The History of Christmas Tree
When people think of Christmas trees that probably don’t quite know where they first originated. Just like Santa Claus himself, the Christmas tree comes stems from a mixture of ideals, values, legends, facts and customs. Christmas trees began in the Baltic countries and the area known now as northern Germany. The first documented use of an evergreen fir tree was in Riga, Latvia back in the year 1510 over the Ney Year (Christmas) time.
We know that Finland was where Santa Claus began, Russia has always been the founder of hand-made Christmas baubles and ornaments and Germany is famous for its Christmas Markets. The interesting thing is the tree itself seems to have appeared in Latvia first, in their main square.
There have been stories regarding Martin Luther walking in the woods near Riga who in fact created a Christmas tree. Apparently these are two different references. Rigas first Christmas Tree was in 1510
Martin Luther was part of a ceremony with men in black hats who burnt a tree after their meeting. This was a mixture of both Christian and Pagan custom, which many other ceremonies in Central and Northen Europe were at the time.
The Martin Luther walk in the forest, is understood to have occurred in Northern Germany and was several decades after the Riga tree.
Many of the activities we consider as Christian often started as Pagan activities and were common in Latvia and northern Europe at the time as they had done for hundreds of years before them.
The pagans of northern Europe celebrated their own winter solstice, known as Yule. Yule was symbolic of the Pagan ‘Sun God’, Mithras, being born, and was observed on the shortest day of the year. The theory was that as the Sun God grew and matured, the days became longer and warmer.
It was at this stage customary to light a candle which would encourage Mithras, and the sun to reappear next year.
Huge Yule logs were soon burnt in his honour. The word Yule itself means wheel, which is a Pagan symbol for the sun. Mistletoe was considered sacred and the custom of kissing under the mistletoe began as a fertility ritual. We understand that the Holly berries were to be food for the gods.
Trees are the giver of life, they are some of the oldest living plants on earth and people often used them for religious ceremonies, gathering and worshipping around them. The large fir trees unite northern Europe, Russia and America
The legend has it that the first Riga Christmas Tree in 1510 was decorated in paper flowers and burnt on the bonfire, the paper flowers would light up and are similar to the lights we now put on our own trees.
According to Countess Maria Hubert von Staufer of the organization Christmas Archives International based in the England, http://www.christmasarchives.com/index.html “Riga is very important in the History of the Christmas Tree”.
The Riga Town square Town Hall Square was developed in the middle of the 13th century, was initially a marketplace. Of course it was the central location for dances, games, tournaments and ceremonies.
One of the most historic buildings in the Square is the House of Blackheads which was originally built in 1334 and re-built very recently in 1995 – 1999. The town hall building across the square was built later and rebuilt again in 2003.
Outside the House of Blackheads is placed the domed plaque makring the site of the first ever Christmas Tree ceremony. It is engraved in eight languages and states ‘ The First New Years Tree in Riga in 1510”.
The Christmas tree has been around for hundreds of years
The main thing that signifies the arrival of Christmas is the Christmas tree -putting up and decorating a tree is one of the most popular traditions of the festive period.
A tree, usually an evergreen conifer, is brought into the home and decorated with ornaments and lights, and then an angel or star is placed on the top to represent the angels or the Star of Bethlehem from the Nativity story. Many people also place trees in their garden, complete with decorations and lights, and cities, towns and businesses display their own specimens for public enjoyment. The tree which is placed in Trafalgar square, London, and every year is a gift from Oslo, Norway, to thank Britain for its support during the Second World War.
The custom of erecting a Christmas tree can be traced back to 16th century Germany, but in Britain the tradition did not become widespread until after Queen Victoria’s marriage to her german cousin Prince Albert. A picture of the royal couple gathered with their children around the Christmas tree was published in the Illustrated London News in 1848, and this helped to popularise the Christmas tree, both in Britain and the United States.
