The 6th of January, or twelfth day after Christmas, is a festival of the Church, called the Epiphany (from a Greek word signifying "appearance"), or Manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles; and it arises from the adoration of the Wise Men, or Magi, commonly known as "the Three Kings," Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar, who were led by the miraculous star to Bethlehem, and there offered to the infant Christ gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The following carol is in the Harl. MSS. British Museum, and is of the time of Henry VII.:—

Now is Christmas i-come,
Father and Son together in One,
Holy Ghost as ye be One,
In fere-a;
God send us a good new year-a.
I would now sing, for and I might,
Of a Child is fair to sight;
His mother bare him this enders[89] night,
So still-a;
And as it was his will-a.
There came three kings from Galilee
To Bethlehem, that fair citie,
To see Him that should ever be
By right-a,
Lord, and King, and Knight-a.
As they came forth with their offering,
They met with Herod, that moody king,
He asked them of their coming
This tide-a;
And thus to them he said-a:
"Of whence be ye, you kings three?"
"Of the East, as you may see,
To seek Him that should ever be
By right-a,
Lord, and King, and Knight-a."
"When you to this Child have been,
Come you home this way again,
Tell me the sights that ye have seen,
I pray-a;
Go not another way-a."
They took their leave, both old and young,
Of Herod, that moody king;
They went forth with their offering,
By light-a
Of the Star that shone so bright-a.
Till they came into the place
Where Jesus and his mother was,
There they offered with great solace,
In fere-a,
Gold, incense, and myrrh-a.
When they had their offering made,
As the Holy Ghost them bade,
Then were they both merry and glad,
And light-a;
It was a good fair sight-a.
Anon, as on their way they went,
The Father of Heaven an Angel sent,
To those three kings that made present,
That day-a,
Who thus to them did say-a:
"My Lord hath warned you every one,
By Herod King ye go not home,
For, an' you do, he will you slone[90]
And strye-a,[91]
And hurt you wonderly-a."
So forth they went another way,
Through the might of God, His lay,[92]
As the Angel to them did say,
Full right-a,
It was a fair good sight-a.
When they were come to their countree,
Merry and glad they were all three,
Of the sight that they had see
By night-a;
By the Star's shining light-a.
Kneel we now all here adown
To that Lord of great renown,
And pray we in good devotion
For grace-a,
In Heaven to have a place-a.

This festival was held in high honour in England; and up to the reign of George III. our Kings and Queens, attended by the Knights of the three great Orders—the Garter, the Thistle, and the Bath—were wont to go in state to the Chapel Royal, St. James's, and there offer gold, frankincense, and myrrh, in commemoration of the Magi; but when George III. was incapacitated, mentally, from performing the functions of royalty, it was done by proxy, and successive sovereigns have found it convenient to perform this act of piety vicariously.

It must have been a magnificent function in the time of Henry VII., as we learn by Le Neve's Royalle Book. "As for Twelfth Day, the King must go crowned, in his royal robes, kirtle, surtout, his furred hood about his neck, his mantle with a long train, and his cutlas before him; his armills upon his arms, of gold set full of rich stones; and no temporal man to touch it but the King himself; and the squire for the body must bring it to the King in a fair kerchief, and the King must put them on himself; and he must have his sceptre in his right hand, and the ball with the cross in his left hand, and the crown upon his head. And he must offer that day gold, myrrh, and sense; then must the Dean of the Chapel send unto the Archbishop of Canterbury, by clerk, or priest, the King's offering that day; and then must the Archbishop give the next benefice that falleth in his gift to the same messenger. And then the King must change his mantle when he goeth to meat, and take off his hood, and lay it about his neck; and clasp it before with a great rich ouche; and this must be of the same colour that he offered in. And the Queen in the same form as when she is crowned."

