It’s Shrove Tuesday again! Which, for most of us up and down the UK, probably means it’s time to flip a few pancakes! Yes – over the years, the religious holiday of Shrove Tuesday has evolved into the pinnacle of British feasting – Pancake Day!
However, there’s tons of history behind one of the most important Tuesdays on the calendar, and I’m here to break down some of the bigger myths and facts behind this flipping fabulous day.
So, whether you celebrate the holiday as part of your religion or simply like tucking into a bit of batter, lemon, and sugar, now’s the time to look over some fascinating facts about Shrove Tuesday!
1. Shrove Tuesday is an important part of Lent.
Lent is a major period in the Anglo-Saxon Christian calendar, during which people observing give up something for 40 days before Easter takes place. And Shrove Tuesday, as it happens, is the last day, a feast occasion, before Lent begins on Ash Wednesday.
Lent was traditionally a period during which Christians would confess and fast, leading to an absolution of sins before the resurrection of Christ would be celebrated at Easter. Nowadays, many people mark Lent by giving up a habit, food, or drink for 40 days instead!
You’ll always find that Shrove Tuesday arrives 47 days before Easter Sunday is observed – that means the date will always change from year to year, so make sure to check your calendar!
2. The feast day was seen as a great time to use up tempting foodstuffs.
Shrove Tuesday was always seen as a ‘last hurrah’ before a long period of fasting and repentance began. This feast day often saw people using up all of the fatty and dairy ingredients in their cupboards and fridges, such as butter, lard, and eggs, so they’d have none left to fall back on during Lent.
As you can imagine, this led to the flipping of many a pancake! In the UK, this simply requires making a thin batter before flipping to cook both sides, and then serving with lemon, syrup, and sugar. Of course, you can enjoy pancakes with a variety of other sauces, too!
3. There’s major symbology behind pancakes and how they’re connected to Christianity.
Lent and Easter are important periods for observing Christians because it’s a time for confession, giving up, absolution, and rebirth in the eyes of the Lord. Of course, Easter marks the legend of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, before being reborn.
However, you can see some religious symbolism even in the way that pancakes are traditionally made, at least in the UK! In most pancakes, you’ll find milk, which symbolises purity, eggs, which signify birth or creation (hence why we eat Easter eggs), and flour, which is used to make bread, otherwise known as the Staff of Life. Why? Because it’s one of the most basic, sustaining foodstuffs around.
4. Pancake Day isn’t just celebrated in the UK.
You’d be forgiven for thinking that Pancake Day is a very British celebration. However, Shrove Tuesday is frequently celebrated overseas in territories such as Canada, the Republic of Ireland, and Australia.
Of course, people who live overseas celebrate Shrove Tuesday in many other ways, too. It’s fascinating that pancake eating has transferred so far and wide, however!
5. The UK uses millions and millions of eggs each year on Shrove Tuesday.
While the tradition behind pancakes on Shrove Tuesday was to use up all the eggs that we might have had in our pantries, the consumption of eggs has exploded over the last few decades.
So much so that we apparently use an amazing 52 million eggs on Shrove Tuesday every year. Those poor hens! Records also show that this is a huge step up from around 30 million eggs that we, as a country, consume on average every day. That’s one egg for every two to three people.
6. Shrove Tuesday is widely observed by many Christian faiths.
Of course, Shrove Tuesday isn’t exclusive to any one Christian faith or sect. For example, it’s celebrated by Orthodox Christians, Roman Catholics, Methodists, and Anglicans.
Ultimately, all Christians within these groups see Shrove Tuesday as an opportunity to self-reflect and consider what we need to repent. The idea of repenting dates back centuries – nowadays, many Christians see the feast day as an opportunity to consider how they might adjust their lives or spiritual worship, and may ask God for assistance.
It’s typical for many Christians to attend church on Shrove Tuesday, where they would typically ‘cleanse’ themselves by confessing sins and receiving forgiveness ahead of Lent.
7. Lent and Shrove Tuesday have been around for centuries.
The earliest documentation of Lent, and therefore Shrove Tuesday, appears to date back to the year 1000 AD. The Ecclesiastica Institutes refer to people attending confessors for absolution and to begin penance. This was referred to as Shrovetide, and, as it does today, it would end ahead of the first day of Lent.
