Jack Sprat

Jack Sprat could eat no fat,
His wife could eat no lean,
And so betwixt them both, you see,
They licked the platter clean.

Midi: Jack Sprat

Many 'Nursery Rhymes' have political origins.
It is said that Jack Sprat was King Charles I.
This rhyme poked fun at Charles I of England and his greedy wife, Henrietta Maria. When Parliament refused to finance Charles’ war with Spain and left him “lean,” he turned the tables and dissolved Parliament. He and his wife imposed an illegal war tax and forced the common people to house their troops. They “licked” England clean to feed their own appetites.