Christmas Fact That May Shock You ” Free Christmas Coloring Pages
January 26th, 2009. Published under History. No Comments.
I am willing to bet that you are one of those rare individuals who normally think out side the box. Allow me to ask you a quick question Have you ever wondered about the history of Christmas? Have you wondered what it was like? Have you ever wondered how the happy holiday came about? Well no need to wonder my friend I am about to reveal a little fact that will knock your socks off.
I wish that I could share the entire history of Christmas with you from beginning to end right now. In order to do that I would need to write a book. I will however give you some facts that will knock your socks off, or at the very least surprise you.
The Christmas fact that I am going to share with you in this article began back in the early 17th century. There was a wave of religious transformation going on. This was the point in history when Christmas would forever be changed in Europe. This all took place when a guy by the name of Oliver Cromwell and his Puritan forces took over England in 1645. Once Oliver Cromwell was in control they vowed to rid England of decadence and, as part of their effort, Christmas was canceled.
Stay with me Things are just starting to get good!
In 1620 came the arrival of a group of pilgrims, English separatists to America. These pilgrims were even more orthodox in their puritan beliefs than Oliver Cromwell. Because of there strange beliefs Christmas was not a holiday in the early days of America. As promised things are about to get even more unbelievable ” from 1659 to 1681, the act of celebrating Christmas was actually illegal in Boston. If you were caught celebrating the Christmas holiday in any way you were fined five shillings.
I cannot help but wonder what it was like to live during such a controversial time. Could you imagine what it would be like today if you had to sneak and celebrate Christmas? Really take a few minutes and put yourself in the moment. Imagine leaving the mall with a few gifts for the kids and the police would stop you and search your bags. I dont know about you, but I would be mortified because Christmas is my favorite holiday out of the year.
Sorry for the rant! I may have digressed a little. Anyway all of the nonsense continued until after the American Revolution when English customs began to fade. Hold on to your seat Congress was actually in session on December 25, 1789, which was the first Christmas under Americas new constitution. The fact of the matter is Christmas wasnt declared a federal holiday until June 26, 1870.
I hope that you have enjoyed this article. Please do a search or check back for the rest of my Christmas fact articles. If you are a parent and or teacher visit my library of free Christmas coloring pages ” you will find the link below. While you are there take the time to look at the other categories of free stuff for your kids.