Blancaflor, the daughter of the devil

Once upon a time there was a king and a queen who, after getting married, were very happy.
time without having offspring. The queen was going to-

Every day to ask God to send them a child, even at the age of twenty.
the devil will take him. The king went hunting wild beasts every day, but there were so many
Fierce for him alone, that one day he came from the forest and told his wife:

I promise our first child to the devil.

Finally, God sent them a son so beautiful that there was no other.

like him. He was also so strong that at three years old he was already going to kill.

beasts and killed more than his father.

But as an adult, he also became very much a player and everyone liked him.

He was earning. One day he met a knight who turned out to be the devil.

He started to play with him, and the devil let him win all the money.

They were scheduled to play another day, but on that day the devil won.

son of the king all the money he was carrying. Then he asked him if

he wanted to wager his soul, and the king's son answered yes. They began to

play and his soul was lost. The devil then told him that if he wanted to recover

Rarla had to go to her castle to carry out three tasks that she would be assigned.

By this time, the king's son was twenty years old when he told his...

father

Father, prepare a horse and some saddlebags for me, as I am on my way.

forward.

The father gave him the best horse he had. The mother prepared the food for him, but
she wouldn't stop crying. The son asked her why she was crying so much and she then
he told her how he had asked God for a child, even if the devil took him away.
the boy told him not to worry and left. Along the way, he met
to a poor old woman, who asked him for a piece of bread, and the boy gave her
everyone he was carrying. Then she asked him:

Where are you going?

I'm going to the devil's castle.

Well, for your good deed, said the old woman, I will tell you that you have ...

that reaches a river that is near the Castle of You Will Go and Not Return, and

to where every day three doves go to bathe, who are the daughters

of the devil. When you get there, they will be bathing. You will hide it from him.

the clothes to the smallest one, who is called Blancaflor, and do not give them to her

until I ask you about her three times and promise you my help in

everything you need.

And how will I get to that river? asked the prince.

In the nearest village lives the owner of the birds, who is

sister of the sun and the moon. Ask her.

The prince continued walking and finally arrived at the house of the birds.

He knocked on the door and a witch came out to greet him, who said:

Who sent you here, who wants you so badly?

I'm searching for the Castle of You Will Go and Not Come Back, and I come to...

you tell me where it is—answered the prince.

Oh, I don't know where that is! But some of my birds,

They go everywhere, you will know. Tonight, when they come after

we will ask how the sun is gathered. But hide in that

corner, if not my brother the sun will scorch you with its rays or my he-

the moon will reveal you.

The sun arrived and started to shout:

I smell human flesh! If you don't give it to me, I'll kill you!
And the witch answered:

—You, let it be, he is a poor kid who is looking for.

the Castle of You Will Go and Not Come Back, and it is waiting for the birds to arrive

to ask him/her.

Then the moon came and the same thing happened:

It smells like human flesh to me! If you don't give it to me, I'll kill you!

Let it go, he is a poor boy who is looking for

the Castle of You Will Go and Not Return, and it is waiting for the birds to arrive

to ask him/her.

Well, the birds from all over the world began to arrive, and to all
they were asking if they knew where the Castle of You Will Go and Not Come Back was,
they all said they had never heard of him. Then the witch said:

Well, only the lame eagle is left, which always arrives last. Finally, the
lame eagle and they asked her, and she answered:

I sure know that. That's across the sea.

"And could you take this boy?" the witch asked him.

That's very far away,

food for the sea voyage. At least one dead horse

and that they would put a piece in my mouth every time I asked for it.

The prince then said that he was willing to kill his hut.

Hello and give it food when it asked for it. The eagle said that's good.

And so it was: the prince killed his horse and rode it sideways.

of the eagle; then he got on and the eagle took flight. Each

for a certain time it said:

—Prince, meat!

And the prince put a piece of horse meat in the beak.

Thus for a long time, until all the meat was gone and all-

they had not crossed the sea. The eagle said:

Well, I'm sorry, but if you don't give me more food, I won't be able to continue.
go ahead and I will have to throw you into the sea.

