Uncovering the Possible Dark Origins Behind Famous Nursery Rhymes

Nursery rhymes are a fascinating phenomenon in that they have been passed down from parent to child for hundreds of years. Ostensibly innocent and childlike, many seemingly initially served as a form of satire, actually referencing much darker themes.

Below, we look at the possible origins of five of the most popular nursery rhymes.

1) Ring a Ring a’ Roses

Ring-a-ring-a-roses

A pocket full of posies

A tissue, a tissue

We all fall down

One theory proposes that this may allude to the Great Plague of 1665, with the ring referring to the ring-like rash that appeared on the bodies of the infected. The second line is believed to relate to the bouquets of flowers people erroneously thought would drive off bad humours (i.e. germs) while the final lines are self-explanatory. Dark indeed!

2) Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

Mary, Mary, quite contrary,

How does your garden grow?

With silver bells, and cockle shells,

And pretty maids all in a row

Similarly bleak is this outwardly sweet little ditty. The Mary being referred to is considered to be Queen Mary Tudor. Popularly known as Bloody Mary for the hundreds of sadistic executions that occurred during her short reign, ‘quite contrary’ would appear to be an understatement! The second line may be a reference to the fact she died childless, while the final lines are more ambiguous, but are thought to refer to her strict Catholic beliefs.

3) London Bridge is Falling Down

London Bridge is falling down,

Falling down, falling down.

London Bridge is falling down,

My fair lady.

This appears to have its origins in an attack on London by the Vikings around 1014. Certainly, it is similar in structure to a verse from an ancient Norse saga:

London Bridge is broken down. —

Gold is won, and bright renown.

Shields resounding,

War-horns sounding,

Hild is shouting in the din!

The fair lady in question may refer to the Virgin Mary, who it was claimed saved London from the invaders, or even a human sacrifice interned in the foundations of the bridge. Alternatively, it may date from the Great Fire of London of 1666, and the fair lady is simply the Thames’ tributary, the river Lea.

4) Humpty Dumpty

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall,

All the king’s horses and all the king’s men,

Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

Two equally valid explanations have been proposed for this centuries-old rhyme. The first is that Humpty was the hunchbacked King Richard III, and the fall refers to his defeat and death at the Battle of Bosworth. Equally however, it may refer to a large wall-mounted cannon during the English Civil War, which was destroyed by the anti-Royalist forces.

5) Jack and Jill

Jack and Jill went up the hill

To fetch a pail of water;

Jack fell down and broke his crown

And Jill came tumbling after.

Again, various interpretations have been offered over the centuries. Commemorated by Jack and Jill Hill in Somerset, this possibly apocryphal Jack and Jill were lovers who used the hill for their illicit trysts. Jack however, died while being hit by a rock while climbing, and Jill later died giving birth to their love child.

Even more unsettling is the theory that the hill represents the steps to the guillotine on which King Louis XVI (i.e Jack) and Marie Antoinette (i.e. Jill) were beheaded!