History of the Maypole and May Day

May Day is now viewed as a simple holiday, nothing particularly special, just a day in the year when some people get to have a day off, or spend more time in the pub on a Sunday.

However, the history of this day goes back centuries and is rich in Witch and Pagan culture, with the use of the Maypole being at the centre of its celebrations.

May Day, also known as Belthane, a Gaelic festival in which communities come together to celebrate the changing of the season. Traditional celebrations continue to this day in some parts of the United Kingdom, Europe and America.

May Day is the middle point between the March Equinox and the June Solstice, marking Spring and the highpoint of blossoming of flowers throughout the world.

The Maypole was and is sometimes still used as part of these celebrations. Participants dance around the pole unwrapping the ribbons, which are then displayed through dance and movement, each in different colours, symbolising a tree, which symbolises life.

As well as it being about plant and flower life, the Maypole dance is also symbolic of fertility for both humans and animals and the dance festivities are a way to encourage that positive energy into their communities.

However, not everyone has always agreed with this and in 1644 use of the Maypole was banned in England. The Long Parliament who stood at the time described it as ‘a Heathenish vanity, generally abused to superstition and wickedness.’

In 1660 the Maypole was reinstated and was soon part of community tradition again, only there was a lot more focus on who had the biggest pole from village to village with some upsetting landowners who would find their large trees cut down and turning up in the middle of village or even city squares.

It is now sadly a Pagan celebration marked by few, but I would definitely love to see this tradition sweep across the world and would happily watch everyone come together and dance around the Maypole again.

Happy Belthane!

Martina x