How Christmas Was Shaped by 19th-Century Literature

How we celebrate Christmas today is largely shaped by a small group of authors who recorded festive traditions in the 19th century. These authors include Washington Irving (1783-1859), Clement Clarke Moore (1779-1863), and Charles Dickens (1812-1870). By capturing in popular print festive traditions, many of which dated back to medieval times, these authors caused something of a Christmas revival.

19th-century literature, sometimes expressly concentrating on Christmas and at other times merely using the holiday as a jovial setting for a fictional story, captured what were, in many cases, fast-disappearing traditions, which future generations would return to and update. Thus, such activities as carol singing and masque balls returned to fashion. In addition, writers of Christmas stories, which were often serialised in hugely popular weekly magazines, helped spread newer ways to celebrate such as the sending of Christmas cards and the decorating of a Christmas tree. In this article, we present through selected extracts just how some of these 19th-century authors managed to capture the spirit of Christmas for posterity.

Christmas Literature

Mark Cartwright (CC BY-NC-SA)

Irving's Christmas

Washington Irving was an American author who travelled through England in 1818. In his Sketch Book, Irving devoted five chapters to recording how Christmas was celebrated in rural England.

Travelling any great distance in the 19th century often involved a long, tiresome, and uncomfortable journey in a stagecoach. Nevertheless, the certainty of seeing friends and family again, revelling in home comforts, and feasting on festive fare made the journey one of high anticipation. Irving describes the joys of travelling home for Christmas:

In the course of a December tour in Yorkshire, I rode for a long distance in one of the public coaches, on the day preceding Christmas. The coach was crowded, both inside and out, with passengers, who, by their talk, seemed principally bound to the mansions of relations or friends, to eat the Christmas dinner. It was loaded also with hampers of game, and baskets and boxes of delicacies; and hares hung dangling by their long ears about the coachman's box, presents from distant friends for the impending feast. I had three fine rosy-cheeked schoolboys for my fellow-passengers inside

…I could not but notice the more than ordinary air of bustle and importance of the coachman, who wore his hat a little on one side, and had a large bunch of Christmas greens stuck in the button-hole of his coat.

…Perhaps the impending holiday might have given a more than usual animation to the country, for it seemed to me as if everybody was in good looks and good spirits. Game, poultry, and other luxuries of the table, were in brisk circulation in the villages; the grocers', butchers', and fruiterers' shops were thronged with customers. The housewives were stirring briskly about, putting their dwellings in order; and the glossy branches of holly, with their bright red berries, began to appear at windows.

My little travelling companions had been looking out of the coach windows for the last few miles, recognizing every tree and cottage as they approached home… (The Stage-Coach, 94-9)

19th-Century Coach Caught in Snow

Mark Cartwright (CC BY-NC-SA)

Irving finally arrives at the old English hall where he has been invited to spend Christmas. Still Christmas Eve, he describes the decorated interior:

The grate had been removed from the wide overwhelming fireplace, to make way for a fire of wood, in the midst of which was an enormous log glowing and blazing and sending forth a vast volume of light and heat; this I understood was the Yule log, which the squire was particular in having brought in and illumined on a Christmas Eve, according to ancient custom.

…Supper was announced shortly after our arrival. It was served up in a spacious oaken chamber, the panels of which shone with wax, and around which were several family portraits decorated with holly and ivy. Besides the accustomed lights, two great wax tapers, called Christmas candles, wreathed with greens, were placed on a highly-polished buffet among the family plate. The table was spread with substantial fare; but the squire made his supper of frumenty, a dish made of wheat cakes boiled in milk, with rich spices, being a standing dish in old times for Christmas Eve. (Christmas Eve, 110-11)

Irving goes on to describe the traditional activities of Christmas morning.

When I woke the next morning, it seemed as if all the events of the preceding evening had been a dream…While I lay musing on my pillow, I heard the sound of little feet pattering outside the door, and a whispering consultation. Presently a choir of small voices chanted forth an old Christmas carol, the burden of which was

Rejoice, our Saviour he was born On Christmas Day in the morning

…the morning was extremely frosty; the light vapour of the preceding evening had been precipitated by the cold, and covered all the trees and every blade of grass with its fine crystallizations. The rays of a bright morning sun had a dazzling effect among the glittering foliage. A robin, perched upon the top of a mountain ash that hung its clusters of red berries just before my window, was basking himself in the sunshine… (Christmas Day, 117-18)

Christmas Eve by Hoover

Library of Congress (Public Domain)

After attending the family prayers, Irving has a hearty breakfast before walking to the local church for the traditional morning service.

