HISTORIC UK

26 FOCUS The Magazine November/December 2016 www.focus-info.org

In many homes, Christmas comes out ofthe box from which it was packed into theyear before. New decorations appear eachyear, but a large part of the pleasure comesfrom unpacking memories from last year’sChristmas box. For the past 25 years, thecurators at the Geffrye Museum of theHome in Shoreditch have been goingthrough pretty much the same ritual. Eachyear the East London museum provides aglimpse of authentic Christmas decora-tions that reflect changes over the years ineleven festive room sets. e tradition ofdecorating trees came over from Germanyin the 19th century. Christmas has not al-ways been fashionable, indeed ostentatiouscelebrations were banned by the Puritans. Proceedings start in 1630 where we see thehall of a middling London home deckedout for New Year. Just as Christmas seemsto go on forever nowadays, so it did in the17th century when the full twelve days ofChristmas were celebrated. A table display-ing all manner of sugary treats provides ev-idence that eating too many sweets is not amodern invention. e ones that caughtthe eyes of my boys were the ones carefullycrafted to look like bacon and eggs.Evergreens hang in great boughs over thefireplace: this tradition has its roots inPaganism but the early church adoptedthem as a sign of everlasting life.

Christmas was banned during the EnglishCivil Wars and Commonwealth (1642-1653). Shops were made to stay open onChristmas Day and no greenery was to bedisplayed in churches or private homes. By1695, decorations are back with rosemaryand bay festooning the next roomset.ere is evidence of the family enjoying aday of listening to music and snacking onanchovies and olives before heading off tochurch in the evening.

It is not only decorations that havechanged. Just as Christmas meals differ be-tween countries so it has changed withinthe United Kingdom too. Even thoughturkey was introduced from America in1590, roast beef was still the centerpiece ofthe Christmas table by the end of the 18thcentury. Whether or not Brussels sproutsare on the display plate is not clear butplum pudding, a boiled suet and driedfruit concoction are present much liketoday’s Christmas pudding although eatenas a dessert rather than as an accompani-ment to the beef. Some are unsure aboutChristmas pudding at the best of timesand may shudder to find it side by sidewith roast beef.

Fast forward to 1870 when the roomsetbegins to look more familiar. A richly dec-orated tree dominates the site. It was the

Christmas at Geffrye Museum

Royal Consort Queen Charlotte, theGerman wife of George III who mighthave been the first to import one for herchildren in the 1780s. It was later, duringthe Victorian era, that the tree reallycaught popular imagination and made itout of the palace and into family drawingrooms. Soon families of all classes weredecorating evergreen trees with candles and garlands, not to mention piling upelaborately wrapped presents at the foot of the tree.Whilst the Christmas tree might be aGerman import, the Christmas card is awholly English invention. By the end ofthe late 18th century children were pro-ducing handwritten season’s greetings totheir parents, showing off their neat hand-writing skills. In 1843, Sir Henry Cole hadthe bright of idea of printing some greet-ings to save him having to write to every-body in his extensive social circle. Cole’sidea caught on by the 1860s when sendingof cards was common place among theupper and middle classes. en in 1870,the introduction of a special low postagerate for postcards and unsealed envelopessaw a real boom in the distribution ofChristmas cards. By 1880, the Post Officewas so overwhelmed by seasonal post that it put out a plea to ‘Post Early forChristmas’!

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The Geffrye Museum at Christmas - Steve Speller

HISTORIC UK

FOCUS The Magazine 27www.focus-info.org

Christmas 1830, –Jayne Lloyd

Catherine Broadman is editor of CulturalWednesdays. She can be contacted atculturalwednesday.wordpress.com.

Newfangled inventions like electricity,radio and television all began to maketheir mark not only on everyday life, buton the celebration of Christmas as the20th century progressed. Out wentsingsongs around the piano and in camegathering around the wireless to listen tothe King’s broadcast to the Empire.Artificial trees started to become populareven when people owned a real one andthe likelihood of becoming festoonedwith electric lights and not candles in-creased. By the time the 1960s arrived,plastic toys rather than wooden onesstarted emerging from the wrappingpaper.e final room set is dated 1998. In this

period one is reminded of all the stuffthat was purchased when first setting uphome. at swish new CD player thatmy children think so quaint was cuttingedge technology that made many feel somodern. Bits and pieces from the Conranshop, some of which I still have, adornthe room. Everything changes and yet we still deco-rate our rooms and invite our friends andfamily in to celebrate. Four hundredyears of seasonal traditions are docu-mented at Geffrye for the benefit of pub-lic knowledge. It is open from Novemberto January free of charge. Check foropening times.

A Drawing Room in 1870 –Morley von Sternberg

A Drawing Room in 1910 –Steve Speller

“Twelve days of Christmas were celebrated in the 17th century.”

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Christmas at Geffrye Museum circa 1630