ORIGINS: Krampus - the Christmas Devil - Forgotten History

[Music] for Christians Christmas is celebrated to remember the birth of Jesus Christ who believe he is the Son of God the name Christmas comes from the mass of Christ a mass or service is where Christians remember that Jesus died for us and then came back to life but Christmas slowly evolved for many to be a season of hanging ornaments from trees stockings lining the fireplace and joyful music filling the air in addition to that Millions embraced themselves for a month of constant marketing messages and spending Christmas holiday was soon developed across many different cultures to

reach the point it has today however one of its modern Staples Santa Claus was inspired by St Nicholas a real person born in the 3D Century turkey he was known for his kindness and generosity toward less fortunate people and in this day and age everybody knows who Santa Claus is he's a j plump old man in a red suit with white fur trim and wears a matching hat and a long Snow White Beard on his chin however in recent times people have become aware that good old St Nick has a dark counterpart demonic creature that

punishes naughty Troublesome children who don't behave themselves during the year especially during the Christmas season who is Krampus where did he originate from and why let's try and find out hello I'm Mike drberg Marine Corps veteran and filmmaker and we will try to answer these questions on today's episode of Forgotten history Krampus a name that has terrified Germany and its surrounding countries for hundreds of years and the Christmas devil shows no signs of stopping anytime soon according to Germanic folklore Krampus is a monstrous horn demon that accompanies St Nicholas while he visits the remote Villages

of the Alpine countries of Europe during the Christmas season while Old St Nick hands out gifts and treats to all the good boys and girls it is Krampus who gives out punishment to the naughty ones the name Krampus itself is thought to be derived from the old high German word krampen which means claw or to Sease much of the folklore about the Krampus can be found in Germany Austria Poland and Switzerland and since his popularity has increased so dramatically in the last decade or two he can be found in all other parts of Europe America

and even across the world Legend States those who see this U tide demon either disappear and are never seen again or die die under mysterious circumstances soon afterwards and the actual appearance of the monsters VAR slightly from one reason to the next but otherwise his features remain pretty consistent he is described as having long curved horns like those of a mountain goat pointed ears glowing red eyes sharp fangs and a very long tongue that is said to be pointed or Fork like a snake's tongue clawed fingers and a tail with a TFT of fur or

a Barb like an arrowhead on the tip he Towers over his victims standing 7t in height and having a muscular body that is covered in matted black hair some say his feet are mismatch with one being a cloven hoof and the other a bear's claw grampis is most often depicted as carrying a large sack over his shoulder much like Santa Claus sometimes he carries a wicker basket or a wooden barrel and sometimes he wears iron manacles on his wrists and Carries Rusty chains and tarnish Bells which he Jangles noisily both for dramatic effect and to

create fear within the hearts of his victims the chains and manacles are thought to symbolize The Binding of the Devil by the Christian Church while Bells have long believed to repel demons and evil spirits grampus is also known to carry a three-prong Pitchfork on occasion much like the Devil Himself and a bundle of birch Twigs called Ruden which are thought to be a pagan fertility symbol and serve a very dark and painful purpose to punish Wicked misbehaving children this is the task that the U tide devil takes a perverse Delight in performing and yet it

is a job that he takes very seriously as well much like Santa Claus Kampus knows which children have been bad or good if a child has been mostly good and only a little naughty the little one is subjected to a rigorous test if the kid passes then he or she may receive their gifts if not the monster pulls out his routin viciously beats the children to within an inch of their life or so Santa Claus just watches keeping out of the picture due to his saintly status for children that revil in their misdeeds and enjoy

being bad just for the hell of it stopping at a beating with a bundle of birch Twigs would be far too lenient for Krampus the Christmas devil has mastered a wide variety of tortures and punishments and he won't hesitate to use them on the worst offenders after beating the kids with his Rootin Krampus stuffs them into his bag and carries them off to his lair which is said to be deep within Germany's Black Forest once there the monster inflicts further punishment on the children until they repent of their wrongdoings if the kids get lucky they

just might make it home for for Christmas if not Krampus may decide to slaughter and devour the children or he might drag them down into the fiery bowels of Hell according to a popular series of postcards from the 1800s kpace can get very creative with his tortures he thoroughly enjoys ripping pigtails off little girls heads putting children in the shackles viciously pulling their ears stuffing them into a sack and throwing them into a river or off a cliff he also makes bad children beg for mercy before tossing them onto a train HED straight for for

hell with all this being said Krampus won't hesitate to kill any children that he feels are deserving of such a fate he doesn't care whether these little boys and girls have parents and families that love and care for them his punishments cannot be avoided as it is thought that not even adults are safe from the wrath of Krampus men and women that are cruel to each other and rebel in their wickedness are targets for the Christmas devil especially young women Krampus is believed to be related to the SATs of ancient Greek mythology who are known

