The ‘bang’ was added later after Smith was reportedly inspired by the sound of a log crackling on a fire. Originally the cracker just contained a sweet and a small motto. However, the first person to sell crackers may actually have been Italian confectioner Sparagnapane, whose company described itself as 'the oldest makers of Christmas crackers in the United Kingdom.' The ability for anyone to pay half a penny to post cards across the country made sending Christmas cards a popular and affordable tradition.Įarly Victorian Christmas cards often depicted celebration and merriment, as well as acts of charity and helping the less fortunate.įirst Christmas card courtesy of Wikicommons History of Christmas crackersĬonfectioner Tom Smith is widely credited as inventing the Christmas cracker, supposedly after seeing bon-bons wrapped in twisted paper in Paris. The introduction of the halfpenny postage rate in 1870 also contributed to the growing success of Christmas cards. However, Cole's 'first Christmas card' would, along with Prince Albert's palace Christmas tree, set an example that would later become a key part of the Victorian Christmas.Īdvances in printing processes and colour techniques meant that by the 1860s complex designs could be produced on a large scale. At the time this was expensive, and the venture initially failed to take off. When postal service reformer Henry Cole created his own Christmas card in 1843 to send to friends and family, he also put them on sale to the general public for a shilling.
Putting a star or angel on top of the Christmas tree is also a tradition that began in Victorian times. This could be seen as an attempt to bring the natural world into their homes in the wake of the Industrial Revolution. Christmas Tree at Windsor Castle - first published in 1848 by the Illustrated London NewsĪs well as trees, the Victorians decorated their house with things such as holly and ivy.