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Donkey skin - Charles Perrault

The tale tells of a king who became mad with grief after the death of his beloved wife and wanted to marry his daughter. The princess tried to stop him, but could not and was forced to flee the palace, wearing a donkey skin. It was not easy for the poor girl to live outside the palace, but happiness found her in the form of a handsome prince ...

donkey skin read

There was once a rich and powerful king. He had as much gold and soldiers as no other king had even dreamed of.

His wife was the most beautiful and intelligent woman in the world. The king and queen lived together and happily, but often grieved that they had no children. Finally, they decided to take some girl and raise her as their own daughter. The opportunity soon presented itself. One close friend of the king died, leaving behind his daughter, a young princess. The king and queen immediately transported her to their palace.
The girl grew and every day became more beautiful and more beautiful. This pleased the king and queen, and, looking at their pupil, they forgot that they did not have their own children.

I know that I will die soon. Before I die, I want to ask you only one thing: if you decide to marry a second time, then marry only that woman who will be more beautiful and better than me.

The king, sobbing loudly, promised the queen that her wish would be granted, and she died.

Having buried his wife, the king could not find a place for himself with grief, did not eat or drink anything, and became so old that all his ministers were horrified by such a change.

One day, when the king, sighing and crying, was sitting in his room, the ministers came to him and began to ask him to stop grieving and get married as soon as possible.

But the king didn't even want to hear about it. However, the ministers did not lag behind him and assured him that the king should certainly marry. But no matter how hard the ministers tried, their persuasion did not convince the king. Finally, they so annoyed him with their harassment that one day the king said to them:

The ministers were glad that the king had given up at least a little, and began to show him portraits of the most wonderful beauties every day, so that the king would choose a wife from these portraits, but the king said that the dead queen was better, and the ministers left with nothing.

Finally, the most important minister came one day to the king and said to him:

King! Does your pupil seem to you, both in intelligence and beauty, worse than the late queen? She is so smart and beautiful that you won't find a better wife! Marry her!

It seemed to the king that his young pupil, the princess, was indeed better and more beautiful than the queen, and, without refusing more, he agreed to marry the pupil.

The ministers and all the courtiers were pleased, but this seemed terrible to the princess. She did not want to become the wife of the old king. However, the king did not listen to her objections and ordered her to prepare for the wedding as soon as possible.

The young princess was in despair. She didn't know what to do. Finally, she remembered the sorceress Lilac, her aunt, and decided to consult with her. That same night she went to the sorceress in a golden carriage drawn by a big old ram who knew all the roads.

The sorceress listened attentively to the story of the princess.

If you do exactly what I tell you to do," she said, "nothing bad will happen. First of all, ask the king for a dress blue as the sky. He can't get you a dress like that.

The princess thanked the sorceress for her advice and returned home. The next morning she told the king that she would not agree to marry him until she received from him a dress as blue as the sky.

The king immediately summoned the best craftsmen and ordered them to sew a dress as blue as the sky.

If you do not please the princess,” he added, “I will order you all to be hanged.

The next day, the masters brought the ordered dress, and in comparison with it, the blue sky itself, surrounded by golden clouds, seemed not so beautiful.

Upon receiving the dress, the princess was not so much delighted as frightened. She again went to the sorceress and asked what she should do now. The sorceress was very annoyed that her plan did not work out, and ordered the princess to demand a moon-colored dress from the king.

The king could not refuse anything to the princess. He sent for the most skillful craftsmen that there were in the kingdom, and in such a formidable voice gave them an order that in less than a day the masters had already brought the dress.

At the sight of this beautiful outfit, the princess sunbathed even more.

The sorceress Lilac appeared to the princess and, having learned about the second failure, told her:

On both occasions, the king succeeded in fulfilling your request. Let's see if he can do it now, when you demand from him a dress shining like the sun. It is unlikely that he will be able to get such a dress. In any case, we will buy time.

The princess agreed and demanded such a dress from the king. The king without hesitation gave all the diamonds and rubies from his crown, if only the dress shone like the sun. Therefore, when the dress was brought and unfolded, everyone immediately screwed up their eyes: it really shone like a real sun.

