How Did the Tradition of Christmas Trees Start?

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" data-url="https://www.britannica.com/story/how-did-the-tradition-of-christmas-trees-start" > <a class="social-icon facebook justify-content-center d-flex align-items-center align-self-center" data-provider="facebook" href="https://www.facebook.com/BRITANNICA/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span>Facebook</span></a> <a class="social-icon x justify-content-center d-flex align-items-center align-self-center" data-provider="x" href="https://x.com/britannica" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span>X</span></a> </div> <div class="label pt-20 mt-20 mb-5 border-top">URL</div> <a class="font-serif text-truncate d-inline-block" href="https://www.britannica.com/story/how-did-the-tradition-of-christmas-trees-start">https://www.britannica.com/story/how-did-the-tradition-of-christmas-trees-start</a> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="md-byline module-spacing font-12"> <div class="font-serif font-12"> <span class="written-by text-gray-700"> Written by </span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor" href="/editor/Amy-Tikkanen/6393" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">Amy Tikkanen</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 clamp-description text-black">Amy Tikkanen is Managing Editor at Encyclopaedia Britannica.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> Amy Tikkanen</span></div> <div class="font-serif font-12 text-gray-700"> <span class="qa-fact-checked-by">Fact-checked by</span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup font-12" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div></div> </div> <article class="topic-content content mt-20"><figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="1" data-descid="1"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/79/202379-050-73D3F83C/Christmas-tree-holiday-pine.jpg" target="_blank" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center " data-href="*"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/79/202379-050-73D3F83C/Christmas-tree-holiday-pine.jpg?w=600&q=60" alt="Christmas tree, holiday, pine" data-width="1600" data-height="1154" loading="eager"><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class=""><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><cite class="credit d-block mt-5">© Liliboas—iStock.com/Getty Images</cite></figcaption></figure> <p class="topic-paragraph"><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Christmas" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Christmas</a> has numerous traditions, of which perhaps none is more popular than a decorated tree. Whether real or artificial, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/Christmas-tree" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Christmas trees</a> are synonymous with the holiday. But how did trees become part of Christmas? </p><span class="MOD1"></span> <figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="3" data-descid="7"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="video" video-id="252609"><a data-id="252609" class="gtm-assembly-link d-flex justify-content-center" style="--aspect-ratio: 16/9" href="/video/christmas-tree-decoration-holiday/-"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/09/252609-004-D417035A/christmas-tree-decoration-holiday.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop" alt="How did Christmas trees become so popular? And why do we decorate Christmas trees? (Christmas tree, pine tree, holiday, Christianity, candles, Christmas decorations, Prince Albert, Queen Victoria, tinsel)" loading="lazy"><script type="application/json"> { "sources": [ { "file" : "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/3c5Ma5iu.m3u8" } ], "image": "https://cdn.britannica.com/09/252609-004-D417035A/christmas-tree-decoration-holiday.jpg" ,"tracks": [ { "file" : "//assets-jpcust.jwpsrv.com/tracks/Y3K0xm0g.vtt", "label": "English" } ] ,"adfile": "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/BAOM7CkF.m3u8" } </script><div class="btn btn-xl btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; transform: translateY(-50%)"><em class="material-icons" data-icon="play_arrow"></em></div></a></div><figcaption class=""><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><cite class="credit d-block mt-5">Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.</cite></figcaption></figure> <p class="topic-paragraph"><a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/tree" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Trees</a> have been used in rituals and as decorations since ancient times, thus making the source of the modern Christmas tree open to debate. However, many believe that it originated in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Germany" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Germany</a>. It is claimed that in Germany about 723 the English missionary <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Boniface" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">St. Boniface</a> encountered pagans preparing a sacrifice at an oak tree dedicated to the god <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Thor-Germanic-deity" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Thor</a> (Donar). Boniface took an ax to the tree, and, when not struck down by their god, he proclaimed to the awed pagans that a nearby evergreen was their “holy tree.” Other sources report that a fir grew on the site of the fallen oak. </p><span class="MOD2"></span> <figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="1" data-descid="1"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/12/256412-050-D1EF0C7C/The-Royal-Christmas-tree-is-admired-by-Queen-Victoria-Prince-Albert-and-their-children.jpg" target="_blank" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center " data-href="*"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/12/256412-050-D1EF0C7C/The-Royal-Christmas-tree-is-admired-by-Queen-Victoria-Prince-Albert-and-their-children.jpg?w=600&q=60" alt="The Royal Christmas tree is admired by Queen Victoria, Prince Albert and their children, December 1848" data-width="1253" data-height="1600" loading="eager"><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class=""><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><cite class="credit d-block mt-5">© Hulton Archive—Hulton Royals Collection/Getty Images</cite></figcaption></figure> <p class="topic-paragraph">Whether that tale is true or not, evergreen trees became part of Christian rites in Germany, and in the Middle Ages “paradise trees” began to appear there. Meant to represent the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Garden-of-Eden" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Garden of Eden</a>, these evergreen trees were hung with apples and displayed