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1300
Background on Christmas greenary
In the Northern Hemisphere, the shortest day and longest night of the year falls on December 21 or December 22 and is called the winter solstice. Evergreen boughs reminded our ancestors of all the green plants that would grow again when the sun god was strong and summer would return. -
1419
Germany and England in the Middle Ages
A precursor to a tree, holly, and ivy poles were used as decor. In 1419, a guild in Freiburg puts up a tree decorated with apples, wafers, tinsel and gingerbread to celebrate the feast day of Adam and Eve. -
1517
Lights go on a tree
It is a widely held belief that Martin Luther, the 16th-century Protestant reformer, first added lighted candles to a tree. According to a common version of the story, walking home one winter evening, Luther was awed by the stars twinkling amidst evergreens. To recapture the scene for his family, he erected a tree in the main room and wired its branches with lighted candles. -
First Established Christmas Tree Market
Appears in the southwestern german border (now present-day France). Trees were sold as "weihnachtsbaum", German for Christmas tree. -
First Indoor Decorated Tree in Germany
the “first decorated indoor tree” was recorded in 1605, in Strasbourg, decorated with roses, apples, wafers and other sweets -
Christmas Strife!
In 1659, the General Court of Massachusetts enacted a law making any observance of December 25 a penal offense; people were fined for hanging decorations. That stern solemnity continued until the influx of German and Irish immigrants in the 19th century undermined the Puritan legacy. Christmas trees were seen as pagan symbols. -
"Small Green Tree for Christmas"
A school for American Indians run by Moravian missionaries sent students "to fetch a small green tree for Christmas" -
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert image
Pictured around a Christmas tree with their children. This image was published in Illustrated London. -
Christmas trees in public spaces
A 20-foot-tall tree at Rockefeller Center first went up in 1931. -
Christmas trees - Fake?
Time Magazine first introduced a new trend: fake Christmas trees. Now the majority of Christmas trees are artificial. -
References
History.com (2023). History of Christmas Trees Retrieved from https://www.history.com/topics/christmas/history-of-christmas-trees on November 29, 2023