Brothers Grimm
Born in Hanau, Germany, 13 months apart, Jacob Grimm (1785–1863) and Wilhelm Grimm (1786–1859), are known together as the Brothers Grimm. The duo were German academics, linguists, cultural researchers, lexicographers and authors who together specialized in collecting and publishing folklore during the 19th century. Thanks to their work, The Brothers Grimm stories are some of the most beloved fairy tales today throughout the world. In 1796, the brothers lost their father, and were sent to study at the prestigious Friedrichsgymnasium thanks to an aunt, however, they were ostracized due to their low social standing. Undaunted, the two focused on their studies and after graduating, they attended the University of Marburg, where they became enthusiastic about medieval German literature. Throughout all of their studies, the oldest brother, Jakob, was responsible for the care of his mother and siblings and abandoned his studies to help provide for them. He became a full-time court librarian to the King of Westphalia and then in Kassel, where Wilhelm later joined him. It was at this time that the brothers begin collecting folklore, largely inspired by the work of Charles Perrault, and the fact that interest in the fairy tale had increased significantly.
The Brothers Grimm fairy tales came from peasants in their native country, but also from aristocrats and other notable figures. Many of the tales or fragments of them were known throughout different parts of Europe, however, the brothers collected them to preserve the stories. The stories were more than just folklore to the Grimm brothers, as they viewed the stories are important parts of their heritage. They invited storytellers to their home to share fairy tales, and rewrote several, such as Hansel and Gretel, as well as Charles Perrault’s Sleeping Beauty. For example, in the Brothers Grimm Sleeping Beauty version, known as Little Briar Rose, the story ends when the prince arrives to wake up the princess. From 1807 to 1810 the Grimms worked to collect all of these fairy tales, adding new detail and increasing the length to prepare them for new and old audiences.
Although many think that tales such as Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella originated with the Grimm Brothers, these stories existed in the public consciousness before the Grimms, however the Brothers Grimm certainly made them more accessible to the world at large. The Grimms often changed sexual references and cleansed the fairy tales, adding spiritual motifs as well. You can see such an example with the Brothers Grimm Rapunzel not including the princess’ impregnation from the prince. The first volume of the fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm was known as Kinder- und Hausmärchen, aka Children’s and Household Tales, and was published in 1812, however, it’s more commonly known as Grimm’s Fairy Tales, and featured 86 stories. Another volume featured 70 new tales. The book was massively popular, with over five editions published. The seventh edition featured 211 tales. Intricate illustrations by artists Philipp Grot Johann and later, Robert Leinweber, added to the appeal of the collections. Wilhelm Grimm died in 1859, and Jacob Grimm followed him in 1863. Several movies by Walt Disney including Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty are adaptations of the Grimms’ fairy tale work, and the popularity of Brothers Grimm movies still continues today.
Listen to several popular Brothers Grimm fairy tales in audiobook on the new Fairytalez Audio App for Apple and Android devices.
Fairy tales by Brothers Grimm
- The Bremen Town-Musicians
- Bearskin
- Briar Rose
- The Bittern and the Hoopoe
- The Beast Slayer
- The Boots of Buffalo-Leather
- Brides on their Trial
- The Biter Bit
- The Beam
- The Blue Light
- The Bright Sun Brings it to Light
- The Blinded Giant
- Brother Lustig
- Baba Yaga (Arthur Ransome version)
- Brother and Sister
- The Black Thief and Knight of the Glen
- Clever Hans
- Clever Elsie
- The Children of Hameln (The Pied Piper)
- Cinderella
- Cudgel, Bestir Yourself!
