Pop Goes the Weasel: The Secret Meanings of Nursery Rhymes Read online

  By the Same Author

  Red Herrings and White Elephants

  Shaggy Dogs and Black Sheep

  Phantom Hitchhikers and Decoy Ducks

  Loch Ness Monsters and Raining Frogs

  POP GOES

  THE WEASEL

  The Secret Meanings of

  Nursery Rhymes

  ALBERT JACK

  Illustrated by Lara Carlini

  ALLEN LANE

  an imprint of

  PENGUIN BOOKS

  ALLEN LANE

  Published by the Penguin Group

  Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

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  First published 2008

  1

  Copyright © Albert Jack, 2008

  Illustrations copyright © Lara Carlini, 2008

  Albert Jack supports the MacKinnon Trust, a registered charity working to

  raise public awareness about mental health issues such as schizophrenia and

  the care needed by those who suffer and their families, www.mackinnontrust.org

  Albert Jack’s website is www.albertjack.com

  The moral right of the author has been asserted

  All rights reserved

  Without limiting the rights under copyright

  reserved above, no part of this publication may be

  reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system,

  or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical,

  photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior

  written permission of both the copyright owner and

  the above publisher of this book

  978-0-14-190930-1

  This book is dedicated to my mum in Guildford,

  Sheila Podmore, because every mum should have

  a book dedicated to her at least once in her life.

  In fact, let me do it for you. This book is

  dedicated to your mum, too:

  ………………………………

  (insert name here)

  Contents

  Introduction

  Acknowledgements

  Nursery Rhymes

  An Apple a Day

  As I Was Going by Charing Cross

  As I Was Going to St Ives

  Baa, Baa, Black Sheep

  Bessy Bell and Mary Gray

  The Big Ship Sails on the Ally-Ally-Oh

  The Blind Men and the Elephant

  Bobby Shafto

  Boys and Girls, Come Out to Play

  Christmas Is Coming

  The Cutty Wren

  Ding, Dong, Bell

  Doctor Foster

  Elsie Marley

  Flour of England

  For Want of a Nail

  Frère Jacques

  A Frog He Would A-Wooing Go

  Georgie Porgie

  Good King Arthur

  Goosie, Goosie Gander

  The Grand Old Duke of York

  Hark, Hark, the Dogs Do Bark

  Hector Protector

  Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush

  Hey Diddle Diddle

  Hickory, Dickory, Dock

  Higgledy, Piggledy, My Black Hen

  Hot Cross Buns

  The House That Jack Built

  Humpty Dumpty

  I Had a Little Nut Tree

  In Marble Walls as White as Milk

  Jack and Jill

  Jack, Be Nimble

  Jack Sprat

  Ladybird, Ladybird

  The Lion and the Unicorn

  Little Bo Peep

  Little Boy Blue

  Little Jack Horner

  Little Miss Muffet

  Little Polly Flinders

  Little Tommy Tucker

  London Bridge Is Falling Down

  London’s Burning

  Lucy Locket

  The Man in the Moon

  The Man of Thessaly

  Mary Had a Little Lamb

  Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

  Monday’s Child

  Needles and Pins

  Old King Cole

  Old Mother Hubbard

  Oranges and Lemons

  The Owl and the Pussycat

  Polly Put the Kettle On

  Poor Old Robinson Crusoe

  Pop Goes the Weasel

  Punch and Judy

  Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat

  The Queen of Hearts

  Rain, Rain, Go Away

  Red Sky at Night

  Remember, Remember the Fifth of November

  Ride a Cock Horse to Banbury Cross

  Ring-a-Ring o’ Roses

  Rock-a-Bye, Baby

  Rub-a-Dub-Dub

  See-Saw, Margery Daw

  Simple Simon

  Sing a Song of Sixpence

  Solomon Grundy

  Taffy Was a Welshman

  There Was a Crooked Man

  There Was a Little Girl

  There Was a Little Guinea Pig

  There Was an Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe

  Three Acres of Land

  Three Blind Mice

  Tom, Tom, the Piper’s Son

  Turn Again, Whittington

  Tweedledum and Tweedledee

  Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

  Wee Willie Winkie

  What Are Little Boys Made Of?

  Who Killed Cock Robin?

  Traditional Songs and Anthems

  Amazing Grace

  God Save the Queen

  Good King Wenceslas

  The Hokey Cokey

  I Saw Three Ships

  Jerusalem

  The Miller of Dee

  The Skye Boat Song

  The Star-Spangled Banner

  Swing Low, Sweet Chariot

  Yankee Doodle Dandy

  Sources

  Index

  Introduction

  I first had the idea of studying the history of nursery rhymes about ten years ago. But at the time, the idea of trawling through history to discover the origins of our favourite nursery rhymes and analyse their meanings, obvious or hidden, was one I didn’t altogether relish, to be honest. After all, what could possibly be interesting about a short, fat boy called Humpty or Dumpty, who lived a long, long time ago and who fell off his wall? Or, for that matter, how much fun can you have with three blind mice being chased around the kitchen by a farmer’s wife? Surely that has happened on farms across the land since knives were first hacked out of flint? And why would anybody, in this case me, want to create a book full of stories such as the one about Jack Horner, a little boy who shoved his thumb into a pie and stole a plum? What drama is there in that? Even I have done a spot of plum-ste
aling from pies, and I wasn’t a bad lad either.

