Gnome king Kyrië (, ) is, according to local folklore, the leader of the legendary

gnome A gnome () is a mythological creature and diminutive spirit in Renaissance magic and alchemy, introduced by Paracelsus in the 16th century and widely adopted by authors, including those of modern fantasy literature. They are typically depict ...

s (

kabouter The Kabouter () is a gnome-like creature in Dutch folklore. The Dutch Kabouters are akin to the Irish Leprechaun, Scandinavian Tomte or Nisse, the English Hob, the Scottish Brownie and the German Klabauter or kobold. In the folklore of the ...

s) who lived in the

Campine The Campine () or Kempen () is a natural region situated chiefly in north-eastern Belgium and parts of the south-eastern Netherlands which once consisted mainly of extensive moors, tracts of sandy heath, and wetlands. It encompasses a large n ...

region of the province of

North Brabant North Brabant ( ; ), also unofficially called Brabant, Dutch Brabant or Hollandic Brabant, is a province in the south of the Netherlands. It borders the provinces of South Holland and Gelderland to the north, Limburg to the east, Zeeland to ...

, the Netherlands. These gnomes had their base in the village of

Hoogeloon Hoogeloon is a Dutch village in the commune of Bladel, in North Brabant. Hoogeloon is situated 4 km north of and is around 20 km west of Eindhoven. History Close to the village of Hoogeloon there are many tumulus dating from the Bron ...

, from which they journeyed into neighboring lands. According to tradition the gnome king Kyrië lived on the Kerkakkers in the Kabouterberg ("gnome mountain"), also known as Duivelsberg ("devil's mountain"), a

tumulus A tumulus (: tumuli) is a mound of Soil, earth and Rock (geology), stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, mounds, howes, or in Siberia and Central Asia as ''kurgans'', and may be found through ...

located in the Koebosch forest, slightly northeast of Hoogeloon.

Description

The gnomes of the Campine were helpful creatures who helped mostly farmers and households in the Campine and also in the neighboring lands of the Peel and the

Meierij The Meierij van 's-Hertogenbosch (; Dutch for "Bailiwick of 's-Hertogenbosch") was one of the four parts of the Duchy of Brabant, the others being the Margraviate of Antwerp, the County of Brussels and the County of Leuven/Louvain. Located in th ...

. They came by night and did not want to be seen by people. If people did see them, they were punished by the gnomes. One story tells of an inquisitive farmer who spied on the gnomes and later became blind in one eye as a punishment.

The death of Kyrië

Gnome king Kyrië was shot by a hunter in the heathlands of Riethoven. He had just enough strength to reach the Duivelsberg (one of the Neolithic burial mounds, located in the Hoogeloon heath) where the gnomes lived. The hunter looked for what he had shot and heard the shocked gnomes say, "Kyrië is dead". The message spread quickly among all gnome settlements in the region. Gnome king Kyrië was buried somewhere in Hoogeloon. After the death of their king, all the gnomes left for an unknown destination. In one version of the story, the king's death is announced by a traveler, a narrative structure that may come from

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

Statue

In Hoogeloon, a

village pump A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

with a statue of gnome king Kyrië on it was erected on the Valensplein in 1985. It was designed by Gubbels. On 9 April 2001, the pump and statue were moved to another place on the same square after a reconstruction of the Valensplein. At the same time, a special bitter, Koning Kyrië Kruidenbitter, was introduced.

References

External links

Dutch legendary creatures Mythological kings Legendary gnomes Folklore of the Benelux {{Europe-myth-stub