—No, wait!—said the prince—. I will cut a piece of my

own flesh and I will give it to you.

The eagle then took pity on him and said:

It's not precise. I will make one last effort and release you near

a river that exists before reaching the Castle of You Will Go and Not Return.

And so it was. When the prince arrived at the riverbank, it was already...

they are bathing the three daughters of the devil.

The two maidens went out, got dressed, and turned into doves.

The youngest, who was the most beautiful, approached the boy and asked him

his clothes, to which he said:

You have to marry me.

"It's alright," replied Blancaflor. "I already knew you would come."

Take this ring and put it on.

The prince gave her his clothes. She put them on and instantly

the dove returned.

Get on top of me and let's go to the castle,

When they arrived at the castle, the demon came out to greet them and then...

Guida told him to do the first job.

For tomorrow, he told her, you have to clear that slope,

search for it, sow the wheat, harvest it, grind it, and bring me the bread.
The young man grabbed a hoe and went to the mountain. But when he saw that
it was all made of stones, she began to cry. While crying, she rubbed her eyes
with the ring and at that moment Blancaflor appeared to him.

What’s wrong with you? she asked him.

Well, nothing, he replied, and told her what his father had told him.

warrant.

Don't worry,

When the boy woke up, the bread was already made. He was served it.

He presented the demon and it said to him:

Very well. But... either you are with Blancaflor, or you are more of a demon-

Not me. Now you have to plant this vineyard and bring me

in the afternoon a good basket of grapes.

Once again the prince began to cry, and, rubbing his eyes with

the ring, Blancaflor appeared to him. When she found out what

he told him to go to sleep. When the prince woke up

he only had to take the basket full of grapes and take it to the

demon, who said to him:

Very well. But... either you are with Blancaflor, or you are more of a demo-

not me. I still lack the main thing. Once a great-great-grandmother

Mine passed through the Strait of Gibraltar and a ring fell into the sea.

I want you to go and bring it to me.

When Blancaflor found out what her father had asked for, she

he said to the prince:

Well, now you have to kill me with this knife and collect

all my blood in this bottle, without losing a single drop. Then-

you throw me into the sea and start playing the guitar non-stop.

Oh, I can't kill you!" exclaimed the boy.

But she told him that it had to be this way. Then the prince did
everything just as Blancaflor had told him, although one fell off

blood drop on the ground. He started playing the guitar, and shortly after

the girl came out of the water with the ring in her mouth and more beautiful

that had entered. She was just missing a small piece of a finger due to the

a drop of blood that was lost. The prince took the ring to the demon-

no, that again told him:

—Either you are with Blancaflor or you are more of a demon than I am—

added—: It's okay. You can get married, but the wedding will not be held nor

you will sleep together. And first you have to find out which of my three daughters

It's Blancaflor. If not, I will kill you.

The demon sent his three daughters to stick out a finger.

under the door, so that the boy would have to guess which one

of them belonged to Blancaflor. The girl put her finger that

it had become shorter for him, and that's how he met her.

they went to bed and Blancaflor said to the prince:

My father will want to kill us now. So we have to

What to escape. Go to the stable. There you will see two horses. One fat and

nice, which is called Viento, and another skinny and ugly one, which is called Pensa-

I lie. You have to take the second one and also the rusty sword.

what is in the closet, next to another new and shiny one.

But the prince, when he arrived at the stable, thought it would be better for him

they would serve the fat horse and the new sword, and he took them.

Blancaflor had placed some wine skins on the bed and had

spat three saliva drops into a glass so they could answer for them each

once the demon asks them something from the other side of the
door. The demon asked and the saliva answered, but it

they were drying up and their voice grew weaker and weaker, until the

the demon thought they were asleep. Then he entered and put on

stabbing the bundles, which started to release streams of

wine.

We are lost, said Blancaflor when she arrived at the queue.

dra—. This horse is the Wind's. Let's run.

The demon, when he realized that they had escaped,

He took the horse of Thought and went after them.

When I was about to catch up to them, he turned into a beast to

kill them. The boy turned around and, upon seeing her, said to Blancaflor:

Here comes a beast that wants to catch us.