in homes on December 24, the religious feast day of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Adam-and-Eve-biblical-literary-figures" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Adam and Eve</a>. Other decorations were added—<a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Martin-Luther" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Martin Luther</a> reportedly first hung lighted candles on a tree in the 16th century—and paradise trees evolved into Christmas trees. By the 19th century, Christmas trees were a firmly established tradition in Germany. </p><span class="MOD3"></span> <p class="topic-paragraph">As Germans migrated, they took Christmas trees to other countries, notably England. There, in the 1790s, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charlotte-queen-of-England" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Charlotte</a>, the German-born wife of King <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-III" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">George III</a>, had trees decorated for the holiday. However, it was a German-born prince, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Albert-Prince-Consort" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Albert</a>, and his wife, Britain’s Queen <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Victoria-queen-of-United-Kingdom" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Victoria</a>, who popularized the tradition among the British. The couple made Christmas trees a prominent part of the holiday’s festivities, and in 1848 an illustration of the royal family around a decorated tree appeared in a London newspaper. Christmas trees soon became common in English homes. </p><span class="MOD4"></span> <figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="3" data-descid="7"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="video" video-id="239021"><a data-id="239021" class="gtm-assembly-link d-flex justify-content-center" style="--aspect-ratio: 16/9" href="/video/what-is-festival-of-yule/-"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/21/239021-049-F433C2B7/what-is-festival-of-yule.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop" alt="What is? The festival of Yule. Find out the connection between Yule and Christmas." loading="lazy"><script type="application/json"> { "sources": [ { "file" : "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/QfeF6Y90.m3u8" } ], "image": "https://cdn.britannica.com/21/239021-049-F433C2B7/what-is-festival-of-yule.jpg" ,"tracks": [ { "file" : "//assets-jpcust.jwpsrv.com/tracks/YC88K5GC.vtt", "label": "English" } ] ,"adfile": "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/Cu8oIiSI.m3u8" } </script><div class="btn btn-xl btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; transform: translateY(-50%)"><em class="material-icons" data-icon="play_arrow"></em></div></a></div><figcaption class=""><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><cite class="credit d-block mt-5">Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.</cite></figcaption></figure> <p class="topic-paragraph">German settlers also introduced Christmas trees in the United States, though the custom was not initially embraced. Many <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Puritanism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Puritans</a> opposed the holiday because of its pagan roots, and officials of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Massachusetts-Bay-Colony" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Massachusetts Bay Colony</a> actually outlawed celebrating Christmas. Their dislike of the holiday was such that they even closed their churches on December 25. It wasn’t until the 1820s that Christmas began gaining popularity in America, and the country’s first Christmas tree reportedly was displayed in the 1830s. The Christmas tree’s popularity spread with the help of the influential magazine <em><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Godeys-Ladys-Book" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Godey’s Lady’s Book</a></em>, which in 1850 published the 1848 illustration of the British royals, though the depiction of the family was altered to appear American. This and other efforts helped make Christmas trees popular in the United States by the 1870s. </p><span class="MOD5"></span> <p class="topic-paragraph">Christmas trees spread around the world, but the tradition began to have a detrimental impact on forests, especially in Germany. As a result, Germans began making artificial goose-feather trees in the 1880s. These trees found their way to different countries, and over time the goose feathers were replaced by other materials. A notable development occurred in the 1930s, when a manufacturer of toilet bowl brushes allegedly used surplus product to create an artificial tree. These bristle trees gained in popularity but were later supplanted by aluminum and then plastic versions. In the United States, 84 percent of Christmas trees displayed by households in 2021 were artificial, according to <a class="external" target="_blank" rel="noopener" href="https://www.christmastreeassociation.org/press-releases/christmas-tree-traditions-remained-merry-and-bright-throughout-the-pandemic-studies-show" data-show-preview="true">data from the American Christmas Tree Association</a>, while 16 percent were live. </p><span class="MOD6"></span> <figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="8" data-descid="20"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="infogram"><script id="infogram_0__/O1hh3bT75EJU8f46mtgQ" src="https://e.infogram.com/js/dist/embed.js?Itp" type="text/javascript" title=""></script></div></figure> <span class="AM-END-OF-ARTICLE am-inline"></span></article> </div> </div> </div> <aside class="cm-rightrail d-none d-md-block ad-rail"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div class="grid gx-0"> <div class="col"> <div class="md-loading hidden display-4 font-weight-normal"></div> <div class="text-center my-20 mb-100"> <button class="md-infinite-load-next btn btn-blue" data-value="next-page">Load More</button> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-da-320 hidden-xs"> </div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Story","templateName":"DEMYSTIFIED","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":10,"pageId":6721,"pageLength":null,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.38"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/story-page.js?v=3.130.38' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"C","adLeg":"C","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Story","pageSubtype":"DEMYSTIFIED","articleTemplateType":null,"gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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How Did the Tradition of Christmas Trees Start? | Britannica