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Why do Brits eat chocolate eggs at Easter?

Question asked by Joice Mujuru from Zimbabwe


The short answer is that eating ridiculous amounts of chocolate in the form of eggs and bunnies until you feel sick has nothing to do with Easter!

In fact this Christian festival is a sombre one. It is marked on Good Friday when it is said that Jesus died on the cross to heal humanity of its sins. This day is marked with prayer and fasting by some Christians. On Easter Sunday many Christians go to church for a special service that talks about the resurrection of Jesus.

The belief that Jesus was reborn at this time of year coincides with the start of spring when things start to grow again, animals come out of hibernation and chicks hatch. Ah a link between eggs and Easter. But how and when did that morph into chocolate eggs.

Beautifully hand painted eggs

Well it started with the giving of real eggs that were usually chicken eggs that were hard-boiled and then painted beautiful colours. This tradition stretches back hundreds of yearsand can be found in many cultures around the world.

In the early 1800s artificial eggs were made as gifts for Easter throughout Europe. The tradition of creating an Easter egg from solid chocolate became fashionable in both Germany and France around this time too However, the first hollow Easter eggs that most closely resemble what we enjoy today were invented and made in Bristol, by chocolatier J.S Fry & Son, in 1873.

The company eventually merged with Cadbury's who launch their first Easter egg in 1875 and went onto design the iconic Cadbury’s Cream Egg. 

First ever chocolate cream egg on the right and current version

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