In the fairy tale Kate Crackernuts, two sisters discover that courage and loyalty can overcome even the strangest enchantments. Anne, the king’s daughter, is admired for her beauty, but the queen grows jealous and seeks help from a henwife to ruin her stepdaughter. The plan succeeds, leaving Anne with the head of a sheep instead of her own.
Kate, the queen’s daughter, refuses to abandon her sister. Together, they leave the royal home in search of a better life. Their journey brings them to a castle where a young prince is mysteriously wasting away. By following him on his strange nightly journeys, Kate discovers a hidden world of fairies and learns how to restore both Anne and the prince.
Two Sisters in a Royal Household
Once upon a time, a king and queen lived with their daughters, Anne and Kate. Anne was the king’s daughter, while Kate was the queen’s daughter. Although they were not sisters by the same parents, they loved one another as though they were true sisters.
Anne was exceptionally beautiful, even more so than Kate. The queen became jealous of her stepdaughter’s beauty and began looking for a way to spoil it.
Rather than accept Anne’s natural gifts, the queen sought advice from a henwife who lived in a glen. The henwife knew of a way to change the princess’s appearance, and she instructed the queen to send Anne to her on an empty stomach.
The queen followed this advice. Early the next morning, she told Anne to visit the henwife and ask her for some eggs.
Anne set out obediently. As she passed through the kitchen, however, she noticed a crust of bread. She was hungry, so she picked it up and ate it as she walked.
When Anne reached the henwife’s home, she asked for the eggs as her stepmother had instructed. The henwife directed her towards a pot and told her to lift its lid.
Anne did so, but nothing happened.
The henwife immediately understood that the girl had eaten something before arriving. She sent Anne home with a message for the queen: she should keep her larder door better locked.
When Anne returned and repeated the message, the queen realised that her first attempt had failed.
The Queen Tries Again
The following morning, the queen watched Anne more carefully. She made certain that the princess left without eating anything.
Anne obeyed and set off towards the henwife’s house. On the way, she passed some country people who were picking peas beside the road.
Anne was a kind-hearted girl. She stopped to speak with them and accepted a handful of peas, which she ate as she continued her journey.
Once again, she arrived at the henwife’s home having eaten something.
The henwife told her to lift the lid of the pot. Anne did so, but the enchantment did not take effect.
The woman became angry and sent the princess home with another message for the queen: the pot could not boil if the fire was gone.
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The queen understood that Anne had eaten again. Her second attempt to ruin the princess’s beauty had failed, but she was determined to succeed.
On the third day, she decided to accompany Anne herself.
This time, the queen watched her stepdaughter closely and made sure she ate nothing along the way. Together, they travelled to the henwife’s home.
The henwife directed Anne to the pot once more.
Anne lifted the lid.
Suddenly, her own beautiful head fell away, and the head of a sheep appeared in its place.
The queen was satisfied. She had finally achieved what she wanted: Anne’s beauty had been destroyed by the enchantment.
Without concern for her stepdaughter’s suffering, the queen returned home.
Kate Refuses to Abandon Anne
Kate was horrified when she discovered what had happened to Anne. Although Anne’s appearance had changed terribly, Kate still recognised her as the sister she loved.
She did not blame Anne or leave her to suffer alone.
Instead, Kate took a fine linen cloth and carefully wrapped it around Anne’s head. She then took her sister by the hand, and the two girls left the royal household to seek their fortunes elsewhere.
They travelled for a long time, moving through unfamiliar country until they eventually came to a castle.
Kate approached the door and asked whether they might stay for the night. She explained that she was travelling with her sick sister and needed somewhere safe to rest.
The people inside welcomed them.
The castle belonged to a king who had two sons. One of the princes was seriously ill and seemed to be growing weaker every day. Nobody could discover what was wrong with him, and those who watched over him during the night were never seen again.
The king had offered a peck of silver to anyone brave enough to stay awake with his sick son and discover what happened.
Kate heard about the reward and decided to help.
