Reports

South Tyneside Meeting - December 2003 "Aspects of Victorian Christmas" by Malcolm Grady A Report by Margaret Stafford

Malcolm Grady was our speaker tonight, picture the scene - the chapel at the mission to seafarers, a beautiful nativity scene behind the altar, a large green Xmas tree, the lights dimmed almost to make a spotlight, Malcolm at the lectern..........

His topic "aspects of Victorian Christmas"

We should have known what was to come when he introduced himself as the man who put sex into South Shields and dung into the living room. Malcolm reminded us the Victorian age lasted 64 years and invited us to imagine what life was like for us 64 years ago and how much it had changed.

In 1837 the Times was the major paper, looking back over the years 1790 - 1835 however, Christmas was never even mentioned at Christmas time in over 20 of those years. It was not a universal celebration and not even a public holiday in 1837. The celebrations centred around the winter solstice and could be at different times in different parts of the country. Linked to pagan celebrations there was still much eating , being merry and getting drunk - sound familiar?

Pre Victoria there were various influences - the rule of mischief celebrated on 17th December, carlins on the 18th January, mithrail on 25th December. Gradually during Victoria's reign the 25th December became the focus of celebration, encouraged by the Bank Holiday Act of 1871 and the Extended Holidays Act of 1875.

From Northern Europe came the tradition of Yuletide and lighting fires and talk of ghosts and spirits. The Christian tradition mixed in with the nativity featuring in two of the gospels. Cromwell had of course abolished Christmas - a threat to common decency because of the drunkenness and the reluctance to work. Charles II reinstated it as Christian tradition but there were still regional variations in celebrations. It was during Victoria's reign that the differences disappeared though class differences became more apparent.

How many of our requirements for a "traditional Christmas" are Victorian? Before 1837 there was no Christmas day, no tree, no holiday from work, no Father Christmas, the role of the family was different. As the middle classes became economically powerful in the 1840s and 50s and gained in political power following the 1832 Reform Act, there grew alongside this an idea of nostalgia - appreciation of the past. As the middle classes aped the royal family however, the class distinction became more apparent - poor families could not afford to send cards or buy a tree.

Technology also shaped our traditional Christmas. The Penny Post encouraged the sending of greetings, they could be transported faster by the railways and better travel also meant families could travel to be together for special occasions. Urbanisation meant ideas spread faster, change was more rapid.

Increased literacy helped the spread of ideas. Mrs Beaton's book of household management published in 1861 was a best seller for 90 years. Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" was not the first book to be written about Christmas but it caught the public imagination as each piece appeared in the serialisation. ( see A Christmas Carol the unsung story by Brian Sibley). Scrooge's own memories of Christmas past were pleasant, nostalgic. Christmas present was much more about reflecting the social problems of the time. Christmas future reflected the anxiety provoked by the social context of the time - social unrest, Chartism, European revolutions. Dickens brought to the forefront a societal concern for the poor, the sanctity of the family.

At the same time the Christmas card was used to maintain family networks - the thought that families sustain you through hard times. These ideas combined to lead to a resurgence of the celebration of Christmas.

Prince Albert brought over the German pagan tradition of the Christmas tree and the middle classes copied. When you think about it, where is the logic in bringing a green tree into the house for a month in the middle of winter? Pantomime was well established but in Victorian time became inextricably associated with Christmas. The first Christmas cards were published as "A Christmas Carol" was published. Why did the idea take off? Partly because technology made it possible, education made it available. In 1875 the Shields Gazette reported that on Christmas Eve the shops were open until midnight, packed with last minute present seekers. By 1901 Christmas was a million pound industry and there were plenty who complained about the commercialisation of Christmas!!

Victorians promoted the savings concept but now the idea of the Christmas Club was born, supported in factories and schools. As for Christmas dinner, by 1875 the Shields Gazette front page was full of adverts for Christmas beef. It was the only time of the year that adverts were used in such quantity - the hope of "cleaning up" at Christmas to keep you going for the rest of the year.

Santa Claus/Father Christmas/St Nicholas/Kris Kringle, the gift giver is a composite from many countries and cultures. In "Twas the Night Before Christmas" by Clement Moore published in America in 1822 but only published in the UK in 1888, the gift bringer is clad in green and slim. Illustrators such as Thomas Nast (and of course post-Victorian Coca Cola) changes him into the vision we have today.

Christmas in 1837 would have been a working day, by 1901 it was a time of celebration, feasting and family. (see "An Englishman's Christmas" by J R Pimlott).

Having lulled us into a comfortable nostalgic cosiness, Malcolm then decided to debunk a few myths. The lovely bright-eyed robin who features in so many Christmas cards is in reality a hissing heartless predator - Killer robin - more robins are killed by other robins than any other predator. As for Father Christmas, if you apply a scientific mind to his task on Christmas Eve you would find that he has to deliver presents to 378 million children. At an average census rate of 3.5 per household, Santa has to make it to 108 million homes. With the different time zones he has 31 hours to work in, that works out at 967 visits per second and with 75 million miles to cover the sleigh has to move at 650 miles per second.

One medium size Lego set per child would weigh around 2 lbs so a sleigh - full would weigh around 500,000 tons, requiring 360,000 reindeer to pull it (and only 1 Rudolph!). The resistance of travelling 600,000 miles at 650 miles per second would cause the reindeer to burst into flames and vaporise within 4/1000 of a second - just as Santa made it to the 5th house. But the pressure on Santa would have pinned him to the back of the sleigh and crushed every bone in his body............

We rather grudgingly thanked Malcolm by giving him a chorus of "We Wish You A Merry Christmas" and asking what his views are on the Easter Bunny? All we could say was that Malcolm had just proved how clever Santa must be to avoid all those pitfalls!! We also mused that we are lucky in the North east to be the last Northern bastion where both Christmas and New Year are celebrated, as the further north you venture then Hogmanay takes precedence.