Long-Haired Lady

A couple lived next to a walled garden belonging to a sorceress. After a time, the wife became pregnant with their first child. From her bedroom window the wife could see into the garden and she noticed there were plenty of delicious looking rapunzel and began to long for them.

rapunzel (a green herb also known as corn salad)

As her desire increased, and not knowing, and not knowing how to get any, she became ill. When her husband found out, he promised to get her some of the rapunzel. Though he was actually very frightened to go to the sorceress's garden as she was feared by everyone, he loved his wife very dearly and was willing to do anything to make her happy. So he climbed into the garden and was about to pull out some rapunzel when the sorceress appeared. Mother Gothel (that was her name) screamed :

Gothel : How dare you steal my vegetable?

the terrified man tried to explain to his action. When he wan done, Mother Gothel gave him permission to take as much as he wanted, on one condition - that when his daughter was born (she knew it would be a girl), she would be given to the sorceress. the man was much too frightened to say no, so he agreed.

Mother Gothel

The day came when the wife gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. In a moment, the fearful sorceress appeared and took it away. She name the baby Rapunzel.

Rapunzel

Rapunzel grew into a lovely young girl. She had long golden yellow hair that was never cut. everyday she combed and braided it. Her hair grew so long that Rapunzel had to coil it around her head to keep herself from tripping over.

When Rapunzel reached her 12th birthday, Mother Gothel locked her up in a tower in the middle of the wood. The tower had no doors or stairways to reach the top. There was only one room and one window. When the sorceress came to visit Rapunzel, she stood at the base of the tower and cried out " Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your golden hair".

When she heard this, Rapunzel would uncoil her braided hair, wind it around a window hook, and let it fall to the ground. The sorceress would then climb it. This went on for some years until Rapunzel had grown into a young lady.

One day, a handsome prince was riding in the woods, when he heard Rapunzel singing. He wanted to know who it was that was singing. He discovered the tower, just as the sorceress came for her visit. He watched how Mother Gothel climbed into the tower and waited until she had left. Then the Prince decided to try it himself. He called out to Rapunzel to let down her hair. Not knowing that it was the Prince, Rapunzel let her hair down and the Prince climbed up. Rapunzel was frightened as first as she had never seen anyone other than Mother Gothel. But the Prince was handsome and his gentle words soothed her. They fell in love and the Prince asked her to marry him.

 

Rapunzel agreed and the started making plans for her escape. However, Rapunzel accidentally let out the secret one day when she said : Really Mother Gothel, you are far more difficult to pull up than the prince".

The sorceress was incensed. As punishment, she cut off Rapunzel's hair and cast her out into the wild. When the Prince arrived soon after, Mother Gothel used Rapunzel's hair to pull him up. To his horror, the sorceress told him that he would never be able to see his love again and pushed him out of the window. He fell on some thorn bushes and was blinded. So he wandered about sadly until one day he heard a familiar voice singing. It was Rapunzel!!!

She too recognized him, and crying, threw her arms around his neck. Two of her tears fell into his eyes, and they became clear again, and he could see as well as before. He took her to his kingdom where the married and lived happily ever after.