from the Chronicles of Celtic Folk Customs by Brian Day book....
CELTIC. After the decline of the Whitsun Ales this became a day for
picnics, fairs, games and sports, although some organised events were
much like the Ales of old. Latterly these events tended to move the
Late Spring Bank Holiday.
The Church originally et aside Whit Monday and Tuesdays as holidays, and
the warm weather combined with the fact that Whit lay conveniently
between the ploughing of fields and their sowing, and the forthcoming
hay-making, led to these two days becoming ones of open-air enjoyment.
This allowed freedom from winter restrictions of church and barn
accommodation, the only large buildings available to villagers and both
difficult to heat and make comfortable. The drunkenness and revelry
associated with Whit was of course not welcome in churches anyway, and
many of these occasions deteriorated into disorder and violence. This
fact led to a variety of alternative entertainments and distractions
being instituted on Whit Monday. The Lord and Lady of Misrule, formerly
appointed to preside over the festivities, evolved into an elected
mock-King and Queen, perhaps having a link with the election of Summer
Queens today in Scotland. I may have been the reluctance to abandon the
tradition of May or Whit games that brought about the creation of a
formal summer holiday, taken, if at all, before the corn harvest, but
not necessarily in one's own community. Soon popular travel was to see
the demise of the organised communal events, save perhaps the village
fires.
--
Pat Connors, Sacramento CA
http://www.connorsgenealogy.com
Professional Genealogy Research
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