throughout Greece for their Lusty temperaments in other words these goatmen were always chasing women krampus's Supernatural powers include unnatural strength with which he can tear off limbs Twist Off heads or even dismal his victims if he felt so inclined he may have some shape-shifting abilities since he appeared slightly different in each Alpine culture and has been known to appear as a man dressed entirely in black and since Krampus is considered to be the polar opposite of St Nicholas he may also share some of Santa's Powers as well like St Nick the Christmas devil in sticking

knows when children have been naughty or nice and he also knows who's sleeping and who's awake and like Santa Claus Krampus may have some powerful magic such as the power of invisibility the ability to appear and disappear at will and the ability to counter up his rooting or Rusty chains it is also possible that Krampus has the ability to travel in between other planes of existence nobody seems to be completely sure how Krampus came to be or where exactly he comes from some suggest that Krampus is the son of Hell the goddess of the Dead

and the queen of helheim in North mythology another possible deity that might have a connection to Krampus is the German goddess Pera a horrifying figure originating from Germanic Pagan tradition according to Folklore Pera wears a white robe and has one large foot she would slice open the belly of sleeping people removing their vital organs and stuffing them with straw if they haven't left her any offerings on her feast day however on the flip side she would enter a house on midwinter's Eve and leave presents for the children who worked hard and obeyed their elders but

on the other hand she would punish those that were lazy one final possibility is that Krampus was once a pagan fertility God possibly Celtic in nature this deity once roamed the force of Europe where it was worshiped by the indigenous Barbarian tribes eventually the word of Jesus Christ made its way into the rural regions of the Alps converting many of those same tribes into Christians this fertility god with his horns and clo hoves quickly became associated with with Satan in the realm of Hell during the Inquisition which began in the early 1200s and lasted until

the late 1700s Krampus very briefly resurfaced however the early Catholic Church strongly discouraged any kind of festivities that had anything to do with the goat-like creatures and great efforts were made by the inquisitors to stomp out such beliefs during the 17 and 1800s people really began to take an interest in the uai demon he began appearing on holiday greeting cards known as Krampus card which featured lavish illustrations of the demon torturing children most of these cards featur the moniker gross V Krampus literally meaning greetings from Krampus which may have been one way of telling a

friend or a loved one that they had been naughty that year and this greeting is still in use today another reason for the Christmas devil soaring popularity are the old German folk tales collected by wilhem and Jacob Grim in the early 1800s the holiday then developed across many different cultures to reach the point it has today in the last decade or so Krampus has become just as popular as Santa Claus and may even surpass the jolly old guy one day and just as Santa has December 24th covered Krampus has his own day December 5th otherwise

known as Krampus night this celebration precedes St Nicholas Day which takes place on December 6th on this particular night the Krampus accompanies St Nicholas as he wanders from one house to another and while St Nicholas gives out small gifts and treats to The Good Children Krampus hands out Birch twig beatings and big chunks of coal to the bad ones but Krampus night isn't the end of the horror during the first week of December communities and towns throughout the European Alps hold their annual Krampus Loft literally meaning Krampus run this Festival is a big deal throughout

the European Alpine regions in the Krampus Loft men disguise themselves in costumes made from dyed goat and sheep hide and put on carved wooden masks with genuine sheep horn or deer handlers attached they put on mismas shoes and carry Rusty chains whips bells and baskets and bundles of birch Twigs with them the men dressed in these costumes then take to the streets prowling about in search of naughty children and beautiful young women who these men wildly chase down the streets screaming like Banshee all the while they wave their rooting about menacingly and will actually SWAT

anyone that gets too close often times these men go from door to door they are LED into the house by the parents Krampus imitators then proceed to torment the young children while screaming and brandishing their chains in birth sticks scaring them to death and ensuring they remember to behave themselves during the coming year this celebration culminates with the mask Marauders being invited to share a few drinks for the Laughing parents with a traditional offering of beer and schnaps over the last few years Krampus has taken a hold popular culture he seems to be everywhere during

the holidays and he's appeared in numerous books and even movies today the Krampus is still spoken of and is still very much feared by children and adults alike Krampus the folkore fiend whose chilling Legend reminds us that even in the darkest Tales there's a lesson to be learned as we embrace the holiday spirit let kampa serve as a reminder to cherish kindness spread joy and stay on the right side of Santa's list happy holidays and may the spirit of giving always outweigh the frights of this festive season thank you for watching forgotten history please like

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