what is the origin of "ring around the rosey, a pockett full of posies" ?

Answer 1

it was indeed a plague reference. ppl would get a red spot on their skin, and it would soon form rings of dying flesh around it. when the dead bodies were piled up, they were often covered with flowers, or flowers were put in their clothes to help contol the smell. then they were burned.

ring around the rosey - the red spots and dying flesh
pocket full of posies- the flowers,
ashes ashes, we all fall down - dying and being burned to stop the disease from spreading.

Answer 2

The Plague indeed!

The plague was marked by red sores with a ring around them - posies represent death. Ashes, Ashes, we all fall down. I think the Plague took out something like 70% of the population - they all did fall down where they stood in the street.

Now Pop Goes the Weasel is about the grease Monkeys (strong men in physical professions) chasing and teasing the Weasels (the Hatters - men that made hats using mercury and went insane) until someone got hurt at the local pub, the Mulberry Bush.

All around the Mulberry Bush
The Monkey chased the Weasel
The Monkey thought it was all in Fun
Pop goes the Weasel.

Morbid - but evern worse are some the stories the Germans are passing around to their kids.

Peace!

Answer 3

My sister lived in England for 3 years. She said the little kids would sing "ring around the rosies, a pocketful of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall down." She said she was told that it came from when the plague was killing everyone and the posies were the flowers for the funeral. Kind of morbid.

Answer 4

A common myth is that the rhyme commemorates the Great Plague of London in 1665, or perhaps earlier outbreaks of bubonic plague in England. However, this is unlikely. This implies an origin no later than the 17th century for the song, but this is possible only if it were recited for centuries without being written down (as it first appeared in print in the late 19th century).

Answer 5

It was the black plague.
People were falling over dead, everywhere in Europe.
I thought it spread across the GLOBE?
"Ring around the rosey", was significant of the red sores on the body.
"Pocket full of poseys", something about "the people thought the flowers would ward off the PLAGUE.,...I can't remember exactly.
Maybe it was to try and rid the plague...
Ashes ashes we all fall down...
Death overtaking the masses and burning the bodies to stop the spread of the disease.
I saw a documentary either on the HISTORY CHANNEL.
Sad but true...

Answer 6

It was a song children would sing, talking of the Bubonic Plague. People used to carry bunches or strong smelling herbs or flowers (posies). They thought that strong smells would keep away the plague.

Answer 7

In the early 18th century when the black plague was around they used to sing this to keep women and children calm and try and make them see humor or ease with the whole ordeal, thats why it says "a tissue a tissue we all fall down" because the black plage was transmitted like a cold and it means, if there is 1 person with the plague in 1 area the disease wil spread like a bush fire very fast

Answer 8

The black plague, the ring what the rose colored ring that was the rash, and the pocket full of posies was to help with the stench of the dead

Answer 9

Pretty sure it was about the black plague and a "pocket full of posies" was thought to keep it away. Something like that.

Answer 10

Carole is correct. White rings around the sores, carry poseys in one's pocket to ward off 'evil spirits', and burning the corpses to prevent the spread of the plague. But, the plague killed 25% of the population, not 70%.