The Christmas Tree

The use of evergreens to decorate homes during the mid-winter festival certainly has a pre-Christian origin. Some authorities consider the Christmas tree to be a survival of pagan worship and trace it to Egypt in the time of the Pharaohs and ancient Rome. Decorations with holly and mistletoe date from the time of the Druids, or perhaps earlier.

Evergreens, because they did not die in wintertime, became, in Northern Europe, a symbol of eternal life. Mistletoe was sacred among the Druids, who believed it had miraculous powers. The Romans considered that it brought peace and when enemies met under it they discarded their weapons and declared a truce. From this comes the custom of kissing under the mistletoe.

By the beginning of the 19th Century, the Christmas tree tradition had spread from Germany to most of the countries of Northern Europe. Although Christmas trees were not unknown in England in Georgian times, it was Prince Albert of Saxony, the Prince Consort of Queen Victoria, who set an example and encouraged people to have a decorated tree at Christmas. Charles Dickens helped to popularise Christmas and the Christmas tree in the middle of the century. German immigrants took it to the United States during the 19th century, where it was adopted enthusiastically

The Star of Bethlehem and the Angel or Good Fairy at the top of the tree has been traditional for at least 200 years. The introduction of finely blown glass decorations took place in the mid-nineteenth century. The exchange of presents as part of the celebration of the anniversary of the birth of Christ was linked with the Christmas tree, and they have always been grouped around the foot of the tree. This automatically makes the tree the focal point of the family gatherings at Christmas-time.

Now, special plantations are grown purely for harvesting trees at Christmas-time so this tradition can carry on. Christmas trees can be bought at various retail outlets such as Garden Centres, Supermarkets and DIY stores.