When is twelfth night

As in the play, Twelfth Night revels in the overturning of convention and general merriment. One of the most popular Twelfth Night traditions was to hide a pea and a bean within the cake.

The man who discovered the bean would be proclaimed Lord or King of Misrule, while the lady who found the pea would be Lady or Queen of Misrule. Root of all evil. Ethical conundrums. This sporting life. Stage and screen. Birds and the bees. Must I take my Christmas decorations down before it, during it or not until after it? What happens to me if I get it wrong? YOU MUST take your decorations down by Twelfth Night which you will recognize by the fact that your true love will have sent you twelve whatevers doing something-or-other.

Otherwise, you must leave your decorations up till Shrove Tuesday, when you take them down, burn them, and cook your pancakes over their flames. Although most of the world considers 25 December to be the date that Christmas is celebrated, for many this is just the beginning of the period building up to Twelfth Night.

Known as the 12 days of Christmas , the observance also lends its name to the dozen-verse song which has become a mainstay of the festive period. Different Christian traditions define the date of Twelfth Night as either the 5 or 6 of January, depending in part on how the 12 days of Christmas are calculated. Matters are further confused by the consideration of whether Twelfth Night concludes the 12th day after Christmas itself, or falls the evening before.

The observance is also widely considered to mark the coming of the Epiphany, a Christian feast day falling on 6 January which means different things depending on which church you follow. It originated in the East where Christians celebrate the birth and baptism of Jesus. The Western Church began following it in the 4th century as the day the wise men were led by the star to visit baby Jesus, according to the story of the Nativity. It originated in the East where Christians celebrate the birth and baptism of Jesus.

The Western Church began following it in the 4th century as the day the wise men were led by the star to visit baby Jesus, according to the story of the Nativity.

According to tradition, Christmas trees and decorations should be taken down on either Twelfth Night or Epiphany to avoid bad luck after the season of merriment. Indeed, before this unfortunate abridging of the festive season, the Tudors continued celebrating until 1 February. This date marked the eve of Candlemas, a Christian festival marking the day the infant Jesus was presented to the God in the Temple at Jerusalem.