A brief history of Christmas - Part III

This post follows two previous ones, here and here. Thanks to Muriel Banz for this post.

Transformation and evolution of a myth

At the end of the XVIth century, the christian society found more appropriate to replace Saint Nicolas by the Infant Jesus or Christkindel, closer to the real meaning of the 24th december and the religious event.

Christkindel was represented by a young children, dressed in white, which given the presents. He was followed by an awful caracters, Hans Trapp, which role was to beat the nasty childrens.

In the city appeared markets. The oldest one (16th century) is the one in Strasbourg: Christenkindelmarket. At the of the XIXth century, the festivities of Christmas and the Nativity were losing their religious features to the profit of commercial ones. Christmas became a festival for the family, for the childrens, and also for everyone: believers and non-believers.

This two major christmas figures (Santa Nicolas and Christkindel) were brought together by the american press and illustrations, and especially by Clement Clarke Moore, who described in “A visit from St. Nicolas” a famous poem of 1823 Santa Claus as a curious little elf, who goes inside the chemneys, and travels through the air in a miniature sleigh pulled by 8 reindeers.

In 1860, Thomas Nast, an famous American illustrator gave him his white fur and his wide leather belt. The official residence of Santa Claus was known in 1885 : he settled at the North Pole, where was also his toy factory.

The final touch was brought by Haddon Sundblom in 1931 though the Coca Cola ads. During almost 35 years, the Coca Cola compagny used a re-looked mythic character for its campaigns all over the world. The new Santa Claus had a more jovial air, sympathetic face and a human stature…