Rosella’s life changes when her father takes her to gather vegetables in a strange garden. A mysterious creature leads them underground, where a handsome young man offers the girl a new home and makes her his wife. Rosella enjoys her new life, but her husband forbids her from discovering his identity. When her sisters persuade her to question him, she learns his name at a terrible cost. Her husband vanishes with his palace, leaving Rosella alone and pregnant. To find him again, she must endure a dangerous journey, outwit an ogress and complete tasks that test her courage, kindness and patience.
The Mysterious Garden
Once upon a time, there lived a poor man who earned his living by gathering wild herbs. He had three daughters, and the youngest was named Rosella. One day, he took her with him to collect vegetables in a garden.
As they worked, Rosella noticed a fine radish growing in the earth. She began to pull it up, but before she could finish, a Turk suddenly appeared.
“Why have you opened my master’s door?” he demanded. “You must come inside, and he will decide your punishment.”
The frightened father and daughter were taken underground. Once they had settled there, a green bird entered the room and bathed in a pan of milk. After bathing, it dried itself and changed into a handsome young man.
The young man asked the Turk why the visitors had come. The servant explained that the girl had pulled up a radish and opened the entrance to their master’s dwelling.
The father apologised. He explained that his daughter had simply seen a fine vegetable and wanted to gather it, never knowing that it marked the entrance to someone’s home.
The master listened and decided how to settle the matter.
“Your daughter shall remain here as my wife,” he declared. He then gave the father a sack of gold and told him that he could visit his daughter whenever he wished.
The father accepted the arrangement and departed, leaving Rosella with the mysterious young man.
Rosella’s New Home
Once they were alone, the young man welcomed Rosella and told her that she was now the mistress of the household. He gave her all the keys and allowed her to enjoy the comforts of her new home.
Rosella was happy. Her husband treated her well, and she lacked nothing. Yet one rule remained: she must not try to discover his name or the secret of his identity.
For a time, Rosella obeyed him. She had no reason to doubt that her husband cared for her, and she enjoyed the life they shared.
One day, however, her sisters came to visit. They were curious about the mysterious husband and asked Rosella who he was.
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Rosella admitted that she did not know. Her husband had made her promise never to investigate his identity, and she had kept that promise.
Her sisters were not satisfied. They persuaded her that she ought to know the name of the man she had married. Their questions stayed in Rosella’s mind after they left.
When the green bird returned and changed into a man, Rosella appeared unhappy. Her husband noticed her troubled expression and asked what was wrong.
At first, she denied that anything was troubling her. He continued to question her until she finally confessed that she wanted to know his name.
He warned her that she would regret asking. Rosella persisted, however, and he agreed to reveal the secret.
The King of Love Disappears
The young man brought out golden basins and placed them on a chair. He began to bathe his feet, while Rosella watched.
He asked whether she truly wanted to know his name. She answered yes.
As he continued bathing, the water rose around him. By the time it reached his mouth, he had changed back into a bird and was inside the basin.
He asked Rosella once more whether she insisted on learning his identity. She continued to demand an answer.
At last, he revealed his name.
“I am called the King of Love,” he declared.
Immediately, he disappeared. The golden basins vanished, the palace disappeared, and Rosella found herself alone on an open plain. Her servants were gone, and there was no one nearby to help her.
Rosella called for assistance, but nobody answered. She had lost her husband and home because she had refused to respect his warning.
There was another reason for her distress. Rosella was expecting a child, and she now faced the world alone.
She resolved to search for her missing husband. When night fell and she reached another lonely plain, she began to lament his disappearance.
She called upon the King of Love, recalling how he had vanished while bathing in the golden basin. She asked who would shelter her now that she had been abandoned.
Her words brought a frightening visitor.
The Seven Ogress Sisters
An ogress appeared and demanded to know why Rosella was searching for her nephew. She threatened to eat the young woman, but then took pity on her unfortunate condition and offered her shelter for the night.