She was courageous, and she was not easily frightened by mysterious events. She offered to watch over the prince during the night, hoping to learn the cause of his strange illness.
The Prince’s Mysterious Journey
At first, the night passed peacefully.
Kate stayed awake beside the sick prince, watching him carefully. Nothing unusual happened for several hours, and she began to wonder whether the mystery had been exaggerated.
Then midnight arrived.
As the clock struck twelve, the prince suddenly rose from his bed. He dressed himself, left the room, and went downstairs without speaking to Kate.
She followed him quietly.
The prince appeared not to notice her. He entered the stable, saddled his horse, called for his hound, and climbed into the saddle.
Kate slipped onto the horse behind him.
The prince rode away through the greenwood, with his hound running alongside them. As they passed through the forest, Kate reached up and gathered nuts from the trees, filling her apron with them.
She did not know where the prince was going, but she was determined to discover the truth.
After travelling for some time, they reached a green hill.
The prince stopped his horse and spoke a strange command:
“Open, open, green hill, and let the young prince in with his horse and his hound.”
Kate added her own words, asking that the prince’s lady might enter behind him.
Immediately, the green hill opened.
The prince rode inside, and Kate followed.
The Fairy Ball Inside the Green Hill
Beyond the entrance lay a magnificent hall, brightly lit and filled with beautiful fairies.
The fairies welcomed the prince and led him into their company. Music and dancing filled the hall, and the prince began to dance with them.
Kate remained hidden behind a door, watching everything without being noticed.
The prince danced for a long time. He continued until he was so exhausted that he could dance no longer and collapsed onto a couch.
The fairies then gathered around him and fanned him until he recovered enough strength to rise.
Once he could stand again, the dancing began anew.
Kate watched the strange proceedings and began to understand that the prince’s illness was connected to his nightly visits. Rather than resting, he was being drawn into a secret world where he danced until he was completely exhausted.
Eventually, the cock crowed.
The prince immediately prepared to leave. He mounted his horse, and Kate climbed onto the saddle behind him. They rode back through the forest and returned to the castle before the morning was fully underway.
When they arrived, Kate sat down beside the fire and began cracking the nuts she had gathered.
The prince had returned safely, and Kate had discovered the first part of his secret.
When the household learned that she had survived the night, she received the reward the king had promised. Kate then declared that she would not agree to watch the prince for another night unless the reward was increased to a peck of gold.
The king agreed.
Kate Discovers the Fairy’s Remedy
The second night followed the same pattern.
At midnight, the prince rose, dressed, and rode away towards the green hill. Kate followed him, gathering more nuts as they passed through the forest.
This time, she did not need to watch the prince dance. She already understood that the fairies would keep him dancing until he could no longer continue.
Instead, she paid attention to the other inhabitants of the hall.
Among them was a fairy baby playing with a wand.
Kate overheard one of the fairies explain that three strokes of the wand would restore Anne’s beauty, making her as beautiful as she had been before the enchantment.
Kate realised that she had discovered a way to help her sister.
She began rolling the nuts towards the fairy baby. The child followed them, moving farther and farther away as Kate continued to roll more nuts across the floor.
Eventually, the baby dropped the wand.
Kate quickly picked it up and hid it in her apron.
She had now secured the means to reverse the enchantment that had given Anne a sheep’s head.
When the cock crowed, the prince hurried back to his horse, and Kate followed him home as before.
As soon as she returned to her room, she went straight to Anne.
Kate took out the wand and touched her sister three times.
The enchantment broke.
The sheep’s head fell away, and Anne regained her own beautiful appearance.
Kate was delighted. Her sister had suffered greatly through no fault of her own, but Kate’s courage and determination had finally restored what the queen had taken away.
A Second Discovery in the Fairy Hall
Although Anne had been healed, Kate still had another problem to solve.
The prince remained ill. His nightly journeys continued, and the exhaustion caused by the fairy dances threatened to destroy him.
On the third night, Kate agreed to watch over him again, but this time she asked for a different reward.
She would stay with the prince only if she could marry him.
The king accepted her condition.
