Yesterday's Country Customs

Yesterday’s Country Customs examines 18 English traditions, describing how they are observed today while considering the histories behind them. Henry Buckton covers hobby horses, mumming, wassailing, cheese rolling, Shrovetide, well dressing, rushbearing, tree dressing and fire festivals, alongside customs such as beating the bounds, flitch trials and Guy Fawkes carnivals.

The accounts often follow celebrations through the eyes of organisers and participants, giving a practical sense of their characters, rituals and local settings. Buckton also considers how older practices have been revived or reshaped, while acknowledging that the origins and purposes of some customs remain disputed. The result is a record of living English folklore, linking seasonal festivities and community traditions with changing interpretations of the past.