Pastoria facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Pastoria
Oz character
1925 cover illustration by John R. Neill
First appearance	The Wizard of Oz (1902) (non-continuity) The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904) (mentioned)
Created by	L. Frank Baum
Information
Nickname(s)	The Lost King of Oz
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Family	A previous King of Oz (father)
Spouse(s)	Lurline
Children	Ozma (daughter)

King Pastoria is a fictional character from the famous Oz books written by L. Frank Baum. He was the true King of the magical Land of Oz. However, he was mysteriously removed from his position when the Wizard of Oz arrived and took over the throne.

Soon after, Pastoria's only daughter, Princess Ozma, who was meant to rule next, disappeared without a trace. In the second Oz book, The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904), Glinda the Good finally found Ozma. A witch named Mombi had turned Ozma into a boy named Tip to hide her. Glinda forced Mombi to change Ozma back, and Ozma became the rightful child Queen of Oz.

King Pastoria's First Appearance

L. Frank Baum first created King Pastoria for the 1902 stage musical, The Wizard of Oz. This play was loosely based on his first book. In the musical, King Pastoria II had been sent away from Oz. He was working in America as a street car conductor.

Later in the play, Pastoria got his throne back in the Emerald City. He ordered that anyone who helped the Wizard should face serious consequences. Of course, the main characters and the Wizard managed to escape. Only the name of this stage character made it into Baum's later books.

Pastoria in Baum's Classic Oz Books

In The Marvelous Land of Oz, the Scarecrow mentions Pastoria as "dead and gone." However, the story itself does not confirm this. This book, which was the next one after The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, also says that Princess Ozma was "the only child of the former Ruler of Oz." This meant she had the right to rule in his place.

Baum's fourth Oz book, Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz, explains more about Pastoria's family. It says that Pastoria's father (Ozma's grandfather) ruled Oz before evil witches took over. These witches then divided the land among themselves. It is not clear if Pastoria himself ever ruled as King. Ozma explains in this book that all male rulers of Oz were named "Oz," and female rulers were named "Ozma." Since her father had a personal name, it makes us wonder if he truly ruled before being captured by Mombi. Both Pastoria and his father became servants of Mombi, who was the Wicked Witch of the North.

Later Oz Adventures

In The Magical Mimics in Oz (1946), writer Jack Snow added to Pastoria's story. He wrote that Pastoria had adopted Ozma as a baby fairy. This helped explain why the books never mentioned Ozma's mother.

In The Lost King of Oz (1925), Ruth Plumly Thompson wrote a whole story about finding Pastoria. Mombi had used magic to turn him into Tora the Tired Tailor. He had no memory of who he really was. His ears could even fly off his face like a butterfly! This book says Pastoria had a hunting lodge in the Quadling Country in a town called Morrow.

At the end of the story, Pastoria returns to the Emerald City. Mombi is forced to undo her magic. Pastoria is happy to let Ozma keep ruling Oz. He then opens a tailor shop called The Tired Tailor of Oz. Before he stepped down as King, Pastoria made Mombi face serious consequences for her actions.

After this book, Pastoria is not seen much in Ruth Plumly Thompson's Oz books. He is briefly mentioned in The Gnome King of Oz talking to Nick Chopper. He is also mentioned in The Yellow Knight of Oz as the Lost King, playing checkers with the Soldier with the Green Whiskers.

Pastoria in Recent Stories

In Gregory Maguire's books Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West and Son of a Witch, Pastorius (a different spelling) was the husband of Ozma the Bilious. She died from what seemed like an accidental poisoning. He was also the father of Ozma Tippetarius, who was about the same age as Elphaba. Since Ozma Tippetarius was too young to rule when her mother died, Pastorius ruled as a Regent (a temporary ruler). This lasted until the Wizard took over the kingdom. Pastorius later died while he was imprisoned.

King Pastoria also appeared in the TV series Emerald City. He was played by Sorel Kembe. In this version, his first name was Samuel, and he had a wife named Katherine. A flashback showed King Pastoria fighting against a monster called the Beast Forever. He and Katherine were later killed by Eamonn when the Wizard of Oz took power.