In 1284, 72 years after the unfortunate children's crusades, the story of the mass exodus of children suddenly repeated itself in the German city of Hameln (Hameln). Then 130 local children left the house and disappeared. It was this incident that became the basis of the famous legend of the Pied Piper.
How a legend became a fairy tale
You probably remember the story of how a mysterious musician, not receiving payment for ridding the city of rats, took the children of dishonest and greedy townspeople with him. Only three of them managed to return home: a blind boy who went astray, a deaf boy who did not hear the music, and a boy who ran out of the house half-dressed, but returned back because he was "ashamed of his appearance." For the first time in a familiar form, this legend was recorded in the middle of the 16th century. It is contained in the chronicle of Counts von Zimmern of Württemberg. In 1806, the song "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" already existed, which Ludwig Joachim von Arnim and Clemens Brentano included in their anthology of German poetry. And then the well-known fairy tale of the Brothers Grimm was written, who, on the one hand, made this story famous all over the world, but, on the other, finally reduced the old legend to the level of a children's fairy tale.
Meanwhile, the fact of the disappearance of Hamelin's children is beyond doubt, and there are still no generally accepted rational explanations for this incident.
Pied Piper of Hamelin, medieval miniature
What the docs say
In the city chronicle of Hamelin, written in 1375, nothing is said about rats, but the following is reported:
"In 1284, on the day of John and Paul, which was on the 26th day of June, a flutist dressed in colorful clothes led out of the city one hundred and thirty children born in Hameln to Coppen near Calwaria, where they disappeared."
The same is stated in a tablet found in the twentieth century during the renovation of one of the old houses:
"In the year 1284, on the Day of John and Paul on June 26, there was a Whistler in colorful clothes, by whom 130 children, born in Hameln, were taken away and lost in grief."
This building is now called the "Pied Piper House", now it houses a small museum.
Hameln, House of the Pied Piper
The Chronicle of the Principality of Lüneburg (written around 1440-1450) states:
“A young man of thirty, handsome and well-dressed, so that everyone who saw him admired his article and clothes, entered the city through the bridge and the Weser Gate. Immediately, he began to play the silver flute of amazing shape throughout the city. And all the children who heard these sounds, numbering about 130, followed him … They disappeared - so that no one could ever find any of them."
In 1553, the burgomaster of Bamberg, who got acquainted with this story while he was hostage in Hameln, complements the story: it turns out that the Flutist, who locked the children in Mount Coppenburg, promised to return in thirty years. And many people in Hameln really expected his return, which, according to their calculations, should have taken place in 1583.
And only in 1559, in the already mentioned chronicle of Counts von Zimmern, there appears a story about rats, from which a wandering schoolboy saved the city. Until then, the appearance of the Flutist in Hameln had nothing to do with rats. It is believed that this whole unattractive story with an army of rats and stupid greedy townspeople is a slander against the Gameliners from the side of envious neighbors - such is the example of "black PR" of the 16th century.
History of the city of Hameln
In historical documents, the small town of Hameln (Hameln) was first mentioned in 851. Now it is the administrative center of the Hameln-Pyrmont region (East Westphalia), with a population of about 58 thousand people. Advantageously located on the banks of the Weser River, Hameln was a member of the Hanseatic League and specialized in the grain trade, even on the city coat of arms at that time millstones flaunted (it is not surprising that it was in this city, according to legend, that rats bred so much). Later this city was part of Hanover and Prussia.
Hameln in 1662
At the beginning of the twentieth century, Hameln, with the opening of the North German Automobile Plant (1907), almost became the capital of the German automobile industry, but could not compete with Wolsburg, where the famous Volkswagen plant was built.
After Hitler came to power, the Hamelin prison became the place of execution of opponents of the regime, and after the defeat of Germany in World War II, Nazis, recognized as war criminals, were already executed here. Now the building of this prison houses a hotel - I would not be surprised if its current guests not only are not embarrassed by the gloomy history of this hotel, but even, on the contrary, perceive it as a kind of bonus, proudly posting photos of former cameras on Instagram.
The exodus of the children of Hamelin: versions and assumptions
So, Hameln, which is told in German legends and songs, is not a fictional and not fabulous, but a very real city, and the real was the disappearance of his children. This event became a real tragedy for Hamelin, its inhabitants then even counted down the time "from the departure of our children." The street, along which the children followed the flutist, is now called Bungelosenstrasse ("Silence Street"); it is still forbidden to play musical instruments, sing and dance on it.
