"Good King Wenceslas" is a

Christmas carol A Christmas carol is a carol (a song or hymn) on the theme of Christmas, traditionally sung at Christmas itself or during the surrounding Christmas holiday season. The term noel has sometimes been used, especially for carols of French or ...

that tells a story of a

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

n king who goes on a journey, braving harsh winter weather, to give

alms Alms (, ) are money, food, or other material goods donated to people living in poverty. Providing alms is often considered an act of virtue or charity. The act of providing alms is called almsgiving, and it is a widespread practice in a numbe ...

to a poor

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasa ...

on the Feast of Stephen (December 26, the Second Day of Christmas). During the journey, his

page Page most commonly refers to: * Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to: Roles * Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation * Page (servant), traditionally a young m ...

is about to give up the struggle against the cold weather, but is enabled to continue by following the king's footprints, step for step, through the deep snow. The legend is based on the life of the historical

Saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Or ...

Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia Wenceslaus I ( cs, Václav ; c. 907 – 28 September 935 or 929), Wenceslas I or ''Václav the Good'' was the Duke ('' kníže'') of Bohemia from 921 until his death, probably in 935. According to the legend, he was assassinated by his younger ...

(907–935). In 1853, English

hymnwriter A hymnwriter (or hymn writer, hymnist, hymnodist, hymnographer, etc.) is someone who writes the text, music, or both of hymns. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, the composition of hymns dates back to before the time of David, who composed many of ...

John Mason Neale translated the lyric from a Czech poem by Václav Alois Svoboda , in collaboration with his music editor Thomas Helmore, and the carol first appeared in ''Carols for Christmas-Tide'', published by Novello & Co the same year. Neale's lyric was set to the melody of the 13th-century

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a h ...

carol "Tempus adest floridum" ("Eastertime Is Come") first published in the 1582 Finnish song collection '' Piae Cantiones''.

Source legend

Wenceslas Wenceslaus, Wenceslas, Wenzeslaus and Wenzslaus (and other similar names) are Latinized forms of the Czech name Václav. The other language versions of the name are german: Wenzel, pl, Wacław, Więcesław, Wieńczysław, es, Wenceslao, russian ...

was considered a

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

and a

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Or ...

immediately after his death in the 10th century, when a cult of Wenceslas rose up in

and in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. Within a few decades of Wenceslas's death, four biographies of him were in circulation. These

hagiographies A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might ...

had a powerful influence on the

High Middle Ages The High Middle Ages, or High Medieval Period, was the periodization, period of European history that lasted from AD 1000 to 1300. The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and were followed by the Late Middle Ages, which ended ...

conceptualization of the ''rex iustus'', or "righteous king"—that is, a

monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority ...

whose power stems mainly from his great piety, as well as from his princely vigor. Biscuit tins VA 2486

Referring approvingly to these hagiographies, a preacher from the 12th century wrote: Several centuries later the legend was claimed as fact by

Pope Pius II Pope Pius II ( la, Pius PP. II, it, Pio II), born Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini ( la, Aeneas Silvius Bartholomeus, links=no; 18 October 1405 – 14 August 1464), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 Augu ...

, who himself also walked ten miles barefoot in the ice and snow as an act of pious thanksgiving. Although Wenceslas was, during his lifetime, only a duke, Holy Roman Emperor

Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of He ...

(962–973) posthumously "conferred on enceslasthe regal dignity and title" and that is why, in the legend and song, he is referred to as a "king." The usual English spelling of Duke Wenceslas's name, ''Wenceslaus'', is occasionally encountered in later textual variants of the carol, although it was not used by Neale in his version. Wenceslas is not to be confused with King Wenceslaus I of Bohemia (Wenceslaus I Premyslid), who lived more than three centuries later.

Authorship

Tempus adest floridum

The tune is that of "Tempus adest floridum" ("Eastertime has come"), a 13th-century spring carol in 76 76 Doubled Trochaic

metre The metre ( British spelling) or meter ( American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pre ...

, first published in the Finnish song book '' Piae Cantiones'' in 1582. ''Piae Cantiones'' is a collection of seventy-four songs compiled by

Jacobus Finno Jacobus Petri Finno (about 1540–1588), sometimes known as Jaakko Finno or the proper Finnish form of his fake name Jaakko Suomalainen (James the Finn), was a Finnish priest and the rector (headmaster) of the Cathedral School of Turku. He was the ...

