Jack In the Green - England, custom

Hastings' traditional Jack in the Green welcomes the summer with four glorious days of festivities around the May Day weekend. ​​​​​Since its revival in the 1980s, the festival has become synonymous with the town of Hastings and is now one of its largest and most colourful events.
It is thought that the Jack-in-the-Green custom originated around the 17th century from the milkmaids and chimney sweeps of London. As part of the May Day processions milkmaids would carry milk pails decorated with flowers and silverware. Over time the pails were replaced with decorated headdresses.