The Grand Old Duke of York Lyrics
Up, down, and stuck half-way. This marching song has children bobbing up and down so fast that the last line is usually lost in giggles.
The Grand Old Duke of York
Oh, the grand old Duke of York,
He had ten thousand men,
He marched them up to the top of the hill
And he marched them down again.
And when they were up they were up,
And when they were down they were down,
And when they were only half-way up
They were neither up nor down.
The 1894 Sheffield version
O the grand old Duke of York
He had ten thousand men,
He marched them up the hill ago
And he marched them down again.
And when they were up they were up,
And when they were down they were down,
And when they were half-way up the hill
They were neither up nor down.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/the-grand-old-duke-of-york/
- Type
- Action Songs
- Tune
- Traditional
- Best for ages
- 2 to 7 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| He had ten thousand men | March on the spot. |
| He marched them up to the top of the hill | Stand up tall, or stretch up on tiptoe. |
| And he marched them down again | Crouch down low. |
| And when they were only half-way up | Freeze half-way, knees bent. |
| They were neither up nor down | Jump up and down on the last word. |
What Does The Grand Old Duke of York Mean?
A duke marches a huge army up a hill and straight back down again, for no reason at all. The joke is about pointless orders, and children enjoy it because the words tell their bodies exactly what to do. Sitting children can play it by standing and sitting, which makes it a good song for a crowded classroom.
History and Origin
The rhyme is often linked to Prince Frederick, Duke of York, who led British troops in Flanders in the 1790s, but that is a popular guess rather than a proven fact. A much older rhyme about the King of France marching his men up a hill and down again was already known in the 1600s. Alice Bertha Gomme recorded the version shown in the older text from children in Sheffield, where it was sung for a circle game called Find the Ring. Their "up the hill ago" is local speech, not a mistake.
Learning Activities
- Stand and sit: in a classroom, children stand on up, sit on down and hover on half-way up.
- Faster and faster: sing it three times, speeding up each round.
- Lap version: for babies, bounce your child up on your knees and gently lower them on down.