, the Protestant headmaster of Turku Cathedral School, and published by Theodoric Petri, a young Catholic printer. The book is a unique document of European songs intended not only for use in church, but also schools, thus making the collection a unique record of the late medieval period. A text beginning substantially the same as the 1582 "Piae" version is also found in the German manuscript collection '' Carmina Burana'' as ''CB 142'', where it is substantially more carnal; ''CB 142'' has clerics and virgins playing the "game of Venus" (goddess of love) in the meadows, while in the ''Piae'' version they are praising the Lord from the bottom of their hearts. The tune has also been used for the Christmas hymn ''Mary Gently Laid Her Child'', by Joseph S. Cook (1859–1933);

GIA ''Gia'' is a 1998 American biographical drama television film about the life and times of one of the first supermodels, Gia Carangi. The film stars Angelina Jolie as Gia and Faye Dunaway as Wilhelmina Cooper, with Mercedes Ruehl and Elizabeth Mi ...

hymnal A hymnal or hymnary is a collection of hymns, usually in the form of a book, called a hymnbook (or hymn book). Hymnals are used in congregational singing. A hymnal may contain only hymn texts (normal for most hymnals for most centuries of Chr ...

, ''Worship'' uses "Tempus Adest Floridum" only for Cook's hymn.

Neale's carol

In 1853, English

John Mason Neale wrote the "Wenceslas" lyric, in collaboration with his music editor Thomas Helmore, and the carol first appeared in ''Carols for Christmas-Tide'', published by Novello & Co the same year. The text of Neale's carol bears no relationship to the words of "Tempus Adest Floridum". In or around 1853, G. J. R. Gordon, the British envoy and minister in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the capital and largest city of Sweden as well as the largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people live in the municipality, with 1.6 million in the urban area, and 2.4 million in the metropo ...

, gave a rare copy of the 1582 edition of ''Piae Cantiones'' to Neale, who was Warden of

Sackville College Sackville College is a Jacobean almshouse in town of East Grinstead, West Sussex, England. It was founded in 1609 with money left by Robert Sackville, 2nd Earl of Dorset. Throughout its history it has provided sheltered accommodation for the ...

East Grinstead East Grinstead is a town in West Sussex, England, near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders, south of London, northeast of Brighton, and northeast of the county town of Chichester. Situated in the extreme northeast of the county, the civ ...

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the Englis ...

and to the Reverend Thomas Helmore (Vice-Principal of St. Mark's College, Chelsea). The book was entirely unknown in England at that time. As a member of the Tractarian

Oxford Movement The Oxford Movement was a movement of high church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the University of ...

, Neale was interested in restoring Catholic ceremony,

saints days In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Ortho ...

and music back into the Anglican church. The gift from G. J. R. Gordon gave him the opportunity to use medieval Catholic melodies for Anglican hymn writing. In 1849 he had published ''Deeds of Faith: Stories for Children from Church History'' which recounted legends from Christian tradition in Romantic prose. One of the chapters told the legend of St Wenceslas and his footsteps melting the snow for his page:

:"My liege," he said, "I cannot go on. The wind freezes my very blood. Pray you, let us return." "Seems it so much?" asked the King. "Was not His journey from Heaven a wearier and a colder way than this?" :Otto answered not. "Follow me on still," said S. Wenceslaus. "Only tread in my footsteps, and you will proceed more easily." :The servant knew that his master spoke not at random. He carefully looked for the footsteps of the King: he set his own feet in the print of his lord's feet.

For his 1853 publication ''Carols for Christmas-tide'', he adapted his earlier prose story into a poem, and together with the music editor Thomas Helmore added the words to the melody in ''Piae Cantiones'', adding a reference to Saint Stephen's Day (26 December), making it suitable for performance on that Saint's Day. The hymn's lyrics take the form of five eight-line stanzas in four-stress lines. Each stanza has an ABABCDCD rhyme scheme. Lines 1, 3, 5, and 7 end in single-syllable (so-called masculine) rhymes, and lines 2, 4, 6, and 8 with two-syllable ("feminine") rhymes. (In the English tradition, two-syllable rhymes are generally associated with light or comic verse, which may be part of the reason some critics have demeaned Neale's lyrics as "doggerel".) In the music the two-syllable rhymes in lines 2, 4, and 6 (e.g. "Stephen/even", "cruel/fuel") are set to two half-notes (British "minims"), but the final rhyme of each stanza (line 8) is spread over two full measures, the first syllable as two half-notes and the second as a whole note ("semi-breve")—so "fuel" is set as "fu-" with two half-notes and "-el" with a whole-note. Thus, unusually, the final musical line differs from all the others in having not two but three measures of 4/4 time. Some academics are critical of Neale's textual substitution. H. J. L. J. Massé wrote in 1921:

Why, for instance, do we tolerate such impositions as "Good King Wenceslas?" The original was and is an Easter Hymn...it is marked in carol books as "traditional", a delightful word which often conceals ignorance. There is nothing traditional in it as a carol.

