Origins of the Christmas tree

William Sandys, Christmas-tide, Its History, Festivities and Carols, With Their Music (London: John Russell Smith, 1852), p. 151. The graphic was found on page 152a.

IN ancient times, plants and trees that remained evergreen held a special meaning for people in the northern hemisphere where winters could be depressingly cold and dark and grey. Evergreens were a reminder that spring would come again, that green plants would flourish again.

This was before Christianity came into the picture, mind you; when the religion did begin to spread in Europe, many such pagan practices were incorporated into seasonal customs.