Rumpelstiltskin is a classic fairytale about wit, bravery, and the consequences of a careless boast. Follow the story of Josephine, a clever miller’s daughter who finds herself trapped in a seemingly impossible situation—spinning straw into gold for a greedy king. With the help of a mysterious little man, she escapes her troubles, only to face an even greater challenge years later. Will she outsmart the trickster and save her family? Read on to discover this timeless tale of cunning and courage.

Rumpelstiltskin

Once upon a time, there was a young woman named Josephine. She was the daughter of a poor miller, but she dreamed of more.

Josephine was clever and kind, but she could also be fiery and sharp-witted, and sometimes she got a bit carried away in her enthusiasm.

Once, for example, she was having a playful squabble with a friend in a tavern about who could weave the best cloth with their spinning wheel.

“My silk is the smoothest, most buttery silk in all the land, and I can weave it from the bums of earthworms!” the friend laughed.

“Ha! Well, I can weave GOLD out of STRAW!”

The two friends fell about laughing, finished their drinks, and went home arm in arm.

They thought nothing of their silly exchange until a few days later, a smartly dressed man came to Josephine’s door with a long curly scroll.

“Josephine Miller, you are hereby summoned to the palace to spin straw into gold for the king.”

Josephine was taken aback. “What on earth are you talking about, you silly man? Spin gold from straw? Where DID you hear that?”

The man looked a little perturbed, but he returned to his scroll. “It says here that at 8 pm on Friday in the Tavern, you said… ahem… ‘Ha! Well, I can weave gold out of straw.’”

Josephine now remembered her conversation with her friend with terrifying clarity. It had only been a joke! But before she could argue any further with the man, she was bundled into a carriage and was off to see the king.

The King wasn’t one for small talk, and so Josephine was immediately shown to a room with nothing but a spinning wheel and a pile of straw as high as the ceiling.

“Knock when it is done,” the king said, striding off and slamming the door behind him.

Josephine looked from the straw to the spinning wheel and back again.

“What has my big mouth got me into now…” she said.

She paced up and down, wondering what to do. She tested the door and window to see if she could maybe escape, but she was well and truly stuck.

“I really need a miracle here,” she murmured to herself.

POP!

A little man no taller than her waist appeared in a flash. He had a long beard down to his knees, a crooked nose, and a funny pointed hat.

“A miracle, you say…?” the little man said, with an impish glint in his eye.

Josephine was too worried about her situation and too shocked at the magical appearance of the little man to ask any questions, so she simply said, “Yes! I don’t suppose you can weave this straw into gold, can you? It would really get me out of a spot of bother!”

“As a matter of fact, I can,” the little man said, “but what will you give me in return?”

Without a second thought, Josephine took off her simple necklace—a present from her mother—and gave it to the little man.

He clicked his fingers and disappeared… and so too had the straw, in its place a stack of pure gold.

Josephine wasted no time, running to the door and banging on it.

In came the king, marveling at the stack of gold. He led her to an even larger room, with an even more massive heap of straw.

“You can’t be serious,” she said as the door slammed and she was once again alone.

“Um, little man?” she said into the darkness.

POP!

There he was again, the same impish grin on his face.

“I don’t suppose…” she started and gestured toward the pile of straw.

“Of course!” the little man said, and he held out his empty palm, clearly hoping for another gift.

Josephine really didn’t have much, but she took off her ring—a present from her father—and gave it to the little man.

Again, he clicked his fingers, and in a flash, he was gone, the straw disappearing with him, leaving only a much larger pile of gold in its place.

Josephine banged on the door again, and this time when the king appeared, she said, “That’s enough now! You have plenty of gold. I wish to go home!”

The king was taken aback. No one had ever stood up to him like that before. He had no sons and no daughters, and he had been searching for someone brave and clever to take the throne after him. Could this girl be the one?

“Once more,” he said to her. “What would it take for you to do it once more?”

Josephine thought for a moment. “You would have to give the gold to the poor. All of it.”

The king smiled. Yes. She was the one. So he took her to another even larger room and left her there with a massive pile of straw.

POP!

“Yes, yes, here I am,” said the little man and held out his palm again.

“I’m afraid I’ve nothing to give you,” said Josephine with a shrug.

“Then I will take a promise,” the little man said. “Your firstborn child.”

Josephine wasn’t really thinking about marriage or babies right now, so she hurriedly agreed without a second thought.

He clicked his fingers for the last time and left Josephine alone with an enormous pile of gold once again.

The king was so pleased with Josephine that he made her next in line to the throne, and she lived in the castle as a princess. She lived happily for a few years, marrying a very nice young prince from another kingdom, and soon after that, she had a lovely little baby. She had all but forgotten her promise to the little man.

One night, while her husband and baby slept and Josephine sat reading by the fire, the little man appeared again.

POP!

“I’ve come to take what was promised,” he said.

Josephine was horrified. “Isn’t there another deal we could make?” she asked desperately.

The little man thought for a moment and then grinned. “If you can guess my name in three guesses, I will never bother you again.”

Josephine thought. “John?” That was a very popular name.

The little man laughed and said, “Ha! No! You’ll never guess!”

“Umm… Eric?” she tried.

He laughed again. “Only one more guess now, princess!”

Josephine had an idea. “Must I guess now? May I go and get a cup of tea and have a think?”

“By all means!” the little man grinned.

So Josephine left the little man sitting by the fire, but she did not get a cup of tea. She stood just behind the door and watched through a crack.

The little man grew bored. He paced around the room, warmed his hands by the fire, then started humming to himself, and the tune turned into a little song that went like this:

“Tonight tonight, my plans I make,
Tomorrow tomorrow, the baby I take.
The princess will never win the game,
For Rumpelstiltskin is my name.”

Josephine smiled to herself and then went to get her cup of tea. Returning, she said, “I’m so sorry, I didn’t offer you a cup of tea—would you like one, Rumpelstiltskin?”

Well, the little man flew into such a rage that he disappeared with a BANG! And was never ever seen again.

And brave, clever Josephine lived happily ever after.

Also read: The Pied Piper of Hamelin

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