Name This Folktale

[Psycheinaboat]

I am uncertain of where to start this thread, so I hope this will do.

I vaguely remember a folk/fairy tale about a witch who steals a prince away in the night and smears animal blood upon the queen’s mouth so that the king will accuse her of eating the son. I want to look up this tale, but can not remember the title.

Thanks in advance for any clues to my elusive story.

[Petrarch's Love]

That sounds really familiar. I'm pretty sure it's in the Grimm's Fairy Tales. Let me think for a little while and it may come to me.

[Petrarch's Love]

Got it! It's from the tale of the six swans in the Grimm's Fairy Tales. Here's a link to an online version:

http://grimmsfairytales.us/_wsn/page10.html

[kratsayra]

Wow, I've never heard of that story. I love how bizarre fairy tales and folktales can be.

[J.D.]

I don't know which Grimm's Tale it is, but I'd bet anything that its roots are in the tale of Pwyll, Lord of Dyved, which can be found in the medieval Welsh folk tale collection called the Mabinogion. In this story Pwyll's son infant son is abducted, and the maids, afraid they will be blamed, smear deer blood on Pwyll's wife Rhiannon's face to make it appear that she has eaten the child. Eventually, this son, Pryderi, would be returned to Pwyll and would take over his father's kingdom--yet another tale of the strange birth/childhood of a king or knight, in true medieval romance style.

[Petrarch's Love]

Very interesting, J.D. We seem to be unearthing a whole tradition of cannibalistic accusations in stories. It feels like something that's been adapted into the Six Swans story because of the way it sort of shows up as a device in the middle, so it's not surprising that it had roots elsewhere. I'll have to look up a copy of the Mabinogian story.

[Charles Darnay]

I don't know which Grimm's Tale it is, but I'd bet anything that its roots are in the tale of Pwyll, Lord of Dyved, which can be found in the medieval Welsh folk tale collection called the Mabinogion. In this story Pwyll's son infant son is abducted, and the maids, afraid they will be blamed, smear deer blood on Pwyll's wife Rhiannon's face to make it appear that she has eaten the child. Eventually, this son, Pryderi, would be returned to Pwyll and would take over his father's kingdom--yet another tale of the strange birth/childhood of a king or knight, in true medieval romance style.


This is a great tale as is the rest of the Mabinogion

[J.D.]

There is a copy of the Mabinogion here: http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/5160

[Aiculík]

I don't know Irish folk tale or Six Swans, but in Slovakia this tale is called Goldylocks. Goldylocks's father stole lettuce from the garden of the Black witch and she made him promise that he'll give her "what he doesn't know about" in his house. He thought it's something unimportant, if he doesn't know about it - but found out that it was the fact that his wife was pregnant. So when Goldylocks was six, she went to live with the Black witch. In witch's house there were 13 rooms, and she had to clean 12 of them, but was forbidden to open and look into the 13th room.
But of course she did. And there were 7 cursed princes and they made her swear she would never say what she saw.
And the Black witch mate her mute (she could only speak to the Black witch) and sent her away. A prince found her, fell in love with her and married her. And she had a son. But the Black witch came and tried to force her to say what she saw but she refused. So the witch kidnapped her son and dripped some blood on her mouth so that it would seem Goldylocks killed him.
The same thing happened two more times. And then the people forced young prince to sentence her to death as a witch and murderer. They tied her on the pile of wood and set it on fire. And again Black witch came and asked her for three times what she saw in the 13th room, but she refused to tell. And by that she broke the curse.
The Black witch turned into the White witch and it turned out that 7 princes were her brothers. She then returned Goldylocks their three kids and they all lived happily ever after.
As a little kid, I was terribly afraid of this tale. I had it on the tape and every time when the Black Witch said "Goldylocks, tell me what you saw! Your legs / waist / shoulders are in fire", I simply run away and hid under my bed. :lol: I don't think I ever heard the happyend - not until I was much older.

[Psycheinaboat]

Oh, wow! I subscribed to this thread, but my spam filter must have been keeping the updates from me. It's great to check this thread on a fluke and find such response.

Thank you Petrarch and J.D.!!!

[Niamh]

I don't know Irish folk tale or Six Swans, but in Slovakia this tale is called Goldylocks. Goldylocks's father stole lettuce from the garden of the Black witch and she made him promise that he'll give her "what he doesn't know about" in his house. He thought it's something unimportant, if he doesn't know about it - but found out that it was the fact that his wife was pregnant. So when Goldylocks was six, she went to live with the Black witch. In witch's house there were 13 rooms, and she had to clean 12 of them, but was forbidden to open and look into the 13th room.
But of course she did. And there were 7 cursed princes and they made her swear she would never say what she saw.
And the Black witch mate her mute (she could only speak to the Black witch) and sent her away. A prince found her, fell in love with her and married her. And she had a son. But the Black witch came and tried to force her to say what she saw but she refused. So the witch kidnapped her son and dripped some blood on her mouth so that it would seem Goldylocks killed him.
The same thing happened two more times. And then the people forced young prince to sentence her to death as a witch and murderer. They tied her on the pile of wood and set it on fire. And again Black witch came and asked her for three times what she saw in the 13th room, but she refused to tell. And by that she broke the curse.
The Black witch turned into the White witch and it turned out that 7 princes were her brothers. She then returned Goldylocks their three kids and they all lived happily ever after.
As a little kid, I was terribly afraid of this tale. I had it on the tape and every time when the Black Witch said "Goldylocks, tell me what you saw! Your legs / waist / shoulders are in fire", I simply run away and hid under my bed. :lol: I don't think I ever heard the happyend - not until I was much older.

There is also a german folk tale version of this one that was put into the Grimms Fairytales.
Heres a link to the story.
Seven Ravens (http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/grimm/ht12.htm)

[Niamh]

Forgot to mention that we also have a folktale in Ireland regarding Swans, no blood on the mouth but there is an evil witch of a stepmother!
The children of Lir (http://mockingbird.creighton.edu/english/micsun/IrishResources/childlir.htm)

[J.D.]

Glad we could be of help!