You may have heard the creepy children’s story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. The most common version comes from the Brothers Grimm. The city of Hamelin in Germany was having a rat problem when a man dressed in multi-colored clothing (“pied”) offered to remove them. The city fathers promised to pay him a fee. He used a flute to lure the rats into the river. When he returned for his payment, the citizens refused to pay him. Later, when the adults were in church, the Pied Piper lured the children out of town into a cave where they were never seen again. The tale led to the phrase “pay the piper” referring to a bill you were hoping to not have to pay. It also spawned the term “pied piper” referring to a charismatic man who gets people to do a bad thing. Surprisingly, there is some history behind this tale. It supposedly occurred on June 26, 1284. There was a stained- glass panel in the Church of Hamelin which depicted a flute-playing figure marching ahead of kids dressed in white. The window was from around 1300. (The rats were not added to the story until the 16th Century.) There is a record from 1384 referring to the 100th anniversary of when they lost their children. Why were they lost? There are various theories. It may have been a drowning incident. Or a plague. The strongest evidence is that the Piper represents recruiting agents who would organize the emigration of children (or maybe families – the children of the city) to settle in depopulated areas of Germany. Or, less likely, some children were sold into slavery. Regardless, stop telling this tale to your children.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pied_Piper_of_Hamelin
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20200902-the-grim-truth-behind-the-pied-piper
https://theportalist.com/the-chilling-true-story-behind-the-pied-piper-of-hamelin
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