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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Susie Beever

Plague, sacrifice and mass executions - dark meanings behind popular nursery rhymes revealed

From skipping in circles singing Ring A Roses to making arches and dancing to Oranges and Lemons, nursery rhymes have long been a staple part of school playgrounds.

But while the tunes may seem the embodiment of childhood innocence, the back stories behind some of them are anything but.

Tales of plague deaths, sacrificial burials and execution have been suggested in the origins behind traditional nursery rhymes.

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