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The music to Away in a Manger was composed by William J. Kirkpatrick in 1895. Gervaise Phinn remembers the words being more like “A Wayne in a Manger” and after inspecting primary schools around North Yorkshire he wrote a book with that title. There are two tunes that I know of but my favourite is [...]

“It Came Upon the Midnight Clear” is a poem and Christmas carol written by Edmund Sears, pastor of the Unitarian Church in Weston, Massachusetts. It first appeared on December 29, 1849 in the Christian Register in Boston.
Sears is said to have written these words at the request of his friend, W. P. Lunt, a minister [...]

Words: Traditional; appeared in Christmas Carols, An­cient and Mo­dern, by William Sandys (London: Richard Beckley, 1833). Music: Adapted by Ri­chard W. Ad­ams, 1999, from the mel­o­dy in Sandys’ Christmas Carols, An­cient and Mo­dern.

I Saw Three Ships Lyrics
I saw three ships come sailing in
On Christmas day, on Christmas day;
I saw three ships come sailing in
On Christmas [...]

The Holly and the Ivy
The version we of the Holly and the Ivy that we are familiar with today was first published by Cecil Sharp. The Holly and the Ivy is thought to have Pagan origins and could therefore date back over 1000 years. Holly and ivy are some of the few decorative evergreens and [...]

Words: English Traditional, 17th century. Music: Traditional English Wassail Song, 17th century

Here We Come A-Wassailing Lyrics
Here we come a-wassailing
Among the leaves so green;
Here we come a-wand’ring
So fair to be seen.
Love and joy come to you,
And to you your wassail too;
And God bless you and send you
a Happy New Year
And God send you a Happy New [...]

The “Feast of Stephen” referred to in this song is celebrated on Boxing Day – 26th December – which is why it is celebrated as a carol. The legend of “Good King Wenceslas” is based on life of the historical Saint Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia (907-935), known in the Czech language as Svatý Václav.
The [...]

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen is a very old carol, having been sung for many hundreds of years before being published in 1833. It is one of the features of Dicken’s Christmas Carol.

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen Lyrics
1. God rest you merry, gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay,
For Jesus Christ our Saviour
Was born upon this day,
To save [...]

The First Noel is a traditional English Christmas carol, most likely from the 16th or 17th century. It is of Cornish origin, and it was first published in Some Ancient Christmas Carols (1823) and Gilbert and Sandys Christmas Carols (1833), edited by William B. Sandys and arranged, edited and extra lyrics written by Davies Gilbert.
The [...]

The “Coventry Carol” was performed in Coventry as part of a mystery play called The Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors. The play depicts the Christmas story from the Gospel of Matthew. This carol presents the Massacre of the Innocents in which Herod orders all male infants in Bethlehem killed. The lyrics of this haunting [...]

James Montgomery wrote the lyrics for Angels From the Realms of Glory. He came from a religious Irish family background and his parents, who were missionaries, died following their vocation.
Angels From the Realms of Glory was written in 1816. Its first printing was in the Sheffield Iris for whom Montgomery worked. The carol appeared in [...]