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70) Christmas (1)

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.. Christmas is coming ... and Smiley said .. as it ought to be something to report on the Christmas in Mulhouse and elsewhere, something ..





Christmas is since 4 Century as a celebration of the birth of Christ celebrated and laid in the Middle Ages on the day of the winter solstice.

Here were also some pre-Christian traditions (Gifts for Yule, etc.) taken.

Christmas we went to the midnight mass .. and at home there was the dinner and gifts for the children.


Mühlhausen had an average age of 16 churches and chapels.


The church with its all-determining certain Christian piety the daily run and was the center of religious life.


addition to the high Christian holidays such as Christmas, Easter and Pentecost, there were still numerous festivals and holy days in honor of various saints who were especially celebrated in the Church anniversary.



The birth of Christ has been kept particularly in painting and in the nativity plays.

The early carols from the 15th Century included:

"It is a Ros'entsprungen .."

Special attractions were the Christmas market in Mulhouse, the three days on the held the upper or lower market to which dealers often came from far away.
The collage shows a fair St.Blasius in the church.






The Nikolai church was dedicated to St. Nicholas, on whose name day, 6 December, then Santa Claus came to the children and distributed gifts.
After the Reformation, was pushed back the veneration of saints and gifts, there was now the "holy Christ "on Christmas Eve or on Christmas Day.
Santa Claus but was then still further on December 6th to the children.




to Christmas time also formed the Kurrendesänger move that went from house to house, sang hymns and received small donations ..

The carol singing was held in Mulhouse from Christmas until the Feast of the Epiphany, until it was abolished 1692nd





from Christmas with Martin Luther .., a were image from the 19th century, which ran slightly ahead of the time .. because the Christmas tree is probably only since 16th-17th century in Germany ..

Luther also wrote the text for the still-popular Christmas song ..:

"high from the sky, I come here .."

The Martini Church was originally dedicated to St. Martin. After the Reformation, but was then celebrated as the birthday of Martin Luther Martin. attract the children still with lanterns through the streets.
To date, many places still maintain the tradition of Martin Gans, because according to legend, have warned the geese sollendie Martin of Tours by their loud chattering, as he wanted to catch the soldiers.

(.. in memory of this rescue, they end up in the oven ... now what Smiley somehow ungrateful place ..)







The 30-year-old war also brought in Mühlhausenzur Christmas hardship and misery .. well .. for the city, but especially for the villages in the free city of Mulhouse.

It was no matter what troops passed through here, was looted of all.

became so well in 1647 even Hollenbach by Swedish troops on Christmas Day "spoliert"

The economically bled city a few decades was affected later by the plague, at the time nearly half the population died. Several churches had also at Christmas time
remain closed and the members of plague victims were allowed to go only in the Church of St. James for the service. The plague victims were buried mainly in the All Saints churchyard.

ago, Johann Sebastian Bach warder Mühlhäuser Johann Rudolph Ahle (1625 - 1673) not only councilor, but also a well-known church musician, including the song ".. dear Jesus, we are here .. " wrote.

Later, then JS Bach 1707-1708 organist at the church and Lower Market from 1735 to 1737 was his son Johann Gottfried Bernhard Bach organist at St. Mary's Church.

Maybe the son even played here in 1734-completed parts from the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach, but the council was pietistic his game ".. .. too loud, too playful .." , Just to state .. and so was also the son of the great composers were not long in Mulhouse.

In the 18th Century to normal life again, and also in Mulhouse in churches and at home now, the new Christmas song by John Falk, "O you merry, o you blessed, Merciful Christmastide time ...." sung.

From the Holy Infant Jesus Christ now became that of a beautiful angel heaven the children came and brought gifts.

But for many, the Christmas season was often filled with concern for their daily bread.

And the warm room was not everywhere a matter of course.

Since the children were often in the forest in order to obtain the necessary firewood.

course, there were in the Free imperial city was gathering wood for a regulation, the forest supervisor made sure that only small thin branches were collected.

Heating was at that time anyway just a room in which played out the whole family life.

If then had the baby Jesus may have indeed brought some gifts, was of course the great joy.

In the 19th Century Prussian Mühlhausen was then county, but especially to the middle of the century there were repeated economic crises, which particularly suffered under the poor.

But if there was any, the children were after the Christmas presents and there was what to eat special.

But there were plenty of bourgeois families who were able to celebrate with their children a merry Christmas.

And there were now nearly all the Christmas tree was still decorated with apples and nuts, pastries and sweets .. and of course .. with real candles

was often also the toy, which was offered at the Christmas market unaffordable for many.

As in this picture of Carl Michel went to on Christmas morning by the willows on the snowy ditch Petri Church.

.. The Christmas carol "Silent Night .., holy night ...." was the beginning of the 19th century emerged, and was soon singing everywhere.

of the gifts you could see it already, that Mulhouse was Prussian garrison town, as there were ever a helmet and a wooden sword for the little future Soldiers.







end of the 19th Century the time of the great cheesy Christmas cards and the first photographs of the Christmas and the children. Most
but the photos were then still at the photographer, for their own camera could afford only a few.
















Sun .., actually had in front of Smiley .. to show the Christmas time in 2010 .. but since the problems came about problems. . and then it was already Christmas Eve .. and now ..????

We make it easy for the first time a first part that goes only to 1900 ... and the second part just to finish after the holidays ..

So do not despair .. the period between 1900 and 2010 is still in a second part of the Christmas time ..

meantime I wish all friends of "Mühlhausen - history and more," a Merry Christmas .. and precaution, all the best for the new year 2011 ...