The Real Princess

by

"The Princess and the Pea" illustrated by Edmund Dulac

There was once a Prince who wished to marry a Princess; but then she must be a real Princess. He travelled all over the world in hopes of finding such a lady; but there was always something wrong. Princesses he found in plenty; but whether they were real Princesses it was impossible for him to decide, for now one thing, now another, seemed to him not quite right about the ladies. At last he returned to his palace quite cast down, because he wished so much to have a real Princess for his wife.

One evening a fearful tempest arose, it thundered and lightened, and the rain poured down from the sky in torrents: besides, it was as dark as pitch. All at once there was heard a violent knocking at the door, and the old King, the Prince's father, went out himself to open it.

It was a Princess who was standing outside the door. What with the rain and the wind, she was in a sad condition; the water trickled down from her hair, and her clothes clung to her body. She said she was a real Princess.

“Ah! we shall soon see that!” thought the old Queen-mother; however, she said not a word of what she was going to do; but went quietly into the bedroom, took all the bed-clothes off the bed, and put three little peas on the bedstead. She then laid twenty mattresses one upon another over the three peas, and put twenty feather beds over the mattresses.

Upon this bed the Princess was to pass the night.

The next morning she was asked how she had slept. “Oh, very badly indeed!” she replied. “I have scarcely closed my eyes the whole night through. I do not know what was in my bed, but I had something hard under me, and am all over black and blue. It has hurt me so much!”

Now it was plain that the lady must be a real Princess, since she had been able to feel the three little peas through the twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds. None but a real Princess could have had such a delicate sense of feeling.

The Prince accordingly made her his wife; being now convinced that he had found a real Princess. The three peas were however put into the cabinet of curiosities, where they are still to be seen, provided they are not lost.

Wasn't this a lady of real delicacy?

Frequently Asked Questions about The Real Princess

What is "The Real Princess" ("The Princess and the Pea") about?
"The Real Princess," also known as "The Princess and the Pea," is a fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen about a prince who searches the world for a true princess to marry. When a young woman arrives at the palace during a storm claiming to be a princess, the queen tests her by hiding peas beneath twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds. The princess sleeps terribly and is covered in bruises, proving her royal sensitivity, and the prince marries her.

What is the moral of "The Princess and the Pea"?
The moral of "The Princess and the Pea" is that true worth lies in inner qualities rather than outward appearances. The princess arrives at the castle looking bedraggled and unremarkable, yet her extraordinary sensitivity proves her authenticity. Andersen suggested that the sensitivity in the story symbolizes compassion and emotional depth, qualities that define true nobility regardless of how a person looks on the outside.

Why does the queen put peas under the mattresses in "The Princess and the Pea"?
The queen places peas under twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds as a test of whether the young woman is a genuine princess. In the logic of the fairy tale, only a real princess would possess such refined sensitivity that she could feel the tiny peas through so many layers of bedding. The test is the queen's way of verifying the stranger's royal identity when her appearance alone does not prove it.

What literary devices does Hans Christian Andersen use in "The Real Princess"?
Andersen uses hyperbole in the image of twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds stacked over the peas, exaggerating the test to comic effect. The story also uses irony, since the queen's absurd test is treated as perfectly reasonable proof of royalty. The closing line, which asks "Wasn't this a lady of real delicacy?" functions as both a rhetorical question and a satirical wink to the reader, inviting them to question whether the story is sincere or tongue-in-cheek.

Is "The Real Princess" the same story as "The Princess and the Pea"?
Yes, they are the same fairy tale. The original Danish title is "Prinsessen paa Aerten," which translates literally to "The Princess on the Pea." Different English translations have used different titles over the years, with "The Real Princess" being a common early translation and "The Princess and the Pea" becoming the more widely recognized title today. The story was first published by Hans Christian Andersen in 1835.

Where can I read more fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen?
You can read many more Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales here on American Literature, including "The Ugly Duckling," about a misfit bird who discovers he is a beautiful swan; "The Little Match Girl," a poignant winter tale about a poor child's visions; and "The Emperor's New Clothes," a satire about vanity and the fear of speaking the truth. All of these stories are available to read for free in our Hans Christian Andersen collection.

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