The Oxen is a poem (sometimes known by its first line, Christmas Eve, and Twelve of the Clock) by the English novelist and poet Thomas Hardy (1840–1928). It relates to a West Country legend: that, on the anniversary of Christ's Nativity, each Christmas Day, farm animals kneel in their stalls in homage. It was first published in December 1915, in the London newspaper The Times. It has been set to music several times.

Narrator: Peter Coates
Listening Length: 01 minute 17 seconds