One princess was not happy. She went to her room, saying that her eyes ached from the brilliance, and there she began to weep bitterly. The sorceress Lilac was very sad that all her advice came to nothing.

Well, now, my child, - she said to the princess, - demand from the king the skin of his beloved donkey. He certainly won't give it to you!

And I must say that the donkey, the skin of which the sorceress ordered to demand from the king, was not an ordinary donkey. Every morning, instead of manure, he covered his bedding with shiny gold coins. It is clear why the king loved and protected this donkey so much.

The princess was overjoyed. She was sure that the king would never agree to kill the donkey. She ran cheerfully to the king and demanded a donkey skin.

Although the king was surprised at such a strange demand, he did not hesitate to fulfill it. The donkey was killed and its skin solemnly brought to the princess. Now she really didn't know what to do. But then the sorceress Lilac appeared to her.

Don't worry so much, honey! - she said. - Maybe it's all for the best. Wrap yourself in a donkey skin and get out of the palace as soon as possible. Take nothing with you: the chest with your dresses will follow you underground. Here's my magic wand. When you need a chest, strike the ground with your wand and it will appear before you. But leave quickly, do not delay.

The princess kissed the sorceress, pulled on a nasty donkey skin, smeared her face with soot so that no one would recognize her, and left the palace.

The disappearance of the princess caused a great stir. The king sent out a thousand horsemen and many archers on foot in pursuit of the princess. But the sorceress made the princess invisible to the eyes of the royal servants. Therefore, the king had to abandon the futile search.

And meanwhile the princess was on her way. She went into many houses and asked to be taken at least as a maid.

But no one wanted to take the princess with them, because in a donkey's skin she seemed unusually ugly.

Finally, she reached a large house. The mistress of this house agreed to accept the poor princess as her worker. The princess thanked the hostess and asked what she should do. The mistress told her to wash clothes, look after turkeys, herd sheep and clean pig troughs.

The princess was placed in the kitchen. From the very first day, the servants began to mock her rudely. However, we got used to it little by little. In addition, she worked very hard, and the mistress did not allow her to be offended.

One day, sitting on the bank of a stream, the princess looked into the water as if into a mirror.

Looking at herself in a nasty donkey skin, she was frightened. The princess felt ashamed that she was so dirty, and, quickly throwing off her donkey skin, she bathed in the stream. But when she returned home, she again had to put on a nasty skin.

Fortunately, the next day was a holiday and the princess was not forced to work. She took advantage of this and decided to dress up in one of her rich dresses.

The princess hit the ground with her magic wand, and a chest of outfits appeared before her. The princess took out a blue dress that she received from the king, went to her little room and began to dress up.

She looked at herself in the mirror, admired the wonderful outfit, and since then every holiday she dressed up in her rich dresses. But, except for sheep and turkeys, no one knew about it. Everyone saw her in an ugly donkey skin and nicknamed her - Donkey Skin.

It happened somehow, the young prince was returning from hunting and stopped by to rest in the house where Donkey Skin lived as workers. He rested a little, and then began to wander about the house and the yard.

By chance, he wandered into a dark corridor. At the end of the corridor was a locked door. The prince was very curious, and he wanted to know who lives behind this door. He looked into the crack. What was his surprise when he saw in a small cramped room a beautiful elegant princess! He ran to the mistress to find out who lives in this little room.

They told him: the girl Donkey Skin lives there, she wears a donkey skin instead of a dress, so dirty and greasy that no one wants to look at her or talk to her. They took Donkey Skin into the house to graze sheep and clean pig troughs.

The king knew nothing more. He returned to the palace, but could not forget the beauty, whom he accidentally saw through the door crack. He regretted that he had not gone into the room then and made the acquaintance of her.

The prince made a promise to himself that next time he would certainly do it.

Thinking constantly about the wonderful beauty, the prince fell seriously ill. His mother and father were in despair. They called for doctors, but the doctors couldn't do anything. At last they said to the queen: her son must have fallen ill from some great grief. The queen began to ask her son what happened to him, but he did not answer her. But when the queen knelt down and began to cry, he said:

I want Donkeyskin to bake a cake and bring it back as soon as it's ready.

