Christmas 1916 - A White Christmas in London

This article published in ‘The Times’ on 26th December 1916 describes the Christmas activities on and around London for the soldiers on leave in 1916.

It was bitterly cold and wet in the trenches in France and London had a fall of snow on Christmas Eve. Those waking up early would have been greeted by a ‘White Christmas.’


CHRISTMAS

THE THIRD WAR-TIME CELEBRATION

ENTERTAINING THE SOLDIERS


Christmas Day, the day of peace and good will, found the British nation determined that there cannot yet be peace, but inspired with the thought that before another year passed an abiding peace may have been won. The Master of the Temple in his morning sermon expressed the attitude of the people when he said that the heavy, throbbing darkness of a year ago has been relieved by faint rays of hope.

And so it was that while few men yesterday could sincerely wish their neighbours “A Merry Christmas.” And festivities either in the homes or in public places were never more subdued, there was a fine spirit abroad. Those who denied themselves accustomed luxuries looked forward to a Christmas yet to come when the cloud of sorrow shall have been dispersed. Where there were vacant chairs wives and mothers let their thoughts look ahead to the return of the men who had gone out to battle. Somehow the knowledge that the nation is at last uniting to win the war brought confidence and hope, which gave the third war Christmas its own quality and its own cheerfulness.

In the early hours of the morning a sudden wind arose which was presently followed by a fall of snow. At daybreak roofs and gardens in the suburbs had a thin covering and families gathering at the breakfast table said it was like an old fashioned Yuletide. The snow did not last; but during the day the sun shone and the weather was much better than it was on Christmas Day last year. The cold morning did not prevent a fine swimming race in the Serpentine for the ‘Peter Pan’ Cup.

Less Travelling

Above all else it was a stay-at-home Christmas Day. Certain people have ignored the appeal not to travel and are spending the holiday at the seaside or in the country, but there has been nothing like the Christmas traffic of ordinary years. The only crowded trains yesterday were the “leave” trains from France. Four come into Victoria during the early part of the day and hundreds of trench-stained men stepped gleefully into the London Streets prepared to enjoy every hour of a well earned holiday. It was noted that some of the soldiers went straight from the station to the afternoon service at Westminster Abbey. There was a reverse side to the “leave” picture. Several trains took away men whose days of freedom were completed. The soldiers made no complaints, but some of their relatives were disappointed that they should be torn away on this particular day of the year.

The Soldier at Home

The happiest homes yesterday were undoubtedly those where soldier members of the family were enjoying leave. There (if the money could be found) no compunction was felt over feasting on turkey and the luxuries of the season. For the lonely soldiers many entertainments had been arranged. In every Y.M.C.A. hut in London (and there are now 60 of them) soldiers and sailors were welcomed to dinner and tea. The huts had been decorated and for amusements the men in Khaki had concerts and old-time Christmas games. There were also Christmas parties at the Church Army huts, while many soldiers without friends were bountifully entertained in private homes.

The wounded in the military hospitals were well cared for. Gifts for the patients had been poured into the institutions, many of them by anonymous well wishers. At one of the London hospitals 1,800 men hung up their stockings and found them filled with comforts in the morning. There was good fare for those able to eat it and score of ward concerts were given during the day.

In the hotels the day was observed very quietly. Festivities originally planned for the holiday had been cancelled to meet the call for economy. There were no decorations and the restrictions on courses kept the menus within reasonable limits. Where the Christmas dinner was served at midday the regulations had been relaxed to the extent of allowing three courses to be served instead of two, but if it had not been for the inclusion of turkey and plum pudding there would have been nothing to distinguish the meals from those of an ordinary day.