Canada's First Christmas Tree
And the first in North America.
As we move into late-November, Christmas trees are popping up in homes and public spaces in Canada.
But the history of the tree goes back a long way in present-day Canada.
The modern Christmas tree originated in Central Europe sometime in the 16th Century when Protestant Christian reformer Martin Luther was said to add lighted candles to an evergreen tree.
According to the story, he was the first person to be inspired to do this as he walked home through a forest one winter evening. He was in awe of the stars twinkling amongst evergreen trees so he put one up in his home, with lighted candles on the branches sometime in the early-1500s.
German Lutherans in 1539 were the first to officially place lighted candles on an evergreen and it is from them that Canada gets its connection to the Christmas tree.
At a party hosted by the Baroness Riedesel for British and German officers on Dec. 24, 1781, in Sorel, Quebec, the first official Christmas tree in North America was erected.
The previous years had been tough for the Baroness and her family.
Her husband Frederick was taken prisoner during the American Revolutionary War in 1777 and wouldn’t be released until 1780.
During those dark years, the Baroness had seen men terribly injured in battle, many of whom she attended to by doing what she could to help including providing food but it was a challenging time
She also nearly died in a fire at her home.
By 1781 her husband was home and better days were on the horizon. She hoped to brighten everyone's mood with a Christmas tree.
This would also be the first time in four years the Baroness would be able to celebrate with a party so after her guests finished their English pudding, she had a Balsam fir tree cut from the forest outside and put in the corner of the dining room.
It was decorated with fruits and lit with candles, making it the first official Christmas tree in North America.
After the Baroness' efforts, Christmas trees didn’t spread like wildfire across the nation. German immigrants set them up during the late-18th and early-19th centuries, but the tradition expanded slowly.
Canada’s upper class, for the most part, ignored the tradition until Queen Victoria and her German husband Prince Albert put up a tree in Windsor Castle in 1841.
The monarch was a trend setter, first she made white wedding dresses a staple of matrimonial union and then made Christmas trees fashionable so the tradition picked up steam in Canada.
By the mid-19th century, Christmas tree were on display in many Canadian homes and until the early 20th century, candles, fruits, and crafts were used to decorate them.
A simple start to a tradition that continues to this day.