The end of Lent and the arrival of Easter has long been a time when Christians celebrate the rebirth and new life that heralds spring. The Easter story remains at the heart of Christianity today. The Bible tells of how Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross on Good Friday.
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His body was entombed in a guarded cave, with a heavy stone put across the entrance. However, some women went to visit his grave on Easter Sunday and found the tomb was empty. Later that day, and for many days afterwards, Jesus himself was seen. His followers realised he had been resurrected from the dead.
The period leading up to Easter is known as Holy Week and is the most solemn week of the Christian calendar. Holy Week starts on Palm Sunday and is a time when Christians remember the last week of Jesus's life.
Many people would attend church over the Easter period to celebrate the resurrection on Easter Sunday. Women wore new outfits that wouldn't be complete without a colourful Easter bonnet.
Easter bonnets' origins
In the 19th century, most women wore bonnets when outdoors for practical reasons. Simple, soft hats that tied under the chin, they were designed to be worn every day to keep the wearer's hair clean and tidy, in an era where it wasn't as simple as popping into the shower on arriving home.
Initially, Easter bonnets were relatively simple and contained circles of real flowers and leaves stitched onto a simple everyday bonnet to mark the cycle of the seasons. Later, it became a tradition to take part in an Easter parade, which would include children wearing decorative bonnets too.
The Easter parade was a time when people would dress up in their finest clothes, including a dazzling and colourful hat, to walk through the streets to celebrate this holy time of year. Normally homemade, the wearers used their imagination to make the bonnets increasingly unusual. As they became more and more elaborate, competitions were held for the best Easter bonnet.
While the tradition of Easter bonnets was celebrated across Europe, it arrived in the United States a little later, in the 1860s. Easter Sunday was also known as the "Sunday of Joy" to mark the end of the US Civil War in 1865.
Wives and mothers came out of mourning and replaced their black clothing with pastel-coloured outfits and hats adorned with spring flowers to signal the renewal of life. The first Easter parade in New York City took place in the 1870s.
The Americans soon embraced the custom and it was even the subject of the 1933 Irving Berlin song, Easter Parade.
What makes a good Easter bonnet?
In the UK, Easter bonnets during the 20th century evolved into many different styles, shapes and sizes. Traditionally, the hat is embellished with fresh spring flowers; daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, lilies and azaleas being among the most popular options.
Today's Easter bonnets have become less traditional and are decorated with all kinds of things, such as Easter eggs and toy Easter bunnies and chickens! However, some people still choose to wear a more elegant design more befitting of its Christian significance.
Easter parades still take place today and school children are often tasked to make an Easter bonnet during Spring term. Even the royal family participates in the tradition, with royal children wearing Easter bonnets for the traditional service at Windsor.
For many schools, the end-of-term Easter bonnet parade is a longstanding tradition that shows no sign of stopping. Some children make the bonnets from scratch using papier Mache, while other teachers ask pupils to decorate a plain hat or a basic straw hat. The favourite decorations are little Easter chicks in nests, tiny Easter bunnies, artificial flowers, bunny ears and plastic Easter eggs.
Schools use traditional craft materials to make the bonnets such as florist's wire, glue guns, ribbon, feathers and more, giving children a fun activity that rests on tradition, rather than anything digital.
This is something families can do to entertain younger children at home too. Dust down your old craft box and stock up on as many adornments as you can manage to provide hours of bonnet-making fun for the kids.
Easter this year begins with Good Friday on 15th April. Easter egg hunts will be taking place all over the UK, representing another traditional activity that's even older than Easter bonnets!
Historians say the first Easter egg hunts took place in the 16th century. The Protestant reformer, Martin Luther, was said to have organised egg hunts for the women and children in his congregation. The first official reference to the Easter bunny was in 1682, when the German botanist, Georg Franck von Franckenau, wrote of the "Easter hare".
Today, Easter bonnets, bunnies and egg hunts are firmly entrenched in British tradition.