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O Christmas
Tree
O
Christmas tree, O Christmas tree!
How are thy leaves so verdant!
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,
How are thy leaves so verdant!
Not
only in the summertime,
But even in winter is thy prime.
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,
How are thy leaves so verdant!
O
Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,
Much pleasure doth thou bring me!
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,
Much pleasure doth thou bring me!
For
every year the Christmas tree,
Brings to us all both joy and glee.
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,
Much pleasure doth thou bring me!
O
Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,
Thy candles shine out brightly!
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,
Thy candles shine out brightly!
Each
bough doth hold its tiny light,
That makes each toy to sparkle bright.
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,
Thy candles shine out brightly!
That
most Victorian of Victorian customs-the Christmas tree grew out
of the great love shared between a husband and wife. Apart
from the fact the wife was Victoria, Queen of England, and her
husband, Albert, the prince consort, these were two ordinary
lovers smitten with each other, their young family, and the
celebration of Christmas itself.
Theirs was one of history's great love stories. In 1839,
young Queen Victoria, faced the obligation of selecting a mate, summoned
all the eligible princes of Europe for consideration.
Victoria understandably viewed the endeavor as a "dreadful'
necessity. Imagine her great joy when instead of
being forced to enter into a businesslike arrangement, she fell
passionately in love with the handsome Prince Albert of
Saxony. The affection was returned by Albert, and not long
after the two were married.
By 1841, Victoria and Albert were the parents of two small
children. That Christmas, a homesick Albert had small
evergreen trees shipped from his ancestral home of Coburg,
Germany, to Windsor Castle, where the family was celebrating the
holiday. Queen Victoria ever eager to please Albert, had
one tree placed on a table in a spotlight of honor. Fruit,
flowers, garlands of gilt and ribbons, birds, and glass ornament
decorated its boughs. At its crown, a beautiful angel with
hovering wings blessed this family. On Christmas Eve, tiny
flaming tapers shed light upon the first Victorian Christmas
tree. The Tree of Love, as it was called, became the
centerpiece of the royal family's yearly Christmas celebrations.
The custom soon spread through the general population and a
loving tradition was born. Even today, the Christmas tree
remains the symbolic center of family celebrations, inspired by
the devotion of onecouple whose love for each other was as
glorious as the titles they bore.
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