The Pig King facts for kids
"The Pig King" or "King Pig" (Il re porco) is an old Italian fairy tale. It was written by Giovanni Francesco Straparola in his book The Facetious Nights of Straparola. A French version, called Prince Marcassin, was also written by Madame d'Aulnoy.
About the Story Type
"King Pig" is a type of story known as Aarne-Thompson type 441. This type is often called "Hans My Hedgehog." Another famous story like this is "Hans My Hedgehog" from Grimms' Fairy Tales.
The Story of King Pig
Once, a king and queen really wanted to have children. After seven years, they still had none. One day, the queen was resting in her garden. Three magical fairies appeared to her.
The first fairy said the queen would have a son. This son would be safe from harm. The second fairy promised that no one could ever truly upset the queen. She also said her son would have many good qualities. The third fairy gave the queen wisdom. But she added that her son would look like a pig until he married three times.
Soon after, the queen gave birth to a son who looked like a pig. At first, the king thought about throwing the pig into the sea. But he changed his mind. He decided to raise him like a normal child. The pig prince learned to talk. But he still loved to roll around in mud whenever he could!
One day, the pig prince told his mother he wanted to get married. He kept asking until the queen found a poor woman. This woman agreed to let her oldest daughter marry the pig prince. The girl's mother convinced her to do it. But the girl decided she would try to get rid of her new husband on their wedding night. Sadly, she did not survive the night.
Then, the pig prince asked to marry her sister. The second sister was also convinced to marry him. But she also did not survive, just like her sister.
Finally, he married the third sister. This third sister was kind and polite to him. She returned his gentle touches. Soon after they were married, the prince shared a secret with her. At night, he would take off his pigskin. He would become a handsome young man in their bed! Every morning, he put the pigskin back on. But his wife was very happy to have a human husband.
Soon, she gave birth to a baby boy. He was born in human form. Eventually, the princess told the king and queen the secret. She asked them to come to the bedroom at night. They did, and they saw their son as a human! The king found the pigskin lying nearby. He had it torn into many pieces. Then, the king gave up his throne. He made his son the new king. The prince was known as King Pig. He lived a long and happy life with his queen.
Prince Marcassin: A Longer Version
Madame d'Aulnoy wrote a much longer version of this story. It is called "Prince Marcassin."
In this story, a queen really wanted a child. She dreamed that three fairies were talking about giving her a child. One fairy said her son would be handsome and loved. The second said he would succeed at everything. But the third fairy mumbled something quietly. The king worried the third fairy meant something bad. But the queen thought it was just a dream from wanting a child so much.
Soon, she gave birth. But the child was a wild boar, not a human son. His father wanted to get rid of him. But his wife convinced him not to. She felt the child already had enough bad luck being born a pig. They tried to raise him like a prince. The queen later heard a voice tell her that one day the prince would look handsome to her. Marcassin learned to speak and walk on his back legs. He learned many ways to act like a prince.
A young woman named Ismene was in love with a man named Coridon. They planned to marry. But Prince Marcassin interfered. He insisted that Ismene marry him. His mother tried to tell him it was not right. She said it was beneath his rank. But Ismene's mother was ambitious. She fully supported Marcassin. The wedding happened. But Ismene and Coridon did not survive before the wedding night.
Marcassin was sad about Ismene's death. But he then fell in love with her second sister, Zelonide. She was convinced to marry him, just like her sister. On their wedding day, she tried to harm him. But she made a mistake. The prince was aware of her plan. She tried to harm him alone, and he defended himself. She did not survive. Marcassin then ran away into the forest. He wanted to avoid any more sad events.
The mother of Ismene and Zelonide felt bad about forcing her daughters. She moved to the countryside with her youngest daughter, Marthesie. There, Marthesie met Marcassin. He fell in love with her. But he worried that he had caused so much trouble for her family. He thought it would be impossible for them to be together. Marthesie decided she would marry him if he would leave the forest. He tricked her into a cave where she could not escape. She then decided she would marry him after all.
When they went to bed, she found him to be a human man. One day, while he was asleep, she found his pig skin. She woke him up. He told her that the third fairy had wished him to be a wild boar. This would last until he had married three times. And his third wife had found his pigskin.
Three white and three black spinning tools appeared in their room. A voice said they would be happy if they could guess what they were. Marcassin guessed that the white ones were the fairies. Marthesie guessed that the black ones were her sisters and Coridon. This revealed them in their true forms. The fairies had saved those three from death.
