Day Five of the Truth Behind the Nursery Rhyme: Rock-a-bye Baby/ John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt/ Mary had a Little Lamb

Many of the popular nursery rhymes originated from Europe. Well, all these orignate from the goold old US of A. Take a look...

John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt,
His name is my name too.
Whenever we go out,
The people always shout,
There goes John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt.
Dah dah dah dah, dah dah dah

The words of the Nursery Rhyme, 'John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt ' originate in the USA and possibly reflect the enormous numbers of German immigrants at various points in American history. The surname Schmidt and the surname suffix -heimer are of Germanic origin. It is a favorite rhyme of children and often referred to as a 'Bus Song'. The pseudo-German word 'Jingleheimer' was probably used to mock the longer names often found in this language.

Rock-a-bye, baby,
In the tree top.
When the wind blows,
The cradle will rock.
When the bough breaks,
The cradle will fall,
And down will come baby,
Cradle and all

The American roots of this odd rhyme come from a young pilgrim who saw Native American mothers hanging cradles in trees. When the wind blew, the cradles would rock and the babies in them would sleep.

Mary had a little lamb its fleece was white as snow;
And everywhere that Mary went, the lamb was sure to go.
It followed her to school one day, which was against the rule;
It made the children laugh and play, to see a lamb at school.
And so the teacher turned it out, but still it lingered near,
And waited patiently about till Mary did appear.
"Why does the lamb love Mary so?" the eager children cry;
"Why, Mary loves the lamb, you know" the teacher did reply.

The words of the American nursery rhyme Mary had a little lamb would appeal to a small children and introduces imagery of similes (white as snow) as part of use of the English language. The words also convey the hopeful adage that love is reciprocated! No specific historical connection can be traced to the words of
Mary had a little lamb but it can be confirmed that the song Mary had a little lamb is American as the words were written by Sarah Hale, of Boston, in 1830. An interesting historical note about this rhyme - the words of Mary had a Little Lamb were the first ever recorded by Thomas Edison, on tin foil, on his phonograph.

Original information and images can be found at...

http://brainz.org/24-terrifying-thoughtful-and-absurd-nursery-rhymes-children/,

http://www.rhymes.org.uk/, and Bing images.

Day Four of the Truth Behind the Nursery Rhyme: Jack and Jill/ Old Mother Hubbard/ Little Boy Blue/ Three Blind Mice

All these nursery rhymes are based off of famous and powerful people in European History!

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.

The roots of the story, or poem, of Jack and Jill  are in France. Jack and Jill referred to are said to be King Louis XVI - Jack -who was beheaded (lost his crown) followed by his Queen Marie Antoinette - Jill - (who came tumbling after). The words and lyrics to the Jack and Jill  poem were made more acceptable as a story for children by providing a happy ending! The actual beheadings occurred in during the Reign of Terror in 1793. The first publication date for the lyrics of Jack and Jill rhyme is 1795 - which ties-in with the history and origins. The Jack and Jill poem is also known as Jack and Gill - the misspelling of Gill is not uncommon in nursery rhymes as they are usually passed from generation to generation by word of mouth.

Old Mother Hubbard
Went to the cupboard
To get her poor doggie a bone,
When she got there
The cupboard was bare
So the poor little doggie had none

or alternatively:

Old Mother Hubbard
Went to the cupboard
To get her poor daughter a dress.
But when she got there
The cupboard was bare
And so was her daughter, I guess!

This rhyme is reputedly about Cardinal Thomas Wolsey. Wolsey refused to facilitate a divorce from Queen Katherine of Aragon for King Henry VIII. The King wanted a divorce so that he could marry Anne Boleyn. The doggie and the bone in the rhyme refer to the divorce, the cupboard is a reference to the Catholic Church and Wolsey is Old Mother Hubbard. The divorce was later arranged by Thomas Cramner and resulted in the break with Rome and the formation of the English Protestant church. (To see another nursery rhyme based off of the Tudor Hostory, see  the end of London Bridge is Falling Down.)

