CHRISTMAS AT COURT TWELFTH NIGHT This twelfth night of the twelve days of Christmas is the official end of the winter holiday season and one of the traditional days for taking down the Christmas decorations. This is also a traditional day for wassailing apple trees. The ancient Roman tradition of choosing the master of the Saturnalian revels by baking a good luck bean inside a cake was transferred to Twelfth Night. The diner who finds the bean in his or her cake becomes king or queen of Twelfth Night. Twelfth Night, or King and Queen
Now, now the mirth comes With the cake full of plums, Where Bean’s the King of the sport here; Beside we must know The Pea also Must revel, as Queen, in the Court here.
Begin then to choose, (This night as ye use) Who shall for the present delight here. Be a King by the lot And who shall not Be Twelfth-day Queen for the night here.
Which known, let us make Joy-sops with the cake; And let not a man then be seen here, Who unurg’d will not drink To the base from the brink A health to the King and the Queen here.
Next crown the bowl full With gentle lambs-wool; Add sugar, nutmeg and ginger, With store of ale too; And thus ye must do To make the wassail a swinger.
Give then to the King And Queen wassailing; And though with ale ye be wet here; Yet part ye from hence, As free from offence As when ye innocent met here. Robert Herrick In England, the Twelfth Night cake is usually a rich and dense fruitcake which contains both a bean and pea. The man who finds the bean is the king, the woman who finds the pea is the queen. But if a woman finds the bean, she can choose the king, while the man who finds the pea can choose the queen. The royal pair then direct the rest of the company in merriment. They assign the revelers ludicrous tasks or require them to behave in ways that were contrary to their usual roles. Backgrounds & page design by ForeverAmber |