Everything You Need to Have a Victorian Christmas

Writing this series on Christmas Traditions, I was shocked to find how more than any other time in history, Victorian England shaped our modern-day version of Christmas. So you’d be surprised how easy it is to have your very own Victorian Christmas this year! In fact, some of your favourite Christmas customs might indeed have their origins right in the home of Queen Victoria herself!

A Little History on Victorian England

Queen Victoria was crowned in 1837, and she remained on the throne for a staggering 64 years until her death in 1901. She married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg (German dynasty) in 1840. Together they had nine children and were very happily married. Her keen interest in family soaked into the fabric of British society and influenced generations to come. When Albert died suddenly in 1861, Victoria went into a period of mourning, which would last until her eventual death. She wore black for the rest of her life after the death of her husband and even had the servants lay out his clothes daily.

Under Victoria’s reign, Britain saw a time of significant cultural expansion. There were so many historic advances in industries, science and communications. Under her watchful eye, there was also the expansion of railways and the building of the London Underground. These elements would combine to create a melting pot which produced the magical Christmas traditions we cherish today.

The Christmas Tree

Queen Victoria married her beloved Prince Albert in 1840. As he was of German descent, he brought many of his hometown traditions with him to Windsor palace. One of these was the Christmas Tree. Christmas trees had been established in Germany since the 16th-century. In Germany though, they were generally placed on the tabletop instead of on the floor. These trees were relatively unassuming, with nothing more than candles placed on the tree as decoration.

In 1848 the Illustrated London News published a picture in their newspaper of Queen Victoria and her family around their beloved Christmas tree. But their English Christmas tree was adorned in beautiful ornaments. From there, the populace became enchanted with the idea of decorating their own Christmas tree. Since it was quick to mass-produce these decorations due to so many now industrial plants opening up, the market for the ornaments exploded. Round glass baubles in bright and reflective materials that would reflect then candlelight became the most popular commodity at the end of the 19th century.

Pile on the Ornaments

As mentioned before, Victorians loved their ornaments. In the late 19th century, the traditional colours for ornaments were the patriotic red, white and blue to represent the British flag. Small drums, airships and trains were also a popular kind of decoration. These were meant to express your national pride and love for the British military. With the invention of the printing press, die-cut images of Santas, angels, and other Christmas iconography were popular things to hang on the tree.

Lametta or tinsel was the final flourish any Victorian would add to their tree. The origins of hanging tinsel on the tree date back to 1610 in Nuremberg, Germany. Back then, people would use real strands of silver to hang on their tree which was meant as a means to show off their immense wealth. But as silver tarnished so quickly, it was swapped for the more durable copper or tin strands. This also meant it was much cheaper to buy and, therefore, accessible to the general public, who ate up the tinsel’s trendy look.

DIY Ornaments

Other Christmas ornaments were made by the lady of the house. Since the printing press made publications easy to mass-produce, women’s magazines begun popping up everywhere. Inside of them were instructions on how the dutiful housewife could create her own ornaments. Making these homemade ornaments was seen as a way to show off your skills as a housewife, even if you could afford store-bought ones. One popular design was made from coloured paper and shaped into horns. Then the horns were filled with sweets or dates that the children could eat during the holidays. Another design used silk ribbons to make pompoms and tassels or you could create a snowman out of cotton wool!

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Enjoy time with Family

It wasn’t until the Victorian era that Christmas became an official “holiday,” and working-class people got time off work. In the Victorian era, in England and Wales, December 25th and 26th were made into official holidays. This would allow the new middle-class workers who had moved to the city for their jobs time to go back home to visit their families. Even those who grew up far away could get back home quickly with the advent of the newly built train lines. Queen Victoria and her husband Albert thought family life was essential to overall well-being. And they wanted their citizens to be able to return home to be with family at Christmas.

Gift Giving

Queen Victoria’s reign was during the time of the first Industrial Revolution. Factories and mass production meant that many products previously only made by hand which cost a fortune were suddenly available to the middle class at a significantly lower price. This was especially significant when it came to Christmas gifts. Before toys were reserved for the rich but now almost all children’s parents might be able to afford to buy them something special to play with.

If you couldn’t afford toys, your stocking was filled with nuts, apples and clementines. Putting clementines into socks goes back to a group of nuns in the 12th century. This group of French nuns was inspired by the legend of St Nicholas and would leave apples and tangerines inside socks of the houses of the poor. At this time these fruits were very rare and expensive and eating them would have been a once-a-year kind of treat!

We know all about the kinds of gifts which Victorian men, women and children would have on this Christmas list thanks to Victorian Women’s magazines. Just like today, they were filled with gift guides. Popular gifts for women were; fans, perfume, Christmas decorations, sewing baskets, sewing scissors and even a magazine subscription.

Gifts for men included smoking caps, braces, shaving soaps, slippers, tobacco pouches, umbrellas or cigar cases. Gift for children consisted of hair ribbons, wax dolls, mittens, a toboggan, stamp albums, wooden toys, marbles, building bricks and toy soldiers.

Embrace Handmade Gifts

Just as the newly printed Women’s magazines influenced handmade ornaments, they also influenced the tradition of making handmade gifts. This was not just to show off your craft skills but as a means of displaying your wealth through your ability to have enough free time to make a gift, rather than buy them. Things like knitted mitted, handkerchiefs, button-boxes and aprons were popular gifts for the Victorian lady.

