Every December 26th, countries across the Commonwealth celebrate Boxing Day. But most people have no idea why it's called "Boxing Day" or that the tradition started as the one day wealthy British families gave their servants off after forcing them to work through Christmas.
In Victorian and Edwardian England, servants were required to work on Christmas Day. While their employers enjoyed lavish feasts and family time, servants cooked, served, cleaned, and ensured everything ran smoothly.
December 26th became the servants' Christmas. After working the holiday, they finally got the day off to visit their own families. But before they left, employers would give them "Christmas boxes"—literal boxes filled with leftover food, hand-me-down clothing, and sometimes a small monetary bonus.
The "boxes" were essentially compensation for missing Christmas with their own families. Servants would carry these boxes home on December 26th, which became known as Boxing Day. It wasn't a generous gift—it was the bare minimum acknowledgment that servants had sacrificed their holiday.
The tradition extended beyond household servants. Tradespeople, delivery workers, and anyone who provided regular services to wealthy households would also receive Christmas boxes on December 26th. It was expected—almost like mandatory tipping for year-round service.
Churches also participated. Alms boxes placed in churches during Christmas services would be opened on December 26th and the money distributed to the poor. This reinforced the "Boxing Day" name and added a charitable angle to what was essentially a servant compensation day.
Over time, as the servant class diminished, Boxing Day transformed from a servants' holiday into a general day off after Christmas. The "boxes" disappeared, but the name stuck. Now it's just a bank holiday in Commonwealth countries with no connection to its origins.
In modern times, Boxing Day has become associated with massive retail sales—the British equivalent of America's Black Friday. Stores offer huge discounts, and people line up for deals. The irony of turning a servants' day off into a shopping frenzy isn't lost on historians.
Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and other Commonwealth nations still observe Boxing Day as a public holiday. Most people just know it as "the day after Christmas" and have no idea it originated as compensation for servants who were forced to work through the holiday.
The tradition serves as a reminder of how recently Britain had a massive servant class. The need for a special day to give servants leftover food and hand-me-downs only ended within the last century. Boxing Day is a fossil of the class system, preserved as a bank holiday.