From my reader, Lilo, (b. 1939, near Munich), further evidence that any changes the Nazis made to Christmas celebrations were subtle and often ignored by the German public:
I wasn’t aware that Christmas in the Third Reich was something special.
Our Christmases were always the same. The “Christkind” (Christ Child) flew into the window on Christmas Eve, brought a moderate size Christmas tree and a homemade doll. It also brought some cookies (reduced recipe with butter replaced by margerine and milk) and usually 3 or 4 apples. Once the “Christkind” had left, I was allowed into the living room, which was only lit by the burning candles on the tree. Then everybody sang “Silent Night”, and only after this was I allowed to go and grab my new doll. — On Christmas morning, part of my family went to Church where there was a huge Christmas tree and a very festive service. — If my father had been lucky with bartering, there was a roasted goose for dinner.
It never occurred to me that Christmas could have been any different for Nazis, except that they might have skipped church.
