The Really Meaning of Baa Baa Black Sheep

So many nursery rhymes appear to be quite innocent and carry moral meanings with messages of good citizenship, behind them we often hear of Kings and Queens of England, bloodshed and tears. Baa Baa Black Sheep is no exception.

The real story behind Baa Baa Black Sheep is based on the British wool industry and involve King Edward I with a later addition when King Edward II became ruler of England.

King Edward I was the Plantagenet King (17 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward The Longshanks and The Hammer of the Scots.

Like many of his forefathers he spent a lot of his time defending and developing his kingdom, being involved in battles, sieges and even hostage situations. Edward didn't fight wars from a desk and it certainly wasn't a quiet life by any means.

During a long battle torn return journey to England, from the crusades in 1272 he was informed of the news that his father had died, as a consequence he was crowned King at Westminster Abbey on the 19^th August of that year.

The crusades had accomplished very little in reality but cost vast amounts of money and Edward was now King of England with a very big bill and needed to pay for his part in the crusades.

They taxed the poor!

The Egyptian Pharaohs taxed the use of cooking oil
Emperor Vespasian of Rome levied a Urine Tax
Tsar of Russia, Peter the Great, put a tax on 'souls' and another on beards among many others.

King William III created window tax

Prime Minister of Britain William Pitt the Younger taxed hats

Not to mention the Boston Tea Party

At the time of King Edward's reign when he surveyed his kingdom he saw more than more sheep than people. Even a poor farmer might have a flock of 8000 spread over tenanted land and would need over a dozen shepherds to to heard the flock.

There's the answer, tax sheep – actually, there is a better method of collecting even more money, simply tax their wool, then the king will pull in revenue every time the sheep are shorn.

Contrary to modern popular belief Baa Baa Black Sheep is not a racist poem, it has nothing to do with slavery but is a genuine nursery rhyme intended to teach babies the sound that sheep make.Onomatopoeia are words that sound exactly like their meaning and baa baa in "Baa, baa black sheep" is a perfect example.

So, the nursery rhyme itself is fairly innocent until we look at the original line at the end.

The original Baa Baa Black Sheep reads like this:

Baa Baa Black Sheep Have You Any Wool?

Yes Sir, Yes Sir, Three Bags Full

One For The Master
One For The Dame

And One For The Little Boy

Who Cries Down The Lane

The last line was changed to make it more appealing; it now reads “Who Lives Down The Lane”.

The little boy represents the poor farmer who wasn't happy at paying the king's 66% tax on his wool.

The three bags of wool represented the three lots of one third.

One for the master – King Edward I

One for the Dame – The Church

And one for the little boy who cries down the lane.