The purpose of wassailing is to awake the cider apple trees and to scare away evil spirits to ensure a good harvest of fruit in autumn. [18] The ceremonies of each wassail vary from village to village but they generally all have the same core elements.

The wassailing, or blessing of the fruit trees, involves drinking and singing to the health of the trees in the hope that they will provide a bountiful harvest in the autumn. This ancient custom is still practised across the country today…

Wassailing is a Twelfth Night tradition with pagan roots and has been practised in Britain for centuries. Discover the celebration and its rituals, including sipping from a communal wassail bowl. You can also find out how a 17th-century wooden bowl embodies a host of different practices and beliefs – from the ancient and the pagan, to the ...

In parts of Medieval Britain, a different sort of wassailing emerged: farmers wassailed their crops and animals to encourage fertility. An observer recorded, "They go into the Ox-house to the oxen with the Wassell-bowle and drink to their health."

Wassail (/ ˈwɒsəl /, /- eɪl / WOSS-əl, -⁠ayl) is a beverage made from hot mulled cider, ale, or wine and spices, drunk traditionally as an integral part of wassailing, an ancient English Christmastide and Yuletide drinking ritual and salutation either involved in door-to-door charity-giving or used to ensure a good harvest the following year. [1...

Wassailing is a very ancient custom that is rarely done today. The word 'wassail' comes from the Anglo-Saxon phrase 'waes hael', which means 'good health'. Originally, the wassail was a drink made of mulled ale, curdled cream, roasted apples, eggs, cloves, ginger, nutmeg and sugar.

Nov 12, 2021 · Wassailing: everything you wanted to know but never thought to ask. Ready to start wassailing? Not even sure what wassailing is? Here's everything you need to know to get a good wassail going.

Feb 13, 2025 · The centuries-old tradition of wassailing is making a comeback in rural England, with rituals and revelry meant to chase away evil spirits and the winter blues.

Dec 6, 2024 · What Is Wassailing, Anyway? Here‘s everything you need to know about this beloved Christmas tradition, from how it evolved to a fun guide for doing it yourself. By Lucas Reilly |

Nov 15, 2023 · Most Americans have likely heard the opening line of an old-time carol that goes “Here we come a-wassailing,” but what is the wassailing to which these words refer? Wassail historically took place during the Yuletide season.