A Beloved Christmas Tradition: King Wenceslas

Saint Stephen’s Day, also known as the Feast of Saint Stephen or Boxing Day, is observed on December 26. You may have actually heard of St. Stephen’s Day through a popular Christmas carol “Good King Wenceslas,” penned in the 19th century by John Mason Neale.

The song recounts the story of Wenceslas, a 10th-century Bohemian ruler who later became the patron saint of the Czech people. On Saint Stephen’s Day, Wenceslas gazes out his window and notices a poor man gathering firewood in the snow.