Little Boy Blue come blow your horn,
The sheep's in the meadow the cow's in the corn.
But where's the boy who looks after the sheep?
He's under a haystack fast asleep.
Will you wake him? No, not I - for if I do, he's sure to cry

Little Boy Blue may refer to Cardinal Thomas Wolsey (1475-1530). Wolsey was an arrogant and wealthy self-made man and had many enemies in England. After obtaining his degree from Oxford at the age of fifteen, he was dubbed the "Boy Bachelor." The words "come blow your horn" likely refer to his incessant bragging. (To see another nursery rhyme based off of the Tudor Hostory, see  the end of London Bridge is Falling Down.)

Three blind mice. Three blind mice.
See how they run. See how they run.
They all ran after the farmer's wife,
Who cut off their tails with a carving knife,
Did you ever see such a sight in your life,
As three blind mice

The vicious farmer's wife in this rhyme is believed to refer to Queen Mary I, the daughter of King Henry VIII. Mary, a staunch Catholic, was so well known for her persecution of Protestants that she was given the nickname "Bloody Mary." When three Protestant bishops were convicted of plotting against Mary, she had them burnt at the stake. However, it was mistakenly believed that she had them blinded and dismembered, as is inferred in the rhyme. (For another nursery rhyme inspired by Bloody Mary, see Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary.)

Original information and images can be found at...

http://brainz.org/24-terrifying-thoughtful-and-absurd-nursery-rhymes-children/ and

http://www.rhymes.org.uk/

Day Three of the Truth Behind the Nursery Rhymes: Little Bo Peep/ Peter, Peter, Pumpkin-Eater/ Itsy Bitsy Spider/ This Little Piggy

Nursery Rhymes were created for several different reasons. In past posts we learned that some were created to mark a certain gruesome period of in history or to commemorate something that has survived for years. Now, we see them being created to act as warnings to young children and women, or as educational tools for children...

Little Bo peep has lost her sheep
And doesn't know where to find them.
Leave them alone and they'll come home,
Bringing their tails behind them.

Little Bo peep fell fast asleep
And dreamt she heard them bleating,
But when she awoke, she found it a joke,
For they were all still fleeting.

Then up she took her little crook
Determined for to find them.
She found them indeed, but it made her heart bleed,
For they left their tails behind them.

It happened one day, as Bo peep did stray
Into a meadow hard by,
There she espied their tails side by side
All hung on a tree to dry.

She heaved a sigh, and wiped her eye,
And over the hillocks went rambling,
And tried what she could,
As a shepherdess should,

To tack again each to its lambkin.

The Little Bo Peep rhyme builds the picture of a young shepherdess and the advice given to her by someone more experienced! It is interesting that the name of Little Bo Peep was derived from the derivative of the words bleat and sheep! There is no specific relevance to events in history for the origins of the Little Bo Peep rhyme. The morale of the words in the song are that one must take responsibility of falling asleep or face the consequences... The words of Little Bo Peep are quite interesting as they contain words that are an almost forgotten part of the English language. Words such as espied, hillocks and lambkin can all be found in the story of Little Bo Peep

Peter, Peter , pumpkin-eater,
Had a wife and couldn't keep her;
He put her in a pumpkin shell,
And there he kept her very well

This nursery rhyme also has its roots in America, unlike most that started in England. It was a different time back then for women, and for views on divorce, too, which is why this rhyme served to warn young girls about infidelity. Peter's wife was supposedly a harlot, and Peter's remedy for the situation was to kill her and hide her body in a giant pumpkin shell.

Itsy Bitsy spider climbing up the spout
Down came the rain and washed the spider out
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain
Now Itsy Bitsy spider went up the spout again!

The lyric to the song "Itsy Bitsy Spider" create a finger rhyme for children. All children love trying to mimic the actions of Itsy Bitsy Spider song. The movements and actions of Itsy Bitsy Spider help children to improve their manual dexterity whilst repeating the words of the song. The name of the spider seems to vary but 'Itsy Bitsy spider' is believed to be the most popular version although in England Itsy Bitsy Spider is known as Incy Wincy spider! The history and origin of the Itsy Bitsy spider rhyme cannot be traced, it is believed just to be a fun finger rhyme that has survived the test of time.

This little piggy went to market,
This little piggy stayed at home,
This little piggy had roast beef,
This little piggy had none.
And this little piggy went...
"Wee wee wee" all the way home...

