The Princess and the Pea

Once upon a time, there was a prince who wanted to marry a princess. But she had to be a real princess—one of true royal blood. He traveled all over the world in search of such a princess, but none of the women he met were what he was looking for. Some seemed like princesses on the outside, but he couldn’t be sure they were genuine. Disappointed, he returned home to his castle, still without a bride.

One stormy evening, as thunder roared and rain poured down in torrents, there was a knock at the castle door. The old king himself went to answer it. There, in the rain, stood a young woman, soaked from head to toe. Her hair clung to her face, and her clothes were drenched, but she stood tall and proud.

Young Woman: "I am a princess, and I seek shelter for the night."

The king and queen, curious about the girl's claim, invited her inside. Though the young woman insisted she was a princess, the queen wasn’t convinced. She had heard of many girls claiming to be princesses, but how could one truly know?

The queen decided to test the young woman’s royal status in a very special way. That night, she prepared a bed for the supposed princess, but before laying down the sheets, the queen placed a single pea at the bottom of the mattress. Then, she ordered 20 more mattresses to be stacked on top of the first, and on top of those, she added 20 featherbeds.

The queen led the young woman to the room.

Queen: "Here is your bed for the night. Sleep well, dear princess."

The young woman thanked her and climbed up the tall stack of mattresses. She lay down, though it was a precarious balancing act, and tried to sleep. However, all night long, she tossed and turned, unable to find any comfort.

In the morning, the queen asked her guest how she had slept.

Queen: "Did you sleep well, my dear?"

Princess: "Oh, no! I barely slept a wink! There was something hard in the bed, and I was lying on something so uncomfortable that I am bruised all over. I don’t know what it could have been!"

The queen smiled, for now she knew that the girl was indeed a true princess. Only a real princess, with skin so delicate, could feel something as small as a pea beneath 20 mattresses and 20 featherbeds.

The queen hurried to tell the prince.

Queen: "We have found your princess! Only a real princess could be so sensitive."

The prince, overjoyed, asked the young woman for her hand in marriage, and she happily agreed. They were married in a grand celebration, and the kingdom rejoiced in the union of the prince and the real princess.

As for the pea, it was put in a museum, where it could still be seen to this day—if no one has taken it.

And so, the prince and the princess lived happily ever after, proving that true royalty is not about appearance, but about what’s beneath the surface.