Crystal Aura Gaze

This is one of my favorite Ed Sheeran songs!

This is a true story about Ed’s grandparents getting married. His grandmother was Irish and his grandfather was English. At this time, there was a lot of tension between the Irish and English and it was controversial to mix into marriage. The main factor was religion — the Irish being Catholic and the English being Protestant. But this is a beautiful story about how they overcame religious conflict and love conquered all.

Title

It’s very simple — Nancy Mulligan is the name of Ed’s grandmother. This is her story.

Lyrics

I was twenty-four years old
When I met the woman I would call my own
Twenty-two grand kids now growing old
In that house that your brother bought ya

The story is being told from the grandfather’s perspective. He recalls being twenty four years old and meeting Nancy at this time. In present day, they have twenty two grandchildren. Also, how do I get my brother to buy me a house!?

On the summer day when I proposed
I made that wedding ring from dentist gold
And I asked her father, but her daddy said, no
You can’t marry my daughter

The two fell in love and got engaged on a beautiful summer day. However, we see that Nancy’s father did not approve of their engagement.

She and I went on the run
Don’t care about religion
I’m gonna marry the woman I love
Down by the Wexford border

And now we see why their father didn’t approve — religious conflict. But they aren’t going to let that stop them! They’re going to run away together!

She was Nancy Mulligan
And I was William Sheeran
She took my name and then we were one
Down by the Wexford border

This is the verse that tells us their names — Nancy and William. She takes his last name in marriage and now they are both Sheeran.

Well, I met her at Guy’s in the second world war
And she was working on a soldier’s ward
Never had I seen such beauty before
The moment that I saw her

We see that this story takes place during the time of WWII.

Nancy was my yellow rose
And we got married wearing borrowed clothes
We got eight children now growing old
Five sons and three daughters

This shows that they didn’t have much money — and I think that makes it even more romantic. They had eight kids together — WOW!

She and I went on the run
Don’t care about religion
I’m gonna marry the woman I love
Down by the Wexford border
She was Nancy Mulligan
And I was William Sheeran
She took my name and then we were one
Down by the Wexford border

From the snow white streak in her jet black hair
Over sixty years I’ve been loving her
Now we’re sat by the fire in our old armchairs
You know Nancy, I adore ya
From a farm boy born near Belfast town
I never worried about the king and crown
‘Cause I found my heart upon the southern ground
There’s no difference, I assure ya

Now we flash back to present day, when the two have grown old together in their eighties. They’re reflecting on their love story together. And it further implies that religion, along with money, and differences in nationalities, makes no difference to them. Their love is enough.

She and I went on the run
Don’t care about religion
I’m gonna marry the woman I love
Down by the Wexford border
She was Nancy Mulligan
And I was William Sheeran
She took my name and then we were one
Down by the Wexford border

Overall message

The song is very simple when you break it down. It’s a love story about to people who grew old together. Religion, money, and family background were initial challenges for them. But in the longterm it, didn’t matter. All that matters is when two people love each other.