Kmflett's Blog

Their Christmas Eve and Ours: the last day of Advent Austerity

Britain in 2025 may still be a society that is institutionally dominated by the Church of England, the State established Church, but its influence over the daily lives of individuals is much less (at best) than it was in pre-industrial times.

At that time Christmas Eve was the last day of Advent and that had a specific meaning which did not involve opening windows on an Advent calendar.

Advent was a time of dieting prior to the feasting (at least for the rich) that started on Christmas Day and ended on Twelfth Night.

During that time, as Hutton notes in Stations of the Sun, the better off ate ‘soup, stews and fish’ and avoided roast meat and pies.

The poor were invariably less fortunate. Hutton notes a C15th complaint of someone who had to eat during Advent ‘no puddings nor sauce but stinking fish’.

Christmas Eve was meant to be a strict fast when eating meat, cheese and eggs was all banned, prior to the feasting that started on Christmas Day. The poor relied to some extent on the better off to provide a Christmas meal or clubbed together to get one. Records of course invariably record only what the wealthy ate at Christmas not the poor.

Meanwhile at least Christmas Day meant an end to Advent austerity, in the traditional calendar at least.