London Bridge Nursery Rhymes

Nursery Rhymes just seem like a play with words or a fun thing to sing and dance to, but all nursery rhymes have a deeper meaning behind them. Usually these rhymes were made up to teach children a lesson, but to also talk about what was happening during the time each rhyme was written. Most people who tried to speak out against the government was either killed or put into jail, so they disguised what they wanted to say into nursery rhymes. One example of a nursery rhyme with a deeper hidden meaning is “London Bridge is falling down”. Depending on who you ask “London Bridge is falling down” could be about a 1014 viking attack, child sacrifice, or the normal deterioration of an old wooden bridge. Theories about “London Bridge” have evolved over time and no rhyme is how it was originally.
First, one theory, the viking attack was proven true. The vikings attacked London to take over the city, but in order to get there they first had to destroy the wooden bridge. One of the most dramatic events in London’s history
is the attack from the vikings, led by Olaf Harason on the bridge (Hagland all). However, as it is not mentioned in most books dating back to 1000 some historians doubt it took place. Once the king of england paid and signed a peace treaty with the vikings, they started to build a new bridge. The first couple of verses in the nursery rhyme state “London bridge is falling down, falling down, my fair lady”. This shows the destructions of the bridge.
Bunkers 1
Secondly, another theory about the rhyme was that it meant child sacrifices were buried in the bridge to be vigil and to protect it was falling down.
Most people don’t believe that this actually happened, but it does match up historically with what beliefs they practiced back during that time (Umansky Sect 10). The line “My fair lady” most likely represented Queen Mary who had control over the bridge during her reign. Also, it has been a myth that it was her idea to put child sacrifices in the bridge.
Lastly, one more theory was last the bridge was just built very poorly and deteriorated over time. There is no evidence to back or support this idea, but it does overall make since and is a great theory. It is said that the bridge was constructed so bad it was rebuilt over and over again until it was dismantled and taken elsewhere (Blackleaf all). Although, no historical evidence backs this up it works, because they weren’t great builders back in the
day.
In conclusion nursery rhymes have hidden meanings and London Bridge is a rhyme with many different meanings behind it. One being a viking attack, another being child sacrifices, and lastly because it deteriorated over time. Through all devastation of the bridge, it still stand tall where they reassembled it stone by stone in new mexico. The London Bridge has many different myths behind it, but none have historical evidence to support either of them.