Brits across the nation are only just discovering the centuries-old origin story behind the centrepiece of their Christmas dinner: the roast turkey. While many assume the tradition is a modern import, its roots are firmly planted in British history, stretching back nearly 500 years to the actions of a pioneering Yorkshireman.
From the Americas to the Christmas Table: A Tudor Introduction
The story begins in 1526, when an English landowner and trader from Yorkshire named William Strickland sailed on an early voyage to the Americas. Upon his return, he is credited with introducing the first live turkeys to England. This pivotal moment laid the foundation for a culinary tradition that would endure for half a millennium.
Strickland's connection to the bird was cemented in 1550 when he was granted a coat of arms. It featured a "turkey-cock in his pride proper", which the College of Arms recognises as the oldest surviving European drawing of a turkey. This heraldic honour underscores the novelty and status the exotic bird held in Tudor England.
Royal Approval and Literary Fame
The tradition truly took hold with the endorsement of the monarchy. During the 16th century, King Henry VIII is historically credited as the first English monarch to eat turkey as part of his Christmas feast, setting a powerful precedent for the fashionable elite.
However, it was a piece of classic literature that helped embed the turkey in the national consciousness. In 1843, Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol. The story's transformative climax sees the redeemed Ebenezer Scrooge anonymously send a large, generous turkey to the family of his clerk, Bob Cratchit. Dickens's tale, celebrating goodwill and festive generosity, forever linked the turkey with the spirit of a proper Christmas celebration for the Victorian middle classes.
From Royalty to the Everyman
The turkey's journey to becoming the nation's default Christmas meat was given a final boost in the early 1900s. During the Edwardian period, King Edward VII developed a well-documented fondness for turkey, popularising it further among all strata of society. As historian Scott explained on his TikTok channel @madabouthistory, this royal preference helped the turkey finally supplant older festive meats like goose.
"And then eventually, turkey replaced other meats, like goose, as being the meal to have, the food to have at Christmas," Scott concluded in his viral video, which has enlightened his 181,500 followers. He was keen to correct the common misconception that the tradition came from American Thanksgiving, highlighting its much older, distinctly British pedigree.
So, as families gather this December to carve their roast turkey, they are participating in a ritual with a rich and surprisingly long history. It's a tradition born from Tudor exploration, royal taste, literary genius, and a Yorkshire trader's ambition nearly 500 years ago.