Our breakfast consisted of what the squire denominated true old English fare…there was a brave display of cold meats, wine, and ale on the sideboard.

…On reaching the church porch, we found the parson rebuking the grey-headed sexton for having used mistletoe among the greens with which the church was decorated. It was, he observed, an unholy plant, profaned by having been used by the Druids in their mystic ceremonies…

turned over the leaves of a folio prayer-book with something of a flourish; possibly to show off an enormous seal-ring which enriched one of his fingers, and which had the look of a family relic…

The orchestra was in a small gallery, and presented a most whimsical grouping of heads…There were two or three pretty faces among the female singers, to which the keen air of a frosty morning had given a bright rosy tint; but the gentleman choristers had evidently been chosen, like old Cremona fiddles, more for tone than looks…

…The parson gave us a most erudite sermon on the rites and ceremonies of Christmas, and the propriety of observing it not merely as a day of thanksgiving, but of rejoicing…and concluded by urging his hearers, in the most solemn and affecting manner, to stand to the traditional customs of their fathers, and feast and make merry on this joyful anniversary of the Church…I have seldom known a sermon attended apparently with more immediate effects… (Christmas Day, 119-126)

Going to Church on Christmas Day

Library of Congress (Public Domain)

Irving returned to the hall, and as he dressed for the triumph of the day, the Christmas dinner, the local poor were given meat and ale in return for their contribution to the general air of merriment with their dancing, singing, and making of music.

The old squire kept up old customs in kitchen as well as hall; and the rolling-pin struck upon the dresser by the cook, summoned the service to carry in the meats.

The dinner was served up in the great hall, where the squire always held his Christmas banquet…The Butler entered the hall with some degree of bustle: he was attended by a servant on each side with a large wax-light, and bore a silver dish, on which was an enormous pig's head, decorated with rosemary, with a lemon in its mouth, which was placed at the head of the table.

The table was literally loaded with good cheer, and presented an epitome of country abundance, in this season of overflowing larders. A distinguished post was allotted to 'ancient sirloin'…There were several dishes quaintly decorated…a pie, magnificently decorated with peacock's feathers, in imitation of the tail of that bird, which overshadowed a considerable tract of the table…I found the tide of wine fast gaining on the dry land of sober judgment. The company grew merrier and louder as their jokes grew duller.

After the dinner table was removed, the hall was given up to the younger members of the family, who…played at romping games…Blind-man's-buff… a burlesque imitation of an antique mask…which, from its medley of costumes, seemed as though the old family portraits had skipped down from their frames to join in the sport…and as the old manor-house almost reeled with mirth and wassail, it seemed echoing back the joviality of long departed years. (Christmas Dinner, 132-44)

Santa Claus by William Holbrook Beard

William Holbrook Beard (Public Domain)

Experience the Dickens Festijn Deventer 2022.

Dickens Festival in the medieval town of Deventer - The Netherlands

Experience the Magic of the Dickens Festijn in Deventer

Are you a fan of Charles Dickens and his classic literature? If so, you won't want to miss the annual Dickens Festijn in Deventer. This two-day festival is held in honor of the famous author and celebrates his works through a variety of events and activities.

This year's Dickens Festijn was a truly special event, with so much to see and do. From live performances and parades, to markets and food stalls, there was something for everyone to enjoy. The festival is a great opportunity to step back in time and immerse yourself in the world of Dickens.

One of the highlights of the Dickens Festijn is the chance to see some of Dickens' most iconic characters come to life. From Scrooge and Oliver Twist, to Miss Havisham and Fagin, the festival is filled with costumed actors bringing these beloved characters to life.

In addition to the live performances, the Dickens Festijn also features a range of activities and events. You can visit the markets and browse through the stalls, try some delicious food, or watch a parade through the streets of Deventer.