The song “We Three Kings of Orient Are” is a Christmas Carol written in 1857 by John Henry Hopkins, Jr. His original composition consisted of five verses. The first verse and last verse were written for the three kings to sing together. The remaining verses were written as a solo for each king bearing their gift.
Hopkins was serving as rector of Christ Episcopal Church in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Before joining the clergy, Hopkins had worked as both a journalists, lawyer and music teacher.
Hopkins wrote “We Three Kings” for a Christmas pageant held at the General Theological Seminary, in New York City, where he taught music. Hopkins wrote both the lyrics and music to “We Three Kings” which was very uncommon for hymn writers of the day.
The song grew in popularity among Hopkins circle of family and friends and he published the carol in 1862 in his songbook Carols, Hymns, and Songs. “We Three Kings” was the first Christmas carol that originated from the United States to achieve widespread popularity. In 1928, the song was published in the Oxford Book of Carols and praised as being “one of the most successful of modern composed carols.”
