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The Dickens Carolers performing at Southampton Cultural Center's virtual holiday event. From left, Ken Dorph, Rachel DeMasi, Paul DeMasi, Bonnie Grice, Ryan Hayes, Adriana Satornino, Jessie Haynes.
Krampus was a Victorian-era Christmas demon who was said to punish naughty children.
Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" was a ghost story, as many Christmas stories were in the Victorian era.
Bonnie Grice and The Dickens Carolers in previous years BOOTS ON THE GROUND THEATER
Bonnie Grice and The Dickens Carolers in previous years BOOTS ON THE GROUND THEATER
Bonnie Grice and The Dickens Carolers in previous years.BOOTS ON THE GROUND THEATER BOOTS ON THE GROUND THEATER
The Dickens Carolers in a previous year. BOOTS ON THE GROUND THEATER
The Dickens Carolers performing at Southampton Cultural Center's virtual holiday event. From left, Ken Dorph, Rachel DeMasi, Paul DeMasi, Bonnie Grice, Ryan Hayes, Adriana Satornino, Jessie Haynes. BERNIE FURSHPAN
Krampus was a Victorian-era Christmas demon who was said to punish naughty children.
England, December, 1848: The Royal Christmas tree is admired by Queen Victoria, Prince Albert and their children.
Victorian Christmas cards often had less than uplifting sentiments.
Victorian Christmas cards often had less than uplifting sentiments.
Most 19th century Americans considered the Christmas tree an odd and somewhat sacrilegious tradition. It’s said the first official Christmas tree was introduced to England in the 1840s by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Albert was German and having a Christmas tree was a centuries-old tradition in his country. Some German settlements in America were already decorating trees by that point, but for most of the country, it wasn’t until Victoria and Albert were shown with their tree that America began to accept the tradition.
The word “carol” comes from the old French word “carole,” meaning a dance or song of praise. It’s handed down from the pagan tradition of singing and dancing around stone circles.
Christmas cards were first printed by Englishman Henry Cole the same year Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol” was published — 1843. They were nothing like the sweet sentiments of good cheer we share today. Instead, the Victorians had a creepier side to their Christmas messages, including dead birds, scary snowmen and even a Christmas demon named “Krampus” who was said to punish naughty children.
One of the most popular Victorian Christmas traditions was storytelling with an emphasis on ghost stories. These would delight and scare both young and old. Some believe their popularity was due to the often horrific circumstances of the time. Death was everywhere and life was a challenge to say the least. But their stories, ghost or not, always seemed to carry some kind of moral or meaningful message. Something to help people through their sorrows and make it to another day.
Hence the popularity of Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol” on both sides of the pond to this day. In fact, the original title read: “A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas.”
The visitations of the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future enabling the miserly Scrooge to grow and change, make for a powerful story of redemption. A fitting reminder even after all these years.
Staff Writer on Dec 14, 2020