A similar sentiment is expressed by the editors ( Percy Dearmer, Martin Shaw and

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

) in the 1928 '' Oxford Book of Carols'', which is even more critical of Neale's carol:

This rather confused narrative owes its popularity to the delightful tune, which is that of a Spring carol. . . . Unfortunately Neale in 1853 substituted for the Spring carol this ''Good King Wenceslas'', one of his less happy pieces, which E. Duncan goes so far as to call "doggerel", and Bullen condemns as "poor and commonplace to the last degree". The time has not yet come for a comprehensive book to discard it; but we reprint the tune in its proper setting . . . not without hope that, with the present wealth of carols for Christmas, ''Good King Wenceslas'' may gradually pass into disuse, and the tune be restored to spring-time."Good King Wenceslas" in ''Oxford Book of Carols'', (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1928)

Elizabeth Poston, in the ''Penguin Book of Christmas Carols'', refers to the song as the "product of an unnatural marriage between Victorian whimsy and the thirteenth-century dance carol". She goes on to say that Neale's "ponderous moral doggerel" does not fit the lighthearted dance measure of the original tune, and that if performed in the correct manner it "sounds ridiculous to pseudo-religious words". A similar development has occurred with the song " O Christmas Tree," the tune of which has been used for "

Maryland, My Maryland "Maryland, My Maryland" was the state song of the U.S. state of Maryland from 1939 until 2021. The song is set to the melody of "Lauriger Horatius" — the same tune " O Tannenbaum" was taken from. The lyrics are from a nine-stanza poem written ...

," " The Red Flag," and other unrelated songs. By contrast, Brian Scott, quoting from ''The Oxford Book of Carols'' its criticism and hope that the carol would "pass into disuse", argues: "Thankfully, they were wrong", for the carol "still reminds us that the giving spirit of Christmas should not happen just on that day. . . ."

Jeremy Summerly Jeremy Summerly (born 28 February 1961) is a British conductor. He was educated at Lichfield Cathedral School, Winchester College, and New College, Oxford. While at Oxford he conducted the New College Chamber Orchestra and the Oxford Chamber C ...

Nicolas Bell of the British Museum also strongly rebuts Dearmer's 20th century criticism, noting: "it could have been awful, but it isn't, it's magical . . . you remember it because the verse just works".

Textual comparison

Other versions

William Lloyd Webber William Southcombe Lloyd Webber (11 March 1914 – 29 October 1982) was an English organist and composer, who achieved some fame as a part of the modern classical music movement whilst commercially facing mixed opportunities. Besides his long ...

included Good King Wenceslas as one of his ''Songs without Words''. * The Beatles' ''1963 Christmas Record'' featured several renditions of the carol. * In 1984,

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recorded an electronic synthesizer arrangement of the carol for their first Christmas album. * The song's tune was re-worked by the

Trans-Siberian Orchestra Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) is an American rock band founded in 1996 by producer, composer, and lyricist Paul O'Neill, who brought together Jon Oliva and Al Pitrelli (both members of Savatage) and keyboardist and co-producer Robert Kinkel ...

on their track "Christmas Jazz", from their 2004 CD '' The Lost Christmas Eve''. * It was covered by English folk duo

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on their 2006 album ''

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''. * It was covered by Canadian Celtic singer

Loreena McKennitt Loreena Isobel Irene McKennitt, (born February 17, 1957) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer who writes, records, and performs world music with Celtic and Middle Eastern influences. McKennitt is known for her r ...

on her 1995 EP '' A Winter Garden: Five Songs for the Season'', and reissued on her 2008 album '' A Midwinter Night's Dream''. * In 2013, The Piano Guys made a piano-cello instrumental cover of this song for '' A Family Christmas'', their Christmas studio album. *

Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "The Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for " The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an ...

covered the song on his 1992 '' Christmas Songs'' album. * The

Count Basie Orchestra The Count Basie Orchestra is a 16 to 18 piece big band, one of the most prominent jazz performing groups of the swing era, founded by Count Basie in 1935 and recording regularly from 1936. Despite a brief disbandment at the beginning of the 19 ...

