subscribe. now. the only way i can be on top is to create my own empire, discover stories for all those that own way. just to click away majority the destination, right? size of this documentary is with us. you've never seen it before. the fry, now the w. okay, ma'am tree. oh mm hm. dear santa, i want to tell you a secret. please don't share the secret with any one but mrs. claus and the l. the secret is that i want to meet you. i know that at night you will come to my house and you will be in the living room. i promised i won't take long. i know that being santa is not easy because you have a lot of work in december to when you come down from the sky, you're very cold and you're doing this partly for me. i'd be sad if i didn't meet you the magic of christmas, but cheer me up. making a lot of effort. i mean, i'm trying. i think you can guess why i'm right and it's to tell you what presence i'd like because i think i could diana. oh kajuana canadian oh t them and. 2 ah, with on it, it's the day before christmas. a festive day. the day santa claus fetches his reindeer. this is comet, his old companion. to day santa will load toys by the thousands on to his sleigh. the words of the children's letters from around the world resonate in his ears as his sleigh takes off through the night sky, towards the many children excitedly awaiting him. santa is used to traveling the world, visiting many countries where he is usually well received. but one night in december 1951 and the french city of dijon in front of santobin cathedral and effigy, was burning of a mannequin representing him they were burning santa. but why? soon a photo of the scene appeared in french newspapers with the following explanation. it wasn't an attraction, but a symbolic gesture for us christians christmas must remain the anniversary of the birth of our savior. jesus christ santo was being associated with ally and portrayed as a figure in opposition to jesus christ and christianity. this is the story of a conflict that goes back millennia. ah of it. otherwise the santa claus is famous all over the world of all the basically he's conquered the entire planet here. for example, we have a brazilian santa from 19 o 7, a classic, but he's got the hood in front. i don't know why. here's a canadian santa, he's classic tube, cuz he's in read. of course i'd audrey as for the african santa, i think he's great. he's made with glad talks packaging made to kill flies. this one is perfect though, cuz i don't have the japanese one here, but the whole world worships santa claus. otherwise, ah, among the thousands of representations of santa claus, one stands out. the one of an early ancestor replugged ill settled down the 1st ancestor of santa claus is found in mythology a 1000 years before christ naughty. there was a god in the scandinavian countries in the nordic countries suit who was called bowden hill. and this god oh to day was very peculiar, good off because gods are usually were show to play it. we give money to people who take care of the gods and to the priests for protection, yet we give material things to get immaterial. things sits in and this god, the 1st of his kind did the opposite of shit. he was the one who gave he did. so he had a thrown in heaven with 2 wolves of what is that he had to ravens are which he sent down to earth to find out whether the children were good or not. and he would reward them at the time of the winter solstice between december 17th to december, 25th, and we'll set gabe sick. and then in rome, it started in the 5th century b. c. until the 4th century, a deal there was a goddess called stranger, a very important goddess to the other boy. and at the time of the winter, solstice, vale, she wouldn't bring gifts at the lot. it was in her name that the roman patricians that the people of the roman high society offered gifts to each other, such as sweets or gold objects that he pulled it well among all of santa's ancestors. there's also a particular roman god who is worshipped at the end of the year when the sun goes down on the horizon and seems to disappear forever. ah, dionte immune dimensions. he said that they were very important celebrations in rome. saturnalia festivities manifests of the people gave feasts and parties in honor of the gods. sasha, the god of agriculture, you'll have to know p l. viola, because she thought that you, lima, employee teacher. during this period of transition, cow, people would celebrate chaos, inordinate but he's studying, lord d, nicky kennedy. they will challenge the natural order of the ladies out in i know it . i love fina delano up until janese me see. and for the festivities, a king was elected to increase the clean up. i'd be glad the king of the saturnalia . yeah. yeah. machine. yeah. but he was an ephemeral king because he embodied the spirit of a feast that celebrates the end of a cycle. he maybe becky, a got her nor received the de la faced that unified stuff k finish here. it was