In the morning, the ogress gave Rosella a piece of bread. She explained that she and her six sisters were all ogresses, and that the most dangerous among them was the King of Love’s mother.
Rosella continued her journey. Over the following days, she met the other ogress sisters, one after another. Each gave her shelter and food, although Rosella remained aware that her search had brought her into dangerous company.
On the seventh day, she reached the home of the King of Love’s own sister. The young woman called down to Rosella and lowered her long braids so that Rosella could climb up to her.
She welcomed Rosella and gave her something to eat. Then she explained how Rosella might protect herself from the King of Love’s mother.
The ogress mother was so fierce that she could threaten Rosella’s life. The sister advised Rosella to seize and pinch the older woman until she cried out for her son to make the attack stop.
Rosella followed the instructions. The mother became furious and was ready to eat her, but her daughters threatened to abandon her if she harmed their visitor.
The mother finally agreed to spare Rosella, but she would not let her leave without a task. She wrote a letter and ordered Rosella to deliver it to a friend.
Rosella accepted the letter, although she feared what awaited her. Once she left the house, she found herself in the middle of a plain with no clear path forward.
She called out for the King of Love again.
The Journey Through Dangerous Places
The King of Love appeared and told Rosella that her curiosity had brought her into this difficult position. Rosella wept and begged him to forgive her.
He took pity on her and gave her precise instructions for the journey ahead.
First, she would reach a river of blood. She must take some of the liquid in her hands and praise it as beautiful crystal water, claiming that she had never tasted anything like it.
Next, she would come to a stream of muddy water and treat it in the same way.
After the streams, she would find a garden filled with fruit. She must pick some pears, eat them and praise their quality. Then she would come to an oven where bread baked continually, although nobody bought it. She must praise the bread and eat some.
Her journey would then bring her to an entrance guarded by two hungry dogs. She must feed them a piece of bread rather than attempt to pass without helping them.
Beyond the entrance, she would find a dirty doorway covered with cobwebs. She must take a broom and sweep it clean.
Halfway up the stairs, two giants would be sitting beside dirty pieces of meat. She must clean the meat for them. Finally, she would enter a house where a razor, scissors and knife needed polishing. She must polish these tools before delivering the letter.
The King of Love warned Rosella that she must complete every task. Failure would leave her unable to escape alive.
Rosella followed the instructions carefully. She treated the rivers, fruit, bread, dogs, doorway, giants and tools as the King of Love had directed. Her kindness and willingness to help would prove more useful than force.
When she reached the ogress’s house, she delivered the letter. While the ogress read it, Rosella seized a small box from the table and ran away.
The ogress soon discovered that her visitor had escaped. She called upon the razor, scissors and knife to cut Rosella into pieces. But the tools refused, reminding the ogress that Rosella had polished them when she herself had neglected them.
The ogress then commanded the stairs to swallow Rosella. The stairs refused because Rosella had swept them clean.
She ordered the giants to crush the girl, but they remembered that Rosella had cleaned their food. The ogress next called upon the entrance, dogs, oven, fruit tree and rivers to destroy her fleeing guest. Each refused to harm Rosella because she had treated them kindly.
The young woman escaped, protected by the very things she had helped along the way.
The Box of Little Puppets
Rosella continued along the road with the small box. Eventually, curiosity tempted her once more. She wondered what the box contained and decided to open it.
A great many little puppets emerged. Some danced, others sang, and others played musical instruments. Rosella watched them with delight and spent time enjoying their performances.
When she was ready to continue her journey, however, the little figures refused to return to the box. Night was approaching, and Rosella feared being stranded once more.
She called out for the King of Love.
Her husband appeared and rebuked her for giving in to curiosity again. He nevertheless commanded the puppets to return to the box, and they obeyed.
Rosella resumed her journey and eventually arrived at the home of the King of Love’s mother.
The ogress was angry to see her, but her daughters reminded her that Rosella had brought the box she had demanded. The mother allowed Rosella to remain, though she still intended to prevent her from marrying her son.
