Humpty Dumpty is a classic English nursery rhyme, written around the early 1800s in England. However, before that time, throughout the English Civil War (1642-1651), there was a very large cannon named Humpty Dumpty. Yes, there is a theory that Humpty was initially named after a piece of heavy-artillery during a war between the Royalists, who operated the cannon named Humpty, and the Parliamentarians, who engaged the Royalists using a blockade. The cannon was tactically placed and located on top of a wall next to a church. The cannon or Humpty, was a main line of defense and if it were to be destroyed, the town would fall to the Parliamentarians. The Parliamentarians had their own cannon and used it to damage the lower-part of the wall under Humpty, therefore, bringing the large cannon to the ground. The Royalists attempted to raise Humpty onto another platform, but due to the weight, they failed to put the cannon back together again.
Many people speculated that Humpty was an egg, a walking-talking one, as well as an obese, clumsy individual who wasn’t to be taken seriously. Upon hearing it for the first time, it is completely understandable to be caught off-guard on the context or meaning of the rhyme because it is somewhat ambiguous. There are many theories floating around and the most popular one that seemed to stick was an animated egg. Mainly because there is a light-hearted and innocent mood to the whole idea as Humpty is a careless, lively egg or individual who may hurt themselves.
This nursery rhyme was very popular back in the eighteenth-century and still is during modern times. Parents and teachers sing it to children all over the United States and throughout English-speaking countries. One lesson that children can learn from it is that it’s always important to be careful around heights. It is not necessary to fear heights, but to be cautious around them because one could fall and perhaps receive a boo-boo. Bottom line is that the Humpty Dumpty nursery poem is one of the most traditional, fun and simple rhymes and will most likely remain that way for a very long time to come.