Then she threw a comb over the horse's tail. The comb

a thorny thicket of combs returned so thick that the devil took a long time.

I spent time in power passing. When I reached them again, he said

she:

Take this knife and throw it at the horse's tail.

At the moment, the knife turned into a thicket of knives and the po-

the demon broke into pieces. But again they were catching up to him.

and she gave the boy a handful of salt to throw out

horse tail. The salt turned into a mountain of salt, and, while crossing-

he was possessed by the demon in the wounds and he screamed.

that the earth was shaking.

Then the horse became a hermitage, she an image and the prince-

the hermit. When the devil arrived, he asked him if he had seen

to pass by a couple riding a horse. And the hermit said to him:

—Dinguilindán, dinguilindán. They are playing at the mass. If you want you.
come in!—and he kept repeating it.

Until the devil got tired of him and turned away. When
She arrived at the castle, the she-devil said to her:

—Foolish, if that was them themselves.

And the devil said:

May God allow him to forget her.

The prince and the devil's daughter continued their journey to the palace of

king. When they arrived at the village, he left her at a fountain and told her that

wait.

Don't let anyone hug you. Because if someone hugs you, I'll forget.
you will give it to him—she said.

The prince arrived at the castle. His parents came out and he said to them:

—Let no one hug me. Prepare the carriages, I'm going for my...

woman.

Then the grandmother came in from behind, approached him, and hugged him. To the

At that moment, the prince forgot about her.

Blancaflor, tired of waiting, imagined what was happening.

turned back into a dove and began to fly around the castle,

saying:

Poor me, dove, in the field and alone!

And the queen said to her son:

—Hadn't you said that we should prepare the floats to go for

your woman?

"What a woman, if I am not married!" said the prince.

Over time, the prince took another girlfriend and there were tournaments for
prepare the wedding. Blancaflor realized what was happening and it hit me-

housekeeper in the palace. It was customary in those times that whoever

he would give something to the servants when he got married. And he already asked the

prince to Blancaflor:

—And what do you want me to gift you?

A stone of pain and a knife of love,

The prince set out on a journey to buy all the gifts,

but the stone of pain and the knife of love could not be found

no part. At last he came across an old man, who was the devil, and who
he said to him:

I have the last ones left.

The prince bought them and returned to the palace. He gave everyone their

gifts, but, since I did not understand why he would want that maid

what he had brought him, he thought to hide to see what he would do.

Blancaflor took the two gifts and put them on the table. She said to

the stone

—Stone of pain, was I not the one who cleared the slope, sowed the
wheat, he harvested it, ground it, and kneaded the bread that the prince brought to me

father?

And the stone replied:

Yes, you were.

The prince was starting to remember something. And the devil's daughter continued saying:

—Stone of pain, was it not I who planted a field of vines and harvested the grape
in a single day for the prince to take her to my father?

And the stone replied:

Yes, you were.

The prince was already remembering everything. Then she said:

—Knife of love, what do I deserve?

And the knife said:

—May you take your own life, Blancaflor.

And when he was about to take his own life with the knife, the prince appeared.

From where he was hidden, he grabbed her and said:

Forgive me, Blancaflor. Forgive me, for I am your husband and I...

I had forgotten.

They went out and he told everyone that she was his wife.

BLANCAFLOR, THE DAUGHTER OF THE DEVIL

Blancaflor is a legend from the south of the Iberian Peninsula about the daughter
little devil similar in theme to the Greek legend of Medea.
On occasions, it is also mistakenly confused with the story of Snow White.

The kings of a very distant country, desperate for not being able to have children, pray.
for having offspring (in some versions, they even go so far as to make the
promise to hand it over to the devil when they turn twenty if they
grant the favor).

She has a beautiful and generous son, but she owes her soul to the devil, well
either due to the promise of their parents, or because they turned out to be a hardened player.
The devil promises to restore his old life if he completes three tasks that he
will impose. An old woman whom he helps on the way to the castle of Irás and not
You will return, where the devil resides, he gives a trick to overcome the tasks: before
Upon reaching the castle, there is a river where the devil's daughters bathe. It must
hide the clothes of the little girl named Blancaflor, and not give them to her until
the promise to help you.

