nursery rhyme origins

[AmyN]

What is the rhyme 'London Bridge is Falling Down' about?

[PaulB]

The nursery rhyme "London Bridge is Falling Down" describes the meaning of London Bridge during the Great Fire of London in 1666.

[snaykz]

Actually, it refers to the Saxons trying to reclaim London from the Vikings in 1014 (although the English were allied with Norway at the time, to fight against the Danes, so in a way it could be seen as the Saxons and one Viking faction versus another Viking faction). They needed to break through the bridge in order to capture a particularly well defended area, 'the Pool of London'. They were successful and this gave rise to the song. http://www.pooloflondon.co.uk/history/history7.php