Why No One Is Hanging Stockings at Pemberley

When you picture Regency Christmas, do you see twinkling lights, piles of presents, and everyone in ugly sweaters?

I regret to inform you that Elizabeth’s Mr. Darcy owns zero ugly sweaters. Not even one with a reindeer. This is because in Jane Austen’s time, December looked a little different:

• No Christmas trees (for most English families): Those didn’t really become fashionable in Britain until a bit later, especially after the German Prince Albert popularized them in the Victorian era. So if you were hoping to watch Mr. Darcy artfully place a star on top of a fir tree, I’m afraid you’ll have to read a different-era variation for that. (Although they do have a tree and discuss this in I Never Knew Myself).

• Fewer presents, more people: Gift-giving (as we know it) wasn’t the main event yet. The real focus was on family, guests, and making sure everyone was fed, housed, and occasionally snowed in with the right person. (Convenient for romance. Less convenient for introverts.)

• Feasting > decorating: Think roaring fires, roasted meats, puddings, ale, and enough food to make Mr. Bennet at least consider staying in company a little longer. The holly and greenery came out—tasteful, traditional, and only on the 24th. There was absolutely no tinsel in sight.

• Twelve Days of Christmas was serious business: The festive period often ran straight through to Twelfth Night (January 6), so the “Christmas season” was more of an extended hangout with your relatives–and maybe your neighbor who just happens to be tall, reserved, and unexpectedly good at looking out a frosty window.

So when we plop Darcy and Elizabeth into snow-dusted, tree-lit, present-heavy Christmas variations, we’re actually giving them a slightly anachronistic environment—or maybe they are in a modern variation (Unwrapping Christmas, anyone?)

If you lived in the Regency era, what’s the first “modern” Christmas thing you’d smuggle back with you?

Tell me in the comments—and feel free to nominate a character MOST likely to hog the Christmas sweets. (My money is on Lydia.)