For Want of a Nail the Shoe was Lost

Introductory Notes on the Rhyme

According to G. L. Apperson, in English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases, this rhyme can trace its origins to John Gower’s Confesio Amantis, c. 1390. The dictionary lists several sources for later occurrences of the rhyme - in part or in full - and its variations.

Overall, the versions of this rhyme, which have accompanying illustrations follow the exact same text, or nearly so. Generally all of the illustrations include at least a horseshoe in order to clarify and define the nature and power of the nail. The horseshoe is the key, which links the nail and its importance to the rest of the objects listed in the rhyme. When illustrating the battle, illustrators often chose to use the symbol of a sword; a crown was also often used to represent the kingdom. Why the artists chose the crown versus a castle might well be with the idea that the crown represents a king, and the king must have a kingdom.

Often the illustrations, which include riders and battles echo the costumes, arms, and potential battle scenes from 18th and 19th century Europe. The illustrators may have been attempting to link the text of the rhyme to its first appearance in Mother Goose collections or to its earliest standardized version as a French military saying. Though one often discovers the rhyme, or at least the first few lines, appearing regularly in texts on military strategy, war, etc.; the underlying message is universally applicable.