Hi, Rusty!
According to some historians this is how the story goes.....
In 1648, the city of Colchester was under the control of the Royalists, who wished for King Charles I to be able to rule the country without Parliament.
In order to fortify the city against attack from the Parliamentarians (the group who supported Parliament and wished to oust Charles I), they erected several large cannons on the walls surrounding the city.
On June 15, 1648, the cannon referred to as “Humpty Dumpty” was positioned on the wall.
By this time, the Parliamentarians had surrounded and laid siege to the city, so Humpty was used to bombard the enemy and prevent a full-scale assault.
However, then a Parliamentarian cannonball blew apart the wall underneath Humpty Dumpty.
This collapsed the fortification and sent Humpty Dumpty tumbling to the ground.
This is where the king's men and the horses came in......as I said previously!
Please don't go tell Aunt Rhody about the goose being shot......