German Legends, no. 493

The Women of Weinsberg

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

When King Conrad III defeated the Duke of Welf (in the year 1140) and placed Weinsberg under siege, the wives of the besieged castle negotiated a surrender which granted them the right to leave with whatever they could carry on their shoulders. The king allowed them that much. Leaving everything else aside, each woman took her own husband on her shoulders and carried him out. When the king's people saw what was happening, many of them said that that was not what had been meant and wanted to put a stop to it. But the king laughed and accepted the women's clever trick. "A king," he said, "should always stand by his word."

• Source: "Die Weiber zu Weinsperg," Deutsche Sagen, vol. 2 (Berlin: In der Nicolaischen Buchhandlung,1818), no. 481, p. 180. In later editions this legend is numbered 493.

• Translated by D. L. Ashliman. © 2001.

• The Grimms' source: Cölner Chronik (1499).

• Weinsberg is a town near Heilbronn in southwest Germany. The castle above Weinsberg is called "Burg Weibertreu," which translates roughly as "Castle Women's Faithfulness." Legends about similar rescues of besieged men by their courageous and clever wives are told about many other castles and fortified cities in Europe. Such stories are classified as Aarne-Thompson-Uther type 875* folktales.

Related links

• D. L. Ashliman's folktexts, a library of folktales, folklore, fairy tales, and mythology.

• The Grimm Brothers' Home Page.

• The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales (Grimms' Fairy Tales).

Revised March 1, 2009.