Origins of the 12 Days of Christmas
by The 12 days of Christmas sounds like a silly song we sing around the holidays, yet when it was written it held a serious message within it’s words.
The 12 days of Christmas sounds like a silly song we sing around the holidays, yet when it was written it held a serious message within it’s words. Between 1558 and 1829 in England, it was a crime to be a catholic and people were prohibited to practice their faith in private or public. During this time, if an “writing” that had to do with the catholic faith appeared you were hanged, drawn, and quartered.
To be hanged, drawn, and quartered meant you were hanged by the neck until you almost suffocated to death. Not quite yet suffocated, you where then taken down and disemboweled while you were still alive. Your insides would be scattered through out the street where they were stomped on. You were then tied up, each limb to a horse, and torn into five pieces.
The 12 days of Christmas was wrote for young Catholics as a memory aid without stating anything directly towards being Catholic. The song contained many hidden meanings, such as the reference to “true love” refers to God himself. Each one of the days had a meaning to help them remember.
The 12 days of Christmas goes:
- 1 Partridge in a Pear Tree = Jesus Christ, Son of God
- 2 Turtle Doves = The Old and New Testaments
- 3 French Hens = Faith, Hope and Charity, the Theological Virtues
- 4 Calling Birds = the Four Gospels and/or the Four Evangelists
- 5 Golden Rings = The first Five Books of the Old Testament, the “Pentateuch”, which
- gives the history of man’s fall from grace.
- 6 Geese A-laying = the six days of creation
- 7 Swans A-swimming = the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the seven sacraments
- 8 Maids A-milking = the eight beatitudes
- 9 Ladies Dancing = the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit
- 10 Lords A-leaping = the ten commandments
- 11 Pipers Piping = the eleven faithful apostles
- 12 Drummers Drumming = the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle’s Creed
So the next time you stop to sing the 12 Days of Christmas, remember it’s origins are in Jesus and the Catholic faith during the time when it was a crime to be a Catholic.
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