  But, instead, this has turned out to be the most rewarding piece of work I have done so far. Because once it becomes obvious that many nursery rhymes have been written about, or evolved from, particular historic events and then used as a means of passing important news around the countryside, simply by word of mouth, then the research becomes a fascinating study into a bygone way of life. For example, would you have expected Humpty Dumpty to be the name of one of King Charles I’s cannons located on top of a church tower at the Siege of Colchester in 1648 during the English Civil War? Operated by One-Eyed Thompson, a Royalist gunner, it successfully kept Cromwell’s forces at bay until the Parliamentarians managed to blow it off the tower, allowing them to take over the town. An important battle was lost (or won, depending on your viewpoint) and a turning point in history then marked by a rhyme, soon repeated in every village and every hamlet as news of the Roundheads’ victory spread throughout the land.

  Or would you imagine for a moment that the three blind mice could be the Oxford Martyrs Latimer, Ridley and Cranmer, all burned at the stake for their faith, by the Farmer’s Wife, Mary I? Or what about who little Jack Horner really was, my personal favourite – the story of the steward to the Dean of Glastonbury, Thomas Horner, who was sent to see Henry VIII with a bowl full of property deeds disguised as a pie in an attempt to bribe the king? On the way to London, Horner, it is said, reached into the pie and a stole a plum piece of real estate for himself – a place called Mells Manor. And while some of the other stories behind the rhymes may well have been elaborated, embellished or even rewritten to suit events, in the case of ‘Little Jack Horner’ there really was a Thomas Horner at Glastonbury who took ownership of Mells Manor during the reign of Henry VIII and whose descendants still live there to this day. All in all, these so-called ‘nursery’ rhymes aren’t the innocent little songs for children they purport to be!

  The research was the best part of the process as it introduced me to such figures as the sixteenth-century spider expert Dr Thomas Muffet and his daughter, Little Miss Muffet, or Henry VIII’s right-hand man Cardinal Wolsey, the likeliest candidate for Old Mother Hubbard. Not many of us have the chance to write about two such different individuals in the same week. The following week, a savvy London prostitute, Lucy Locket, made her appearance, accompanied by Prince Frederick (son of ‘mad’ king George III), the Grand Old Duke of York and blundering military commander who disastrously marched his men to the top of the hill, at Toucoing in northern France, where they were soundly defeated. The week after that, I was visiting some wonderful old London churches for the origins of Oranges and Lemons’ and becoming acquainted with the dark schemers who helped Richard III to power and whose careers may have inspired ‘Hey Diddle Diddle’.

  The historical significance of children’s rhymes is often lost on most adults, let alone the children who learn them by heart almost as soon as they learn to say anything at all. For all of us, the first things we are taught, after learning how to talk, are nursery rhymes. Hence by the time we are adults, we will know the words to hundreds of them without ever being aware of their meaning or real importance. And they are important, in my view, because many of them tell the true tale of some of history’s darkest or most tragic events. Knowing the origins of a rhyme will help to preserve that piece of history, or the layers of stories that accrue around a centuries-old verse. It also provides a fascinating insight into how news of historical events was transmitted around the land long before the days of instant communication by telephone, radio, television or the internet.

  The name forever associated with English nursery rhymes is ‘Mother Goose’, conjuring an image of a cheerful, well-upholstered countrywoman who makes up rhymes to entertain her large brood of equally cheerful children. The term, associated with no specific writer and current since the seventeenth century, became widespread largely thanks to a French book of fairy tales by Charles Perrault. Published in 1697 and best known by its subtitle, Contes de ma mère l’Oye (‘Tales of Mother Goose’), it was first translated into English in 1729, bringing to English readers the perennially popular tales of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’, ‘Sleeping Beauty’, ‘Cinderella’ and ‘Puss in Boots’. But it wasn’t until John Newbery produced a collection of rhymes called Mother Goose Melody in 1765 that ‘Mother Goose’ became inextricably linked with nursery rhymes. Newbery’s collection was hugely popular, helping to establish an indelible place for such rhymes in the hearts and minds of the British people.