Following the instructions of the old woman, he gets the help of Blancaflor after
to promise her marriage. Thanks to her, he manages to overcome the three tasks:

To level a slope, sow wheat, and make bread for the devil in a single day.

Flatten a mountain, plant vines, and make wine.

Recover a lost ring in the Strait of Gibraltar

The devil, angry about his defeat and because the boy is going to marry his...
the daughter tries to kill him, but both flee to the prince's homeland. Once there,
the future monarch forgets everything that has happened and gets engaged to another. Blancaflor is
about to commit suicide with a stone of pain and a knife of love, when the
prince, who attends Blancaflor's colloquium with these objects begins to
to remember everything that happened and stops her at the last moment to marry
she.

Once upon a time there was a king and a queen who, after getting married, were very
time without having offspring. The queen went every day to ask God to
he will send you a son, even if the devil takes him away at twenty years old. The king was going
to hunt wild beasts every day, but there were so many beasts for him alone, that one day
he came from the woods and said to his wife:

The first child we have, I promise to the devil.

Finally, God sent them such a beautiful son, that there was no one like him. He was
Also so strong, that at three years old he was already hunting beasts and killed more than
his father. But when he grew up, he also became a big gambler and everyone liked him
I was earning.
One day he met a knight who turned out to be the devil. He started to play.
with him, and the devil let him win all the money. They arranged to meet for
play another day, but that day the devil beat the king's son out of all the money that
He was carrying. Then he asked him if he wanted to wager his soul, and the king's son
he answered yes. They started to play and his soul lost. The devil told him
So if I wanted to get her back, I had to go to her castle to perform three.
jobs that he would send him. By this time the king's son was already twenty years old, when he
he said to his father:

Father, prepare a horse and some saddlebags for me, as I am leaving.

forward.

The father gave him the best horse he had. The mother prepared the food for him, but
couldn’t stop crying. Her son asked her why she was crying so much and she then
he told her how he had asked God for a child, even if the devil took him away. The
the boy told him not to worry and left. On the way, he ran into
to a poor old woman, who asked him for a piece of bread, and the boy gave her
everyone he was carrying. Then she asked him:

Where are you going?

I'm going to the devil's castle.

Well, for your good deed, said the old woman, I will tell you that you have to reach
a river that is near the Castle of You Will Go and Not Return, and where every day
three doves are going to bathe, who are the daughters of the devil. When you get there
They will be bathing. You will hide the clothes of the youngest, who is called
Blancaflor, and do not give it to her until she asks you for it three times and promises you.
your help in everything you need.

And how will I get to that river? asked the prince.

In the nearest town lives the owner of the birds, who is the sister of the sun.
and of the moon. Ask her.
The prince continued walking and finally arrived at the house of the birds. He knocked on the
door and a witch came out to greet him, who said:

Who sent you here, who cares so little for you?

I am looking for the Castle of You Will Go and Never Come Back and I come for you to tell me
where is it located—answered the prince.

Oh, I don't know where that is! But some of my birds, which go everywhere
parts, he will know. Tonight, when they come after the sun has set,
we will ask him. But hide in that corner, otherwise my brother the sun will
It will burn with its rays or my sister the moon will reveal you.

The sun arrived and began to shout:—It smells like human flesh! If you don't give it to me,
I will kill you! And the witch answered:

—Let it go, he is just a poor boy who is looking for the Castle of
You will go and not return, and he is waiting for the birds to arrive to ask him about it.

Then the moon arrived and the same thing happened:

I smell human flesh! If you don't give it to me, I'll kill you!

—Come on, let it be, he is a poor boy who is looking for the Castle of
You will go and not return, and is waiting for the birds to ask him about it.

Well, the birds from all over the world started arriving, and they all ...
they were asking if they knew where the Castle of You Will Go and Not Return was,
They all said they had never heard of him. Then the witch said:
Well, only the lame eagle is left, which always arrives last.

