Sir Hugh is a traditional British folk song, Child ballad # 155, Roud # 73, a folkloric example of a blood libel.
According to Roud and Bishop
This song was collected in England and Scotland and was even more common in North America, but less well known in Ireland. ... The subject matter, however is disturbing, and reminds us that folklore is not always nice and cosy. Indeed, racists, xenophobes, political zealots and religious fundamentalists have always used legends, rumours, songs, jokes and other lore to support and spread their beliefs and to indoctrinate their young, and in particular to denigrate and stereotype outsiders and the victims of their bigotry.
Read more about Sir Hugh: Synopsis, Commentary, Music, See Also, External Links
Famous quotes containing the words sir and/or hugh:
“Here lies the body of Sir John Guise.
Nobody laughs, and nobody cries;
Where his soul is and how it fares
Nobody knows and nobody cares.”
—Anonymous. From Frobisher’s New Select Collection of Epitaphs (c. 1791)
“Thou shalt not kill; but need’st not strive
Officiously to keep alive.”
—Arthur Hugh Clough (1819–1861)