Send some Christmas Cards

More revolutions in the industrial era meant that mail was now able to travel further distances and at low costs. The “Penny Post” was introduced in the UK in 1840. Letters could be sent anywhere in the country for only a penny (about 10 cents nowadays). In 1843 a famous printer, Sir Henry Cole, got the idea to produce lovely illustrated cards in his shop during the Christmas season. People could buy them for a shilling to send home and bring a smile to their family’s face if they couldn’t return themselves. Sir Henry Cole would go on to be the first director of the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Christmas Crackers

One of my favourite things to do at Christmas dinner is open my Christmas Cracker. I loved making them from DIY materials when I was a kid and filling them with presents of my own making. Christmas Crackers were invented by a candy maker in 1846. Tom Smith, a London inventor, packaged his candies into these fancy wrappings inspired by French bonbon wrappers he had seen in Paris. He added paper hats and toys to give his sweets an edge against the competition which was explosive during the holiday season. But it wasn’t until he added the iconic explosive “bang” that his “crackers” were cemented into the hearts and minds of all.

Do some Carolling

While singing hymns during Yuletime was a 400-year practice, it was primarily done in the church. In the Victorian era, they rediscovered a love of singing at home around the piano. Since the production of these musical instruments was now being mass-produced they were now popping up all over the place in middle-class homes. The 18th century also saw the mass production of Christmas sheet music. This meant that anyone who could read the music could pick up a copy of the sheet music for only a few shillings and entertain their guests at home with a raucous sing-along.

Parlour Games

We all have our favourite board game we each drag out of the cupboard at Christmas to play with the family. But the tradition of game playing with family at Christmas dates back to the Victorian era (although in a much more dangerous way). Back then, they didn’t have Scrabble, Catan or Monopoly. Instead, they would play their favourite game, “Snapdragon.” To play, you’d fill a bowl with brandy and raisins and turn off all the lights. Then you’d set the brandy on fire, and everyone would have to grab the raisins out of the bowl, seemingly trying to avoid catching on fire or being burned in the process. Undoubtedly, this resulted in many fires, injuries, burns and probably is why we don’t play it anymore…

“Kissing Balls”

Victorians get the reputation of being quite stuffy, but they were also a massive bunch of nutters. They were perhaps just better at trying to hide it. Holidays and parties were their excuse to let their guard down and have fun! They loved the idea of mistletoe and would jump at the chance to kiss a stranger! Previously mistletoe used as decoration looked more natural and organic, just a bunch of the branches tied together. But it was the Victorians that came up with the idea to form it into a more eye-catching “kissing ball” to draw the eye and get a smooch.

Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

Whether you sit around the TV every year watching ‘A Muppet’s Christmas Carol,’ ‘Scrooged,’ or even the classic 1935 version of ‘A Christmas Carol‘, the story is one of the most popular holiday tales. A Christmas Carol was Charles Dickens‘ first published novel, released in 1843. Many of our classic ideas around “Christmas time” were created from his novelization. This includes the focal themes of family, charity, and good cheer.

Light the Advent Candles

In Victorian England, many households would place candles in their window during Advent, the four Sundays before Christmas. This was a symbol to travellers that food and shelter could be found inside. This was something all good Christians were implored to do, as a means to show charity. It also represents the theme from the Christmas story as Mary and Joseph sought shelter on their own pilgrimage. It was customary for businesses to give their customers candles as gifts around Christmas since households would go through hundreds of candles a month!

Santa Claus

The name Santa Claus comes from the Dutch word for St. Nicholas “Sinter Klass.” When the Dutch settlers moved to America in the 17th century, they brought the tradition of celebrating St. Nicholas’ saints day on December 6 by filling Stockings with gifts. In 1870 after Santa Claus’ popularity had grown in America, it made its way over to Britain. Since the popularization of Christmas by Queen Vicotria has already started to grow, the general public really latched onto the image of Santa Claus. It was then that it cemented itself in the minds of the people as the symbol of the season.

The Christmas Pickle

If you have any German ancestry, you might already know all about this odd Christmas tradition. In Germany, it was common practice to hide a pickle-shaped ornament somewhere in the tree. The first child to find the decoration on Christmas morning would receive a special gift. The tradition made its way to England in the Victorian era, no doubt from Prince Albert. Although the addition of the Christmas pickle seems to have died out in England these days, during the Victorian period, under the watchful eye of Prince Albert, it was a staple in any household.

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Roast Turkey

Queen Victoria’s Christmas table was known to display the very best of England’s harvest and hunt. Although the ingredients were all harvested from the countryside around the castle, the chefs were always French. French chefs were in-vogue with the upper classes at the time, influenced by King Louis 14th luxurious court. A roast turkey with chestnut stuffing was a classic Victorian staple on the royal Christmas banquet table.

Sugar Plums

In the Victorian era, one of the most popular sweets to eat during the holidays was called “sugar plums.” The candy was made of nuts, spices and sugar, and rolled into a ball. The dark colour had the appearance of a plum, and that is where it got its name despite there being no plums in the dessert. Queen Victoria was known to hang cones on her Christmas tree and filled them with these sugar plums. Her love of the dessert popularized the sweet greatly. It was so popular even made its way into Tchaikovsky‘s famous ballet The Nutcracker, with the ‘Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.’

Whether you find your Christmas season already filled with all these traditional elements or you’ve found some historical ideas to incorporated into your holiday plans I hope you enjoyed reading this post! Let me know in the comments what surprised you most or any other historical traditions you have on your Christmas table.