It's one of the most popular nursery rhymes, and one that many children will learn at an early age. But how does it go again...? And what does it all mean, anyway? Turns out that the answer to the latter is quite intriguing... and goes back to the days of the English Civil War. Here are the lyrics to, and some history behind, that much-loved standard, 'Humpty Dumpty'.
What are the lyrics to the nursery rhyme '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.
Top image is a cover of a 1904 adaptation of Humpty Dumpty by William Wallace Denslow.
Who was Humpty Dumpty?
It is believed that the nursery rhyme dates back to the 18th century but it could be even earlier. Colchester Tourist Board says that the lyrics to Humpty Dumpty originate back in the English Civil War, and Humpty Dumpty refers to a cannon, which was placed on Colchester's city wall (a Royalist stronghold). It is recorded that when the heavy cannon fell after a blast from the Parliamentarians the Royalists were unable to lift it up back on the wall - hence the line - 'all the King's men.'
Or... a reference to Richard III?
The nursery rhyme Humpty Dumpty is usually imagined as a talking egg, but some folklorists and historians have suggested it may have darker origins, even pointing to King Richard III. In the late 18th century, Francis Grose recorded that “humpty dumpty” was slang for a short, clumsy person. Earlier still, the term could have been used mockingly for a hunchback.
Richard III, long depicted as deformed in both popular lore and Shakespeare’s play, fits that description: “crookback” and “humpback” were insults frequently thrown at him. The image of Humpty Dumpty falling and being irreparably broken could symbolically echo Richard’s dramatic defeat at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, which ended both his reign and the Plantagenet line. While the rhyme’s true origin is uncertain and the Richard theory is speculative, the link reflects how folklore often merges with political caricature.