Old King Cole

1708 version:
Good King Cole,
And he call'd for his Bowle,
And he call'd for Fidler's three;
And there was Fiddle, Fiddle,
And twice Fiddle, Fiddle,
For 'twas my Lady's Birth-day,
Therefore we keep Holy-day
And come to be merry.

An Ancient King

The nursery rhyme ‘Old King Cole’ refers to an actual ancient king — though it is not quite certain which one, as there are at least three different royal personages with the same name from roughly the same time period. The name itself is of old Celtic (Brythonic) origin, originally spelled as Coel.

A Military Commander Became King

The most probable candidate is Coel Hen (AD 350–420). At first, he was a Roman commander, governing vast territories in northern Britain, south of the famous Hadrian’s Wall. When the Romans left Britain in 410, after nearly 400 years of Roman rule, he became king. It has been speculated that he was also a member of the ancient Roman family Coelius, since high officers in the Roman government usually belonged to noble families.

The Two Other Kings

The other two possible figures are Cole the Magnificent, a 3rd-century Decurion of Rome in Britannia; and St. Ceneu ap Coel, son of Coel Hen, who became a saint for defending Christianity against pagan invaders. Geoffrey of Monmouth’s History of the Kings of Britain (12th century) even claims St. Ceneu attended the coronation of King Arthur.

A Cloth Merchant

Yet another interpretation was presented by William Chappell in the 19^th century. He proposed an idea that King Cole could be a 12^th century cloth merchant Thomas Cole-brook from Reading (Berkshire, England).

As smoking of pipes was not known in 4th-century Britain, “called for his pipe” almost certainly refers to a woodwind instrument. Interestingly, the Irish word ceol means “music,” which further supports the musical interpretation.

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