- Cat and Mouse in Partnership
- Clever Grethel
- The Crystal Ball
- Crumbs on the Table
- The Devil with the Three Golden Hairs
- The Devil's Sooty Brother
- Doctor Knowall
- The Dog and the Sparrow
- Death's Messengers
- The Duration of Life
- The Dragon's Tail
- The Drummer
- The Ditmarsch Tale of Wonders
- The Donkey
- Domestic Servants
- The Death of the Little Hen
- The Devil and His Grandmother
- Donkey Cabbages
- Fitcher's Bird
- The Four Clever Brothers
- The Fox and the Geese
- Frau Trude
- Fitcher's Bird
- The Flower Queen's Daughter
- Fundevogel
- The Frog-King, or Iron Henry
- The Flail from Heaven
- Faithful John
- The Fox and the Horse
- Fair Katrinelje and Pif-Paf-Poltrie
- Felicia and the Pot of Pinks
- Ferdinand the Faithful
- The Fox and the Cat (Brothers Grimm)
- The Fox and His Cousin
- The Fisherman and his Wife
- The Girl Without Hands
- The Gnome
- The Goose-Girl
- The Gold-Children
- Gambling Hansel
- The Godfather
- The Golden Bird
- The Goose-Girl at the Well
- Godfather Death
- The Griffin
- The Golden Key
- God's Food
- Going A-Traveling
- The Good Bargain
- The Golden Goose
- The Grave-Mound
- The Giant and the Tailor
- Hans Married
- Hans in Luck
- Herr Korbes
- The Hare and the Hedgehog
- Hans, the Mermaid's Son
- How Six Men Got on in the World
- The Hut in the Forest
- Hansel and Grethel
- Heart of Ice
- How a Lad Stole the Giant's Treasure
- The Hill-Man Invited to the Christening
- The Hazel Branch
- Hans the Hedgehog
- The Hare's Bride
- The King of the Golden Mountain
- King Thrushbeard
- The Knapsack, the Hat, and the Horn
- Knoist and His Three Sons
- The King's Son Who Feared Nothing
- King Grisly-Beard
- The Louse and the Flea
- The Lady and the Lion
- The Little Folks' Presents
- The Little Red Tortoise
- The Little Farmer
- Lean Lisa
- Lazy Harry
- Little Snow-White
- Little Red-Cap (Little Red Riding Hood, Grimms' Version)
- The Lord's Animals and the Devil's
- The Lambikin and the Little Fish
- The Lazy Spinner
- The Mink and the Wolf
- Master Pfreim
- The Moon
- Mangita and Larina
- Maid Maleen
- The Magician's Daughter
- The Maid of Brakel
- The Master-Thief
- The Mouse, the Bird and the Sausage
- Mother Holle
- Olde Hildenbrand
- Old Sultan
- The Owl
- Odds and Ends
- Our Lady's Little Glass
- The Old Woman in the Wood
- The Old-Beggar Woman
- The Old Man Made Young Again
- Old Rinkrank
- Our Lady's Child
- One-Eye, Two-Eyes, and Three-Eyes
- The Old Man and His Grandson
- The Old Woman in the Wood
- The Peasant's Wise Daughter
- The Poor Man and the Rich Man
- The Pink
- The Peasant in Heaven
- Poverty and Humility Lead to Heaven
- The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat
- The Pack of Ragamuffins
- The Peasant and the Devil
- The Poor Boy in the Grave
- Ratcatcher
- The Raven (Brothers Grimm)
- The Robber Bridegroom
- Rapunzel
- A Riddling Tale
- Rumpelstiltskin (Grimm's version)
- The Rose
- The Riddle
- The Seven Ravens
- Sweet Poridge
- The Singing Bone
- The Spirit in the Bottle
- The Story of Three Wonderful Beggars
- The Singing, Soaring Lark
- The Six Swans
- Sweetheart Roland
- The Sole
- Sharing Joy and Sorrow
- Sylvain and Jocosa
- Strong Hans
- The Story of Schlauraffen Land
- The Sparrow and His Four Children
- The Sea-Hare
- St. Joseph in the Forest
- The Stolen Farthings
- The Star Money
- The Shepherd Boy
- The Skilful Huntsman
- Simeli Mountain
- The Shroud
- The Six Servants
- The Shoes That Were Danced to Pieces
- Snow-White and Rose-Red
- The Seven Swabians
- The Straw, The Coal, and the Bean
- The Spindle, The Shuttle, and the Needle
- Stories About Snakes
- The Three Languages
- The Tailor in Heaven
- The Three Little Birds
- Thumbling
- Thumbling as Journeyman
- The Twelve Idle Servants
- The Twelve Apostles
- The Three Green Twigs
- The Turnip
- The Two Kings' Children
- The Two Travelers
- The Three Black Princesses
- The Twelve Brothers
- The Three Brothers
- The Three Little Men in the Wood
- The Three Apprentices
- The Three Sons of Fortune
- The Three Spinning Women
- The Two Brothers
- The Three-Army Surgeons
- The Three-Snake Leaves
- The True Sweethearts
- Wise Folks
- The Willow-Wren and the Bear
- The Water of Life
- The Wishing-Table, The Gold-Ass, and the Cudgel in the Sack
- The Wedding of Ms. Fox
- Wise Folks
- The Wolf and the Man
- The Willow-Wren
- The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids
- The Wise Servant
- Which Was the Foolishest?
- The Wilful Child
- The White Bride and the Black One
- Wayambeh the Turtle and Woggoon the Turkey
- The Wonderful Musician
- The Water-Nix
- The Wolf and the Fox
- The White Snake
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