Over the centuries, many churches have adopted a bell with which they can ring out to celebrate the marking of confessions, or, in fact, calling observers to church to begin their absolution. The toll of this bell is called the Shriving Bell, with the term ‘shrive’ relating to Shrove Tuesday.
8. Germany and the Netherlands hold their own Shrove Tuesday celebrations.
In continental Europe, Shrove Tuesday is celebrated a little differently. In Germany, for example, people celebrate Fastnachtsdienstag, where schools are given hours off to enjoy the festivities – which usually includes parades and fancy dress!
Over in the Netherlands, people mark Vastenavond, which leads onto a period of carnival across the country. In fact, they’re not the only ones with carnivals…
9. It’s today when Brazil’s most famous carnivals take place.
Rio de Janeiro is a city famed for its Carnival – and you’re unlikely to see quite as much colour and spectacle across the area as you might on Shrove Tuesday! It’s a time for unveiling huge street processions and glittering costumes.
Spain and Portugal, meanwhile, also refer to the period as Carnival, though the way people celebrate in these countries differs a little. For example, Spanish people celebrate Día de la Tortilla, otherwise known as Omelette Day! As you might guess, it’s like pancake day – but with omelettes and sausage!
In Portugal, Carnival is all about using up lard and sugar – just as Shrove Tuesday was originally intended. In fact, Portuguese people in Hawaii also mark the occasion by making malasadas, as part of the US state’s Malasada Day.
10. Scandinavian Shrove Tuesdays are just as fascinating.
In countries such as Finland and Sweden, people mark Shrove Tuesday by enjoying cream-filled sweet rolls and breads called laskiaspulla and semla, respectively. Finnish people, however, also mark the occasion by enjoying a particular type of pea soup!
Over in Estonia, meanwhile, you’ll also get to sample a delicious semla or two – but let the sweet treats go down before you take part in another big Lent tradition, a sliding festival! Estonian people mark Shrove Tuesday with midwinter sledding contests held downhill. Hold on tight!
11. We used to play football on the roads on Shrove Tuesday.
Yes, believe it or not, Britain has its own handful of curious Shrove Tuesday traditions, some of which were quite dangerous (and, thankfully, discouraged after a while)! For example, many people used to hold massive ‘mob football’ games, where gangs of plates would scrum together and play kickabout in the roads!
This tradition is less popular than it was thanks to safety laws! However, if you visit towns such as Sedgefield, Atherstone, or Alnwick, you’ll find there are still some local, modern twists on this type of game.
In Scarborough, meanwhile, you’re more likely to see people off for a skip or two – they close roads and schools for people to jump some rope every Shrove Tuesday!
12. Get ready for a pancake race!
No, really – you’d better make sure your pancakes have settled nicely before taking up the next bonkers British Shrove Tuesday tradition in our list.
Pancake racing takes place in various British towns today, with a major event between representatives of the House of Commons and the House of Lords in London! Nowadays, this particular race helps to raise money and awareness for the Rehab charity, which supports disadvantaged people.
13. Pancake races started because a housewife forgot to attend Shriving services!
If legends are true (and, sometimes, even the really weird ones are), pancake races apparently started when a British housewife was so busy making pancakes, she nearly missed the call to church for Shriving. This led to her running and tossing her pancakes along the street!
Such a spectacle apparently led to the creation of the – let’s face it, pretty British – tradition of pancake racing. I mean, we’re a nation that celebrates Guy Fawkes Night and rolls cheese wheels down hills – we’ve plenty more interesting celebrations where that came from!
14. Shrove Tuesday is traditionally a day for burning palms.
As part of some Easter and Lent festivals, many Christians spend Shrove Tuesday burning palm leaves that they’d gathered from Palm Sunday the year before.
There’s a reason behind this! The ashes made from the burnt leaves go towards the ashes distributed on – you guessed it – Ash Wednesday.
15. There are further celebrations marked by Roman Catholics.
Although Roman Catholic people follow similar methods of worship on Shrove Tuesday as many other Christians, their faith also celebrates an occasion known as the Feast of the Holy Face of Jesus on the same day.
This occasion was first established in the 1950s by then-Pope Pius XII. The day is marked by honouring Christ’s holy image, with a novena spoken in the nine days leading up to Shrove Tuesday.
