A Lady on a White Horse

The guidebook I picked up on my recent visit to Broughton Castle provides an interesting anecdote in relation to the Fiennes family name:

Local legend has it that the famous nursery rhyme was originally ‘Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross to see a Fiennes lady ride on a white horse’ – as opposed ‘to see a white lady’

“Ride a Cock Horse to Banbury Cross
To see a Fiennes lady rie on a white horse
With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes
She shall have music wherever she goes”

4 Comments CherryPie on Oct 10th 2017

4 Responses to “Ride a Cock Horse…”

  1. The Yum List says:

    As a child we sang to “see a fine lady”. Not quite the right translation either.

  2. James Higham says:

    Might be so, might not.