Pictures of Decorated Christmas Trees

      The Christmas tree is decorated for the celebration of Christmas.  It can be an artificial tree, but is typically an evergreen coniferous tree that is brought into your home and decorated with ornaments and Christmas lights prior to Christmas.  Often a star or an angel is put at the top of the tree in order to represent the Star of Bethlehem or the host of angels. 

     Throughout history there has been opposition to the use of the Christmas tree.  This is due to its pagan origins.  The parishioners of Cleveland, Ohio actually condemned it as a pagan practice in 1851 when the pastor decorated the Christmas tree in the American Christian Church.  The use of the Christmas tree is believed to be an ancient custom in Germany.  Other traditions from Germany that relate to Christmas include the Yule Goat, Christmas ham, stuffing of stockings, and portions of the Santa Claus story and his ride through the sky. 

     The custom in which the Christmas tree was put up in homes is traced back to the 16th century in Germany.  The custom had become common in the early 18th century in upper Rhineland. There were wax candles used from the late 18th century to light the tree.  By the early 19th century, the custom of using Christmas trees became popular with the nobility and spread to the royal courts, including those as far as Russia.  The first Christmas tree was introduced to the city of Vienna in 1816 by Princess Henrietta of Nassu-Weiburg.  This custom quickly spread across Austria.  In 1840, the first Christmas tree was introduced in France by the duchesse d'Orleans.  In Britain the custom didn't spread beyond the royal family at first.  It began gaining popularity in Britain by the regular people around 1850.  There are several cities in the United States that have German connections and state that they were the first to have a Christmas tree.  Early accounts state that Windsor Locks, Connecticut was the first in 1777, but Easton, Pennsylvania also claims this in 1816.  Lancaster, Pennsylvania also claims that they were the first to have a Christmas tree in America, and this was in 1821.  Charles Follen has been credited as the first to introduce the United States to decorating a Christmas tree, and August Imgard is credited with popularizing the decoration of a tree with candy canes. 

     There are many places that put up public Christmas trees outside.  These places include the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree in New York CIty, the Rich's Great Tree in Atlanta, and the Christmas tree at Victoria Square in Adelaide.  Every year in the United States, the National Christmas Tree is lit on the south lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C.  The lighting of this tree has become a major event at the White House. 

      The idea of bringing a live evergreen tree into your home is a representation of  the continuation of life through winter.  The evergreen tree is universal in all cultures.  The main decoration of Christmas trees is light, and light is celebrated in the darkness of winter. 

      The setting up and the taking down of a Christmas tree is associated with particular dates.  Traditionally, Christmas trees were not brought into the home and decorated until Christmas Eve, and were then taken down after the twelfth night after Christmas.  To set up your tree before this date or to take it out after this date was considered to be bad luck.  This has changed over time to be much more lenient.

     To decorate a Christmas tree, tinsel is often used as well as different types of garland or ribbon.  Christmas ornaments are also often used.  Lighting with candles or with electric lights is often done today too, and many people traditionally use an angel or a star to top the tree.  Decorations of trees vary from culture to culture and home to home based on traditions as well as personal tastes.  Many decorations that people use have sentimental value and have been passed down from generation to generation. 

      Candles were used at one time to light the Christmas trees until the electric bulbs were available.  For this reason, a mat or skirt was put on the floor under the tree in order to protect it by catching dripping candle wax.  It was also used to collect needles from the tree that fall off.  Today a skirt is often used for a decorative feature.  It also serves to hide the stand of the Christmas tree.  Sometimes nativity scenes, Christmas villages, or model trains may be put on the mat or the skirt.  When the Christmas gifts arrive, they are normally put under the tree on the tree skirt. 

     Christmas trees are now a big business. There are between 33 and 36 million Christmas trees that are produced annually in the United States, and in Europe, the number is 50 to 60 million trees.  In 1998, there were around 15,000 growers in America.  It is estimated that Americans spend around 1.5 billion dollars in a year on Christmas trees.

     Christmas trees don't have to be huge to spread some holiday cheer.  Whether you are looking for a small decorated Christmas tree to put in your apartment, dorm room, or office.  While smaller Christmas trees don't fill out a room quite as well as a large one.  Many people still prefer to have a smaller tree if they happen to have pets that would cause a huge mess if they came into contact with a large tree.