the richer last moment during which the usual order of things was revoked. inquiry in mo mean to disorder, to the north delivery. and it was staged with characters who any means, according to certain rights, yet it would put to death symbolically. i could have added to the live feed, would it get a 2nd or dead ttp then that needed to take some time. some they were burned at the stake and the typical odd it avoids that. did it today as blue shot the dead? typical indeed. all ye the king of saturnalia is doomed to disappear yet to be reborn, but next year. but in time such pagan rites would fade away as a new god rises. the god of the christians ah, 2000 years ago in palestine, a little baby was born, whom some followers came to regard as god. and over a period of time, they agreed that it would be a good idea to celebrate his birthday. in 354, a de the roman catholic church decided to place jesus christ's birthday on december 25th. during the pagan celebration of the winter assaulted the rebirth of the undefeated son. this was a very smart move by the christians, leading more pagan believers into their new faith. the child, in an animal stall, attended by shepherds with angels in the background and mysterious visitors from the east bringing gifts. and these 3 astonishing gifts gold, frankincense and murderer are the basis of giving at christmas, ah, yard on your way to the children. among the many generous figures associated with santa history, one is especially central the one of saint nicholas ah, here we are in turkey, and his hometown mirror now called deborah. standing in the church garden is a statue of saint nicholas. as you can see, it looks a lot like santa claus. and inside the church of fresco, recount the moments when nicholas his life turned into legend over time, saint nicholas became the patron saint of a great many cities. when he died, all kinds of wonderful mythology sprang up around him so that he became in time the most important saint in heaven. next to the virgin mary's, he had the power of flight. he could magically fly. he also had the power to be in several different places. at the same time. he's the patron saint of prisoners, sailors, butcher's, children, and of the french province of la haine. that's it. oh, oh, fossil in france, everyone knows the legend of the 3 little children that a we could put you on the wicked and keep it depending on the vision. wanted to cut into pieces and put in the soap barrel like pigs. and after 7 years, saint nicholas came into the in all to butcher shop and resurrected the 3 children . oh, i in 1087 ag. faced with the invasion of turkey by the saracens, italian sailors took saint nicholas his coffin to the city, bari enshrining his remains in the main church. then a french crusader brought his relics to a small town in la haine, named san nicolai depot. here every year on december 6th, his followers gather and sing to commemorate his birth. ah in addition to resurrecting the 3 boys saint nicholas his life was marked by numerous acts of generosity. he became the patron of children and a bearer of gifts. but be warned. although saint nicholas brings gifts, he is also the one who punishes michigan the. those are probably grew up in a suburb of luck. some will exist. who are? nope on that night as well. and esau slippers in front of our bedroom door read about dow when in the morning we'd look and sometimes we'd find a little stick, which meant deserved a spanking. and no present ain face a because her father had a large a stick. he's fine because if need be, who, hey, give you have a more than we usually received a little mozambique or something like that. the must. but the gift was small. somebody pretty ah, labor clash, a good, a glitch and bring on soccer. allow hum. it's a cook offensive martin. oh, some shane and him and slammed by the dia, post united television. is us yet, or by the name? i think a high level here though. fear then years a do have your bring on spirit. good sigh. ah, jamal bed goes, you did my mom to pity? i remember when i was really little while ago, i caught my dad in the carriage or the neighbor changing clothes a shot. and i thought that's all about the idea. i didn't understand 6 of these 2 are because the big metaphysical properly for children to admit that he who is nicholas fit, kiffany goler. ah, we can think of saint nicholas as a kindly man bringing goodies, but he was also very stern. and in this, he was also useful to the parents of europe because he could carry a switch ah, with which to beat children out who did not know their catechism that were disobedient. and sometimes in this mission, he is accompanied by a, a rather terrifying figure. the crew of it, this was perf who ta with him. good god. there was always some one who is dressed all in black, who's scraggy and unkempt. he carried a bundle of sticks for whipping, naughty children i told both within had gotten them all in the french city of mess. there's