Nursery Rhymes: Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

Is it just me or are some nursery rhymes, like the original fairy tales, a little grim? (I'm not complaining, just asking.) We have things from black birds pecking off noises, dogs playing dead, to keeping your wife in a pumpkin shell. It's a little assortment of such wonderful stories. My all time favourite is the urban legend about the meaning behind "Ring Around The Rosie".

Today, however, on searching down meanings of nursery rhymes I came across this little gem of a tale.

Mary, Mary, quite contrary,

How does your garden grow?

With silver bells, and cockle shells,

And pretty maids all in a row.

This nursery rhyme, is said, to be alluding to Bloody Mary (Mary Tudor, Mary I Of England).
So, let us break this down line by line:

"How does your garden grow?"
This line is thought to be ridiculing Mary on the inability to produce an heir.
Also, prehaps, it is refering to growing cemeteries, as she filled them with Protestants.

"With silver bells, and cockle shells"
Perhaps this can be referring to devices of torture.
The only references I find to either silver bells and cockle shells go directly back to this rhyme and no independent information. Supposedly silver bells were thumb screws and cockle shells some form of torture instrument of the genitals.

"And pretty maids all in a row."
Some of my research claims this refers to the Maiden, as in the guillotine...
Or, this line is also believed to refer to her several miscarriages.



Other theories are that this nursery rhyme is speaking of the Catholic church, the silver bells being the sanctus bells, the cockleshells the badges of the pilgrims to the shrine of Santiago de Compostela and the pretty maids are to be nuns.
Or, they say, this could be a nursery rhyme of Mary Queen of Scots (though that interutation is only a little less gloomy). In this version the pretty maids all in a row would be the four Maries in waiting.



I look forward to exploring more nursery rhymes and fairy tales with you in the future.
Enjoy your weekend!