The words for "This little piggy" nursery rhyme are used to point out each one of the child's toes! The last line in "This little piggy" is used to accompany the child being tickled by the narrator of the poem! This rhyme is extremely popular which ensures that it will be passed from generation to generation. The first publication date for the words and lyrics for this nursery rhyme was in 1728.

Original information and images can be found at...

http://brainz.org/24-terrifying-thoughtful-and-absurd-nursery-rhymes-children/,

http://www.rhymes.org.uk/, and Bing images.

Day Two of the Truth Behind the Nursery Rhyme: Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary/ London Bridge is Falling Down

So, I thought nursery rhymes could not get more morbid than Ring Around the Rosy (See Day One of the Truth Behind the Nursery Rhyme: Humpty Dumpty/ Ring Around the Rosy.) I was sadly mistaken for Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary is far worse! Fortunately, London Bridge is Falling Down is not nearly as bad. Read on to see what I mean...

Mary Mary quite contrary,How does your garden grow?
With silver bells and cockle shells
And pretty maids all in a row

The Mary alluded to in this traditional English nursery rhyme is reputed to be Mary Tudor, or Bloody Mary, who was the daughter of King Henry VIII. Queen Mary was a staunch Catholic and the garden referred to is an allusion to graveyards which were increasing in size with those who dared to continue to adhere to the Protestant faith - Protestant martyrs.

The silver bells and cockle shells referred to in the Nursery Rhyme were colloquialisms for instruments of torture. The 'silver bells' were thumbscrews which crushed the thumb between two hard surfaces by the tightening of a screw. The 'cockleshells' were believed to be instruments of torture which were attached to the genitals!

The 'maids' were a device to behead people called the Maiden. Beheading a victim was fraught with problems. It could take up to 11 blows to actually sever the head, the victim often resisted and had to be chased around the scaffold. Margaret Pole (1473 - 1541), Countess of Salisbury did not go willingly to her death and had to be chased and hacked at by the Executioner. These problems led to the invention of a mechanical instrument (now known as the guillotine) called the Maiden - shortened to Maids in the Mary Mary Nursery Rhyme. The Maiden had long been in use in England before Lord Morton, regent of Scotland during the minority of James VI, had a copy constructed from the Maiden which had been used in Halifax in Yorkshire. Ironically, Lord Morton fell from favor and was the first to experience the Maiden in Scotland!

London Bridge is falling down,
Falling down, falling down,
London Bridge is falling down,
My fair Lady.

Build it up with wood and clay,
Wood and clay, wood and clay,
Build it up with wood and clay,
My fair Lady.

Wood and clay will wash away,
Wash away, wash away,
Wood and clay will wash away,
My fair Lady.

Build it up with bricks and mortar,
Bricks and mortar, bricks and mortar,
Build it up with bricks and mortar,
My fair Lady.

Bricks and mortar will not stay,
Will not stay, will not stay,
Bricks and mortar will not stay,
My fair Lady.

Build it up with iron and steel,
Iron and steel, iron and steel,
Build it up with iron and steel,
My fair Lady.

Iron and steel will bend and bow,
Bend and bow, bend and bow,
Iron and steel will bend and bow,
My fair Lady.

Build it up with silver and gold,
Silver and gold, silver and gold,
Build it up with silver and gold,
My fair Lady.

Silver and gold will be stolen away,
Stolen away, stolen away,
Silver and gold will be stolen away,
My fair Lady.

Set a man to watch all nigh,
Watch all night, watch all night,
Set a man to watch all night,
My fair Lady.

Suppose the man should fall asleep,
Fall asleep, fall asleep,
Suppose the man should fall asleep?
My fair Lady.

Give him a pipe to smoke all night,
Smoke all night, smoke all night,
Give him a pipe to smoke all night,
My fair Lady.

The 'London Bridge is falling down' Nursery Rhyme is based on the one of the most famous landmarks in London. It's history can be traced to the Roman occupation of England in the first century. The first London Bridge was made of wood and clay and was fortified or re-built with the various materials mentioned in the children's nursery rhyme. Many disasters struck the bridges - Viking invaders destroyed the bridge in the 1000's which led to a fortified design, complete with a drawbridge. Building materials changed due to the many fires that broke out on the bridge.

