Why put a Christmas tree at Christmas?
A Christmas tree is not just a tree, it can be evergreen such as pine, fir or cypress. The evergreen Christmas tree symbolizes eternal life in religious culture. Legend has it that in the 8th century, the Catholic missionary St. Boniface cut down an oak tree, and an evergreen tree grew on the stump, which became the later Christmas tree.
Legends are legends, so what about the real history? According to records, the modern Christmas tree originated in Germany in the 16th century. At the time of the Renaissance, at the annual religious event on December 24, people would perform a stage play of Adam and Eve, and the evergreen tree hung with apples symbolized the Garden of Eden. Later, the show was banned from public performances, and some people moved the evergreen plants home and performed secretly inside the house. This is the predecessor of the familiar Christmas tree, but the apples on the tree are replaced by spherical decorations.
Modern Christmas trees are also decorated with colorful lights, and in the old days before light bulbs were invented, people would light candles on Christmas trees. The tradition is said to have originated with the 16th-century religious reformer Martin Luther. One evening during Christmas, Martin Luther was walking in the woods when he was suddenly attracted by the starlight shining on a fir tree. In order to share this beauty with his family, he cut down this fir tree and took it home (simple and rude x), and placed candles on the top of the tree to simulate starlight.
But Christmas trees didn’t really catch on until the 19th century. At that time Queen Victoria of England married Prince Albert of Germany, who brought the Christmas tree tradition to England with German immigrants. In 1846, a picture was published in a London newspaper depicting Queen Victoria and her husband with their children celebrating the holidays around a Christmas tree full of gifts. Christmas trees have become popular ever since.
Queen Victoria’s family under the Christmas tree
Today, people specialize in planting Christmas trees in plantations, but when supplies are insufficient, trees in wild forests are also cut down. This is contrary to the good vision of Christmas, so you might as well replace the Christmas tree with an artificial tree, which can also create a Christmas atmosphere.