The queen was surprised at such a strange desire. She called the courtiers and asked who this Donkey Skin was.

Ah, that filthy bastard! - explained one courtier. She lives not far from here and tends sheep and turkeys.

Well, whoever this Donkeyskin is, said the queen, let her bake a pie for the prince at once!

The courtiers ran to Donkeyskin and gave her the queen's order, adding that she should carry it out as best and quickly as possible.

The princess locked herself in her little room, threw off her donkey skin, washed her face and hands, put on a clean dress and began to cook a cake. She took the best flour, and the freshest butter and eggs.

While kneading the dough, on purpose or by accident, she dropped a ring from her finger. It fell into the dough and stayed there. And when the cake was baked, the princess put on a nasty skin, left the room, gave the cake to the courtier and asked him if she should go with him to the prince. But the courtier did not even want to answer her and ran with the pie to the palace.

The prince snatched the cake from the hands of the courtier and began to eat it so hastily that all the doctors shook their heads and shrugged.

Such swiftness portends little good! they said.

Indeed, the king's son ate the pie with such greed that he almost choked on a ring that ended up in one of the pieces of the pie. But the prince quickly took the ring out of his mouth and after that began to eat the pie not so hastily. He looked at the ring for a long time. It was so small that only the prettiest finger in the world could fit. The prince kissed the ring every now and then, then hid it under his pillow and took it out every minute when he thought that no one was looking at him.

All this time he thought about the Donkey Skin, but he was afraid to talk about it aloud. Therefore, his illness intensified, and the doctors did not know what to think. Finally, they announced to the queen that her son was sick from love. The queen rushed to her son along with the king, who was also upset and upset.

My son, - said the saddened king, - tell us the girl you love. We promise that we will marry you to her, even if she is the last servant!

The queen, embracing her son, confirmed the promise of the king. The prince, touched by the tears and kindness of his parents, said to them:

Dear father and mother! I myself do not know who is the girl whom I fell in love with so passionately. I'm marrying someone who will fit this ring, whoever she is.

And he took out a donkey-skin ring from under the pillow and showed it to the king and queen.

The king and queen took the ring, examined it with curiosity and, deciding that only the most beautiful girl could fit such a ring, agreed with the prince.

The king ordered that drums be struck immediately and messengers sent throughout the city to call all the girls to the palace to try on the ring.

Walkers ran through the streets and proclaimed that the girl who would fit the ring would marry the young prince.

First, the princesses came to the palace, then the ladies of the court, but no matter how hard they tried to make their fingers thinner, not one could put on a ring. I had to invite a seamstress. They were pretty, but their fingers were too thick to fit into the ring.

Finally it was the turn of the maids, but they, too, failed. Everyone has already measured the ring. No one had to fit it! Then the prince ordered to call cooks, dishwashers, swineherds. They were brought in, but their hardened fingers could not get into the ring any further than a fingernail.

Did they bring that Donkey Skin who just baked a pie? asked the king.

The courtiers laughed and answered him:

Donkey Skin was not invited to the palace because she was too dirty and nasty.

Now send for her! - ordered the king.

Then the courtiers, laughing quietly, ran after the Donkey Skin.

The princess heard the beat of the drums and the cries of the walkers, and guessed that her ring had raised all this turmoil. She was very happy when she saw that they were following her. She quickly brushed her hair and dressed up in a moon-colored dress. As soon as the princess heard that they were knocking on the door and calling her to the king's son, she hastily threw a donkey skin over her dress and opened the door.

The courtiers mockingly announced to Donkeyskin that the king wanted to marry his son to her, and took her to the palace.

Surprised by the unusual appearance of the Donkey Skin, the prince could not believe that this was the same girl whom he had seen so beautiful and elegant through the door crack. Saddened and embarrassed, the prince asked her:

Do you live at the end of a dark corridor, in that big house where I recently stopped by from hunting?

Yes, she answered.

Show me your hand,” continued the prince.

Imagine the amazement of the king and queen and all the courtiers when a small tender hand appeared from under the black, soiled skin and when the ring fit the girl. Then the princess threw off her donkey skin. The prince, struck by her beauty, forgot about his illness and threw himself at her feet, beside himself with joy.