recorded a Sammy Nestico Big Band Arrangement of the song, re-named to 'Good Swing Venceslas', on their 2015 Album ' A Very Swingin' Basie Christmas'. * Child Bite covered the song in their 2018 anthology Burnt Offerings. *

Tenth Avenue North Tenth Avenue North was an American contemporary Christian music (CCM) band from West Palm Beach, Florida that was active from 2000 to 2021. The group was formed while its founding members attended Palm Beach Atlantic University took its name f ...

opened their 2017 Christmas album, ''Decade The Halls'', with the song, setting it to 1920s era music. *

Rob Halford Robert John Arthur Halford (born 25 August 1951) is an English heavy metal singer. He is the lead vocalist of Judas Priest, which was formed in 1969 and has received accolades such as the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance. He has ...

, vocalist of

metal A metal (from ancient Greek, Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, e ...

band

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, covered the song on his 2019 Christmas album, ''Celestial''. * The song is included on '' We Three Kings (The Roches album),'' the sixth studio album by the folk trio

The Roches The Roches were an American vocal trio of sisters Maggie, Terre and Suzzy Roche, from Park Ridge, New Jersey. Career In the late 1960s, eldest sister Maggie (October 26, 1951 – January 21, 2017) and middle sister Terre (pronounced "Terry" ...

, released in 1990 on MCA Records. *The song is included in

Relient K Relient K is an American rock band formed in 1998 in Canton, Ohio, by Matt Thiessen, Matt Hoopes, and Brian Pittman Board Message during the band members' third year in high school and their time at Malone University. The band is named after ...

's Christmas Album '' Let It Snow, Baby... Let It Reindeer'' under the title, "Good King Wenceslas"

In popular culture

* Walt Kelly's '' Pogo'' cartoon strip spoofs the song as "Good King Sauerkraut" and "Good King Winkelhoff". *In the film ''

Love Actually ''Love Actually'' is a 2003 Christmas romantic comedy film written and directed by Richard Curtis. It features an ensemble cast, composed predominantly of British actors, many of whom had worked with Curtis in previous film and television p ...

'', Prime Minister David (

Hugh Grant Hugh John Mungo Grant (born 9 September 1960) is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as both a charming, and vulnerable romantic lead and has since transitioned into a dramatic character actor. Among his numerous a ...

) sings the carol at the home of three small girls to explain his presence there while he is knocking on doors randomly searching for his love interest. *In the British show '' Miranda'', Penny plays the song on the piano with altered lyrics. *In the Scottish film '' Filth'', Dr Rossi sings the song with altered lyrics. *Two ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

'' episodes have referenced the song. In the first episode of the 1975 series "

Genesis of the Daleks ''Genesis of the Daleks'' is the fourth serial of the twelfth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was written by Terry Nation and directed by David Maloney, and originally broadcast in six weekly parts fr ...

", the Doctor and his companions Sarah Jane Smith and Harry find themselves in the middle of a minefield on the Dalek home planet Skaro. The Doctor turns to them and says, "Follow me and tread in my footsteps." Sarah Jane looks at Harry and remarks, "Good King Wenceslas." In the 2007 Christmas special entitled "

Voyage of the Damned ''Voyage of the Damned'' is a 1976 drama film directed by Stuart Rosenberg, with an all-star cast featuring Faye Dunaway, Oskar Werner, Lee Grant, Max von Sydow, James Mason, and Malcolm McDowell. The story was inspired by actual events co ...

", an alien tour guide on board an alien spaceship replica of the ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, Unite ...

'' mistakenly believes that Good King Wenceslas is the current monarch of the United Kingdom while explaining Earth's history. *In the television special '' A Muppet Family Christmas'', Gonzo sings this song. *In the 1987 film '' Dragnet'', LAPD Detective '' Pep Streebeck'' closes his eyes and starts singing this song during a high-speed chase when told to "think about Christmas" by his partner, Detective ''

Joe Friday Joe Friday is a fictional character created and portrayed by Jack Webb as the lead for his series '' Dragnet''. Friday is a detective in the Los Angeles Police Department. The character first appeared on June 3, 1949 in the premiere of the NBC ...

