The original versions of children's fairy tailes. Original version of HANSEL and GRETEL story

An ancient story about children lost in the forest, found a new life in the very beginning of the XIV century, during the Great Famine of 1315-1317.

Three years of horrific crop failures caused by prolonged frost had taken about 25% of the population of Northern Europe. In cities and villages cannibalism flourished. Then about it Jeannot and Margot (or Hansel and Gretel in the German version) appeared.

There are many versions of the plot, but the most popular was that the father and mother starving to death decided to eat their children 😱 . Children hearing how parents sharpen knives rushed to the forest to wait there until their father and mother starve to death. On the way the boy threw pebbles so as not to get lost. After spending some time in the forest, the children also began to languish of hunger and quietly crept back to the house.

There they heard the conversation of their parents, who got some bread somewhere, and now they were sad that there was bread but the disobedient meat dish escaped them😨. The children stole a piece of bread and again moved into the thicket. But now the boy marked the way with crumbs which were immediately clotted by birds that were also distraught with hunger🙆.
When the bread was eaten the children decided to die, but reached a house made of bread!

And the windows were even lined with wheat cakes! Further all goes on already familiar to us plot. But at the end the children happily return home, bringing with them not only sacks of fresh bread, but also a well-roast witch.
So parents now do not need to eat their children. Everyone is happy, everybody is hugging each other👌.

Over time, the tale was changed.
Hunger as the main character still remained, but parents now simply get rid of extra mouths, taking children to the forest.
The house turns into gingerbread house, because now you won't catch little listeners to the witch by bread, and the roast witch remains in the oven without getting on the family table.

Photocredit 1: gwenburns.co.uk
Photocredit 2: blog.bestamericanpoetry.com

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Who likes the fairy tail of "Snow White"? Will discover the true story with you in my next post.
Thank you for reading. Have a nice day! ❤️❤️❤️