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These were called" kisses" in Victorian times. The French first started this tradition of giving love tokens for Christmas (which they called bon-bons) and it then spread to England.
These kisses were quite plain and did not crack. It was not until the 1850s that a product similar to today’s crackers was created. These later versions would include verses accompanied by things such as masks and hats.
Before 1850, Christmas was not really celebrated in America. In fact, it was not declared a holiday until 1870.
If you really, really wanted goose for dinner, you could join a Goose Club. This way your family would pay for a goose in installments throughout the year.
Popular games included Are You There, Moriarty?, Cockfighting, Reverend Crawley's game, Shadow buff, and Prussian exercises.
Before cards were introduced, people would write letters, sending good wishes for the new year, for instance. The newly introduced cards, however, had some really odd images!
And if they were lucky enough, they would even get someone to cook it for them (which was a big thing as not every household had an oven).
People then started buying bigger, more expensive gifts and placing them under the Christmas tree.
Victorians didn’t have the kind of entertainment we have at our disposal nowadays, so parlor games were the way to go.
The tradition, which was reportedly introduced by Prince Albert, didn’t pick up in England until a picture of Queen Victoria and her family decorating a tree became a hit with the masses.
Though the use of evergreen boughs predate Christianity, the Germans started the tradition we know as Christmas trees in the 16th century.
The engraving of the Royal family celebrating Christmas at Windsor kick-started the tradition in England.
Santa lost his popularity in the 1500s, during the Protestant Reformation, but Victorians reintroduced him through literature.
You might be familiar with a popular one at the time: Charles Dickens' ‘A Christmas Carol.’
By the end of the 19th century, the tradition had passed on to the other side of the pond. Novellas such as ‘The Turn of the Screw’ by Henry James introduced the USA to the tradition of Christmas ghost stories.
Women would only buy or make a present for their husbands, but could do the same for other males as long as they were related. Things such as shaving kits, soaps, and tobacco boxes were among favorites.
Forget about fun and heartwarming Christmas tales. Christmas was all about telling scary ghost stories!
Still, not all colonist communities celebrated Christmas. Puritans were among these. After all, it was not mentioned in the Bible! Ancient Planters from Virginia, on the other hand, did celebrate the holiday.
Sources: (Grunge)
One of the games, called Snapdragon, consisted of setting a pile of raisins in a bowl of brandy on fire, and then trying to take the raisins out of the bowl and eat them!
As for the ladies, they could expect gifts such as soaps, perfumes, jewelry, or something like a handkerchief or a shawl.
The 1821 poem ‘The Children's Friend,’ and 1823's ‘A Visit from St. Nicholas’ (also known as ‘The Night Before Christmas’) contributed to the shift.
The first commercially mass-produced Christmas cards date back to 1843 and were made by Sir Henry Cole.
Goose was the bird to have for Christmas. Though many people couldn't afford it, so they would have turkey instead.
But it gets even more bizarre. Some cards were sent with dead birds! This was because killing a robin or wren on December 26 (which is Wren Day) was considered to bring good luck.
But not everyone could afford to send cards. This changed in 1870, when affordable stamps were introduced, allowing more people to buy and send cards. Some 1.5 million cards were sold in 1880 alone. The commercialization of Christmas had arrived.
Initially, gifts would be hung on the Christmas tree. You would expect simple things, such as crafts, nuts, and sweets.
And if you thought that turkey was the ultimate Christmas dinner, think again. Let's say the Victorians had a somewhat exquisite taste when it came to food, cards, and presents. Click through the following gallery and discover how Christmas was like in Victorian times.
What Christmas was like in Victorian times
From bizarre cards to ghost stories
LIFESTYLE History
Christmas traditions vary, depending on the culture and country, but the Victorians were responsible for introducing and popularizing some of the traditions we still have today in many Western countries. For instance, did you know they imported the concept of Christmas trees from Germany? Or that the Christmas crackers, as we know them today, were actually called "kisses" and originally came from France?
And if you thought that turkey was the ultimate Christmas dinner, think again. Let's say the Victorians had a somewhat exquisite taste when it came to food, cards, and presents. Click through the following gallery and discover how Christmas was like in Victorian times.