Articles Tagged with “History”

23/03/2008: Easter

According to the venerable Bede, the term “Easter” comes from the Old English word for what we now call “April”. “Eostre-Monath” was “the month of Eostre”.

Of course, back then months were calculated based on the lunar cycle, which is why Easter is calculated using a thoroughly pagan method: it’s the first weekend on or after the first full moon after the spring equinox.

Eostre is the old Germanic equivalent of the Roman goddess Aurora, or in Greek, Eos. According to Greek legend, Eos is the sister of Helios, the sun. Every day, she opens the gates of heaven so that her brother can ride across the sky — Eos represents the dawn. It is not surprising that April, the time when the long nights of winter are ebbing away should come to be associated with Eos.

Nor is it surprising that at this time of year, when animals are starting to breed again after the winter, symbols of fertility such as eggs, chicks and bunny rabbits are frequently seen.

What is surprising is…

18/11/2007: William Tell: 700 Years On

Today marks 700 years since the date traditionally regarded as the day when William Tell shot an apple off the top of his son’s head with a crossbow and kick-started a resolution against the Austrians which led to the founding of Switzerland.

The legend goes that the Austrian Hermann Gessler was appointed vogt (sheriff) of Altdorf. The power went to his head, and he had erected in the town square a wooden pole; Gessler’s hat was placed atop the pole and the townspeople were expected to salute the pole whenever they passed it. Perhaps as an act of defiance, or perhaps because no-one had told him about the new rule, Tell happened to walk through the town square without saluting. Gessler ordered him to be arrested.

Upon hearing of Tell’s reputation as an archer, Gessler decided on a very unusual punishment: for Tell to be ordered to perform a seemingly impossible task, and shoot an apple off his own son’s head from a great distance. If he refused, or failed in the task, both William Sr and William Jr would…