Easter Sunday is one of the most important Christian festivals and commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a joyful celebration after a week of prayer and reflection during Holy Week.
However, many of the customs that we associate with Easter are from earlier pagan festivals around the Spring Equinox. This includes the traditions of the Easter bunny, Easter egg hunts and egg decorating.
So, how did we get to the chocfest that now often associate with Easter in the UK. Preston Park Museum (prestonparkmuseum.co.uk, 2021) advises that:
“The first chocolate Easter egg in the UK was introduced in 1873 by the family-owned company, Fry’s. The founder, Joseph Fry, started out selling drinking chocolate in the 1750s, and his grandsons created the first chocolate bars in the 1860s.
Traditionally, at Easter, people would give each other chicken’s eggs which had been hard boiled and painted bright colours (that’s where the tradition of decorating eggs comes from). Fry’s took this tradition and put their own spin on it, and so the first chocolate Easter eggs were introduced in this country.
Fry’s competitors quickly caught on and copied with Cadbury’s making their own chocolate Easter eggs two years later.
Around the world, the likes of France and Germany had been making chocolate eggs for many years before the UK, but these eggs had been made from solid chocolate. Fry’s had been the first to figure out how to use moulds and make hollow eggs. This had been achieved through the Fry family’s innovations in making chocolate by mixing cocoa fat with cocoa powder and sugar. This made a smooth paste which could be poured into egg moulds.”
After all that chocolate, the whole family may wish to get active and work off the sugar buzz. Please have look at the resource section below for some ideas 😊
Have a relaxing, reflective, and enjoyable Easter Weekend from all of us at UK Fostering.
Resources
https://www.verywellfamily.com/easter-games-620449 – some ideas for Easter related games and healthy activities
http://www.supercoloring.com/coloring-pages/holidays/easter – Easter related pictures to print off and colour in
Sources
https://www.prestonparkmuseum.co.uk/the-story-behind-the-uks-first-chocolate-egg/
by Lynsey Dobbs – Senior Recruitment Officer, UK Fostering