The original lyrics (“Stille, Nacht, Heilige Nacht”) are from a poem written in 1816 by the Austrian priest Josef Mohr (1792–1848). When the church organ broke down on Christmas Eve in 1818, he asked Franz Gruber (1787–1863) to compose a melody to the poem. Gruber created a guitar accompaniment for the children’s choir and the new song was performed at the Midnight Mass. The English lyrics were written by John Freeman Young (1820–1885) in 1859.

Since then, “Stille Nacht” has been translated into over 300 languages. As a message of peace, it has been designated by UNESCO as a treasured item of Intangible Cultural Heritage. A poignant example the power of a shared culture and connection was in evidence on Christmas Eve, 1914, when German and British soldiers joined together to celebrate Christmas, after a German officer, Walter Kirchhoff, a tenor with the Berlin Opera, sang “Stille Nacht”, then “Silent Night” over No Man's Land.