I Heard The Bells on Christmas Day "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" is a Christmas carol based on the 1863 poem "Christmas Bells" by poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Written in the aftermath of the civil war, the song tells of the narrators despair that "hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth, good will to men". It ends with the bells carrying renewed hope for peace among men.