Hameln, Marketkirche, modern stained glass
Contemporary stained glass window at Baylor University
The mystical component in this story appeared only a few centuries after the incident, clearly layering on some kind of historical fact. In this regard, an Austrian legend is interesting, which echoes the events of the children's crusade in 1212. That year, deceived by the Marseilles merchants Hugo Ferreus and William Porkus, the French "crusader" children were taken to North Africa and sold into slavery in the markets of Algeria, Tunisia and Alexandria. And in 1464, according to the Austrian legend, in the city of Korneuburg, piper Hans Mouse Nora tricked local children into a ship, from the hold of which they stepped into the slave markets of Constantinople. It is believed that this legend is secondary and is an echo of earlier events in Hameln. But there is no smoke without fire, could not something similar happen in Hameln? Some researchers drew attention to the stained glass window that adorned the Market Church of Hamelin (Marketkirche), built around 1300 (this stained glass window was lost in 1660). In the surviving drawing, made by Baron Augustin von Moersberg, we see the Flutist in colorful and bright clothes and children in white. And for some reason there are three deer between the Flutist and the children. Flutist's catchy outfit can be a kind of uniform: this is how recruiters dressed in medieval Europe, who usually accompanied their performances with playing the drum or flute. And the image of three deer is an element of the coat of arms of the local aristocratic family of the von Spiegelbergs, who took an active part in the colonization of the eastern lands carried out by the Teutonic Order. Therefore, it was suggested that it was the von Spielbergs who lured the children out of the city with some promises, and then kidnapped and took them away. Supporters of this version consider the carriers of the Polish surnames "Gamelin", "Gamel" and "Gamelink" to be the descendants of children who left Hamelin. It is curious that in the first version of the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, the children of Hamelin, taken away by the Flutist, did not die, and did not disappear without a trace, but founded a new city - though not in Poland, but in Transylvania.
The authors of another version believe that not the children themselves are named "children of Hamelin" in the chronicle, but the natives of this city who were captured after the defeat at the Battle of Zedemunde - 1259. The flutist in this case is not the Devil, and not a mysterious magician, but an ordinary agitator who recruited local residents for a military campaign. But here we see a discrepancy in the dates.
It has also been suggested that the story of the Flutist who took the children away with him is in fact a description of the famous "dance of death". In many paintings of those years, you can see this plot: a skeleton in colorful clothes, symbolizing death, plays the flute, dragging those who succumb to its charms.
Lubeck dance of death, Marienkirche, 1463
That is, the Hamelin Chronicle, perhaps in an allegorical form, tells about the plague epidemic that struck the city. If you "dig" a little deeper, you can recall that earlier the Germans believed that the souls of the dead invaded mice and rats. And, therefore, under the mask of the Flutist, the pagan god of Death could appear, taking away the souls of dead children with him. But too much time has passed after the adoption of Christianity, and even if we assume that the memory of pagan times still lived in Hameln, it is unlikely that the local priests would allow such allusions and hints.
If we talk about epidemics and diseases, we can also recall a mysterious disease called "St. Vitus's dance." According to medieval descriptions, it was contagious and had the character of a local epidemic. The patients, one after another, began to jump and twitch in some kind of terrible semblance of a dance, which lasted for several hours, and sometimes even days, and fell to the ground in complete exhaustion. The nature and causes of this disease remain a mystery. Some are convinced that this is a mental illness akin to hysteria. Others consider it a neuroinfection caused by an unknown virus. The most famous outbreak of this disease is described in the German city of Erfurt, where in 1237 several hundred children in such a terrible convulsive dance reached a neighboring city and fell dead there. Many could not be saved, the survivors suffered from trembling in their arms and legs for the rest of their lives. An equally terrible case of the dance of St. Vitus took place in 1518 in Strasbourg, when a certain Mrs. Troffea, who began to dance on a city street, was joined by 34 people, and in the future - about 400 more. Within a month on the streets from heart attacks and exhaustion dying up to 15 people a day. The patients' shoes were soaked in blood, but they could not stop.
Dance of St. Vitus, fragment of an engraving by Hendrik Hondius, 1642
But there is another, more prosaic, version, according to which the children simply left with the Flutist for some holiday, and the cause of their death was a landslide in the mountains.
Catherine Greenaway, The Pied Piper. The flutist in this picture looks quite peaceful and looks very much like a children's animator from an expensive 5-star hotel in Turkey.
As we can see, there are enough versions and assumptions, but we are unlikely to find out the correct answer to the question about the fate of the children of Hamelin. If we talk about the legend that arose on the basis of this incident in medieval Germany, one immediately draws attention to its uniqueness and ambiguity. There are innocent victims in this story, but there is no hero and no positive characters: both the Flutist and the greedy townspeople are, of course, negative figures. And it is impossible to say unequivocally who came to Hameln in the guise of an unknown Flutist: the Devil himself, a skilled magician, a talented and outstanding swindler, or a brilliant musician? And what is the main theme of this story, familiar to everyone from childhood? What is this - a moralizing story about a banal retribution for greed and deceit, or a parable about the great power of art?
Hameln, Pied Piper Fountain
Business on Dry Tears
The modern inhabitants of Hameln have long outlived the complex of their ancestors and are making good money on a long-standing incident.
Tile with a rat on the pavement in Hameln
Carillon at the Wedding House in Hameln
In addition to other souvenirs, here you can buy a variety of edible "rats" made from dough, "Rat Poison" liqueur, and specially prepared "Pied Piper" coffee. And every year on June 26, a carnival is held, in which children dressed up as rats and parents dressed in medieval costumes follow the Flutist - completely voluntarily.
Pied Piper Flutist, sculpture in Hameln
Carnival in Hameln