She gave Rosella another difficult task. The young woman was to take six mattresses and fill them with birds’ feathers.
Rosella left the house and called upon the King of Love. When he appeared, she explained what his mother had demanded.
He whistled, and the King of the Birds came to his aid. The birds gathered and dropped their feathers until the six mattresses were filled. They then carried them back to the ogress.
Once again, the mother recognised that her son had helped Rosella. Yet she remained determined to arrange a different marriage for him.
The Ogress’s Wedding Scheme
The King of Love’s mother prepared her son’s bed with the six mattresses. On that same day, she arranged for him to marry the daughter of the King of Portugal.
She then summoned Rosella and announced that the King of Love was to marry another woman. Rosella was ordered to kneel beside the wedding bed and hold two lighted torches.
Rosella obeyed. She stood beside the bed with the torches while the wedding proceeded.
The King of Love, however, had no intention of abandoning his wife. He persuaded his new bride that Rosella was no longer able to hold the torches and suggested that the bride take her place.
The bride agreed to exchange places with Rosella. As soon as she took the torches, the earth opened beneath her and swallowed her up.
The King of Love remained with Rosella, and the ogress’s plan to separate them had failed.
Rosella’s Child Is Born
The King of Love’s mother was furious when she discovered what had happened. She clasped her hands over her head and declared that Rosella’s child would not be born until she released them.
Rosella was therefore left waiting, unable to give birth while the ogress maintained her curse.
The King of Love devised a plan to break it. He had a catafalque prepared and stretched himself upon it as though he were dead. The people were instructed to toll the bells and cry out in grief, asking how the King of Love had died.
When the ogress heard the noise, she asked what had happened. Her daughters told her that her son had died because of her own actions.
The news shocked the mother. She immediately unclasped her hands and asked how her son could have died.
At that moment, Rosella’s child was born.
When the ogress learned the truth, she suffered a fatal rupture of a blood vessel and died. The King of Love was reunited with his wife, and the story ends with them living happily together alongside his sisters.
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Moral Lesson
The King of Love teaches that curiosity can have serious consequences when it leads someone to break a promise. Rosella’s desire to know her husband’s name separates her from the home and happiness she once enjoyed. Her journey also shows the value of kindness. By helping the creatures and objects she encounters, she gains their protection when the ogress tries to destroy her.
The tale also explores perseverance and forgiveness. Rosella faces repeated dangers, yet continues her journey rather than surrendering to despair. Although she makes another mistake when she opens the box, the King of Love continues to help her. Her reunion with him comes after she has endured hardship, accepted help and completed the challenges placed before her.
Knowledge Check
1. How did Rosella and her father enter the underground dwelling?
Rosella pulled up a radish in a garden, and a Turk appeared and accused her of opening his master’s door.
2. Why did Rosella’s husband disappear?
She insisted on knowing his name despite his warning. When he revealed that he was the King of Love, he vanished along with his palace.
3. Who helped Rosella during her journey?
The King of Love’s sisters gave her shelter and food, and the King himself provided instructions for completing the dangerous tasks.
4. How did Rosella escape the ogress’s friend?
She completed the tasks set by the King of Love, delivered the letter, took a small box while the ogress was reading and fled. The things she had helped refused the ogress’s commands to harm her.
5. What happened when Rosella opened the box?
Many little puppets emerged and began dancing, singing and playing instruments. They refused to return to the box until the King of Love commanded them to do so.
6. How was Rosella finally able to give birth?
The King of Love pretended to be dead, prompting his mother to unclasp her hands in shock. Rosella’s child was born at that moment, and the ogress subsequently died.
Source
This retelling is based on “The King of Love,” a Sicilian tale recorded by Giuseppe Pitrè as No. 18, Lu Re d’Amuri, and published by Thomas Frederick Crane in Italian Popular Tales (1885), Chapter I, “Fairy Tales,” beginning on page 1.
