The Golden Bird (Grimm)
Short summary
A kingdom in fairy tale times. A king's golden apples were stolen nightly. His youngest son caught the thief—a golden bird—and shot off one feather. The king demanded the whole bird.
On his quest, the prince met a talking fox who gave wise advice. Despite warnings, he put the bird in a golden cage and was caught. To earn freedom, he had to get the Golden Horse.
Again ignoring the fox's advice about using a plain saddle, he was caught and tasked with bringing a princess. With the fox's help, he won all three treasures. His jealous brothers found him.
But the two brothers threw him backwards into the well, took the maiden, the Horse, and the Bird, and went home to their father.
The fox saved him. Truth prevailed; the brothers were executed. The prince married the princess and freed the fox from enchantment—he was her brother.
Detailed summary
Division into chapters is editorial.
The mystery of the stolen golden apples
A king owned a magnificent pleasure garden behind his palace, containing a tree that bore golden apples. When the apples ripened, they were carefully counted, but each morning one was missing. The king ordered nightly watches beneath the tree to catch the thief.
The king's eldest son volunteered first but fell asleep at midnight, and another apple vanished. The second son fared no better, also succumbing to sleep when twelve o'clock struck. Finally, the youngest son took his turn. Though his father doubted his abilities, the young man stayed awake and witnessed a magnificent bird with golden feathers stealing an apple. He shot an arrow, wounding the bird and causing a single golden feather to fall.
When the prince presented the golden feather to his father, the king's council declared it worth more than the entire kingdom. The king became obsessed with possessing the entire bird.
If the feather is so precious, one alone will not do for me; I must and will have the whole bird!
The older brothers failed quests
The eldest prince set out first to find the Golden Bird. Along the way, he encountered a fox who offered valuable advice: avoid the brightly lit inn and choose the shabby one instead. The arrogant prince dismissed the fox's counsel.
How can such a silly beast give wise advice? thought the King's son, and he pulled the trigger. But he missed the Fox, who stretched out his tail and ran quickly into the wood.
The eldest prince chose the cheerful inn and became lost in revelry, forgetting his mission entirely. When he failed to return, the second son departed on the same quest. He too met the fox, ignored the wise counsel, and was lured into the same inn by his brother. Both princes abandoned their duty for pleasure and never returned home.
The youngest sons quest for the Golden Bird
Despite his father's reluctance, the youngest prince eventually received permission to seek the Golden Bird. When he met the fox and showed kindness, the magical creature offered assistance.
You shall not repent it, answered the Fox; and that you may get on more quickly, get up behind on my tail.
The fox carried the prince swiftly to the village, where he heeded the advice and stayed at the humble inn. The next day, the fox guided him to a castle guarded by sleeping soldiers. The fox warned him to take the Golden Bird from its wooden cage, not the ornate golden one nearby. However, the prince thought it absurd to leave such a beautiful bird in an ugly cage.
But, thought he, it would be absurd if I were to leave the beautiful bird in the common and ugly cage, so he opened the door, laid hold of it, and put it into the golden cage.
The moment he moved the bird to the golden cage, it cried out shrilly, awakening the soldiers. They captured the prince and sentenced him to death. However, the king offered him life in exchange for bringing the Golden Horse that ran faster than the wind.
The quest for the Golden Horse
The faithful fox appeared again to help the sorrowful prince, despite his disobedience. The fox transported him to another castle where the Golden Horse stood in the stable, guarded by sleeping grooms. Again, the fox warned against using the golden saddle, advising the common leather one instead.
Once again, the prince ignored the fox's wisdom, thinking it shameful to give such a magnificent horse anything but the finest saddle. The golden saddle caused the horse to neigh loudly, awakening the grooms who captured the prince. This king also sentenced him to death but offered mercy in exchange for bringing the beautiful princess from the Golden Castle.
The quest for the princess and removing the hill
The fox helped once more, guiding the prince to the Golden Castle. Following instructions, the prince waited until midnight when the beautiful princess went to bathe, then kissed her. She agreed to come with him, but tearfully begged to bid farewell to her parents first.
Against the fox's warning, the prince allowed her this farewell. The moment she reached her father's bedside, the entire castle awakened and the prince was captured. The king sentenced him to death unless he could remove a hill blocking the royal view within eight days. After seven days of futile digging, the fox completed the impossible task overnight.
The Foxs clever plan to retrieve all treasures
With the task completed, the prince won the princess. The fox then devised a clever plan to obtain all three treasures. First, they would exchange the princess for the Golden Horse, then quickly rescue her. Next, they would trade the horse for the Golden Bird, then reclaim the horse. The plan succeeded perfectly, and the prince departed with all three prizes.
Betrayal, rescue, and triumph
The fox warned the prince about two dangers: buying gallows-flesh and sitting at well edges. Traveling homeward, the prince discovered his brothers were to be hanged for their crimes. Despite the fox's warning, he paid for their freedom. The ungrateful brothers threw him into a well and claimed his treasures as their own.
The faithful fox rescued the prince from the dry well. Disguised as a poor man, the prince returned to his father's palace. The moment he appeared, the bird began singing, the horse started eating, and the princess stopped weeping.
No one knew him, but the Bird began to sing, the Horse began to eat, and the beautiful maiden left off weeping.
The princess revealed the truth, the wicked brothers were executed, and the youngest prince married her and became heir to the kingdom. Finally, the prince fulfilled the fox's last request by killing him, which broke the enchantment. The fox transformed into a man—the princess's brother, freed at last from his magical curse.