TRUTH BEHIND XMAS TALES
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DID Coca-Cola really invent the iconic image of a red-robed
Father Christmas?
Can we thank Prince Albert for bringing the Christmas tree to Britain?
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And was the tradition of mistletoe snogs invented by the Vikings?
In this Christmas special, reporter RUTH McKEE gets to the bottom of stubborn festive myths.
THE CHRISTMAS TREE
THERE is always someone who is determined to tell everyone that the Christmas tree as we know it today was “invented” by Queen Victoria’s husband Prince Albert in 1848. Pictures of his decorated delight were printed in the newspapers of the day.
However, the real brains behind the British Christmas tree was another member of the Royal Family – the German Queen Charlotte, wife of George III.
She brought the German tradition of decorating evergreen trees to Britain in 1800. Canny Charlotte ditched the Nordic fir though in favour of a traditional British Yew, long associated with ancient folklore.
Because it was such a distinctly English tree it connected her to the people of Britain, making her subjects warm to the foreign royals after a chilly early reception.
CHRISTMAS CRACKERS
THE myth that surrounds these novelties was clever PR dreamt up by the family behind one of Britain’s oldest Christmas cracker companies.
The story goes that sweetmaker Tom Smith saw that the French elegantly wrapped their bonbons in pretty paper.
He tried to market the idea in Britain but could not find packaging that worked.
His dreams fell flat until one winter day when he was sitting in front of his fire and saw a log crackle and spark, making a loud snap. This gave him the inspiration to create a make of cracker branded Bangs Of Expectation in the late 1840s.
But the truth is slightly different.
Although Tom Smith was a real person he did not invent the cracker.
It was actually his brother HJ Smith, who worked in the music halls.
Historians say he would have known how to create the stage effects that helped create the distinctive bang.
THE COCA-COLA COMPANY TURNED FATHER CHRISTMAS’S ROBES RED
COCACola claimed they created St Nick’s distinctive red coat and outfit when advertising man Haddon Sundblom drew a 1931 ad for the company featuring him sipping from a bottle of cola. However, Saint
Nicholas – or Santa Claus was described as wearing red in the 1822 American poem ’Twas The Night Before Christmas. The popular version of Santa Claus came to Britain in the 19th century through newspapers and books which spread the Germanic traditions of St Nicholas which had been brought to America by immigrants from northern Europe.
KISSING UNDER THE MISTLETOE
THERE is a myth that the tradition to steal a kiss under the white berries comes from Viking lore.
It states that after the Norse god Baldr was killed by an arrow made from mistletoe fired by his blind brother, his mother swore that the plant should never harm anybody else and that it should be used for romantic purposes only.
But historians think the tradition has its roots in the English pagan mid-winter rituals where a Druid would cut a piece of mistletoe using a golden sickle.
It would be caught in a white cloth to stop it from touching the ground, which would kill its powers. Every time man plucked a berry from mistletoe on the tree, he could kiss a girl. Because the plant had to be kept off the ground – and hung up around houses at festivals – couples caught underneath it were expected to smooch.
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