That night, Kate followed the prince to the green hill for the third time. The familiar entrance opened at his command, and they entered the brightly lit hall.
As before, the prince was taken away by the fairies and forced to dance until he collapsed from exhaustion.
Kate, however, concentrated on finding a remedy for his illness.
She noticed that the fairy baby was now playing with a little bird.
Once again, she listened carefully to the fairies’ conversation.
One of them explained that three bites of the bird would make the sick prince completely well.
Kate immediately understood what she needed to do.
She rolled all the nuts she had gathered towards the fairy baby. The child followed the nuts, and in the process, the bird was dropped.
Kate quickly picked it up and concealed it in her apron.
She had found the remedy for the prince, just as she had found the wand that restored Anne.
When the cock crowed, the prince prepared to leave the fairy hall. Kate mounted the horse behind him, and they rode back to the castle.
The Prince Is Healed
As soon as Kate returned to the castle, she removed the bird from her apron.
She plucked its feathers and cooked it.
The delicious smell soon spread through the room.
The sick prince noticed the aroma and asked for a bite. Kate gave him one.
After eating it, the prince began to recover. He raised himself on his elbow, something he had struggled to do before.
A little later, he asked for another bite.
Kate gave him the second portion, and he managed to sit upright.
Finally, the prince asked for the third bite.
Kate gave it to him, and the enchantment was broken. He rose completely healed, dressed himself, and sat beside the fire.
For the first time in a long while, the prince was free from the strange illness that had tormented him.
The next morning, the people of the castle entered and discovered Kate and the recovered prince sitting together, cracking nuts.
They were astonished to see the prince looking healthy again. His mysterious nightly journeys had ended, and he no longer suffered from the exhaustion that had threatened his life.
Kate had fulfilled her promise. She had discovered the secrets of the fairy hall, restored her sister’s beauty, and cured the prince.
Two Sisters Find Happiness
While Kate was helping the sick prince, his brother had met Anne.
Anne’s beauty and gentle appearance impressed him, and he fell in love with her, as everyone who saw her did.
The two princes were now able to marry the sisters they loved.
The recovered prince married Kate, fulfilling the promise made to her for her courage and success. His brother married Anne, who had regained her natural appearance after Kate used the fairy wand.
The sisters’ lives had changed completely.
They had left the royal household after the queen’s cruelty, uncertain of what the future would bring. Yet they had remained loyal to one another and faced the dangers they encountered together.
Kate’s bravery had helped both sisters find happiness. Anne was restored, the prince was cured, and the two couples began their new lives.
The tale ends with the sisters and their husbands living happily together.
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Moral Lesson
Kate Crackernuts celebrates courage, loyalty, and resourcefulness. Kate refuses to abandon Anne when the enchantment changes her appearance. Instead, she takes her sister away from danger and searches for a way to help her.
The story also shows the value of observation and patience. Kate does not try to defeat the fairies through force. She watches carefully, listens to their conversations, and uses her intelligence to obtain the remedies she needs.
Most importantly, the sisters’ love for one another remains strong despite the queen’s jealousy and cruelty. Their loyalty helps them overcome the enchantments and discover a happier future.
Knowledge Check
1. Why did the queen want to spoil Anne’s beauty?
She was jealous because Anne was more beautiful than her own daughter, Kate.
2. How did Anne acquire a sheep’s head?
The henwife’s enchantment transformed her head after the queen ensured that Anne visited without eating anything beforehand.
3. Why did Kate leave the royal household with Anne?
She refused to abandon her sister after the enchantment changed Anne’s appearance.
4. What happened to the sick prince each night?
At midnight, he rode to a green hill and danced with fairies until he became exhausted.
5. How did Kate restore Anne’s appearance?
She obtained a fairy wand and touched Anne three times with it, breaking the enchantment.
6. How did Kate cure the prince?
She obtained a special bird from the fairy hall and gave the prince three bites of it, restoring his health.
Source
“Kate Crackernuts” appears in English Fairy Tales, collected by Joseph Jacobs and published in 1890.
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