  As for proving the origins of each rhyme, I have searched high and low, near and far, in an attempt to root out the definitive answer – or as near definitive as possible. Sometimes I have agreed with previous researchers and at other times feel they may have missed vital information, but, by and large, where I have arrived at two or more possible conclusions I have presented every option, leaving it to the reader to make up his or her mind. After all, this book has not been written to start arguments in the pub about nursery rhymes. It is simply meant to be a bit of fun and give you something to talk about with friends and family. And hopefully buy for distant relatives at Christmas.

  In the process of researching the rhymes, I looked into the origins of a few of our traditional songs – including ones from across the Pond. So, while not being nursery rhymes as such, I have included their origins anyway, chiefly because they interested me and because I am sure they will interest you too. Indeed, you will now be able to tell your American friends how their revered national anthem began life as a drinking song from a London dockside pub.

  Along the way, I have learned some wonderful stories, but I have also suffered personally for this book and made some mistakes I can help you avoid. For instance, I began researching the origins of ‘Little Blue Betty’ (I was sure that it must have something to do with Queen Elizabeth I) through the tried and tested medium of libraries and bookshops, but found myself getting nowhere. So one day I had a go on the internet instead, but when my girlfriend later checked the browser history, she promptly packed her bags. Such are the sacrifices I have made for you, dear reader. The least you can do now is join me on a journey through history to make sense of the rhymes we have all been enjoying since we first learned how to communicate without pointing and shouting.

  Albert Jack

  Cape Town

  May 2008

  Acknowledgements

  Special thanks to Peter Gordon. Once again, there is a good reason for it, but I can’t tell you what it is. This time it would only embarrass me. To my sister Julie Willmott (she knows why), to Margeaux Dawe, little Reef, Paul and Gen Ryan, and Tony and Sheila Podmore.

  Big thanks also to Paul March at Clintons in London and John Silbersack of the Trident Media Group in New York. Also to Nigel Harland, Caroline Harland and Tammy Green. To Lara Carlini for the fantastic illustrations and to Lisa Uga Carlini-Vidulin and Mel Roux in Cape Town.

  The Penguin team must also receive huge credit for all the effort and hard work. And that’s my editor Georgina Laycock, publicist Thi Dinh, designer Lisa Simmonds, cover designer Richard Green, as well as Ruth Stimson, Alice Dawson, Ruth Pinkney and Taryn Jones, without whom the book would not have got out on time. And a special thank you to Kate Parker, my copy editor.

  Finally, to all the people working in bookshops across the world. I have a feeling that there will be good times ahead despite the credit crunch. I am sure people will be buying more books for each other this year, as most of the CDs I hear these days are rubbish and DVDs too expensive. So let’s be positive and banish the blues by exercising the grey matter. After all, as you’ll soon see from the evidence of these nursery rhymes and songs, they had things far tougher in ‘the Good Old Days’…

  NURSERY RHYMES

  An Apple a Day

  AN apple a day keeps the doctor away.

  Apple in the morning, doctor’s warning.

  Roast apple at night, starves the doctor outright.

  Eat an apple at bed,
knock the doctor on the head.

  Three each day, seven days a week, ruddy apple,

  ruddy cheek.

  The most surprising thing about this rhyme is that it wasn’t invented by the apple industry, or even the association of greengrocers, if there is such a thing. It evolved during the sixteenth century and has been used ever since (sometimes rather desperately) as part of parental propaganda to get children to eat their greens. But what’s interesting is the deep distrust of doctors and medical science it shows. Its advice is that doctors are to be avoided at all costs; they are only looking to make money out of you. Folk medicine (what we’d now call herbalism) was at odds with official medicine and often prescribed remedies that mirrored the result you’d be looking for. If you want a rosy, ruddy face then eat an apple; a red one, that is – green cheeks might necessitate a visit from the doctor after all.

  As I Was Going by Charing Cross

  AS I was going by Charing Cross

  I saw a black man upon a black horse;

  They told me it was King Charles the First,

  Oh dear, my heart was ready to burst.

  This rhyme (with its echo of Ride a Cock Horse to Banbury Cross) refers to the public execution of King Charles I on 30 January 1649 outside the palace of Whitehall, very close to Charing Cross. Following his capture and imprisonment by the Parliamentarians towards the end of the Civil War, Charles presented a huge problem to his captors. Alive, he posed a constant threat to their new state; dead, he would instantly become a hero. Eventually and reluctantly, they brought him to trial.

  The lack of public support for the trial was painfully obvious, despite the harsh wording of the charge brought against him: ‘Out of a wicked design to erect and uphold himself with an unlimited and tyrannical power to rule according to his own will and to overthrow the rights and the liberties of the people of England.’ Showing the same arrogance that had brought on the Civil War, Charles refused even to answer the charge, believing that his own authority to rule had been given to him by God when he had been crowned and anointed, while the power wielded by those wishing to try him was simply that which grew out of a barrel of gunpowder. The court argued that no man was above the law, but when the king was duly found guilty, Richard Brandon, Hangman of London, summed up the general mood by refusing to carry out the task.