The theories about the identity of the famous lady who rode to Banbury Cross range from Queen, to scandalous ladies; from goddesses to nobility.
Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross,
To see a fine lady upon a white horse;
With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes
She shall have music wherever she goes.
Alternate Version
Ride a cock horse to Coventry Cross,
To see a fine lady upon a white horse;
With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes
She shall have music wherever she goes.
Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross
There are several suggestions as to what a cock horse might be, among them a white horse, a black horse, a hobbyhorse, or perhaps a euphemism for stallion.
Banbury Cross could refer to either a literal cross, erected in Banbury or to the fact that Banbury was located a crossroads.
Banbury had a large white stone cross to which people would pilgrimage. Not much is known about the cross today because in 1602, anti-Catholic Puritans destroyed the cross because they disagreed with the idea of pilgrimages and perhaps just because it was Catholic.
The fact that Banbury was located at a crossroads would have been enough to warrant mention in a nursery rhyme. Crossroads are significant as a metaphor in religion, art, and literature.
To see a fine lady upon a white horse;
The theories regarding who the ‘fine lady’ might be include, Queen Elizabeth I of England, Lady Godiva, Celia Fiennes, and the Welsh Goddess Rhiannon.
Queen Elizabeth was said to travel to Banbury Cross to see the notable cross.
Lady Godiva is most well known for the legend concerning her naked ride through town on horseback. Her ride was taken in an effort to relieve the taxes of the people Coventry who were under her husband’s care. After countless appeals to him, Lady Godiva’s exasperated husband said he would relieve the taxes if she rode naked through the town. This account would fit well into the alternate version of the rhyme.
Apparently, Celia Feinnes (pronounced fines) married into the Sayre family who lived near Banbury cross at the Broughton Castle. She took many rides through the English countryside in the late 1600’s.
The Welsh Goddess Rhiannon was said to ride a white stallion.
With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes
Wearing bells on the toes of one’s shoes was a popular fashion in the 1600’s, one that dates back to the Plantagenet era. The bells were worn on the toes of shoes that tapered and often curled up. Legend states that these shoes were supposed to imitate the cloven hoof of the goat and were worn by Satanists.
She shall have music wherever she goes
In addition to the music from her apparel, music may have come from the parade-like atmosphere surrounding the ride. If the ‘fine lady’ were Queen Elizabeth, minstrels would have accompanied her on her pilgrimage.
Sources:
Baring Gould, William S and Ceil. The Annotated Mother Goose. Bramhall House, 1962.
To learn more about nobility in nursery rhymes, check out Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary, and Hey Diddle, Diddle.
