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| Theatrical performances highlight Christmas festivities in the 16th and 17th century. Shakespeare's Twelfth Night is said to have been written as a Twelfth Night's entertainment to close of the Christmas season. Image from Wikimedia Commons |
There was a time in British history that Christmas festivities were cancelled. This happened between 1650 and 1660 after Oliver Cromwell outlawed Christmas.
Cromwell was a statesman and general, an intensely religious man who rose to power, joined the English Civil Wars and sided against King Charles I. Despite coming from the middle gentry, his ability to lead the troops into success in the battlefields quickly gained him prominence and esteem from his colleagues.
In January 1649, King Charles I was executed. Now in power and taking the title Lord Protector, Cromwell, who was a Puritan, outlawed Christmas celebrations and ordered anyone who sings carols, holds festivities or participates in any of the old Christmas traditions arrested, fined and jailed. For Cromwell, Christmas should be spent on sobriety and reflection and, if it did not fall on a Sunday, people should just carry on with their quiet lives with no gift, no drinking, and no singing. The Puritans argued that the Bible does not tell people to celebrate Christ’s birth on December 25.
In the book Stories behind the Great Christmas Traditions, author Ace Collins wrote:
"For his entire
rule, Cromwell managed to put a cap on the traditionally riotous English
Christmas behavior. Yet after he died and was replaced by his son, the
commoners demanded the restoration of old-fashioned Christmas celebrations.
When Richard Cromwell, Oliver's son and England's new leader, refused, the door
opened for a rebellion. With the promise of making Christmas what it had been,
Charles II was welcomed back to the throne, and the Puritans were tossed out in
the streets."
Of course, there was more to the downfall of the Commonwealth and the restoration of the monarchy aside from the younger Cromwell’s refusal to celebrate Christmas. When Charles II, the son and successor of Charles I, gained the crown, Christmas was once again celebrated at home at on the streets.
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