Christmas Tree's and the Royal Family

     

     As we enter the thick of the Christmas holiday season, it is worth remembering that this is a season of deeply-held traditions, symbols, and customs. From religious services and gift-giving to beautiful Christmas cards and caroling, this time of the year is known for these and other special qualities that are not seen in most other holidays.

     One of the most iconic symbols of the holiday season – one which is taken for granted – is the Christmas tree. It seems as old as the Scriptures, but the tree as we think of it today is actually a relatively recent invention that was made popular by the British Royal Family in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Queen Charlotte

     However, the modern custom of bringing in an evergreen and  decorating it was not an original British tradition. In northern Germany, such trees were used as part of the Yule and Christmas festivals celebrated by people like the family of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Charlotte married George III of Great Britain and Ireland, who was also the Elector of Hanover, a small principality within the Holy Roman Empire which was next door to Mecklenburg-Strelitz. In 1800, Queen Charlotte hosted a Christmas party for children at Windsor Castle, and it was here that a decorated evergreen tree was on display – just as it would have been in Charlotte’s native Germany. The scene of the gathering was described by her biographer, Dr. John Watkins: 

In the middle of the room stood an immense tub with a yew tree placed in it, from the branches of which hung bunches of sweetmeats, almonds, and raisins in papers, fruits and toys, most tastefully arranged, and the whole illuminated by small wax candles. After the company had walked around and admired the tree, each child obtained a portion of the sweets which it bore together with a toy and then all returned home, quite delighted.

     The Christmas tree would become a staple of the royal holiday season. In 1832, the future Queen Victoria, who had a tree placed in her room, wrote an entry in her diary on Christmas Eve in which she gave her observation of Christmas trees in the common areas at home: 

After dinner...we then went into the drawing-room near the dining-room...There were two large round tables on which were placed two trees hung with lights and sugar ornaments. All the presents being placed round the trees...

     In 1841, Victoria married her cousin Prince Albert, who came from the German duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Just as Albert 

The engraving of the royal family around the
Christmas as was seen in the Illustrated London News.

was determined to provide a strong educational foundation for his children in Britain, he was equally determined that they should partake in the Christmas holiday traditions he had celebrated as a child. Christmas trees (some decorated by the royal family) were placed in Windsor Castle, and this was picked up by several newspapers at the time, which resulted in an 1848 engraving in pages of The Illustrated London News, which depicted Victoria, Albert, and their family around the brightly-lit main Christmas tree in the castle. For many Britons (especially in the middle and upper classes), this image became the model for their own Christmas celebrations, and the tree became more widespread in British homes. Albert himself presented Christmas trees to military barracks and schools during the holiday season, which further integrated them into the annual holiday culture at Christmastime.

     In the United States, Christmas trees had been used by Germans 

Engraving of a royal Christmas as it was
published in Godey's Lady's Book.

and people of German origin for several decades since the founding of the republic. But once again, it was the influence of the British Royal Family that sparked the widespread use of the evergreen during Christmas. The illustration of the royal family around their Christmas tree was republished in Godey's Lady's Book two years after its debut in the Illustrated London News (albeit without Victoria’s crown and Albert’s mustache and Order of the Garter sash to give the engraving an American character). It was the first widely circulated image of a decorated Christmas tree in America, and resulted in many Americans wanting a Christmas tree of their own. So effective was the illustration in promoting the idea of the decorated Christmas tree, that art historian Karal Ann Marling refers to Victoria and Albert’s tree as “the first influential American Christmas tree,” and within a generation, the use of Christmas tree’s became common across the country.

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree in New York City.

     Today in Britain, America, and throughout the world, we cannot think of a world in which there were no Christmas trees. They are everywhere – in our homes, offices, stores, parks, public institutions, and other venues. So integrated have they become in our annual holiday season that even non-Christians rejoice in their presence, and some such people have a tree in their homes – signifying that Christmas is as much a cultural holiday as it is religious one. Yet what would have happened had the royal family not been instrumental in popularizing the great evergreen? Perhaps they would have gained prominence through other ways, via German settlers in many parts of the world. However, the fact remains that the royal family – especially under Victoria and Albert – made a significant contribution to how we celebrate the Christmas season. For that, those of us who count this holiday as our favorite time of the year ought to be grateful.

Photo Credit: Anthony Quintano via Flickr cc, Laura Bittner via Flickr cc 

Sources:

"Queen Victoria popularized our Christmas traditions." BBC. Emma Midgley, 15 Dec. 2010. Web. 22 Dec. 2013.

"Windsor Castle and The Christmas Tree." ThamesWeb.co.uk. n.p., n.d. Web. 21 Dec. 2013.

"Christmas Tree." Wikipedia.com. n.p., n.d. Web. 22 Dec. 2013.