According to Fabian, Athelstan had in his possession one of the nails, with part of the cross; and another part with a nail; and the crown of thorns, were said to have been at Nôtre Dame, in Paris; and portions of it claimed to be preserved in other churches.
There is a curious story on the subject, related in Harl. MS. 2252 (temp. Hen. 8), entitled, “A grete myracle of a knyghte, callyde Syr Roger Wallysborow.” Being in the Holy Land, he wished to bring off privily a piece of the cross, and praying to that effect, his thigh opened miraculously, and received it. He then returned to Cornwall, his native country, having in the course of his voyage, by virtue of the fragment of the cross, appeased the elements, and prevented shipwreck. On his arrival, his thigh opened to liberate the precious relic, of which he gave part to the parish church where this happened, hence called Cross parish, and the remainder to St. Buryan, where his lands were.
The slaughter of the Innocents is referred to in several carols, and there are some written expressly for Innocents’ Day; the day of the week on which it falls being considered unlucky throughout the year by many. Brand mentions a custom in Roman Catholic countries of running through all the rooms of a house, making a pretended search in and under the beds, in commemoration of Herod’s search for the children; and there is a tradition that his own son was killed among them, which made Augustus say, that it was better to be Herod’s hog than his son, referring to his being a Jew, and therefore forbidden to kill swine, playing also on the Greek words, [Greek: un] (un) a hog, and [Greek: uion] (uion) a son. Some carols, or Christmas songs, refer to the bringing in of the boar’s head; and in the old carol of St. Stephen’s Day, before mentioned, St. Stephen, who is stated to be in king Herod’s service, is, somewhat inconsistently with such service, introduced as bringing in a boar’s head.
“Stevyn out of kechon cam wt boris hed on honde,
He saw a sterr was fayr and bryzt our bedlem stondæ,
He kyst a down the bors hed and went into the halle,
I forsak the kyng herowds and thi werks alle,
I forsak the kyng herowds and thi werks alle,
Ther is a chyd in bedlem born is betr than we alle.”
It is difficult to say whether the boar’s head was first introduced at Christmas as a kind of anti-judaical test, because the Jews would not eat it—something like pork was said to be eaten at Easter, together with tansy pudding (a corruption from athanasia);—but as the boar’s head seems to have been a favourite at all great feasts, at least, from the time of that greatest of boars, Scrymer, it is probable that it thus became a “chief service” at the greatest of feasts.
There are several ancient MS. carols in the British Museum, particularly in Sloane MS. 2593 and Harl. MS. 5396, Additional MSS. 5465 and 5665 and Cotton MS. Vespasian A, xxv, of which several, and probably the best, have been printed in Christmas carols, edited by Mr. Wright, for the Percy Society, in 1841, and in the collection of Christmas carols, by the author of the present work, in 1833. There is also a curious collection of songs and carols, supposed to have been a minstrel’s book of the fifteenth century, edited, in 1847, for the Percy Society, by Mr. Wright, whose ability in all matters connected with the history, customs, and antiquities of our country, are so well known; old carols may also be found in the libraries of the Universities. The oldest printed collection of carols was by Wynkyn de Worde, in 1521, which contains one on bringing in the boar’s head. Another rare collection was printed by Richard Kele, in the Poultry, between 1546 and 1552.
In 1562, John Tysdale had a license for printing ‘Certayne goodly carowles to be songe to the glory of God;’ and, in the same year, Rowlande Hall had one for ‘Crestenmas carroles auctorysshed by my lorde of London.’ In 1563, John Day printed some carols of Thomas Becon; and, in 1569, Richard Jonnes and James Robertes, each printed a collection; the last being by Christopher Payne. About the same time Tusser wrote a carol, as well as other poetry, illustrative of Christmas-tide. In 1579, J. Alder had a license for ‘a Godly Hymn or Carol for Christmas,’ and in 1580, for ‘Godly Carols, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs.’ In ‘Songs of Sundry natures,’ by William Byrd, 1589, there is a Christmas carol which has been printed by Mr. J. Payne Collier, the distinguished editor of Shakespeare, in Lyrical Poems, for the Percy Society. In 1597 was published at Edinburgh, ‘Ane Compendioos Booke of Godly and Spirituall Songs,’ which contains some carols; these with the other songs were adapted to popular tunes, the intention being to supersede the use of profaner ballads: it was reprinted in 1801. In ‘Ancient Scottish Poems,’ Dunbar has inserted one from the Bannatyne MS. In 1630, ‘Certaine of David’s Psalmes, intended for Christmas carolls, fitted to the most common but solempne tunes, everywhere familiarly used, by William Slatyr,’ was printed by Robert Young, and a similar work in 1642. There is one also at the end of Aylett’s ‘Eclogues and Elegies.’ In Herrick’s ‘Noble Numbers,’ 1640, there are five carols, or songs in the nature of carols, some of which were set to music by Henry Lawes, and were sung before the court, and there are many poems connected with Christmas customs in his other works.
In 1661 was published a collection called ‘New Carolls for this Merry Time of Christmas, to sundry pleasant Tunes, with new Additions, never before printed, to be sung to delight the Hearers; printed by H. B., for Andrew Kemb.’ In the title-page was a print of the Wise Men discovering the Star. There were likewise ‘Christmas carols, fit also to be sung at Easter,’ and ‘New Christmas Carols,’ in 1688. Some of these collections were encouraged by the puritans, to drive away those of a lighter description; and, in 1684, ‘A Small Garland of Pious and Godly Songs,’ of this nature, was printed at Ghent, for the purpose of superseding the popular ballad, and may be assumed to have contained serious carols for the same purpose.