2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Advertiser
Susan has uncovered the scandals and strife lurking behind nursery rhymes
Nursery rhymes, including Humpty Dumpty and Old Mother Hubbard, may be passed off as fun, but Susan Ackroyd has found they often have hidden meanings.
The author has done a deep dive into the back stories of some of these childhood favourites, which she described as "cultural treasure".
"It tells us the history; parliamentary democracy, a constitutional monarchy, we learn all of that through knowing these rhymes."
Read more in The Senior
She explores the stories behind 26 rhymes from the 1200s-1700s in her book Rhyme & Reason Edition 2: Mystery & History.
There, she uncovers royal scandals, political upheaval and religious power struggles, and commentary around these all hidden in creative ways.
She said Old Mother Hubbard was about King Henry VIII seeking an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could marry Anne Boleyn.
In that rhyme, King Henry VIII's advisor Cardinal Thomas Wolsey was the mother, Henry is the dog, and the bone was the annulment.
Mrs Ackroyd said Humpty Dumpty was a name given to a large cannon mounted on a wall in Colchester that King Charles I's army used during the English Civil War in the 1600s.
But the opposition shot at the wall, causing the cannon to fall.
"The egg [analogy] is rather ridiculous when you think about it, but that reflects the fragility of the weaponry at the time," she said.
Mrs Ackroyd, 78, who lives on a rural property near Lithgow, NSW, found the information about the rhymes through sources including University of Oxford professors, plus other texts, and has annotated the references in the book.
The book includes the rhymes, Mrs Ackroyd's research about the stories behind them, and illustrations by her neighbour Nicol Reid.
Mrs Ackroyd said it was interesting how people expressed themselves when there was great upheaval, and many of these rhymes were shared orally, particularly as literacy was low and retribution was high.
"If you went around saying 'King Henry VIII sucks' publicly, you would probably end up in jail or with the head lopped off... so he's described in a little rhyme," she said.
Mrs Ackroyd said the melodies that went with these rhymes were among the reasons they've lasted so long.
She likes to share some of the rhymes with her grandchildren, aged three and one, including Baa Baa Black Sheep and Humpty Dumpty.
As some rhymes have dark or violent themes, she said she wouldn't share those sections with children. But what could be done is use the rhymes as launchpads to share the stories behind them.
The book is out now through Boolarong Press, RRP $29.99
Share your thoughts in the comments below, or send a Letter to the Editor by CLICKING HERE.
Nursery rhymes, including Humpty Dumpty and Old Mother Hubbard, may be passed off as fun, but Susan Ackroyd has found they often have hidden meanings.
The author has done a deep dive into the back stories of some of these childhood favourites, which she described as "cultural treasure".
"It tells us the history; parliamentary democracy, a constitutional monarchy, we learn all of that through knowing these rhymes."
Read more in The Senior
She explores the stories behind 26 rhymes from the 1200s-1700s in her book Rhyme & Reason Edition 2: Mystery & History.
There, she uncovers royal scandals, political upheaval and religious power struggles, and commentary around these all hidden in creative ways.
She said Old Mother Hubbard was about King Henry VIII seeking an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could marry Anne Boleyn.
In that rhyme, King Henry VIII's advisor Cardinal Thomas Wolsey was the mother, Henry is the dog, and the bone was the annulment.
Mrs Ackroyd said Humpty Dumpty was a name given to a large cannon mounted on a wall in Colchester that King Charles I's army used during the English Civil War in the 1600s.
But the opposition shot at the wall, causing the cannon to fall.
"The egg [analogy] is rather ridiculous when you think about it, but that reflects the fragility of the weaponry at the time," she said.
Mrs Ackroyd, 78, who lives on a rural property near Lithgow, NSW, found the information about the rhymes through sources including University of Oxford professors, plus other texts, and has annotated the references in the book.
The book includes the rhymes, Mrs Ackroyd's research about the stories behind them, and illustrations by her neighbour Nicol Reid.
Mrs Ackroyd said it was interesting how people expressed themselves when there was great upheaval, and many of these rhymes were shared orally, particularly as literacy was low and retribution was high.
"If you went around saying 'King Henry VIII sucks' publicly, you would probably end up in jail or with the head lopped off... so he's described in a little rhyme," she said.
Mrs Ackroyd said the melodies that went with these rhymes were among the reasons they've lasted so long.
She likes to share some of the rhymes with her grandchildren, aged three and one, including Baa Baa Black Sheep and Humpty Dumpty.
As some rhymes have dark or violent themes, she said she wouldn't share those sections with children. But what could be done is use the rhymes as launchpads to share the stories behind them.
The book is out now through Boolarong Press, RRP $29.99
Share your thoughts in the comments below, or send a Letter to the Editor by CLICKING HERE.
Nursery rhymes, including Humpty Dumpty and Old Mother Hubbard, may be passed off as fun, but Susan Ackroyd has found they often have hidden meanings.
The author has done a deep dive into the back stories of some of these childhood favourites, which she described as "cultural treasure".
"It tells us the history; parliamentary democracy, a constitutional monarchy, we learn all of that through knowing these rhymes."
Read more in The Senior
She explores the stories behind 26 rhymes from the 1200s-1700s in her book Rhyme & Reason Edition 2: Mystery & History.
There, she uncovers royal scandals, political upheaval and religious power struggles, and commentary around these all hidden in creative ways.
She said Old Mother Hubbard was about King Henry VIII seeking an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could marry Anne Boleyn.
In that rhyme, King Henry VIII's advisor Cardinal Thomas Wolsey was the mother, Henry is the dog, and the bone was the annulment.
Mrs Ackroyd said Humpty Dumpty was a name given to a large cannon mounted on a wall in Colchester that King Charles I's army used during the English Civil War in the 1600s.
But the opposition shot at the wall, causing the cannon to fall.
"The egg [analogy] is rather ridiculous when you think about it, but that reflects the fragility of the weaponry at the time," she said.
Mrs Ackroyd, 78, who lives on a rural property near Lithgow, NSW, found the information about the rhymes through sources including University of Oxford professors, plus other texts, and has annotated the references in the book.
The book includes the rhymes, Mrs Ackroyd's research about the stories behind them, and illustrations by her neighbour Nicol Reid.
Mrs Ackroyd said it was interesting how people expressed themselves when there was great upheaval, and many of these rhymes were shared orally, particularly as literacy was low and retribution was high.
"If you went around saying 'King Henry VIII sucks' publicly, you would probably end up in jail or with the head lopped off... so he's described in a little rhyme," she said.
Mrs Ackroyd said the melodies that went with these rhymes were among the reasons they've lasted so long.
She likes to share some of the rhymes with her grandchildren, aged three and one, including Baa Baa Black Sheep and Humpty Dumpty.
As some rhymes have dark or violent themes, she said she wouldn't share those sections with children. But what could be done is use the rhymes as launchpads to share the stories behind them.
The book is out now through Boolarong Press, RRP $29.99
Share your thoughts in the comments below, or send a Letter to the Editor by CLICKING HERE.
