A history of Puritan-led Britian.

Before the time of modern Christmas songs we know today, the Victorian era didn't invent Christmas, but help revive the holiday after holiday was banned by Oliver Cromwell in the year 1647, due to a Puritan-led parliament law to ban the holiday in the first place.

The ban on Christmas was lifted in 1660, but the puritans remained and the holiday was not actually made official again until 1856. During the time, after the ban on Christmas was lifted, a famous author, Charles Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol on 19 December 1843, reviving the traditions of Christmas. The Victorian era invented Christmas carolling. The year this began was 1880. Where at Christmas, families would go caroling door to door.

Even some of the Carols sang at Christmas are filled with a Christian twist. Here's a few classic carols.

1) God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

This is normally sung in a church, and it's a classic Christmas Carol because it would be on a Nativity Play program.

2) Away In A Manger

Another one in a Nativity Play program, sang when the scene where Mary gave birth to the baby Jesus.

3) Joy to the World

We don't know if this one is a religious one but it is a beautiful song to listen to a carollers singing it.

4) Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

Another one for the Nativity scene, and usually in the Nativity Play, the angel choir would sing this.

5) O Come, O Come Emmanuel

We hardly hear this one play anymore... But if we do, it's sung on midnight mass.

6) O Come all ye faithful

Nobody knows how or where this hymn came from, but sung in the Nativity.

7) The Coventry Carol

Coventry invented the song, as it suggests, a traditional Coventry Christmas song.

8) In the bleak midwinter

This may have a link to the travel and birth of Jesus. Nobody knows though.

9) Deck The Halls

Traditional carol about decoration for Christmas so they say, gets the spirit going

10) The First Noel

Nobody knows where this hymn came from, but in the Nativity Play program as well.

11) good king Wenceslas

Again we don't know how this song came about. The song has the line, "on the feast of Steven" meaning the day after Christmas. St. Steven's day is also known as Boxing Day.

Those are some of my favourite carols. But if I missed anything out, comment and I'll add them in.