’t enough because on it’s first day it had sold out

• When he wrote the book he was only trying to make a quick buck so he could avoid being poor again

The Meaning of the Book

• The book “is about change and the possibility of change.”

• Scrooge’s attitude towards Christmas symbols the change of heart around Christmas time

• He wanted it to be bestowed upon people to at Christmas time to be generous and giving to others

How did they Celebrate Christmas?

• The Cratchits• The Fezziwigs• Fred• Scrooge

The Ghosts

• The Dead Jacob Marley• The Ghost of Christmas Past• The Ghost of Christmas Present• The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come

Scrooge’s Change of Heart

• Scrooge went from a “Bah Humbug” attitude to The best person anyone could be at Christmas time all in one night

• His affection for Tiny Tim was his weakness. He learned that if the future remained unaltered the child would die

A Quote from the Author

“I have endeavored this ghostly little book to raise the Ghost of an idea, which shall not put my readers out of humor with themselves, with each other, with the

season, or with me. May it haunt there houses pleasantly, and no one wish to lay it.”

“Their faithful Friend and Servant”

C.D.(Charles Dickens, 1843)