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Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme -

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men. Cannot put Humpty Dumpty together again.

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Origins of Humpty Dumpty -

Humpty Dumpty is one of the most popular nursery rhymes in the English-speaking world. But what are the origins of this delightful little ditty?

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Earliest known version -

The Humpty Dumpty rhyme first emerged in Great Britain in the late 18th century. The earliest known version, published in 1797 by English composer and organist Samuel Arnold (1740–1802) ran: Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
Four-score Men and Four-score more,
Could not make Humpty Dumpty where he was before.

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Different versions -

Several other slightly different versions followed. In 1810, the four-line poem was written with altered lyrics and spelling variations: Humpty Dumpty sate on a wall,
Humpti Dumpti had a great fall;
Threescore men and threescore more,
Cannot place Humpty dumpty as he was before. 

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All about the money -

An interesting version appeared in 1835, in which the king's horses are replaced by money: Humpty Dumpty on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
Not all the King’s money nor all the King's men,
Could put Humpty Dumpty up again.

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Variation on a theme -

Yet another, darker, version of the children's song appeared in 1846, sang as: Humpty Dumpty lay in a beck.
With all his sinews around his neck;
Forty Doctors and forty wrights
Couldn't put Humpty Dumpty to rights!

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Humpty as a boy -

Significantly, neither of these earlier versions depict Humpty Dumpty as an egg. Instead, Humpty is seen as a little lost boy.

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The egghead appears -

It was only in 1871 that Humpty appeared as an egg-like character for the first time, in Lewis Carroll's 'Through the Looking-Glass.'

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The riddle that is Humpty Dumpty -

Before 1871, the rhyme had never explicitly stated that the subject was an egg, possibly because it may have been originally posed as a riddle (in some quarters "humpty dumpty" was a derogatory term used to describe a short, clumsy person, thus: "who fell off the wall?"). But what was more puzzling to historians was the ideas behind the lyrics and whether or not Humpty Dumpty was based on a historical person.

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Was Richard III Humpty? -

One of the most colorful theories is that Humpty Dumpty was based on King Richard III of England, depicted as hunchbacked in Tudor histories and particularly in Shakespeare's play. Was "Humpty Dumpty" a cruel name for the monarch?

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"All the king's horses and all the king's men" -

Richard III was roundly defeated at the Battle of Bosworth Field on August 22, 1485. It's been suggested that Humpty's fall refers to the monarch's demise on the battlefield and that "All the king's horses and all the king's men" were the army that failed to prevail.

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Humpty under siege -

Another suggestion is that Humpty Dumpty was the name used to describe a "tortoise" siege engine, an armor framed weapon deployed during siege warfare to break through the defensive walls and gates of a city or fortress. One of these devices was used unsuccessfully by Royalists against well dug-in Parliamentarians during the siege of Gloucester in 1643 during the English Civil War.

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Humpty's fire power -

In 1648 during the siege of Colchester, it was the Royalists who found themselves on the defensive. They hauled a huge cannon—colloquially called "Humpty Dumpty"—to the top of Colchester Castle tower, the aim being to bombard Parliamentarian lines below. However, return cannon fire dislodged Humpty, hence "had a great fall."

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Drink to his health -

Also in the 17th century, Humpty Dumpty was the term given to a drink of brandy boiled with ale, according to the Oxford English Dictionary.

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Humpty hits the stage -

Before Humpty Dumpty became an egg, American actor and pantomime clown George L. Fox (1825–1877) helped popularize the nursery rhyme boy character in a series of two-act performances staged in New York City in 1868.

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A character in demand -

Fox appeared as Humpty Dumpty no less than 1,268 times at the city's Olympic Theatre. His interpretation of a jovial yet insecure individual easily hurt by put-downs struck a chord with his predominantly working-class audience.

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'Through the Looking-Glass' -

But the perception by audiences of Humpty Dumpty changed forever after Lewis Carroll introduced the nursey rhyme character as a rotund, egg-shaped personality in 'Through the Looking-Glass.' "My name means the shape I am," declares Humpty during an exchange with Alice.

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A role to play -

In 'Through the Looking-Glass,' published in 1871, Carroll reintroduces the idea of naming and the role it plays in shaping identity.

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Sitting on a promise -

It's Alice that remarks how Humpty Dumpty resembles an egg, an aside that irritates him. Concerned for his safety, she asks why he sits on a wall. Humpty brushes away the question, adding that the king had promised that he will send all his horses and all his men to put him together if he ever fell.

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The common verse -

By 1882, the common rendition of the nursey rhyme had replaced all other versions. Well, nearly all.

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Humpty's artistic license -

Poets and lyricists still used artistic license to shape their own versions of the nursery rhyme. For example, this page from a children's alphabet book reads: "H is for Humpty, who sat on a wall / And when he fell off—oh, my! What a fall / I hate to inform you what really befell / For of poor Humpty Dumpty was left but a shell."

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Humpty reinvented -

In 1902, American illustrator and caricaturist William Wallace Denslow (1856–1915) revised and adapted the traditional nursery rhyme by introducing Humpty Dumpty's son, who wants to be different from his father, harder and not so fragile. Son of Humpty embarks on a series of adventures and escapades that take him to all sorts of weird and wonderful places.

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Big-screen debut -

Humpty Dumpty made his big-screen debut in 1933's 'Alice in Wonderland.' W.C. Fields portrayed Humpty. Charlotte Henry played Alice while Gary Cooper, better known for his strong, quiet screen persona, took on the role of the White Knight.

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Easter and the egg -

It wasn't long before Humpty Dumpty played a more commercial role. He quickly became associated with Easter, his character perfectly suited to promoting the season.

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How sweet! -

And Humpty is still selling chocolate and candy today, his name having long been held in the public domain.

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Chipped chips? -

Similarly, you can purchase Humpty Dumpty chips, such as these on sale in Canada.

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Humpty in the modern age -

Here's Humpty flying high as a giant, tethered helium balloon waving to the crowds during the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.

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Head in the clouds -

And we know Humpty has a head for heights, but in this image Humpty Dumpty flies overhead during a morning ascent at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in New Mexico.

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Humpty dumped! -

But of all the stories surrounding this enchanting egg man, this has to be the weirdest. In September 2021, Wisconsin police were alerted to the theft of a US$1,400 bronze sculpture of Humpty, er, Dumpty depicted not on a wall but sitting on a toilet. It had been stolen from an art fair. Fortunately, the valuable artifact was recovered on October 1, the thieves apparently having washed their hands clean of the legendary nursery rhyme character!

Sources: (Classic FM) (WMTV 15 News) (History Defined) (Library of Congress Blogs) (All That's Interesting) (Oxford English Dictionary)  

See also: Timeless children’s books to read with your kids

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