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The words of the
Banbury Cross
nursery rhyme are
often attributed to
Queen Elizabeth I of
England (the fine
lady) who travelled
to Banbury to see a
huge stone cross
which had just been
erected. The words
'With rings on her
fingers' obviously
relates to the fine
jewellery which
would be worn by a
Queen. The words
'And bells on her
toes' refer to the
fashion of attaching
bells to the end of
the pointed toes of
each shoe - this
fashion actually
originates from the
Plantagenet era of
English history but
was associated with
the nobility for
some time! Banbury
was situated at the
top of a steep hill
and in order to help
carriages up the
steep incline a
white cock horse (a
large stallion) was
made available by
the town's council
to help with this
task. When the
Queen's carriage
attempted to go up
the hill a wheel
broke and the Queen
chose to mount the
cock horse and ride
to the Banbury
cross. The people of
the town had
decorated the cock
horse with ribbons
and bells and
provided minstrels
to accompany her -
"she shall have
music wherever she
goes". The massive
stone cross at
Banbury was
unfortunately later
destroyed by anti -
Catholics who
opposed the notion
of pilgrimages.
Alternative
meaning to the
Banbury Cross
English Nursery
Rhyme
Our grateful thanks
is extended to David
Miller for the
following
information:
"The woman in
question was in fact
Lady Katherine
Banbury, wife of
Lord Jonathan
Banbury. Miss Amy
Banbury, sub matron
of Auckland
hospital, New
Zealand (my
grandfather's
cousin) recalled
after World War I
her grandfather,
Squire of Burford
near Banbury in
Oxfordshire, telling
her that he
distinctly recalled
the white horse on
which the "fine
lady" used to ride.
Among Lady Banbury's
jewels were many
very beautiful rings
of which she was
very fond. The bells
were the tiny bells
often used in those
days to trim the
edges of a lady's
velvet saddle cloth.
Miss Amy Banbury had
a copy of the music
written for the
rhyme by a well
known musician of
the day, along with
fine oak furniture
from Banbury Castle.
These matters were
reported in the New
Zealand Herald some
years after the end
of World War I" |