''. *In Telltale's story driven videogame "" The Walking Dead: Season Two"" the character Sarita sings the carol in the second episode titled "A House Divided". Sarita talks about the meaning of the song with a young girl named Sarah as they decorate a massive christmas tree in the ski lodge. *In the movie '' The Muppet Christmas Carol'', Bean Bunny sings this song to Scrooge. An instrumental rendition of the song is also played during the opening credits. *In the

Discworld ''Discworld'' is a comic fantasy"Humorous Fantasy" in David Pringle, ed., ''The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Fantasy'' (pp.31-33). London, Carlton,2006. book series written by the English author Terry Pratchett, set on the Discworld, a flat ...

book '' Hogfather'', the carol is slightly 'twisted' during a scene when

Death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

, while acting as the Hogfather, encounters a king trying to give a beggar his feast as an act of charity, with Death criticizing the king's actions as simply wanting to be praised on Hogswatch night as he has never shown any concern for the beggar before nor will so in the future, forcing the king out and leaving the beggar with plainer food that is nevertheless more to his liking. *Buford and Baljeet sing this song with altered lyrics in ''A

Phineas and Ferb ''Phineas and Ferb'' is an American animated musical-comedy television series created by Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh for Disney Channel and Disney XD. Produced by Disney Television Animation, the series was originally broadcast as ...

Family Christmas''. *The song is begun by guests of ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, ...

'' in "

White Christmas Blues "White Christmas Blues" is the eighth episode of the twenty-fifth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'' and the 538th episode of the series. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 15, 2 ...

". Marge, who doesn't like second verses of Christmas carols, remarks this one creeps her out from the beginning and leaves the room to listen to a blender. *In the 1983 movie, ''

A Christmas Story ''A Christmas Story'' is a 1983 Christmas comedy film directed by Bob Clark and based on Jean Shepherd's semi-fictional anecdotes in his 1966 book '' In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash'', with some elements from his 1971 book ''Wanda Hickey's ...

'', the song is played by the Salvation Army Band outside of Higbee's Department Store. *In '' The Polar Express'', the song is played briefly in one scene where the Polar Express passes the Herpolsheimer's store and in another scene, where the hobo sings it while playing the

hurdy-gurdy The hurdy-gurdy is a string instrument that produces sound by a hand-crank-turned, rosined wheel rubbing against the strings. The wheel functions much like a violin bow, and single notes played on the instrument sound similar to those of a vi ...

. *The setting of Gene Wolfe's novel '' The Devil in a Forest'' is based on the second verse of the carol, which is given as the epigraph to the book. *The 1987 BBC radio play ''Crisp and Even Brightly,'' by Alick Rowe, is a comedic re-telling of the story in the carol, starring

Timothy West Timothy Lancaster West, CBE (born 20 October 1934) is an English actor and presenter. He has appeared frequently on both stage and television, including stints in both ''Coronation Street'' (as Eric Babbage) and ''EastEnders'' (as Stan Carte ...

as Wenceslas, and featuring a page called Mark and other characters not found in the carol. *On the ''

Will & Grace ''Will & Grace'' is an American television sitcom created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan. Set in New York City, the show focuses on the friendship between best friends Will Truman ( Eric McCormack), a gay lawyer, and Grace Adler ( Debra Messi ...

'' season 6 episode "All About Christmas Eve", Karen sings the song with both Jack and Will to a bellman at her suite at the Palace Hotel. *On the ''

Big Bang Theory The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...

'' episode "The Santa Simulation",

Sheldon Sheldon may refer to: * Sheldon (name), a given name and a surname, and a list of people with the name Places Australia *Sheldon, Queensland *Sheldon Forest, New South Wales United Kingdom *Sheldon, Derbyshire, England *Sheldon, Devon, England *S ...

sings the song while playing ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TS ...

'' with Leonard,

Howard Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...

and Stuart, so that his character in the game can avoid danger. Sheldon insists on singing the entire song, even though he only needs to sing the first verse to complete his task. *In a blooper reel of the fourth season of TV series ''

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of '' A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of fantasy novels by George R. R. Martin, the fir ...

'',

Peter Dinklage Peter Hayden Dinklage (; born June 11, 1969) is an American film, television and stage actor. He received international recognition for portraying Tyrion Lannister on the HBO television series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2019), for which he ...

(

Tyrion Lannister Lord Tyrion Lannister, also known by the nicknames the Halfman or the Imp and the alias Hugor Hill, is a fictional character in the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' series of epic fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin, and its televis ...

) and Nicolaj Coster-Waldau (

Jaime Lannister Ser Jaime Lannister is a fictional character in the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' series of fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin and its television adaptation ''Game of Thrones'', where he is portrayed by Danish actor Nikolaj Coste ...

) start singing and dancing to the carol when entering the throne room during Tyrion's trial. *In an episode of ''

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show fo ...

