Of all the trees so lovely

 

A very interesting presentation on the origins of the Christmas tree, from a scholarly channel on YouTube. 

The short story is that the tree isn´t "pagan", neither Roman nor Germanic, but probably originated in 14th century Alsace (Elsass) and Baden, both regions being Catholic at the time (although I suppose you could call them "Germanic" if you like). 

The first secure evidence of Christmas trees comes from the 15th century, again from Alsace and Baden, the practice then spreading like wildfire to other regions of Central and Northern Europe. 

In its present form, I suppose we are dealing with an late 19th century American re-imagining of the medieval German custom - no surprise there!

Very interesting contribution, actually.