16. It’s also time for Mardi Gras!
Shrove Tuesday is also the same day as Mardi Gras in France, which means ‘Fat Tuesday’. It’s here where, much like in Shrove Tuesday traditions elsewhere, people try to use up as many fatty ingredients from inside the home as possible before Lent starts on Ash Wednesday.
Mardi Gras also refers to a popular carnival that largely unfolds over in New Orleans, in Louisiana in the US. The city’s carnival season traditionally runs from Twelfth Night, on the 6th January, up to ten days ahead of Shrove Tuesday. New Orleans’ carnival scene is world famous – and you’re always recommended to enjoy some cake!
17. Belgium has its own carnivals and costumes.
Believe it or not, some of the most vibrant and outlandish Shrove Tuesday carnival action actually unfolds over in Belgium! In Binche, for example, carnivalgoers dress up as clowns and wear feathered hats – and, weirdly enough, throw oranges at people. It’s one way to celebrate the beginning of Lent!
18. The weird traditions don’t end with the pancakes.
Yes, there are far more bizarre Shrove Tuesday traditions to uncover, and one of the weirdest has to be the annual pancake toss at Westminster School. This is oddly known as the Pancake Grease, where students at the school try to catch a lump of pancake thrown over a pole that’s five metres in the air.
Whoever grabs the largest piece of pancake is the winner – while also being the recipient of a pretty tasty snack!
19. Thankfully, some traditions have been left in the dust.
Unfortunately, not all Shrove Tuesday traditions were as daft or as harmless as those we’ve discussed so far. Cock fighting and cock throwing, both of which involved cruelty to chickens, used to be celebrated during the 17th century – we know this thanks to records left by William Hogarth and Samuel Pepys.
No one’s particularly sure why Shrove Tuesday was declared an occasion to be cruel to animals – but thankfully, the practices have since been decried, and we can all focus on pancakes instead.
20. It’s alleged that a Swedish king died after overindulging on Shrove Tuesday treats!
Specifically, it’s thought that King Aldolph Frederick passed away shortly after consuming what seemed to be a record-breaking number of semlor (which, if you’ll remember, is what Swedish people eat on Shrove Tuesday).
Apparently, after consuming a large meal and 14 of the delicacies, the king passed away. Not a terrible way to go, but even so… that’s decadent!
21. It’s really easy to make your own pancakes.
If you’re up for making your own pancakes this Shrove Tuesday, BBC Good Food has a fantastic recipe that I swear by! Take a look for yourself, or use this quick summary of what to include and how to make them.
Grab 100g of plain flour, 300ml of milk, two large eggs, and at least a tablespoon of oil (with a little more to cook with). You’ll also want sugar and lemon wedges (depending on your tastes).
Mix all the ingredients with a pinch of salt in a large bowl with a whisk until the batter’s smooth.
Leave the mixture to rest for at least half an hour, then set a frying pan to medium heat and carefully brush oil around the inside.
Once the pan’s up to temperature, pour the batter in a ladle at a time and cook for one minute on each side, flipping as you go. Place cooked pancakes in the oven to keep warm.
Serve with your chosen toppings, and return any uneaten pancakes to the fridge in a container once they’re cold.
If you’re not old enough to make pancakes on your own, always ask an adult to help you!
FAQs About Shrove Tuesday
What is the significance of Shrove Tuesday?
Shrove Tuesday is significant because it’s the final day before the Christian observance of Lent, where people fast and give up things they love until Easter. That means Shrove Tuesday is traditionally the last day of feasting and using up fatty foods before beginning a period of solemn observance, lasting 40 days.
Is Shrove Tuesday mentioned in the Bible?
No, Shrove Tuesday isn’t mentioned in the Bible, though it was thought to have first been observed by Western Christians as far back as 1000 AD. Lent, however, is based on the period that Jesus Christ reportedly spent in the desert, fasting for reportedly 40 days. This also refers to the fact that the number 40 appears a lot in the Bible as a whole!
Is Shrove Tuesday a Pagan holiday?
It’s believed that Shrove Tuesday may have roots in Paganism long before Christianity adopted the celebration. Some state that pancake day, at least, was based on a traditional Slavic holiday where people would eat round pancakes that resemble the Sun. It’s believed that this helped observers to harness the power of the Sun’s rays.
Further reading
https://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/Pancake-Day/
Do you know any fun facts about Shrove Tuesday? Share them in the comments below!
