Crimson Cloak Publishing

“Goosey, Goosey Gander” is a traditional English nursery rhyme from the late 18th century. The more I read of nursery rhymes, the more cruel they seem to become! Although there is no exact evidence of this, it is believed that the origins of Goosey, Goosey Gander date back earlier to the 16th century, during King Henry VII’s reign, and it was used as propaganda of the Protestants against the Catholic Church. The title and first line of the song might also refer to the march of Cromwell’s soldiers in “goose-step”, in the mid 17th century, after the Civil War. The…

Read More Read More

There was an old woman who lived in a shoe,She had so many children she didn’t know what to do.So she gave them some broth without any bread,And she whipped them all soundly and sent them to bed. This rather cruel nursery rhyme, which dates back to eighteenth-century England, has a few suggested meanings. The most often quoted  refers allegedly to the English Parliament—who is the old woman. The shoe is England itself. If you look at the map of the island of Great Britain and turn it 90 degrees clockwise, you can see very clearly that the island resembles…

Read More Read More

Little Jack HornerSat in the corner,Eating his Christmas pie;He put in his thumb,And pulled out a plum,And said, “What a good boy am I!” The story behind this rhyme is said to be that the “Jack” mentioned was actually Thomas Horner, a steward to Richard Whiting, the abbot of Glastonbury. The abbot sent Horner to London with a Christmas pie for King Henry VIII. The deeds to twelve manor houses were hidden in the pie.  The abbot did this in an attempt to ingratiate himself with the king during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. On his trip to London, Horner…

Read More Read More