Finally, the limping eagle arrived and they asked him, and he answered:—I sure believe it.
Yes. That's across the sea.

And could you take this boy? the witch asked him.

That's very far away,

the crossing of the sea. At least one dead cavalryman and for them to put me a
a mouthful every time he asked for it.

The prince then said that he was willing to kill his horse and give it to
eat when asked. The eagle said that was good. And so it was: the prince killed
he got on his horse and mounted it sideways onto the eagle; then he mounted himself and the
the eagle took flight. Every now and then it said:

—Prince, meat!

And the prince would put a piece of horse meat in its beak. Thus for
a long time, until all the meat ran out and they still hadn't
crossed the sea.

The eagle said:—Well, I'm sorry, but if you don't give me more food, I won't be able to continue.
Go ahead and I will have to throw you into the sea.

—No, wait!—said the prince—. I will cut a piece of my own flesh and you
I will give it.

The eagle then took pity on him and said, 'It is not necessary. I will make a...'
last effort and I will drop you off near a river that is before reaching the Castle
You will go and not return.
And so it was. When the prince arrived at the riverbank, they were already bathing.
three daughters of the devil. The two eldest went out, got dressed and returned
doves. The youngest, who was the most beautiful, approached the boy and asked him
his clothes, to which he said to him:

You have to marry me.

Blancaflor answered. I already knew you would come. Take this

put on the ring.

The prince gave her his clothes. She put them on and instantly turned into a dove.

Get on top of me and let's go to the castle,

When they arrived at the castle, the demon came out to greet them and immediately ordered them.
that he/she would do the first job.

For tomorrow, he said, you have to clear that hillside, plow it, and plant the
wheat, harvest it, grind it, and bring me the bread.

The boy grabbed a hoe and went to the mountain. But when he saw that
it was all made of stones, she began to cry. While crying, she rubbed her eyes
with the ring and at that moment Blancaflor appeared to him. -What is wrong with you? -she
she asked.

Well, nothing," he replied and told her what his father had ordered him.

Don't worry, she said, lie on my lap and go to sleep.

When the boy woke up, the bread was already made. He presented it to the
demon and he said to him:—Very well. But... either you are with Blancaflor, or you are
more demon than me. Now you have to plant this vineyard and bring me by
in the afternoon a good basket of grapes.

Once again the prince began to cry, and while rubbing his eyes with the ring, he...
Blancaflor appeared. When she found out what was happening, she told him that she
he began to sleep. When the prince woke up, he only had to take the
a basket full of grapes and take it to the devil, who said to him:—Very well. But... or
You are with Blancaflor, or are you more of a demon than I am. I still have to miss it.
principal.

Once, one of my great-great-grandmothers crossed the Strait of Gibraltar and fell into the
Get a ring. I want you to go and bring it to me.

When Blancaflor learned what her father had asked for, she said to the
prince:—Well, now you have to kill me with this knife and collect all my
blood in this bottle, without losing a single drop. Then you throw me into the sea
and you start playing the guitar non-stop.

"Oh, I can't kill you!" exclaimed the boy. But she told him that
it had to be this way.

Then the prince did everything just as Blancaflor had told him, although he
a drop of blood fell to the ground. He started playing the guitar, and after a little while
the girl came out of the water with the ring in her mouth and more beautiful than ever
entered. He was just missing a small piece of a finger from the drop of blood that he
lost. The prince took the ring to the demon, who said again: —Either you
You walk with Blancaflor or are you more of a demon than I am—and he added—: It’s fine.
You can get married, but the wedding will not be celebrated and you will not sleep together. And first you have

to find out which of my three daughters is Blancaflor. If not, I'll kill you.

The demon sent his three daughters to peek a finger out from underneath the
door, so that the boy would have to guess which of them belonged to
Blancaflor. The girl stuck in the finger that had become shorter, and
this is how he met her. They went to bed and Blancaflor said to the prince: —My father
he will want to kill us now. So we have to escape. Go to the
stable. There you will see two horses. One fat and beautiful, named Wind, and another
skinny and ugly, which is called Thought. You have to take the second one too.
the rusty sword that is in the closet, next to another new and shiny one.

