A Righte Merrie Christmasse: The Story of Christ-TideAshton, John
History
A Righte Merrie Christmasse: The Story of Christ-Tide
Ashton, John
Christmas -- History
"Likewise on the Twelve night, the king and the queene came into the
hall at Greenewich, and suddenlie entered a tent of cloath of gold; and
before the tent stood foure men of armes, armed at all points, with
swords in their hands; and, suddenlie, with noise of trumpets entered
foure other persons all armed, and ran to the other foure, and there
was a great and fierce fight. And, suddenlie, out of a place like a
wood, eight wild men, all apparelled in greene mosse, made with sleved
silke, with ouglie weapons, and terrible visages, and there fought
with the knights eight to eight: and, after long fighting, the armed
knights drove the wild men out of their places, and followed the chase
out of the hall, and when they were departed, the tent opened, and
there came out six lords and six ladies richlie apparelled, and dansed
a great time. When they had dansed their pleasure, they entered the
tent againe, which was conveied out of the hall: then the king and
queene were served with a right sumptuous banket."
In 1515, "The king kept a solemne Christmasse at his manor of Eltham;
and on the Twelfe night, in the hall was made a goodlie castell,
wounderously set out: and in it certeine ladies and knights; and when
the king and queene were set, in came other knights and assailed the
castell, where manie a good stripe was given; and at the last the
assailants were beaten awaie. And then issued out knights and ladies
out of the castell, which ladies were rich and strangelie disguised;
for all their apparell was in braids of gold, fret with moving
spangles of silver and gilt, set on crimsin sattin, loose and not
fastned; the men's apparell of the same sute made like Julis of
Hungarie, and the ladies heads and bodies were after the fashion of
Amsterdam. And when the dansing was done, the banket was served in of
five hundred dishes, with great plentie to everie bodie."
In 1517, "the king kept his Christmasse at his manor of Greenwich, and
on the Twelfe night, according to the old custome, he and the queene
came into the hall; and when they were set, and the queene of Scots
also, there entered into the hall a garden artificiall, called the
garden of _Esperance_. This garden was towred at everie corner, and
railed with railes gilt; all the banks were set with flowers
artificiall of silke and gold, the leaves cut of green sattin, so that
they seemed verie flowers. In the midst of this garden was a piller of
antique worke, all gold set with pearles and stones, and on the top of
the piller, which was six square, was a lover, or an arch embowed,
crowned with gold; within which stood a bush of roses red and white,
all of silk and gold, and a bush of pomegranats of the like stuffe. In
this garden walked six knights, and six ladies richlie apparelled, and
then they descended and dansed manie goodlie danses, and so ascended
out of the hall, and then the king was served with a great banket."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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