Why Was the Partridge in the Pear Tree?

Why Was the Partridge in the Pear Tree? traces the history of Christmas carols from medieval religious and seasonal traditions to their place in modern celebrations. Revd Mark Lawson-Jones begins with wassailing, the Welsh Mari Lwyd and communal singing, then considers how the Puritans attempted to suppress Christmas before carolling flourished again in the Victorian period.

Individual chapters examine the stories and meanings attached to familiar songs, including ‘The Coventry Carol’, ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’, ‘The Holly and the Ivy’, ‘Good King Wenceslas’ and ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’. The book also recounts how carols crossed the trenches during the Christmas Truce of 1914, when British and German soldiers exchanged songs during a brief suspension of hostilities.