This is a list of

literary Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

accounts of the Pied Piper, that is, of tellings or retellings of the full story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. For briefer

allusion Allusion is a figure of speech, in which an object or circumstance from unrelated context is referred to covertly or indirectly. It is left to the audience to make the direct connection. Where the connection is directly and explicitly stated (as ...

s to the Pied Piper, in literature and other media, see Pied Piper of Hamelin in popular culture.

The Pied Piper in literature before 1900

14th century

* Decan Lude chorus book (c. 1384): now lost, a chorus book owned by Decan Lude of Hamelin reportedly contained an eyewitness account of the event, written by his grandmother in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

verse.

15th century

* The Lueneburg manuscript (c. 1440–50): A few lines in German appear to be the oldest surviving account

16th century

* Count Froben Christoph von Zimmern, '' Zimmerische Chronik'' (c. 1559-1565): This appears to be the earliest account which mentions the plague of rats.

17th century

* Richard Rowland Verstegan, ''Restitution of Decayed Intelligence'' (1605): This, the earliest

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

account, includes the reference to the rats and the idea that the lost children turned up in

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

. * Robert Burton, ''

The Anatomy of Melancholy ''The Anatomy of Melancholy'' (full title: ''The Anatomy of Melancholy, What it is: With all the Kinds, Causes, Symptomes, Prognostickes, and Several Cures of it. In Three Maine Partitions with their several Sections, Members, and Subsections. Ph ...

'' (1621): the story is told in a single line as an example of supernatural forces: ‘At Hammel in Saxony, ''ann.'' 1484, 20 ''Junii'', the devil, in likeness of a pied piper, carried away 130 children that were never after seen.’ * James Howell, ''

Epistolae Ho-Elianae ''Epistolae Ho-Elianae'' (or ''Familiar Letters'') is a literary work by the 17th-century Anglo-Welsh historian and writer, James Howell. It was mainly written when Howell was in the Fleet Prison, during the 1640s; but its content reflects earlie ...

'' (1645): brief reference. * William Ramesey, ''Helminthologia; or Some Physical Considerations of Wormes'' (1668): copying Verstegen, writes of "...that most remarkable story in ''Verstegan'', of the ''Pied Piper'', that carryed away a hundred and sixty Children from the Town of ''Hamel'' in ''Saxony'', on the 22. of ''July'', ''Anno Dom''. 1376. A wonderful permission of GOD to the Rage of the ''Devil''". *

Nathaniel Wanley Nathaniel Wanley (1634 – 1680) was an English clergyman and writer, known for ''The Wonders of the Little World''. Life He was born at Leicester in 1634, and baptised on 27 March. His father was a mercer. He was educated at Trinity College, Camb ...

, ''Wonders of the Little World'' (1687): copies Verstegan's account.

19th century

Page 3 illustration in More English Fairy Tales

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as t ...

, poem (1803): Goethe's poem based on the story was later set to music by Hugo Wolf. *

Jakob Grimm Jacob Ludwig Karl Grimm (4 January 1785 – 20 September 1863), also known as Ludwig Karl, was a German author, linguist, philologist, jurist, and folklorist. He is known as the discoverer of Grimm's law of linguistics, the co-author of th ...

and

Wilhelm Grimm Wilhelm Carl Grimm (also Karl; 24 February 178616 December 1859) was a German author and anthropologist, and the younger brother of Jacob Grimm, of the literary duo the Brothers Grimm. Life and work Wilhelm was born in February 1786 in Hanau, ...

, "The Children of Hamelin", in ''

German Legends German folklore is the folk tradition which has developed in Germany over a number of centuries. Partially it can be also found in Austria. Characteristics It shares many characteristics with Nordic folklore and English folklore due to t ...

'' (1816): a version drawing from eleven sources. In this account by the

Brothers Grimm The Brothers Grimm ( or ), Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm (1786–1859), were a brother duo of German academics, philologists, cultural researchers, lexicographers, and authors who together collected and published folklore. They are among the ...

, two children were left behind as one was blind and the other lame, so neither could follow the others. The rest became the founders of Siebenbürgen (

). *

Prosper Mérimée Prosper Mérimée (; 28 September 1803 – 23 September 1870) was a French writer in the movement of Romanticism, and one of the pioneers of the novella, a short novel or long short story. He was also a noted archaeologist and historian, and a ...

, in the first chapter of his historic novel ''Chronique du règne de Charles IX'' (1829) : a character narrates the legend. * Robert Browning, "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" (1842): Using the Verstegan/Wanley version of the tale and adopting the 1376 date, Browning's verse retelling is notable for its humor, wordplay, and jingling rhymes. *

Andrew Lang Andrew Lang (31 March 1844 – 20 July 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University o ...

used the title "the Ratcatcher" for his version in ''The Red Fairy Book'' (1890). *

Joseph Jacobs Joseph Jacobs (29 August 1854 – 30 January 1916) was an Australian folklorist, translator, literary critic, social scientist, historian and writer of English literature who became a notable collector and publisher of English folklore. Jacobs ...

compiled a number sources for inclusion in ''More English Fairy Tales'' (1894), using the title "The Pied Piper of Franchville".

The Pied Piper in literature after 1900

1900-1989

Marina Tsvetaeva Marina Ivanovna Tsvetaeva (russian: Марина Ивановна Цветаева, p=mɐˈrʲinə ɪˈvanəvnə tsvʲɪˈtaɪvə; 31 August 1941) was a Russian poet. Her work is considered among some of the greatest in twentieth century Russia ...

, ''The Ratcatcher'' (poem, 1925): loosely based on the legend. *

Eric Frank Russell Eric Frank Russell (January 6, 1905 – February 28, 1978) was a British writer best known for his science fiction novels and short stories. Much of his work was first published in the United States, in John W. Campbell's ''Astounding Science F ...

