How is the nursery rhyme London Bridge is Falling down related to Vikings in Britain?
In 1013, London Bridge was burned down by King Ethelred and his Norwegian ally Olaf Haraldsson in a bid to divide the invading forces of the Danish king Svein Haraldsson. The event was recorded in the Saga of Olaf Haraldson, part of the Heimskringla composed around 1225 by Snorri Sturluson. Snorri quotes extracts of a lay by a Norse poet, Ottar Svarte, including the following passage which is strikingly similar to parts of the rhyme: London Bridge is broken down. — Gold is won, and bright renown. Shields resounding, War-horns sounding, Hild is shouting in the din! Arrows singing, Mail-coats ringing — Odin makes our Olaf win! However, the popular version probably originates from 1269, when Henry III granted the tolling right to Queen Eleanor. She is the “fair lady” who notably failed to spend the resulting funds on actually maintaining the structure.
