Since the Victorian era, sending Christmas cards has become an essential part of celebrating the festive season. But how did this timeless tradition begin? Let’s take a look!
The idea of sending seasons greeting as decorated visiting cards and letterheads first came about in the early 1840s when the British postal service was updated and the Uniform Penny Post was introduced, thus making it easier to send letters. However, in December 1843 inventor and civil-servant, Henry Cole, noticed that a pile of unanswered greetings had began building in his home. Presuming that other households were also struggling with this issue, Cole came up with the idea of producing and selling decorative cards, which could be easily personalised and sent.
In the evening of 17th December 1843, Cole’s artist friend, John Callcott Horsley, presented him with the first ever Christmas card designed. In the centre of the design was an illustration of three generations of the Cole family raising a toast; around them was a decorative boarder, which depicted scenes of charity. Impressed with the result, Cole commissioned the design to be printed onto one thousand single pieces of card, which were then published and sold. However, costing one shilling, the cards were too expensive for most people to purchase and Cole’s venture was considered a failure.
Despite its public flop, the custom of sharing Christmas cards was soon adopted by the Christmas loving British royal family. Queen Victorias nine children were particularly fond of creating festive drawings and paintings, which they would then present to their parents, close family and personal staff; a tradition they continued into adulthood. They also enjoyed giving similar gifts to celebrate new year and special anniversaries.
By the mid 1840s, Christmas itself was becoming more popular than it had been in previous decades. This was partly due to the publication of Charles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’ and an 1848 illustration of the royals gathered around a decorated tree and giving gifts. That same year another artist named William Maw Egley published the second commercial Christmas card, the design of which was similar to that of Horsley’s original. By the 1860s, new printing techniques meant that it became easier to create more elaborate designs – although these were still too expensive for the lower classes.
Over the coming years, Christmas slowly became more accessible for the ordinary people due to the decreasing prices of gifts, along with the lower cost of cards, which were now being imported from places like Germany. Another card milestone was reached in around 1879 when companies like Hildesheimer & Co introduced The ‘Penny Basket’, which was sold in a variety of shops and contained a dozen cards.
On 23rd December 1881, Queen Victoria wrote in her journal that she was “very busy & overwhelmed with the number of Christmas cards, I have to send.” Two days later, she wrote that she had “received many Christmas cards, from my children, relations & friends”, showing how much the tradition had taken off.
Further advances were made in 1894 when the new Half Penny Post was introduced, making it a lot cheaper to not only buy cards but also to send them. From then on, people began collecting and displaying the newest designs; many of which represented robins, holly, Christmas trees, snowy landscapes and even Father Christmas; much like the designs we still see in shops today!
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