A Cup of Cheer is a Christmas tale--you know I love a Christmas Regency! One of the traditions I wanted to include in this one is wassailing.
Wassailing was a tradition in which carolers would travel from house to house, hoping for a drink from the Wassail bowl, a bit of food or even money. Wassail comes from the old Anglo-Saxon phrase ‘waes hael’ which meant ‘good health.’
Wassailing was a tradition in which carolers would travel from house to house, hoping for a drink from the Wassail bowl, a bit of food or even money. Wassail comes from the old Anglo-Saxon phrase ‘waes hael’ which meant ‘good health.’
It was also common in parts of England to go wassailing amongst the fruit trees. Singers would go out to the orchards and sing to the trees, awakening them, letting them know that the seasons were turning and spring was on the way. It was meant to increase the harvest in the following autumn. In some parts, they would also hang a piece of toast soaked in beer in a tree, to give thanks for a good crop of apples. There are places in the UK today where the tradition still lives on.
You can read about the very special singing to the trees in A Cup of Cheer! And you can read about other interesting Regency Christmas traditions in my article--and if you are really interested in the history behind the stories, check out all the Articles and Behind The Book fun!