Michael White, in his historical role as a soldier, stood beside his table filled with tools, guns, blankets, odds and ends and a Christmas tree Saturday. Behind him a campfire burned bright, spreading its warmth on a frigid day at Henricus, the Colonial Christmas has begun.
In the 1600s in Massachusetts, Puritans outlawed public celebration for an entire generation. The Puritans had contempt Christmas. In contrast to modern practices, the Puritans kept shops and schools open and closed churches on Christmas.
The British Parliament decreed that December 25 should instead be a day of “fasting and humiliation” for Englishmen to account for their sins, according to History.com.
In 1659 the General Court of Massachusetts made it a criminal offense to publicly celebrate the holiday and declared “that whosoever shall be found observing any such day as Christmas or the like, either by bearing of labor, feasting or any other way” was subject to a five-shilling fine.
Jamestown and Henricus didn’t hold with the Puritans’ views. According to History is Fun, Englishmen who came to Virginia considered
Christmas one of the most special times of the year. In England the season lasted about two weeks, from December 25 to the 12th day, January 6.
The Christmas season evolved from the mid-winter Germanic festival of Yule and the Roman Saturnalia, in which drinking, gaming, and general revelry took place. Homes were decorated with greenery, presents were exchanged, and people dressed up in costumes.
At Henricus, the festival of Christmas Day began with church attendance, and after that, some would play cards or sing carols. The women, or “maids” as they were called then, would provide wassail (Christmas drink), cakes, white loaves, cheese, and mince pies.
Mistletoe was used when available, but it was rarely found, so a “kissing bush” was fashioned from any greens available, such as holly, bay, and rosemary. The bush was hung from a ceiling.
Christmas was celebrated with whatever means and goods were available at Henricus in the 17th century, but it was celebrated with great fervor.
For more information on Henricus events and programs, visit Henricus.org.