a story about the origin of paff with ha, or father wiper. one document recounts that in december of 1552 when the city was besieged by charles the 5th of the holy roman empire. the cities tanner's formed a procession with a grotesque whip wielding effigy of charles, which was set on fire and dragged through the streets. later every year on december 6th, which was the feast of saint nicholas local stage, the procession with an ash covered effigy now called pathway. ah, ah, don't all literary long time of things. well separated shouldered is your field of religion, was the one of baby jesus on the eve, december, the 24th in the field of sin. nicholas who later became santa claus was on another date. may miss things got complicated, he ah, ah, what we have in the 1500s is an astonishing religious revolution that we call the protestant reformation. ah, europeans were very much against christmas and the post and his i'm in general because a central to the idea of posts into them is to strip away all of the accretion which christianity got over one and a half 1000 years. and to go back to the christianity as it was in the bible. and one of the things they agree on is that the cult of saints has become dangerous. that the saints are in, in peril of replacing god as the object of one's prayers. so they abolish the cult of saints and wisdom go saint nicholas. saint nicholas disappears as a christmas gift bringer in many parts of europe. by, by saint nicholas. at least they didn't burn you, but you will be back because as the l se hiding a st doesn't make him disappear. yes. so at that point, traditions that were taking place on december the push back push back to christmas . the date was baby. jesus was born in germany, in particular, the figure of the baby jesus christ, kendall is the germans say, was invented in strasburg. the rules of the reform were applied in 1570. a pastor spoke out against the practice of giving gifts to children on saint nicholas day. the saint nicholas market, which is held on december 6th, was renamed. the order was to call it the market of the child, jesus, or crist, kendall, marked in our station. the figure of the baby. jesus is wonderfully theologically correct, but it's a difficult social act to perform, to imitate the acts of saint nicholas saint nicholas was good, but he was also frightening. and nobody is going to be frightened by the baby jesus as saint nicholas can carry huge sacks or baskets. of goodies, a baby can't me. and so we see in the 1500s, the development of a change in the shape of the christ child. and the appearance of frightening helpers. european folklore is full of beasts that appear at christmas and you don't know whether they're going to kill you or give you a gift. ah yes you see there were fairies, lots of characters. for instance, you have the foreigner in italy, she was an old windows and up to trade as an old woman who's a bit of a witch. your whole laugh. she flew in the sky on a broom. she had a hood on her back containing the present with which she filled the sock, the children left near their window. i'm a little remind you to be looking next. if it weren't good fun, i knew it. she would get them ashes and tony cut born at all for if they were good while he would bring them some things that looked like soften coal. but was made of black sugar. kind of bully deutscher. he do settles needle each country has its creature meant to frighten children. compos connect oppressed spot the peat. gaila should see. ah, the protestant reformation and its religious precepts now prevail in a large part of europe. in england, the winter figure referred to as father christmas, was even the object of a trial for some protestants, the new doctrines were not respectful enough of the strict teachings of the bible. these puritans decided to leave europe and settle in a new land where they would be allowed to live in accordance with their faith. these pilgrims 1st set foot on the american continent in $1620.00, and started new colonies. according to their faith, christmas was not worthy of celebration and was therefore abolished. it became a regular workday. any one celebrating christmas in the colony could be punished with a heavy fine any reference to the saints, including saint nicholas was forbidden. busy but other migrants coming here from other countries brought with them their own religious faith and traditions. the situation in the cities at christmas and new years had become a social problem. it became dangerous to be out on the streets in boston, and philadelphia and new york gangs would take to the streets. they would bang on pots and pans and blue horns. they would jostle decent middle class folk. they would interrupt church services at a time when police forces were um, just in the beginning and, and could not deal with this. in 1800, the situation in new york city became dire. the city was flooded with new migrants . the puritans considering them barbarians, abandoned