'', Colbert sings the song with

Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of alternative rock band R.E.M. He is known for his vocal quality, poetic lyrics and unique stage presence. Pos ...

and

Mandy Patinkin Mandel Bruce Patinkin (; born November 30, 1952) is an American actor and singer, known for his work in musical theatre, television and film. He is a critically acclaimed Broadway performer, having received three Tony Award nominations, winning ...

. *In the ''

Porridge Porridge is a food made by heating or boiling ground, crushed or chopped starchy plants, typically grain, in milk or water. It is often cooked or served with added flavourings such as sugar, honey, (dried) fruit or syrup to make a sweet cereal, ...

'' Christmas Special, " No Way Out", Norman Stanley Fletcher and his fellow inmates sing the carol - until they are hushed by Mr. Mackay. In place of "When a poor man came in sight gathering winter fuel" comes: "When a Scotsman came in sight hollerin’...". *Comedian

John Finnemore John David Finnemore (born 28 September 1977) is a British comedy writer and actor. He wrote and performed in the radio series ''Cabin Pressure'', '' John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme'', and '' John Finnemore's Double Acts'', and frequentl ...

wrote a sketch for his ''

Souvenir Programme A programme or program (see spelling differences) is a booklet available for patrons attending a live event such as theatre performances, concerts, fêtes, sports events, etc. It is a printed leaflet outlining the parts of the event schedule ...

'' based on the carol, in which the poor man criticises King Wenceslas for bringing unnecessary fuel and flesh, and for making his page carry them in the cold weather. *In an episode of ''

Hogan's Heroes ''Hogan's Heroes'' is an American television sitcom set in a Nazi German prisoner-of-war (POW) camp during World War II. It ran for 168 episodes (six seasons) from September 17, 1965, to April 4, 1971, on the CBS network, the longest broadcast ...

'', several of the POWs loudly and repeatedly rehearse the song in order to distract the guards from the covert activities of the rest of the team. *At the ironic ending of

Frederik Pohl Frederik George Pohl Jr. (; November 26, 1919 – September 2, 2013) was an American science-fiction writer, editor, and fan, with a career spanning nearly 75 years—from his first published work, the 1937 poem "Elegy to a Dead Satellit ...

's Science Fiction novel '' Jem'', human colonists on a faraway planet developed the habit of celebrating Christmas by taking off their clothes and engaging in a wild

orgy In modern usage, an orgy is a sex party consisting of at least five members where guests freely engage in open and unrestrained sexual activity or group sex. Swingers' parties do not always conform to this designation, because at many swin ...

, their copulations accompanied by a chorus of the planet's enslaved indigenous beings singing "Good King Wenceslas", whose Christian significance was long forgotten. *The song was parodied by the British children's television programme, ''

Horrible Histories ''Horrible Histories'' is an educational entertainment franchise encompassing many media including books, magazines, audio books, stage shows, TV shows, and more. In 2013, Lisa Edwards, UK publishing and commercial director of Scholastic Corpor ...

''. In this version, carol singers attempt to give a more historically accurate portrayal of the king, including a line about his murder. *The song is parodied by

Peter Schickele "Professor" Peter Schickele (; born July 17, 1935) is an American composer, musical educator, and parodist, best known for comedy albums featuring his music, but which he presents as being composed by the fictional P. D. Q. Bach. He also hosted ...

(aka

P.D.Q. Bach P. D. Q. Bach is a fictional composer invented by the American musical satirist Peter Schickele, who developed a five-decade-long career performing the "discovered" works of the "only forgotten son" of the Bach family. Schickele's music combines ...

) as ''Good King Kong'', though the melody quickly diverges from the original.

References

Literature

* Scott, Brian (2015). ''But Do You Recall? 25 Days of Christmas Carols and the Stories Behind Them'', Anderson,

External links

* Free arrangements fo
piano
an
voice
from ''Cantorion. org'' * Gumpoldus Mantuanus Episcopus 967-0985br>Vita Vencezlavi Ducis Bohemiae
'The Life of King Wenceslas' Latin text by

Migne Jacques Paul Migne (; 25 October 1800 – 24 October 1875) was a French priest who published inexpensive and widely distributed editions of theological works, encyclopedias, and the texts of the Church Fathers, with the goal of providing a ...

Patrologia Latina The ''Patrologia Latina'' (Latin for ''The Latin Patrology'') is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1841 and 1855, with indices published between ...

, Vol. 135, col. 0919 - 0942C. {{authority control Christmas carols Songs about kings Piae Cantiones 1853 songs Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia Cultural depictions of Czech men Cultural depictions of kings