A Righte Merrie Christmasse

A Righte Merrie Christmasse, by John Ashton

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Title: A Righte Merrie Christmasse The Story of Christ-Tide
Author: John Ashton
Illustrator: Arthur C. Behrend
Release Date: November 30, 2006 [EBook #19979]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
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A righte Merrie Christmasse!!!
The Story of Christ-tide
By John Ashton. Copperplate Etching of "The Wassail Song," by Arthur C. Behrend.
London: published by the Leadenhall Press, Ltd., 50 Leadenhall Street; Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent & Co., Ltd. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 153-157 Fifth Avenue.
The Leadenhall Press Ltd. London [1894]
[Transcriber's Notes:
This text contains passages using the Anglo-Saxon thorn (T or t, equivalent of "th"), which should display properly in most text viewers. The Anglo-Saxon yogh (equivalent of "y," "i," "g," or "gh") will display properly only if the user has the proper font, so to maximize accessibility, the character "3" is used in this e-text to represent the yogh.
Characters with a macron are preceded by an equal sign and enclosed in square brackets, e.g., [=a].
Superscripted characters are preceded by a carat and enclosed in curly brackets, e.g., y^{t}.]
[Illustration: The Wassail Song]

TO THE READER
I do not craue mo thankes to haue, than geuen to me all ready be; but this is all, to such as shall peruse this booke. That, for my sake, they gently take what ere they finde against their minde, when he, or she, shal minded be therein to looke.
Tusser.

A righte Merrie Christmasse!!!

PREFACE
It is with a view of preserving the memory of Christmas that I have written this book.
In it the reader will find its History, Legends, Folk-lore, Customs, and Carols--in fact, an epitome of Old Christ-tide, forming a volume which, it is hoped, will be found full of interest.
JOHN ASHTON.

A righte Merrie Christmasse!!!

CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
Date of Christ's Birth discussed--Opinions of the Fathers--The Eastern Church and Christ-tide--Error in Chronology--Roman Saturnalia--Scandinavian Yule--Duration of Christ-tide 1
CHAPTER II
Historic Christ-tides in 790, 878, and 1065--William I., 1066-1085--William II.--Henry I., 1127--Stephen--Henry II., 1158-1171--Richard I., 1190--John, 1200--Henry III., 1253--Edwards I., II., and III.--Richard II., 1377-1398--Henry IV.-V., 1418--Henry VIII., his magnificent Christ-tides 9
CHAPTER III
Historic Christ-tides--Edward VI., 1551--Mary--Elizabeth--James I.--The Puritans--The Pilgrim Fathers--Christmas's Lamentation--Christ-tide in the Navy, 1625 19
CHAPTER IV
Attempts of Puritans to put down Christ-tide--Attitude of the people--Preaching before Parliament--"The arraignment, etc., of Christmas" 26
CHAPTER V
The popular love of Christmas--Riots at Ealing and Canterbury--Evelyn's Christmas days, 1652, '3, '4, '5, '7, Cromwell and Christ-tide--The Restoration--Pepys and Christmas day, 1662--"The Examination and Tryal of old Father Christmas" 34
CHAPTER VI
Commencement of Christ-tide--"O Sapientia!"--St. Thomas's day--William the Conqueror and the City of York--Providing for Christmas fare--Charities of food--Bull-baiting--Christ-tide charities--Going "a-Thomassing," etc.--Superstitions of the day 45
CHAPTER VII
Paddington Charity (Bread and Cheese Lands)--Barring-out at Schools--Interesting narrative 53
CHAPTER VIII
The Bellman--Descriptions of him--His verses. The Waits--Their origin--Ned Ward on them--Corporation Waits--York Waits (17th century)--Essay on Waits--Westminster Waits--Modern Waits 63
CHAPTER IX
Christ-tide Carols--The days of Yule--A Carol for Christ-tide--"Lullaby"--The Cherry-tree Carol--Dives and Lazarus 70
CHAPTER X
Christmas Eve--Herrick thereon--The Yule Log--Folk-lore thereon--The Ashen Faggot--Christmas Candles--Christmas Eve in the Isle of Man--Hunting the Wren--Divination by Onions and Sage--A Custom at Aston--"The Mock"--Decorations and Kissing Bunch--"Black Ball"--Guisers and Waits--Ale Posset 75
CHAPTER XI
Christmas Eve in North Notts--Wassailing the Fruit Trees--Wassail Songs--Wassailing in Sussex--Other Customs--King at Downside College--Christ-tide Carol--Midnight Mass--The Manger--St. Francis of Assisi 84
CHAPTER XII
Decorating with Evergreens--Its Origin and Antiquity--Mistletoe in Churches--The permissible Evergreens--The Holly--"Holly and Ivy"--"Here comes Holly"--"Ivy, chief of Trees"--"The Contest of the Ivy and the Holly"--Holly Folk-lore--Church Decorations--To be kept up till Candlemas day 91
CHAPTER XIII
Legends of the Nativity--The Angels--The Birth--The Cradles--The Ox and Ass--Legends of Animals--The Carol of St. Stephen--Christmas Wolves--Dancing for a Twelve-months--Underground Bells--The Fiddler and the Devil 97
CHAPTER XIV
The Glastonbury Thorn, its Legend--Cuttings from it--Oaks coming into leaf on Christmas day--Folk-lore--Forecast, according to the days of the week on which Christmas falls--Other Folk-lore thereon 105
CHAPTER XV
Withholding Light--"Wesley Bob"--Wassail Carol--Presents in Church--Morris Dancers--"First Foot"--Red-haired Men--Lamprey Pie--"Hodening"--Its Possible Origin--The "Mari Lhoyd" 111
CHAPTER XVI
Curious Gambling Customs in Church--Boon granted--Sheaf of Corn for the Birds--Crowning of the Cock--"The Lord Mayor of Pennyless Cove"--"Letting in Yule"--Guisards--Christmas in the Highlands--Christmas in Shetland--Christmas in Ireland 117
CHAPTER XVII
Ordinance against out-door Revelry--Marriage of a Lord of Misrule--Mummers and Mumming--Country Mummers--Early Play--Two modern Plays 125
CHAPTER XVIII
A Christmas jest--Ben Jonson's Masque of Christmas--Milton's Masque of Comus--Queen Elizabeth and the Masters of Defence 138
CHAPTER XIX
The Lord of Misrule--The "Emperor" and "King" at Oxford--Dignity of the Office--Its abolition in the City of London--The functions of a Lord of Misrule--Christmas at the Temple--A grand Christmas there 143
CHAPTER XX
A riotous Lord of Misrule at the Temple--Stubbes on Lords of Misrule--The Bishops ditto--Mumming at Norwich