But the prince, when he arrived at the stable, thought that they would serve him better the
fat horse and the new sword, and he took them. Blancaflor had placed in the
he poured some wine skins and had put three spits in a glass so that
they would respond for them every time the demon asked them something from the
the other side of the door. The demon asked and the salivas responded, but it
they were drying up and their voice became weaker and weaker, until the demon
he thought they were asleep. Then he entered and started stabbing them.
the bundles, which started to release streams of wine.

We are lost,
It's the Wind. Let's run.

The demon, upon realizing they had escaped, took the horse.
of Thought and went out after them.

When he was about to catch up with them, he became a beast to kill them.
The boy turned and, upon seeing her, said to Blancaflor: - There comes a beast that
he wants to get us.

Then she threw a comb over the horse's tail. The comb turned into a bush.
so thick that the devil took a long time to pass through.

When she was catching up to them again, she said: —Take this knife and throw it away.
horse tail.

At that moment the knife became a bush of knives and the poor demon came out.
torn to pieces.
But again she was catching up to him and she gave the boy a handful of salt.
for him to throw it down the horse's tail. The salt turned into a mountain of salt,
And, as he crossed it, the devil entered into the wounds and let out some screams.
that the earth was shaking.

Then the horse became a hermitage, she an image, and the prince the hermit.
When the devil arrived, he asked if he had seen a couple riding by.
on a horse. And the hermit said to him:—Dinguilindán, dinguilindán. To mass
they knock. "If you want to enter!"—and he kept repeating it. Until the devil got tired of him.
and turned around.

When he arrived at the castle, the she-devil said to him:—Fool, if they were the very same.

And the demon said:—May God allow him to forget her.

The prince and the devil's daughter continued their journey to the king's palace. When
They arrived at the village, he left her at a fountain and told her to wait.

—Don't let anyone hug you. Because if someone hugs you, you will forget me—he told her.
she.

The prince arrived at the castle. His parents came out and he said to them: - Let no one me
Hug. Prepare the floats, I'm going for my woman.

Then the grandmother arrived from behind, approached him and hugged him. At that moment the
the prince forgot about her. Blancaflor, tired of waiting, imagined what
it happened. It turned into a dove again and started to fly around the
castle, saying:—Poor me, dove, in the field and alone!

And the queen said to her son:—Didn’t you say we should prepare the
carriages to go get your wife?
What a woman, if I am not married!" replied the prince.

Over time, the prince took another girlfriend and there were tournaments to prepare the
wedding. Blancaflor realized what was happening and went in as a maid.
palace. It was customary in those times for the one getting married to give gifts
something to the servants. And then the prince asked Blancaflor: 'And you
What do you want me to give you?

A stone of pain and a knife of love,

The prince embarked on a journey to buy all the gifts, but the stone
of pain and the knife of love could not be found anywhere. Finally it gave
with an old man, who was the devil, and who said to him:—I have the last ones left.

The prince bought them and returned to the palace. He gave all of them their gifts, but,
as I did not understand why that maid would want what I had brought her,
she thought of hiding to see what he would do. Blancaflor took the two gifts and them
he put on the table. He said to the stone: 'Stone of pain, was it not I who flattened
the slope, he sowed the wheat, he harvested it, he milled it, and kneaded the bread that the prince...
Did you take my father?

And the stone answered:—Yes, you were.

The prince was starting to remember something.

And the daughter of the devil continued saying:—Stone of pain, was I not the one who planted a
vineyard and harvested the grape in a single day so that the prince could have it.
Will you take my father?

And the stone answered:—Yes, you were.

The prince was already remembering everything.

Then she said, 'Knife of love, what do I deserve?'

And the knife said:—May you die, Blancaflor.

And when he was about to take his own life with the knife, the prince came out from where
he was hiding, held her and said:

Forgive me, Blancaflor. Forgive me, for I am your husband and I had forgotten you.

They went out and he told everyone that she was his wife.