6. London Bridge Is Falling Down
Wikipedia
London Bridge is falling down, Falling down, falling down. London Bridge is falling down, My fair lady.
Not only the lengthiest of the nursery rhymes, but one with the most theories behind it. They range from the Vikings to Henry VIII, however one that really stood out was - and wait for it - the child sacrifices theory. Yup, if things arent getting twisted enough we are throwing the burying of, perhaps even alive, children in the foundations of the bridge into the mix. This idea was first advanced by Alice Bertha Gomme in The Traditional Games of England, Scotland and Ireland (1894-1898). Its based around the idea that the bridge would collapse unless the body of a human sacrifice was buried at its foundations (however, where Alice got that this had to be a child from remains unsure...). The line
Set a man to watch all night, Watch all night, watch all night is reference to this human sacrifice, who can forever watch over the bridge. There is no archaeological evidence to support this theory however, so its either one of the greatest cover ups in history or Alice has some deep rooted childhood issues she needs to work through.