December 20, 2021 / By Top Vouchers Code

5 Fascinating Christmas Traditions of Victorian Era

It’s true that it wasn’t the Victorians who came up with the idea of celebrating Christmas, but they certainly introduced and rekindled many of the traditional elements we celebrate during the holiday season today. Before the Victorian period, Christmas celebrations were hush-hush affairs, with many working classes limited to just one day off. When Queen Victoria married Albert, the family became the heart of the Christmas period again, and the royals led by example. Thanks to Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, many of the practices we know and love today were celebrated by Germans. The prince, who moved to England to marry the queen, clutched onto his childhood traditions and introduced them to his family.

The royal family celebrated Christmas at the magical Windsor Castle at the beginning of Victoria’s reign. However, after Albert died in 1861, the queen celebrated the festive season at Osborne, their holiday home on the Isle of Wight. Proceeding with these festive traditions after the demise of Albert was her way of keeping her beloved husband’s memories alive. It also inspired a nation, and people started to notice many of these customs in the private homes of Victorian England.

To know more about the Victorian Christmas traditions, take a trip down memory lane and relive the Christmas traditions of the Victorian Era.

Festive Bird or Turkey For Dinner

Like most of us, Victoria and Albert loved having turkey at Christmas. They would sit together to devour the delicious main meal and enjoy turkey with all the trimmings. The royal family were fortunate to share several courses, as you would imagine. Their Christmas dinner spread includes mince pies plus various starters, soups, turkey and chipolatas. Later they would indulge in a plum pudding to please the royal sweet tooth. The food overall was very rich and could also contain beef or even boar’s head, as well as a range of cold meats. At that time, most people in Victorian England were not affluent and, so they couldn’t afford a proper meal. Today, most Christmas meals are centred around a big fat turkey, and the modern feast is perhaps not too dissimilar from Victorian Christmas. Plus, now we have many Christmas food deals popping left, right and centre on our feeds so it’s really not big of a deal to have a great Christmas dinner. But back in the day, it was a real luxury!

Christmas Tree Décor

 

Decorating the Christmas tree was a fun little festive activity introduced by Prince Albert. Motivated by his heritage, trees in the royal household were bedecked with lit candles and trinkets, and the interior was filled with evergreen décor. However, Albert and Victoria weren’t the first royals to start a trend that we now know as a Christmas Tree décor. George III Queen Charlotte, just like Albert, was raised in Germany. Charlotte is credited with introducing decorated evergreen trees in England when she introduced their first Christmas tree at Queen’s Lodge, Windsor, in 1800. So, if you’re looking to add a Victorian touch to your Christmas Tree, snap up Christmas deals and get all the décor delivered to your doorstep in no time.

Christmas Gifts

 

Giving gifts was not a tradition that Victorians introduced, per se, but they definitely made it a part of their family festivities. Gifts were shared on the evening of Christmas Eve rather than Christmas Day, as is traditional in the 21st century. Queen Victoria insisted unwrapped gifts be spread out across tables, as they did on royal birthdays. Victoria and Albert gave each other Jewellery, sculptures, paintings, work of art. As we are heading towards the festive season, why don’t you plan this Christmas in a Victorian way? If you know a big-time Victorian fanatic, this is the perfect time to grab the best Christmas deals and gift something Victorian to your loved one.

Christmas Puddings

 

Queen Victoria’s Christmas was incomplete without a bit of tipple, and one can also imagine that she would have topped her pudding with a drop of alcohol too. Puddings feature perpetually on the royal dessert at Osborne and are referenced by Dickens as a treat regular Victorians enjoy. It was mostly served with a kind of sauce, perhaps an English custard or crème anglaise, much like we do today. Today brandy custard is a famous addition to the Christmas table. In the same way as lighting modern puddings, Victoria and her family relished a similar activity involving this ingredient, although with a little dangerous twist. To add that Victorian element to your Christmas dessert, try to recreate the classic Christmas puddings! Last-minute Christmas deals will come in handy if you decide to make it just before your guests pop in.

Gifts of Gratitude 

Running a massive country estate with servants isn’t something that we are familiar with. As queen, Victoria’s royal homes like Osborne were coordinated by servants, and Christmas was a chance to express gratitude. Victoria was very much fraternised with her servants, so much so that she took a maternal interest in their wellbeing. At Osborne, for instance, there were over 100 servants, and on Christmas Eve, the royal family would join them in the servants’ hall to share gifts. They would gift them clothing items, food or books. Queen Victoria would also give gifts to her close personal servants like her dressers and pages. The act of gratitude was so important to her that she used to do it before she and her family opened their presents. So, why not try and adapt this act of gratitude this Christmas and help your staff or someone needy with presents! Browse Christmas shopping sales now to get some gifts for the people who deserve all the happiness and joy in the world.