With the Reformation and the rising Puritanism in the 17th century, the veneration of saints such as Saint Nicholas was strongly discouraged as idolatry and superstition. In England, there was a ban on Christmas rites, Father Christmas and everything connected to the feast, enforced by the Puritan government. In the Netherlands, it was the Saint Nicholas festivities that the new Protestant religion wanted to eradicate. Saint Nicholas, then a feast for adults too, was outlawed during this period, and the traditional Saint Nicholas markets full of stalls selling gingerbread and other sweet treats were banned. This led to a great revolt in the towns of Dordrecht and Amsterdam, where people weren’t going to give up their favourite festivity of the year and the sweet bakes connected to it; especially since Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of Amsterdam.
