A Tudor Christmas - Mumming (2nd January)

2nd January - Mumming

Nativity's were performed as part of Church rituals and festivaties during Christmas, often performed in the Churchyard, streets or marketplaces and was acted by Monks. Most stories that were performed during the Christmas period were based on things from the Bible for all to watch. There was also theatre troupes that went around performing various shows for towns people to enjoy. Some of the plays dated from 1392 and were even seen by Henry VII in 1492. Over time many of the plays died out, this could have been to the Reformation and that relevant texts becoming lost over time. There is only two that still remain to this day, "The Pageant of the Shearman and Tailors" and "The Weavers' Play".

Another tradition normal people wanted to see was Mummers. This was a group of performers going around wearing masks and disguises, as their anonymity was part of the act. They would also perform folk plays during the Christmas celebrations, which has now developed into its modern equivalent, the infamous pantomimes. On Christmas Eve they would arrive at the palace, great houses, towns or villages and perform whatever play was most popular. They were expected to be paid for their performance. 

Mumming was also carried out during Christmas, this was a tradition that was carried out every year by the normal/working class people. A group of people would go round peoples houses wearing masks and disguises using whatever they could find. The house owner had to invite them in and whenever asked a question they had to answer by "mumming", this is were the phrase "mums the word" originated from. Most commonly they were friends and neighbours and part of the fun was guessing who was under the costumes. They then played dice with the home owner in the hope to earn money, most of the time they cheated and used a weighted dice. Over the centuries mumming disappeared, but it's believed this is were Halloween trick and treaters started from. 

Throughout The Twelve Days of Christmas, entertainment was enjoyed, pageants were the most popular especially at court and those that performed were likely to be wearing masks to amplify the intrigue and curiosity through anonymity. During the early years of his reign, Henry VIII took part in the shows and so would others in his court. Masquerades would soon replace pageants as they gave Henry a chance to show off his talents. Elizabeth I kept her fathers tradition of theatrical entertainment during Christmas, when Shakespeare came to fame he was commisoned to write plays nearly ever year.