“The 600 cards are to be made up as follows –
400 with the Mount Stewart address, and 200 with the address Wynyard Park, Stockton on Tees”[1]
by Ruby Buchanan
Christmas is a time of Joy and Kindness. It is a time of companionship – when you spend time with family and close friends and indulge in all of the luxuries that emerge at that time of the year. It is a time when the streets echo with carols and houses rumble with the excited squeals of children eagerly awaiting the visit of the one and only Santa Claus. However for others it has a different meaning.
For the landed elite Christmas was a time to establish yourself among influential people – politicians, royalty and anyone who held even a snippet of power. I suspect some of you are wondering what the ‘landed elite’ was. Before the political turmoil that unleashed itself upon Ireland in the nineteenth century and at the turn of the twentieth century (The Land Wars and Home Rule) there were people in Ireland who owned big houses and dominated the poorer classes. These people were Ireland’s politicians and owned a lot of land in Ireland. Very few people remain part of the landed elite today because many laws and events took this power away from them.
I am going to focus on an example of those at the very top of this pyramid of power; (which I have illustrated below) the Londonderrys and how they used Christmas to strengthen their position of power in a broader political sphere. The quote that I have included at the top of the page is taken from the Christmas card lists of the Londonderry family in 1924. Nowadays, Christmas cards are sent to family members who tend to be forgotten about during the year; family members who only ever hear from you through the means of a Christmas card. In my house Christmas card lists are written on the back of an old piece of paper in haste so that the cards are sent out on time and the family members aren’t forgotten about.
The Londonderrys’ Christmas lists took planning and were a tactic in their strategy to uphold their political cause. Christmas card lists? I hear you ask, how can Christmas card lists be used to exert political influence? Christmas was important to the Londonderry’s to show people that they were important to them and to prove their loyalty. These lists included influential figures such as the Duke of Abercorn and Sir James Craig. I’m sure you can imagine how special you would feel if you sent a Christmas card to a leading politician and got a response. Well this was the norm for people like Lady Londonderry who was in charge of writing these Christmas lists and making sure that nobody had been forgotten about. Can you imagine the scandal if you forgot to send a Christmas card to one of your closest political allies?
The unionist world (yes the Londonderrys were unionist) was a web of mass communication. In an era with no mobile phones and no Wi-Fi to send a quick email, letters and cards were important methods of contacting your friends and cohorts. By sending a Christmas card to those within the elite, the Londonderry’s could be sure that everyone was aware that they were still part of the unionist cause and hadn’t converted to the other side. So just remember, when you are scribbling your Christmas list this year, that in previous times they had a much more significant purpose.
[1] PRONI D2099/12/11
The Irish Country House 