"In the Bleak Midwinter" is a poem by the English poet Christina Rossetti. It was published under the title "A Christmas Carol" in the January 1872 issue of Scribner's Monthly, and first collected in book form in Goblin Market, The Prince's Progress and Other Poems (Macmillan, 1875).
It has been set to music several times. Two settings, those by Gustav Holst and by Harold Darke, are popular and often sung as Christmas carols.
Holst's is a hymn tune called Cranham, published in 1906 in The English Hymnal and simple enough to be sung by a congregation. Darke's is an anthem composed in 1909 and intended for a trained choir; it was named the best Christmas carol in a 2008 poll of leading choirmasters and choral experts.
Lyrics
written by Christian G Rossetti (1930-1894)
In the bleak midwinter,
Frosty wind made moan;
Earth stood hard as iron,
Water like a stone.
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
Snow on snow;
In the bleak midwinter,
Long ago.
Our God, heaven cannot hold Him,
Nor earth sustain,
Heaven and earth shall flee away
When He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter
A stable-place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty,
Jesus Christ.
Angels and archangels
May have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim
Thronged the air.
But His mother only,
In her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the Belovèd
With a kiss.
What can I give Him,
Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd,
I would bring a lamb.
If I were a wise man,
I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him—
Give my heart.
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