We Plough The Fields And Scatter

Jane Montgomery Campbell (1817–1878)

Jane Montgomery Campbell was an English hymn translator, musician, and educator best remembered for bringing beloved German hymns into the English-speaking world. Though she wrote little under her own name, her translations gave churches enduring songs that remain treasured in worship today.

She was born in London in 1817, the daughter of the Reverend A. Montgomery Campbell. Raised in a Christian home with strong musical influences, she developed both literary and musical abilities that later shaped her contribution to hymnody.

Campbell became known chiefly for her translations from German into English. In 1861 she contributed several translations to the Reverend C. S. Bere’s collection Garland of Songs; or, an English Liederkranz, and later to his Children’s Choral Book (1869). These works helped introduce German sacred song to English congregations and schools.

Her most famous translation is the harvest hymn “We Plough the Fields and Scatter.” This text was adapted from the German hymn Wir pflügen und wir streuen by Matthias Claudius. Campbell’s English version became one of the best-loved thanksgiving and harvest hymns in the English-speaking church. Its message celebrates God as the giver of sun, rain, seedtime, and harvest, echoing biblical truths such as Psalm 65 and Genesis 8:22.

The hymn became especially popular at harvest festivals and thanksgiving services, where its warm rural imagery and gratitude to God resonated deeply with worshippers.

Beyond translation, Campbell also published A Handbook for Singers through the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. This small volume included musical exercises she taught in her father’s parish school, reflecting her commitment to music education and congregational singing.

Jane Montgomery Campbell died at Bovey Tracey on November 15, 1878. Though modest in public recognition, her legacy lives wherever believers sing gratitude to God through the timeless words, “We plough the fields and scatter.”