MMC Santa Claus at War

[ElfBot]

Christmas is a traditional season of peace but even Santa straps on the uniform of a soldier when called to duty. Over time Santa has been “enlisted” in the cause of one side or another in periods of war. Not surprisingly, most of the images of Santa associated with war are American and date from the 19th century forward. The earliest known connection between Santa and war has to be through the artwork of 19th century illustrator Thomas Nast. Born in Germany in 1840, Nast had been brought to New York by his mother at the age of 6. He had studied art, become a draftsman in 1854 at age 15 for Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, then moved to theRead more

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