, "The Rhythm of the Rats" in ''

Weird Tales ''Weird Tales'' is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine founded by J. C. Henneberger and J. M. Lansinger in late 1922. The first issue, dated March 1923, appeared on newsstands February 18. The first editor, Edwin Baird, pri ...

'' (short story, July 1950): a retelling of the Pied Piper legend as a 20th-century horror story. *

Shel Silverstein Sheldon Allan Silverstein (; September 25, 1930 – May 10, 1999) was an American writer, poet, cartoonist, singer / songwriter, musician, and playwright. Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, Silverstein briefly attended university before ...

, "The One Who Stayed" in ''

Where the Sidewalk Ends ''Where the Sidewalk Ends'' is a 1974 children's poetry collection written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein. It was published by Harper and Row Publishers. The book's poems address many common childhood concerns and also present purely fancif ...

'' (poem, 1974): tells the story of a child who stayed behind while the rest of Hamelin's children followed the Piper's song. * Deliah Huddy, ''Time Piper'' (novel, 1976): story of a young assistant to a modern day inventor who builds a time machine and displaced the children from Hamelin in the past to the present, explaining their disappearance. * Philip Michaels, ''Come, Follow Me'' (novel, 1983): a paperback horror novel based on the legend. * Pickwick Productions' "The Pied Piper" on the record '' Four Fairy Tales and Other Children's Stories'' (story/song, 1968) tells a very different story from the traditional version. In this version, the Pied Piper is a wandering minstrel who plays his pipe in order to bring the children out of Hamelin just before an avalanche crashes down on the little town. The villagers are so grateful to the Pied Piper that they erect a statue in his honour containing a music box that plays his song! * The heavy metal band Megadeth includes him in the song "Symphony of Destruction".

1990s

* David Lee Stone, ''The Ratastrophe Catastrophe'' (1990): a parody based on the Pied Piper about a boy called Diek who takes away the children of a town because a voice in his head told him to. * Gloria Skurzynski, ''What Happened in Hamelin'' (novel, 1993): ergotism from contaminated rye crops helps explain the mystery of what happened there. *

China Miéville China Tom Miéville ( ; born 6 September 1972) is a British speculative fiction writer and literary critic. He often describes his work as '' weird fiction'' and is allied to the loosely associated movement of writers called '' New Weird''. M ...

, '' King Rat'' (novel, 1998): The Pied Piper story provides the basis for the central plot and several characters. * Christopher Wallace, ''The Pied Piper's Poison'' (1998): Contrasts an army doctor in post-World War Two Germany treating plague victims with the historical truth behind the Pied Piper legend and the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

2000s

* Bill Richardson, ''After Hamelin'' (children's book, 2000): picks up the story where Browning's poem left off. It is written in the voice of the deaf child in the poem, whom Richardson names Penelope. *

Terry Pratchett Sir Terence David John Pratchett (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English humourist, satirist, and author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for his '' Discworld'' series of 41 novels. Pratchett's first no ...

, ''

The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents ''The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents'' is a children's fantasy novel by British writer Terry Pratchett, published by Doubleday in 2001. It is the 28th novel in the ''Discworld'' series and the first written for children. The story is a ...

'' (2001): a humorous take on the Pied Piper. * Russell Brand's first children's book, ''Russell Brand's Trickster Tales: the Pied Piper of Hamelin'' (), published in 2001 by Canongate Books, provided an unusual take on the traditional Pied Piper story. * Adam McCune and Keith McCune, '' The Rats of Hamelin'' (novel, 2005): an eighteen-year-old Pied Piper faces a hidden enemy with powers like his own. *

Jane Yolen Jane Hyatt Yolen (born February 11, 1939) is an American writer of fantasy, science fiction, and children's books. She is the author or editor of more than 350 books, of which the best known is ''The Devil's Arithmetic'', a Holocaust novella. He ...

and Adam Stemple, ''Pay the Piper: A Rock 'n' Roll Fairy Tale'' (novel, 2005): reworks the story in an

Urban fantasy Urban fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy which places imaginary and unreal elements in an approximation of a contemporary urban setting. The combination provides the writer with quixotic plot-drivers, unusual character traits, and a platform for c ...

setting. * Cat Weatherill, ''Wild Magic'' (children's novel, 2007): a retelling of the legend from the perspective of two of the children lured by the Piper, and the Piper himself. The book attempts to explain the Piper's motivations and paints him as a much more sympathetic character than other iterations of the story. * Helen McCabe, ''Piper'' (novel, 2008): a horror novel based on the legend. *

Bill Willingham William Willingham (born 1956) is an American writer and artist of comics, known for his work on the series '' Elementals'' and '' Fables''. Career William Willingham was born in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. During his father's military career the f ...

, '' Peter & Max'' (2009): tells the story of the Pied Piper, among other fairy tales. This book is a tie-in to his popular comic series

Fables Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular moral ...

2010s

* Lorin Morgan-Richards, ''The Pied Piper of Hamelin'' (2012), by Robert Browning, illustrated by Lorin Morgan-Richards with colorization by J.A. Pringles. * John Connolly, ''The Rat King'' (short story, 2016), a macabre re-telling the story of the Pied Piper included in the 10th Anniversary edition of Connolly's novel ''

The Book of Lost Things John Connolly (born 31 May 1968) is an Irish writer who is best known for his series of novels starring private detective Charlie Parker. Biography Education and early career Connolly was educated at Synge Street CBS and graduated with a BA ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pied Piper, List of literary accounts of the Topics in culture Fictional mice and rats Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Hamelin, Pied Piper Pied Piper of Hamelin Victorian poetry Transylvania in fiction Germany in fiction Grimms' Fairy Tales