The king and queen also embraced her and asked if she wanted to marry their son.

The princess, embarrassed by all this, was just about to say something, when suddenly the ceiling opened up, and the sorceress Lilac descended into the hall on a chariot of lilac flowers and branches and told everyone present the story of the princess.

The king and queen, having listened to the story of the sorceress, fell in love with the princess even more and immediately married her to their son.

The wedding was attended by the kings of different countries. Some rode in carriages, others on horseback, and the furthest on elephants, on tigers, on eagles.

The wedding was celebrated with luxury and pomp, which can only be imagined. But the prince and his young wife paid little attention to all this splendor: they looked only at each other and only saw each other.

(Translation by M. Bulatov, illustrations by A. Reipolsky, Lenizdat, 1992, fairyroom.ru)

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Perro Charles fairy tale "Donkey skin"

The main characters of the fairy tale "Donkey Skin" and their characteristics

Princess Donkeyskin, very beautiful and hardworking. She did not shun black work, she was patient and humble. Kind and affectionate.
The prince, young and handsome, fell in love with the princess and took her to wife
The king's father went crazy seeing the beauty of his daughter, but at the end of the tale he corrected himself.
Lilac-sorceress, fairy godmother, kind and wise.

Plan for retelling the tale "Donkey Skin"

Peaceful life in the kingdom
Donkey and gold
death of the queen
King's intention
Three princess dresses
donkey skin
Farm work
sick prince
Donkey skin pie
ring in the pie
Fitting
A happy ending

The shortest content of the fairy tale "Donkey skin" for the reader's diary in 6 sentences

When the queen died, the king decided to marry his own daughter, she was so beautiful.
At the request of his daughter, the king sewed three dresses and killed a donkey that brought gold coins.
On the advice of the Lilac Sorceress, the princess runs in a donkey skin and works on a farm
The prince sees the princess through the keyhole and falls in love
The prince finds in a pie prepared by Donkeyskin a ring
The ring is suitable only for the princess, the wedding and the blessing of the father.

The main idea of \u200b\u200bthe fairy tale "Donkey Skin"
Only those who are not afraid to overcome difficulties are worthy of happiness.

What does the fairy tale "Donkey skin" teach
This fairy tale teaches us not to give up in the face of difficulties, teaches us to be persistent and hardworking, teaches us patience and faith in the best. The tale teaches that goodness will always be rewarded.

Review of the fairy tale "Donkey Skin"
I don't really like this tale, because it talks about ugly things, like the king's intention to marry his own daughter. But of course I like the main character herself, she is a brave and determined girl who was not embarrassed by dirty work, even though she was a princess and was used to a completely different treatment.

Proverbs to the fairy tale "Donkey skin"
Don't judge people by their appearance.
The road will be mastered by the walking one.
You never know in advance where you will find, where you will lose.

Summary, brief retelling of the tale "Donkey Skin"
In one kingdom lived a happy king with his queen, and their young and beautiful daughter, a princess. Everything in the kingdom was good and the simple donkey was especially valued here, which gave gold coins every morning.
But one day the queen fell ill and realized that she was dying. She took the word from the king that he would definitely marry after her death, but only to one who would be more beautiful and slimmer than her.
The queen died and the courtiers began to ask the king to marry again, but he kept dissuaded. Suddenly one day he saw his daughter in the garden and decided to marry her, she was so beautiful.
The princess was horrified and ran to her godmother, the Lilac fairy sorceress, who advised her to ask the king for a sky-colored dress.
The king called the tailors and two days later the beautiful dress was ready.
Then the lilac sorceress advised me to ask for a dress in the color of the month. This dress was ready the next day.
Then the princess asked for a dress the color of the sun, but this dress, adorned with diamonds, was quickly sewn.
Then the lilac sorceress advised the princess to ask for the skin of a donkey, and the king killed the donkey and gave his daughter his skin. Then the fairy told the princess to wrap herself in a skin and leave the palace, and on the way she gave her a magic wand so that the princess could summon her dresses.
The princess in the donkey skin was gone and no one could find her. And she got a job on the farm to do the most menial work and everyone considered her a mess.
One day she saw her reflection in the lake and got scared. Then she washed herself and saw that her beauty had returned to her.
At that time, a young prince happened on the farm. And the princess in her closet at that time changed into a dress the color of the sky. The prince accidentally looked through the keyhole and saw a beautiful stranger. He asked the farmer about her, but he knew nothing.
Then the prince returned to the palace and fell ill. Nobody could heal him. And so the prince asked that they bring him a cake that Donkeyskin would cook.
The princess changed into her dress and made a delicious cake, but accidentally dropped her ring into the dough.
The prince found the ring and got even sicker. He told his father, the king, that he wanted to marry someone who would fit this ring.
Everyone tried to wear a ring, but it did not suit anyone. Then the king called for Donkeyskin. The princess dressed in a dress the color of the sun and threw a donkey skin over it. The ring immediately approached her and the prince fell on his knees in front of her. The princess rushed to pick it up and the donkey skin fell off.
Everyone was amazed by the beauty of the princess. And then the Lilac-sorceress came down and told the story of the princess.
They immediately decided to play a wedding and sent invitations to everyone, including the father of the princess. He arrived with his new wife, the Queen Dowager, recognized his daughter and blessed the marriage. And then he handed over the management of his kingdom to the princess.