part of the city. in manhattan barricades were erected to protect law abiding citizens from unruly gang organizations, such as the new york historical society were founded, with the goal of creating a more respectable city. since america had no shared history and no shared culture, this new historical society was looking for a common identity. and surprisingly, it's members decided to turn to saint nicholas. john penn tarred was the founder of the new york historical society. he was a member of a masonic lodge, made up by descendants of dutch families. it was penned hard who rekindled the flame of the center cloth, the dutch saint nicholas. he presented him as a grumpy bishop holding a stick, standing beside a hive. a masonic symbol santa is now a freemason. john pinta tried to make santa claus. saint nicholas the patron saint of new york. and so one thing spend todd was trying to do was to get a tradition that wasn't english. there was another member of the new york historical society, and his name was washington irving, and he was a comical right to. he was a satirist and he found pins hard enthusiasm for se nicholas very, very funny. and so he wrote a spoof history of new york and in his parody history, st. nicholas santa claus keeps appearing and helping the settlers to build houses, sort of appearing after the sky smoking a pipe. washington irvings spoof history of new york with a massive best seller. it was a huge, the hugely popular book in early america. and people loved the story. then they started telling them to the children as truth. and for the 1st time, a new name appeared in a drawing. ah santa claus, a name and a story destined for a bright future. the that was a 3rd member of the new york historical society called climate carpool. who wrote a children's poem called it, twas the night before christmas and it was a very, very popular poem. the santa claus is on a sleigh, which is drawn by reindeer, and he comes down the chimney himself and comes out into the fireplace with the presence and wishes everybody a merry christmas it was the night before christmas when what to my wondering eyes should appear. but a miniature sleigh and 8 tiny reindeer. as i drew in my head and was turning around down the chimney, saint nicholas came with a bound the stump of the pipe. he held tight in his teeth, and the smoke encircled his head like a reef. he had a broad face and a little round belly that shook when he laughed like a bowl full of jetty. he was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf. ah farewell bishop saint nicholas. here comes an elf. later in the 1900 century, that is a guy called thomas nice to as an illustrator. and he's the guy who really sets down the santa claus that we know and that we still see on christmas cards and that santa claus, the children. imagine of the jolly fat man with the bed and the pipe. me ah ah, ah, and during the american civil war in the 800 sixty's, he drew a series of patriotic drawings for a magazine that featured santa claus on the side of the union. ah, and the face he gave them was that of the kindly grandfather that had been suggested by twas the night before christmas. and whatever else santa claus wears around the world. now in whatever country he's in, he will look like the face that thomas nast gave him an order aspect of santa claus . it's very much that he's a house breaker. he's an old man who sneaks into your house and he actually breaks that family bubble to some extent. ah, it's very strange when you think about it. we tell our children that there is an old man who's broken into their bedroom and that they should be happy about. ah acoya. i mean, when christmas would come, santa would always show up. only he would come in the evening around 6 o'clock off to saunter and dinner because he always made a lot of noise knocking on the wall, knocking on the door. good this amy. i your god like diets. if the said only had he had a cane and he would shake like an old man, golly gather to get b as it had santa claus would ask. are there any good children here that i gave up and we were very scared. oh that thou bod koya. hiding behind now mother the lawyer is let me santa claus would come and sit with us and ask if she had been good cuz i live down gosh, got yellow guilty and i would answer yes i have been good the yeah, i wasn't crying glove and the new yeah, ah, with the industrial revolution christmas and santa claus soon became associated with a profound change in that social order. the boers was opposed to lower class values . the communal traditions associated with christmas, like we're sailing bang on people's doors demanding alcohol wearing masks. this replaced by this inward looking family as opposed to community your table as opposed to the streets your foss site, as opposed to the whole city. this new om inward looking. i'm celebration. oh yes. then why should you mind me? said she, the poor people were really being kept at a di