Now the ceremonial is as simple as it can be made. In the Chapel Royal, St. James's, after the reading of the sentence at the offertory, "Let your light so shine before men," etc., while the organ plays, two members of Her Majesty's household, wearing the royal livery, descend from the royal pew, and, preceded by the usher, advance to the altar rails, where they present to one of the two officiating clergymen a red bag, edged with gold lace or braid, which is received in an alms dish, and then reverently placed upon the altar. This bag, or purse, is understood to contain the Queen's offering of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

CHAPTER XXXI
"The King of the Bean"—Customs on Twelfth Day—Twelfth Cakes—Twelfth Night Characters—Modern Twelfth Night—The Pastry Cook's Shops—Dethier's Lottery—The Song of the Wren—"Holly Night" at Brough—"Cutting off the Fiddler's Head."

But another sovereign had a great deal to do with Twelfth day, "The King of the Bean," who takes his title from a bean, or a silver penny, baked in a cake, which is cut up and distributed, and he is king in whose slice the bean is found. Naogeorgus gives us the following account of Twelfth day:—

The wise men's day here foloweth, who out from Persia farre,
Brought giftes and presents unto Christ, conducted by a starre.
The Papistes do beleeve that these were kings, and so them call,
And do affirme that of the same there were but three in all.
Here sundrie friendes togither come, and meete in companie,
And make a king amongst themselves by voyce, or destinie:
Who, after princely guise, appoyntes his officers alway.
Then, unto feasting doe they go, and long time after play:
Upon their hordes, in order thicke, the daintie dishes stande,
Till that their purses emptie be, and creditors at hande.
Their children herein follow them, and choosing princes here,
With pompe and great solemnitie, they meete and make good chere:
With money eyther got by stealth, or of their parents eft,
That so they may be traynde to knowe, both ryot here and theft.
Then also every housholder, to his abilitie,
Doth make a mightie Cake, that may suffice his companie:
Herein a pennie doth he put, before it comes to fire,
This he devides according as his housholde doth require.
And every peece distributeth, as round about they stand,
Which, in their names, unto the poore, is given out of hand:
But, who so chaunceth on the peece wherin the money lies,
Is counted king amongst them all, and is, with showtes and cries,
Exalted to the heavens up, who, taking chalke in hande,
Doth make a crosse on every beame, and rafters as they stande:
Great force and powre have these agaynst all injuryes and harmes
Of cursed devils, sprites, and bugges,[93] of coniurings and charmes.
So much this king can do, so much the Crosses brings to passe,
Made by some servant, maide, or childe, or by some foolish asse.
Twise sixe nightes then from Christmasse, they do count with diligence
Wherein eche maister, in his house, doth burne up Franckensence:
And on the Table settes a loafe, when night approcheth nere,
Before the Coles, and Franckensence, to be perfumed there:
First bowing downe his heade he standes, and nose, and eares, and eyes
He smokes, and with his mouth receyve the fume that doth arise:
Whom followeth streight his wife, and doth the same full solemly,
And of their children every one, and all their family:
Which doth preserve, they say, their teeth, and nose, and eyes, and eare,
From every kind of maladie, and sicknesse all the yeare.
When every one receyved hath this odour, great and small,
Then one takes up the pan with Coales, and Franckensence, and all,
Another takes the loafe, whom all the rest do follow here,
And round about the house they go, with torch or taper clere,
That neither bread nor meat do want, nor witch with dreadful charme
Have powre to hurt their children, or to do their cattell harme.
There are, that three nightes onely do perfourme this foolish geare,
To this intent, and thinke themselves in safetie all the yeare.
To Christ dare none commit himselfe. And in these dayes beside,
They iudge what weather all the yeare shall happen and betide:
Ascribing to ech day a month. And, at this present time,
The youth in every place doe flocke, and all appareld fine,
With Pypars through the streetes they runne, and sing at every dore,
In commendation of the man, rewarded well therefore:
Which on themselves they do bestowe, or on the Church, as though
The people were not plagude with Roges and begging Fryers enough.
There Cities are, where boyes and gyrles togither still do runne,
About the streete with like, as soone as night beginnes to come,
And bring abrode their wassell bowles, who well rewarded bee,
With Cakes and Cheese, and great good cheare, and money plentiouslie.

The above gives us Twelfth day customs in the sixteenth century. Herrick tells us how it was celebrated a hundred years later, when they had added a queen to the festivities, as they had, previously, given a consort to the Lord of Misrule.