Saint Nicholas The story of St Nicholas Nicholas

Saint Nicholas

The story of St. Nicholas. . • Nicholas was born in Turkey around 271 AD. • His parents died when he was young. • He wanted to spend his money helping others. • He helped a family by secretly giving them gold.

The story of St. Nicholas. . • Nicholas became a bishop when he was young. • He became famous because sailors told stories about him as they travelled around the world. • Over 30 countries celebrate his day on 6 th December. • In the Netherlands everyone celebrates Sinterklaas by having parties and eating special food.

Nicholas and the poor family • Nicholas heard about a family who had lost their money. In those days, if you didn’t have money, your daughters couldn’t get married. • This money was called a ‘dowry’. Without a dowry, the daughters

• Nicholas secretly gave the family enough gold for all three girls to marry. • The father hid one night to see who was giving them the money. • He thanked Nicholas, who told him not to tell anyone.

The Netherlands a year in the life of Sinterklaas • January - Sinterklaas rests! • February - Sinterklaas travels around, watching to see how well children behave. • November – Sinterklaas travels to the Netherlands from Spain by steamboat with his helper and his milk-white horse.

Mid-November to 4 December • Day - Sinterklaas and his helpers visit towns. • Night - Sinterklaas rides Schimmel to all the rooftops in the land. • He drops chocolate letters, sweets and small presents down the chimneys for children who have been good all year. • Children leave out shoes by the fireplace, filled with a carrot or some straw for the horse.

December 5 th – evening • Grown-ups and children exchange gifts called "surprises". • They make up poems about their friends and family and secretly put them on the gifts. • People read their poem aloud in front of everyone. • Traditional sweets and baked goods are eaten and the adults drink mulled wine. Images courtesy of St Nicholas Center, www. stnicholascenter. org