Goosey Goosey Gander where shall I wander,
Upstairs, downstairs and in my lady’s chamber
There I met an old man who wouldn’t say his prayers,
I took him by the left leg and threw him down the stairs.

This rhyme has historical allusions to the struggle between The Catholics and The Protestants in the Sixteenth Century.

“The lady’s chamber” was a room owned by a lady of high rank at that time. It is also often referred to as a Solar.

Priest Holes were small secret rooms which were part of many great houses in England in those days. As the name suggests the priests had to hide there to save themselves from being persecuted by the zealous Protestants-who were totally opposed to the Catholic religion.

If a priest got caught, he as well as the family harboring him were mercilessly executed by the Protestants.

Visalakshi Ramani