Pussycat and Good Queen Bess

Number 10, Downing Street and Windsor Castle. What do these two places have in common? I’ll tell you.

Have you got a cat at home? The one that only sleeps, eats and bothers you at night demanding your «sleepy» attention? Making circles around the flat  probably pretending she is an elephant waking you up? I have. And though my cat is the family’s pet, very often she had to experience hard times being pushed out just in the middle of the night in order for me to have at least one more quiet sleeping hour.

Yesterday serfing the Internet I came in touch with a very amusing article at TUT.BY. Prime Minister’s cat has been disqualified! Ha-ha! The English known as great lovers of their pets can also lose their patience! And what about mice? They seem to be rather independent)

So there is nothing unbelievable in the nursery rhyme about Pussycat.

«Pussycat pussycat, where have you been?»
«I’ve been up to London to visit the Queen.»
«Pussycat pussycat, what did you there?»
«I frightened a little mouse under her chair»
«MEOWW!»

The origins of the nursery rhyme «Pussycat pussycat» (First published in London during 1805 in the book «Songs for the Nursery»)

The origins of the «Pussycat pussycat» rhyme dates back to the history of 16th century Tudor England. One of the waiting ladies of Queen Elizabeth Ist had an old cat which roamed throughout Windsor castle. On one particular occasion the cat ran beneath the throne where its tail brushed against the Queen’s foot, startling her. Luckily ‘Good Queen Bess’ had a sense of humour and decreed that the cat could wander about the throne room, on condition it kept it free of mice!

Spied from Pussycat Pussycat Rhyme

And this is the famous Windsor Castle where the event took place many, many years ago.

Windsor castle is the largest and oldest occupied castle in the world and is one of the official residences of the Queen. It was originally built by William the Conquerer in the 11th Century and has seen many extensions and fortifications by English monarchs over the years.

What do the two places have in common? They both are obviously occupied by mice.