• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Stories
  • Games
    • View All
    • FAQ
  • Encyclopaedia
  • About
  • Support TGIMM
  • Shop
  • Contact

The Ghost In My Machine

Stories of the Strange and Unusual

Creepypasta of the Week: “The Pied Piper”

December 21, 2015 by Lucia

Previously: “Extra Ketchup.”

Fairy tales are worth a closer look for the same reason that a lot of modern urban legends are — there’s often more going on there than just a gruesome tale meant to frighten children before bed. That’s the tack that “The Pied Piper” takes, examining the possible roots of the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin.

Illustration of the Pied Piper

The stained glass window mentioned in this story did, at one point, exist; so, too, does the Lueneburg Manuscript. In fact, most historians and theorists are in agreement that tale of the Pied Piper arose out of something traumatic that happened in Hamelin in the 13th century — something that resulted in the loss of the town’s entire population of children.

Exactly what happened, though… that, we don’t know. And what’s more, we probably never will.

And that’s the creepiest thing of all.

[Like what you read? Check out Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark, available from Chronicle Books now!]

If you visit Hamelin today — it’s in Germany near Hanover — stop by Bungelosenstrasse, or “Drumless Street”; it’s the last place the children were said to be seen before they vanished all those centuries ago. And if you’re as interested in creepy riffs on already-creepy fairy tales as I am, you’ll probably dig the play The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh. John Crowley’s production of it remains one of the finest pieces of theatre I’ve ever seen; it’s a remarkable read all on its own, though, so it’s worth checking out… just maybe not as a bedtime story.

In a town called Hamelin in northern Germany, a stained glass window made in the year 1300 and kept until the 17th century in the market church depicts an event where the children were in danger.

A more chilling documentation from the town’s chronicle in the year 1384 reads, “It is 100 years since our children left”.

This is the account of the Pied Piper, named for his fanciful or “pied” clothing and the silver pipe he played. According to legend as well as several personal written accounts, the man lured the children never to be seen again. One documentation from a Lunenberg town chronicle from 1430-1450 reads:

“Here follows a marvellous wonder, which transpired in the town of Hamelin in the diocese of Minden, in the Year of Our Lord, 1284, on the Feast of Saints John and Paul. A certain young man thirty years of age, handsome and well-dressed, so that all who saw him admired him because of his appearance, crossed the bridges and entered the town by the West Gate. He then began to play all through the town a silver pipe of the most magnificent sort. All the children who heard his pipe, in the number of 130, followed him to the East Gate and out of the town to the so-called execution place or Calvary. There they proceeded to vanish, so that no trace of them could be found. The mothers of the children ran from town to town, but they found nothing. It is written: A voice was heard from on high, and a mother was bewailing her son.”

However several other documents from surrounding areas spoke of this event. Nearly three centuries since the initial incident, people of surrounding towns in Germany feared the return. A chronicle of the town of Bamberg in 1553 reads:

“There is also a mountain which lies approximately a rifle shot away from this town, called Calvary, and the townspeople say that in 1283 a man was seen possibly a musician, wearing clothing of many colors and possessing a pipe, which he played in the town. Whereupon the children in the town ran out as far as the mountain, and there they all disappeared into it. Only two children returned home, and they were naked; one was blind and the other mute. But when the women began to look for their children, the man said to them that he would come again in 300 years and take more children. 130 children had been lost and the people of this place were afraid that the same man would come again in 1583.”

The number of children and the precise names of the areas all match, something very rare for history especially in Europe at that time. For most Europeans in those centuries, estimation and near guesses followed particular superstitions. Just wives’ tales and folksy legends.

However, not the case this time.

Keep reading…

***

Follow The Ghost In My Machine on Twitter @GhostMachine13 and on Facebook @TheGhostInMyMachine. And don’t forget to check out Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark, available now from Chronicle Books!

[Photo: Wikimedia Commons]

Filed Under: Tales Tagged With: creepypasta, Creepypasta of the Week, fairy tales, Germany, history, Pied Piper

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Top Stories

‘Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark’ Is Now Available From Chronicle Books!

15 Creepy, Scary Phone Numbers To Call That Actually Work (UPDATED For 2023)

The Backrooms, Explained: How To Make Sense Of The Internet’s Favorite Non-Reality

About

The Ghost In My Machine is an internet campfire of sorts. Gather round, because it wants to tell you strange stories, take you on haunted journeys, and make you jump at unexpected noises.

Continue Reading >

Support

Like what you read? Support The Ghost In My Machine!

 

Support

Follow

Facebook Twitter

From the Vault

  • Bloody Mary & Other Games We Shouldn’t Play

    Scare Yourself Silly

  • This Man

    Creepy Things That Seem Real But Aren’t

  • The Dionaea House

    Creepy Things That Seem Real But Aren’t

  • The Noise Coming From Inside Children

    Scare Yourself Silly

  • NoEnd House

    Is It Real?

  • Killswitch

    Creepy Things That Seem Real But Aren’t

  • The “Lost” Mickey Mouse Cartoon

    Is It Real?

  • 200 Phenomena In The City Of Calgary

    Scare Yourself Silly

View All >

Letters from the Beyond

Enter your email to receive blog posts and updates by email

  • Stories
  • Games
  • Encyclopaedia
  • About
  • Support TGIMM
  • Shop
  • Contact

Privacy Policy

We use cookies to give you the best online experience. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of all the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT