And Sometimes, Why Trivia Quiz

Answer: Christmas pie

"Little Jack Horner sat in the corner, Eating his Christmas pie.
He put in his thumb and pulled out a plum, And said "What a good boy am I"
This allegedly tells the story of how the Bishop of Glastonbury hid the deeds of several manors in a pie and sent them to Henry VIII as a bribe to save Glastonbury Abbey. The courier, Jack (or Thomas) Horner, stole the deed to Mell, a manor that was still owned by the Horner family in the 20th century.

Answer: To get a bone

"Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard, To get the poor doggie a bone.
When she got there, the cupboard was bare, So the poor little doggie had none."
The origin of this rhyme is disputed. The words we know today come from "The Comic Adventures of Old Mother Hubbard and Her Dog" by Sarah Catherine Martin, written in 1805. One theory is that it originated as an allegory of Cardinal Wolsey's attempt to obtain a divorce for Henry VIII, the cupboard being the Catholic Church. It is also said to refer to Saint Hubert, the patron saint of dogs.

Answer: How

"Mary, Mary, quite contrary, How does your garden grow?
With silver bells and cockle shells, And pretty maids all in a row".
There are many theories of how this rhyme originated. The pleasant tale of church bells, the shells worn by pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela, and the "pretty maids" being nuns, is the one most suitable for children. It is alleged in other versions that Mary refers to Mary Tudor AKA Bloody Mary. The silver bells and cockle shells refer to instruments of torture, and the pretty maids are guillotines.

Answer: he stole a pig

"Tom, Tom, the piper's son, Stole a pig and away did run.
The pig was eat, and Tom was beat, And he ran roaring down the street."
This is thought to be a rhyme to teach morals. Stealing is wrong and would probably have led to a severe beating at the time this rhyme was written.

Answer: to make tea

"Polly put the kettle on, kettle on, kettle on,
Polly put the kettle on, we'll all have tea.
This was supposedly written about little girls having a tea party around 1797. The rhyme was mentioned by Charles Dickens in "Barnaby Rudge".

Answer: to school

"Mary had a little lamb, its fleece was white as snow,
And everywhere that Mary went, the lamb was sure to go.
It followed her to school one day, which was against the rules,
And all the children laughed and played, to see a lamb in school".
This is an American rhyme written by Sarah Josepha Hale in 1830, although the first four lines may have been written by John Roulstone. It was the first thing recorded on Thomas Edison's phonograph.

Answer: both of them

"Jack and Jill went up the hill, To fetch a pail of water.
Jack fell down and broke his crown, And Jill came tumbling after"
This is thought to have been just a harmless 18th century children's rhyme. However, some sources suggest that it may refer to the beheading of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

Answer: nightgown

"Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town,
Upstairs and downstairs in his night gown,
Rapping at the window and crying through the lock,
Are the children in their beds, it's past ten o'clock."
A Scottish poem written by William Miller in 1841, it was supposedly written to teach children about the work of the town crier.

Answer: The little dog

"Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle, The cow jumped over the moon.
The little dog laughed to see such fun, And the dish ran away with the spoon".
This rhyme is thought to have been written about 1765 as a rhyme for children's entertainment. Although many academics have tried to attach more sinister meanings, thankfully none have stuck.

Answer: in the meadow

"Little Boy Blue, come blow your horn.
The sheep's in the meadow, the cow's in the corn".
The "Tommy Thumb Little Song Book" published the first written version of this rhyme in 1744, and it was probably just a children's story. However, those pesky academics have suggested that it refers to Cardinal Wolsey "blowing his own horn" and lining his pockets from the wool tax.