Once there was a miller who was poor but had a beautiful daughter. He once spoke to the King and, to seem important, claimed, "I have a daughter who can spin straw into gold." Intrigued, the King ordered the girl brought to the palace.
The King led her to a room full of straw, gave her a spinning wheel, and said, "Spin this straw into gold by morning, or you will die." He locked her in alone. The poor girl had no idea how to do it and wept in despair.
Suddenly, a little man appeared. "Why are you crying?" he asked. "I must spin straw into gold and don't know how," she replied. "What will you give me to do it for you?" he asked. "My necklace," she offered. The man took the necklace, sat at the wheel, and with a "whirr, whirr, whirr," filled the reel with gold. He worked all night until all the straw was gold.
At dawn, the King was amazed and delighted, but grew greedier. He put her in a larger room with more straw, demanding she spin it all in one night. Again, the little man appeared. This time, she gave him her ring, and he spun the straw into gold.
The next morning, the King was overjoyed but still not satisfied. He led her to an even larger room, saying, "Spin this tonight, and if you succeed, you shall be my Queen."
When the little man came a third time, the girl had nothing left to give. "Then promise me your first child when you become Queen," he said. In desperation, she agreed. He spun the straw into gold.
The King married her, and she became Queen. A year later, she had a beautiful child and forgot her promise. The little man returned, demanding the child. The horrified Queen offered all the kingdom's riches, but he refused, saying, "Something living is dearer to me than all treasures."
He took pity and gave her three days to guess his name; if she succeeded, she could keep her child. The Queen thought of every name she knew and sent messengers far and wide. For two days, she guessed many names, but all were wrong.
On the third day, a messenger reported seeing a strange little man dancing by a fire in the forest, singing:
"To-day I bake, to-morrow brew,
The next I'll have the young Queen's child.
Ha! glad am I that no one knew
That Rumpelstiltskin I am styled."
When the little man returned, the Queen asked, "Is your name Rumpelstiltskin?"
"The devil has told you that!" he cried in rage. He plunged his right foot so deep into the earth that his whole leg went in, then pulled his left leg so hard with both hands that he tore himself in two.