"Saint Solicitous" (german: Die heilige Frau Kümmernis, also translated as "Saint Kummernis"), is a story first published as no. 66 of

Grimm's Fairy Tales ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'', originally known as the ''Children's and Household Tales'' (german: Kinder- und Hausmärchen, lead=yes, ), is a German collection of fairy tales by the Grimm brothers or "Brothers Grimm", Jacob and Wilhelm, first publis ...

. Although included in the first edition in 1815, it was dropped in the second edition (1819) because it bore too much resemblance to ''Ovum paschale Neugefärbte Oster-Ayer'', a

legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...

by Andreas Strobl. Strobl's legend appears to be based on the popular medieval

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...

of Saint Wilgefortis.

Synopsis

princess Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subst ...

named Solicitous was very devoted to her

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

and vowed to God that she would remain a

virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

and never marry anyone. When her father the King became determined to marry her off, she prayed, wishing for a

beard A beard is the hair that grows on the jaw, chin, upper lip, lower lip, cheeks, and neck of humans and some non-human animals. In humans, usually pubescent or adult males are able to grow beards. Throughout the course of history, societal at ...

to grow on her face so that no man would wish to marry her. Her prayer was answered, and the King, indignant, decided to

crucify Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagin ...

her. She became a

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

upon her death, and a statue of her was placed in a church. One day, a poor

musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

knelt down to pray in front of the statue. St. Solicitous was very happy and gave him one of her golden shoes, which he happily took home. Later, however, a notice came out that one of the golden shoes was missing. When it was found on the musician, he was accused of

theft Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for some ...

and was arrested. He begged for his jailers to bring him to the church. When they arrived at the church, St. Solicitous gave him her other golden shoe, proving his innocence. The musician was set free.

References

{{Authority control Grimms' Fairy Tales Solicitous Solicitous Solicitous