The Magical World of the Brothers Grimm Quiz

Answer: Germany

Jacob was born in 1785 and Wilhelm (who would be called William in English) in 1786 in the town of Hanau. They published their first collection of eighty-six stories in 1812, with a second book, containing seventy stories, in 1814.

Answer: Her long hair

Rapunzel's long hair is an important part of her story. She is imprisoned by a wicked witch in a high tower, and the only way anyone can reach her is by using Rapunzel's hair as a rope. Despite her isolation, Rapunzel attracts a prince, although he is blinded by the witch when the relationship is discovered. All ends well when Rapunzel's tears restore the prince's sight.

Answer: Breadcrumbs

The children are abandoned in the woods by their evil stepmother, who does not wish to feed them. Hansel leaves white pebbles to mark their route, but is locked in before the second abandonment so cannot collect any pebbles this time. He uses bread, but this is eaten by the birds, leaving the pair hopelessly lost.

They are captured by a witch, but manage to kill her and steal her money before reaching home again. The stepmother has died, and the children live happily with their father using the witch's wealth.

Answer: Bremen

The story was called 'The Town Musicians of Bremen' and describes how the four animals have all been abandoned by their owners due to their age. They decide to form a town band, and head off towards Bremen. On their way, they come across a cottage where four thieves are gloating over their loot.

The animals 'sing' to them, but make such a row that the thieves run away. When the thieves return, they are attacked by each animal in turn, mistaking the cat for a witch, the dog for an ogre, the donkey for a giant and the rooster for a judge.

The thieves abandon the cottage, where the animals make their home, and never actually reach Bremen at all.

Answer: Tom Thumb

The stories begin in a similar way, with a poor couple wishing for a child, even if it is very small. Their wishes are granted, and both Thumbling and Tom Thumb undergo various (but different) adventures, due to their diminutive size. Thumbling is eaten by both a cow and a wolf, before managing to escape and return home.

A second story collected by the Grimms is called 'Thumbling's Travels', where his father is a tailor, and the disasters which befall him are similar to those in the first tale.

Answer: Straw

The girl's father has boasted to the king that his daughter can spin gold from straw. The king locks the girl in a room full of straw overnight to turn it into gold. In return for her necklace, a creature resembling an imp carries out the transformation for her.

The king is not satisfied, though, and insists that she repeats the task. The imp takes her ring in return for her help. On the third night, the king promises to marry her if she succeeds (and kill her if she doesn't). She has nothing left with which to pay the imp, who makes her promise to give him her first child in return for his help.

The queen, as she now is, tries to negotiate her way out of the bargain when the imp comes for her child. Her only escape is to guess his name, which she manages to do when her servant overhears the creature singing a song including his name, which is the name of the story, 'Rumpelstiltskin'.

Answer: Bear

This Snow-White is not the one who met the seven dwarfs, but one of a pair of sisters, with the other being named Rose-Red. They are kind to a bear, who spends the winter nights at their cottage to keep warm. When summer comes, the bear disappears, but the girls encounter a dwarf while out walking.

They help the dwarf on many occasions, but he is totally ungrateful to them. On the final occasion, they find the dwarf being threatened by the bear. The dwarf pleads with the bear to kill the girls instead of him, but the bear ignores him and kills him.

As soon as the dwarf is dead, the bear changes back to his princely form, and marries Snow-White, with Rose-Red becoming the wife of the prince's brother.

Answer: Cinderella

The story of 'Cinderella' is one of the best known of the fairy tales. The version by the Grimms has most of the features we know, although the two stepsisters are beautiful to look at, not ugly. They are just as unkind to Cinderella, with the name of 'Aschenputtel' meaning 'Ash Fool'.

The ending is the same, with the prince marrying Cinderella, although the fate which befalls the two unkind sisters is rather more cruel than the version we know.

Answer: Swans

In 'The Six Swans', the brothers have been changed into swans by their wicked stepmother. The sister can save them by making a shirt from starwort for each of them. In addition, she cannot speak or laugh for six years. The sister marries, and is badly treated by her mother-in-law, although she cannot defend herself without condemning her brothers to live as swans for ever.

She is about to be burned at the stake, when the six years expire and the swans appear enabling her to break the spell by throwing the shirts over them.

The mother-in-law suffers the death penalty instead, leaving the family to live happily ever after.

Answer: Elves

The story is known in English as 'The Elves and the Shoemaker' or 'The Cobbler and the Elves'. The shoemaker has given away a pair of shoes to a lady in need, leaving him with only enough leather to make one final pair of shoes. The elves visit overnight and make a pair of shoes which the cobbler is able to sell at much more than his usual price.

He buys more leather, but also helps a poor passerby. The cobbler is again rewarded for his kindness with the assistance of the elves, although they disappear from his life once they are given clothes made by the shoemaker's wife.