The first stone bridge was designed by Peter de Colechurch and built in 1176 and took 33 years to build and featured twenty arches the dimensions of which were sixty feet high and thirty feet wide and was complete with tower and gates. The flow of the Thames under the bridge was used to turn water wheels below the arches for grinding grain. By the 1300's the bridge contained 140 shops, some of which were more than three stories high. ( The reference to Silver and Gold in the rhyme relates to the trading which was conducted on the bridge). London Bridge survived the Great Fire of London in 1666 but its arches and foundations were weakened.

In the 1820s a new London Bridge was built on another site, north of the old one. This new bridge opened in 1831 and the old bridge was demolished. In the 1960s yet another London Bridge was built. The London Bridge of 1831 was transported, stone by stone, to Lake Havasu in Arizona, USA.

There is another verse. (Sometimes on added onto verses of London Bridge is Falling Down, on its own, or a completely different rhyme called London Bridge is Breaking Down.)  Its origins relate to Queen Anne Boleyn

Take a key and lock her up,
Lock her up, lock her up,
Take a key and lock her up,
My fair lady.

This nursery rhyme refers to the rise and fall of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII of England. Boleyn was accused of adultery and incest and was ultimately executed for treason.

Original information and images can be found at...

http://brainz.org/24-terrifying-thoughtful-and-absurd-nursery-rhymes-children/ and

http://www.rhymes.org.uk/

Day One of the Truth Behind the Nursery Rhyme Week: Humpty Dumpty/ Ring Around the Rosy

We have all seen or heard a nursery rhyme before, and, perhaps, we have recited one ourselves out of joy, at night before going to bed, or with our friends on the playground. But, did we really understood what it meant? Here's the history of some of the most famous nursery rhymes in all the world...

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.

Humpty Dumpty was a colloquial term used in fifteenth century England describing someone who was obese. This has given rise to various, but inaccurate, theories surrounding the identity of Humpty Dumpty. The image of Humpty Dumpty was made famous by the illustrations included in the 'Alice through the looking glass' novel by Lewis Carroll. However, Humpty Dumpty was not a person pilloried in the famous rhyme!

Humpty Dumpty was in fact believed to be a large cannon!  It was used during the English Civil War (1642 - 1649) in the Siege of Colchester (13 Jun 1648 - 27 Aug 1648). Colchester was strongly fortified by the Royalists and was laid to siege by the Parliamentarians (Roundheads). In 1648 the town of Colchester was a walled town with a castle and several churches and was protected by the city wall. Standing immediately adjacent the city wall, was St Mary's Church. A huge cannon, colloquially called Humpty Dumpty, was strategically placed on the wall next to St Mary's Church. The historical events detailing the siege of Colchester are well documented - references to the cannon ( Humpty Dumpty) are as follows:

• June 15th 1648 - St Mary's Church is fortified and a large cannon is placed on the roof which was fired by ‘One-Eyed Jack Thompson'
• July 14th / July 15th 1648 - The Royalist fort within the walls at St Mary's church is blown to pieces and their main cannon battery  ( Humpty Dumpty) is destroyed.
• August 28th 1648 - The Royalists lay down their arms, open the gates of Colchester and surrender to the Parliamentarians

A shot from a Parliamentary cannon succeeded in damaging the wall beneath Humpty Dumpty which caused the cannon to tumble to the ground. The Royalists, or Cavaliers, 'all the King's men' attempted to raise Humpty Dumpty on to another part of the wall. However, because the cannon, or Humpty Dumpty, was so heavy ' All the King's horses and all the King's men couldn't put Humpty together again!' This had a drastic consequence for the Royalists as the strategically important town of Colchester fell to the Parliamentarians after a siege lasting eleven weeks. Earliest traceable publication 1810.

Ring around the rosy

A pocketful of posies

"Ashes, Ashes"

We all fall down!

This rhyme dates back to the Great Plague of London in 1665. The symptoms of bubonic plague included a rosy red ring-shaped rash, which inspired the first line. It was believed that the disease was carried by bad smells, so people frequently carried pockets full of fresh herbs, or "posies." The "ashes, ashes" line is believed to refer to the cremation of the bodies of those who died from the plague.

Original information and images can be found at...

http://brainz.org/24-terrifying-thoughtful-and-absurd-nursery-rhymes-children/ and

http://www.rhymes.org.uk/