Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill - Chord

Key D major – B minor Chords Bm7, G5, A4, D5, D, A7, D4, G/F# … Easy key G (capo 7)

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Capo 0

D5                 D/F#  G5
   When I was six years  old
               Bm7  A4
I broke my leg
D5           D/F#  G5
   I was running from my brother 
     Bm7        A4
And his friends

D5          D/F#  G5
   Tasted the   sweet perfume
        Bm7                 A4
Of the mountain grass as I rolled down
D5            D/F#  G5
   I was younger  then
Bm7                   A4
    Take me back to when I


G5           A4                 D5
   Found my heart and broke it here
                  G5
Made friends and lost them

Through the years
              A4               D5
And I've not seen the roaring fields
           G5
In so long I know I've grown
             A4
But I can't wait to go home


D   D4  G/F#  G5
I'm on my    way
  Bm7       A7
Driving at 90 down
  D    D4   G/F#  G5
Those country    lanes
 Bm7         A7
Singing to "Tiny Dancer"

    D  D4       G/F#  G5
And I miss the way       you make 
Bm7          A7
    Me feel,       and it's real
 D  D4       G/F#  G
We watched the    sunset
Bm7       A7         D
Over the castle on the hill


D5          D/F#  G5
   Fifteen years  old
             Bm7                  A4
And smoking handrolled cigarettes
D5                   D/F#  G5
   Running from the law 

Through the backfields and

Bm7                       A7
  Getting drunk with my friends

D5         D/F#  G5               Bm7
   Had my first kiss on a Friday night
         A4
I don't reckon that I did it right
D5                D/F#  G
   But I was younger  then
Bm7                   A4
    Take me back to when, we found


G5          A4                D5
   Weekend jobs, when we got paid
                 G5
We'd buy cheap spirits

And drink them straight
            A4
Me and my friends
                D5
Have not thrown up in so long
G5
Oh how we've grown
             A4
But I can't wait to go home


D   D4  G/F#  G5
I'm on my    way
  Bm7       A7
Driving at 90 down
  D    D4   G/F#  G5
Those country    lanes
 Bm7         A7
Singing to "Tiny Dancer"

    D  D4       G/F#  G5
And I miss the way       you make 
Bm7          A7
    Me feel,       and it's real
 D  D4       G/F#  G
We watched the    sunset
Bm7       A7         D   D4  G/F#  G
Over the castle on the hill
Bm7       A7         D   D4  G/F#
Over the castle on the hill
Bm7       A7         Bm7  G5  D5  A4
Over the castle on the hill


Bm7             G5
    One friend left to sell clothes
D5            A4
   One works down by the coast
Bm7              G5
    One had two kids but lives alone
D5         A4
   One's brother overdosed

Bm7          G5
    One's already on his second wife
D5             A4
   One's just barely getting by but
Bm7               G5
    These people raised me
    D5       A4
And I can't wait to go home


    D5      D/F#  G5
And I'm on my    way
Bm7        A4
I still remember
      D5        D/F#  G5
These old country    lanes
      Bm7         A4
When we did not know the answers
    D  D4       G/F#  G5
And I miss the way      you make
Bm7          A7
    Me feel,       it's real
 D  D4       G/F#  G5
We watched the    sunset
Bm7       A7         D   D4  G/F#  G
Over the castle on the hill
Bm7       A7         D   D4  G/F#  G
Over the castle on the hill
Bm7       A7         D
Over the castle on the hill

End of song Play again?

Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Ed Sheeran – Castle On The Hill: key and chord analysis

The song opens on D5 and ends on D. Its chords belong to both D major and Bm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

D major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = C# (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = G (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

B minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = G (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = A (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the D major side because it both starts and finishes on D and D is heard 59 times against 29 for Bm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from B minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to D or to Bm; comparing both readings is a practice of its own.

Every chord of the key, listed 1 to 7 separately for each key. Chords played in the song show how often they appear; chords from outside the scale sit next to their own degree.

Seen from D major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	D5	Tonic — home	D · A	19×
I	D	Tonic — home	D · F# · A	16×
I	D4	Tonic — home	D · F# · A	14×
I	D/F#	Tonic — home	D · F# · A	10×
ii	Em	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	E · G · B	—
iii	F#m	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	F# · A · C#	—
V/vi	F#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Bmsecondary dominant	F# · A# · C#	—
IV	G5	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · D	28×
IV	G/F#	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · B · D	14×
IV	G	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · B · D	6×
V	A4	Dominant — strongest pull home	A · C# · E	20×
V7	A7	Dominant — strongest pull home	A · C# · E · G	15×
vi7	Bm7	Relative minor — the melancholy side	B · D · F# · A	29×
vii°	C#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	C# · E · G	—

Seen from B minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i7	Bm7	Tonic — home	B · D · F# · A	29×
ii°	C#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C# · E · G	—
III	D5	Relative major — the bright side	D · A	19×
III	D	Relative major — the bright side	D · F# · A	16×
III	D4	Relative major — the bright side	D · F# · A	14×
III	D/F#	Relative major — the bright side	D · F# · A	10×
iv	Em	Subdominant — moves away from home	E · G · B	—
v	F#m	Minor dominant — soft pull	F# · A · C#	—
V	F#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	F# · A# · C#	—
VI	G5	Submediant — warm colour	G · D	28×
VI	G/F#	Submediant — warm colour	G · B · D	14×
VI	G	Submediant — warm colour	G · B · D	6×
VII	A4	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	A · C# · E	20×
VII7	A7	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	A · C# · E · G	15×

Analysis

The key pair is D major and its relative B minor (2 sharps). 10 different chords appear 171 times in total; 10 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Everything stays inside one scale, which is why the song is easy to follow by ear.

Chord movement

G5 Bm7 DIV → vi7 BmVI → i7VI → i ×17
A7 D DV7 → Iauthentic cadence BmVII7 → III ×13
A4 D5 DV → Iauthentic cadence BmVII → III ×11
G5 A4 DIV → VIV → V BmVI → VIIVI → VII ×6
G Bm7 DIV → vi7 BmVI → i7VI → i ×6
G5 D5 DIV → Iplagal cadence BmVI → III ×5

The move to watch is G5 → Bm7, heard 17 times. From the D side it reads IV → vi7; from the Bm side it is VI → i7 (VI → i: falls a half step into home). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

D major pentatonic and B minor pentatonic are the same five notes (D – E – F# – A – B): start from D for a brighter phrase, from B for a bluesier one.
Over Bm7, land on B, D, F# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over G5, land on G, D — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over A4, land on A, C#, E — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.

The song on the circle of fifths

Played in the song — chord of the key
Played — the minor's harmonic V or a secondary dominant
Played — borrowed or outside chord
Home region: IV–I–V and ii–vi–iii

Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.

Capo and easier keys

With D major shapes

No capo — open D shapes
Capo 2 + C shapes
Capo 5 + A shapes

With B minor shapes

Capo 2 + Am shapes
Capo 7 + Em shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

5 semitones up · capo 7 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The opening D5 lays a solid floor for everything that follows. Bm7, G5, A4, D5 carry the song: vi7–IV–V–I relative to D, i7–VI–VII–III relative to Bm. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on G5 → Bm7 (IV → vi7 in D, VI → i7 in Bm): VI → i — falls a half step into home. Ending on D, the song seals D as home.

This analysis is generated from the song's chords by akorculuk's harmony engine using consistent rules. When you change key, the degrees stay the same; only the chord names change.