The Princess And The Pea

There was once a prince, a lonely prince. He traveled around the world to find someone like himself, a proper princess to share his life. But this he knew: She must be a real princess.

In his travels, he found many princesses. Each claimed to be a real princess. Each had the proper pedigree and credentials, but there always seemed to be something not quite right about each one. People started to say that he was looking for something that he did not want to find. Behind closed doors, they even snickered. At last, the prince returned home in despair; he wanted a princess so badly. The Old King and Queen welcomed him home.

One evening, during a fierce hurricane that had suddenly blown up, a persistent knocking was heard at the castle door. The prince's father sent a servant to find out who was there. Standing on the steps, lit by flashes of lightning, in the driving rain, was a young lady. "I'm a princess," she said," seeking shelter for myself and my page. My carriage has broken down and the coachman can't repair it till tomorrow." In the meantime, the prince's mother had appeared to welcome the guest. She stared disapprovingly at the girl's muddy wet garments, and decided to find out if she really was of gentle birth.

"We'll see soon enough if that is true," whispered the Old Queen softly to herself. The princess was given a warm dinner and some dry clothes while the Old Queen set off to prepare a sleeping chamber for the princess. First, she stripped all the bed clothes. Then, she placed a single pea in the center of the bedstead. Next, she called for twenty mattresses and piled them, one on top of the other, on the pea. Finally, twenty feather beds were added on top of the mattresses. The princess's sleeping arrangements were made.

In the morning, the Old King and Queen met the princess when she arose. If possible, she looked worse than when she had arrived! They asked how she had slept. "Oh, terribly bad!" exclaimed the princess. "I scarcely closed my eyes all night. Heaven knows what was in that bed. It seemed as if I were lying upon some hard pebble; my whole body is black and blue this morning. It is truly terrible!" And the princess started crying.

The Old Queen saw at once that she must be a real princess and offered her apologies, before rushing of to her son. "A real princess at last! Just think! She could feel the pea I hid under the mattress! Now, only a well- born lady could do that! Only a real princess could have felt the pea through twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds.

The prince had finally found the bride of his dreams. So the prince asked her to be his wife. After the wedding The prince once again traveled the world, this time with the princess, and they were happy. And the pea? It was put into a museum and visited by people from many countries. It may be there yet, if no one has stolen it.