Drawings and illustrations for the fairy tale "Donkey Skin"

Page 1 of 4

Donkey skin (fairy tale)

There was once a rich and powerful king. He had as much gold and soldiers as no other king had even dreamed of. His wife was the most beautiful and intelligent woman in the world. The king and queen lived together and happily, but often grieved that they had no children.

Finally, they decided to take some girl and raise her as their own daughter. The opportunity soon presented itself. One close friend of the king died, leaving behind his daughter, a young princess. The king and queen immediately transported her to their palace.

The girl grew and every day became more beautiful and more beautiful. This pleased the king and queen, and, looking at their pupil, they forgot that they did not have their own children.

One day, the queen fell seriously ill. Day by day she got worse and worse. The king did not leave the bed of his wife for days and nights. And she grew weaker and weaker, and the doctors unanimously said that the queen would no longer get out of bed. The queen herself soon realized this. Feeling the approach of death, she called the king and said to him in a weak voice:
- I know that I will die soon. Before I die, I want to ask you only one thing: if you decide to marry a second time, then marry only that woman who will be more beautiful and better than me.

The king, sobbing loudly, promised the queen that her wish would be granted, and she died.
Having buried his wife, the king could not find a place for himself with grief, did not eat or drink anything, and became so old that all his ministers were horrified by such a change.
One day, when the king, sighing and crying, was sitting in his room, the ministers came to him and began to ask him to stop grieving and get married as soon as possible.
But the king didn't even want to hear about it. However, the ministers did not lag behind him and assured him that the king should certainly marry.

But no matter how hard the ministers tried, their persuasion did not convince the king. Finally, they so annoyed him with their harassment that one day the king said to them:

I promised the late queen that I would marry a second time if I found a woman who was more beautiful and better than her, but there is no such woman in the whole world. That's why I never get married.
The ministers were glad that the king had given up at least a little, and began to show him portraits of the most wonderful beauties every day, so that the king would choose a wife from these portraits, but the king said that the dead queen was better, and the ministers left with nothing.
Finally, the most important minister came one day to the king and said to him:
- King! Does your pupil seem to you, both in intelligence and beauty, worse than the late queen? She is so smart and beautiful that you won't find a better wife! Marry her!

It seemed to the king that his young pupil, the princess, was indeed better and more beautiful than the queen, and, without refusing more, he agreed to marry the pupil.
The ministers and all the courtiers were pleased, but this seemed terrible to the princess. She did not want to become the wife of the old king. However, the king did not listen to her objections and ordered her to prepare for the wedding as soon as possible.

Peau d "ane ~ Un contre de Charles Perrault, Illustre par Miss Clara ~

Beautiful puppet illustrations by MissClara for Charles Perrault's fairy tale "Donkey Skin". The book was published in 2011 in France.

donkey skin

Once upon a time there lived a successful in business, a strong, brave, kind king with his beautiful wife, the queen. His subjects adored him. His neighbors and rivals bowed before him. His wife was charming and tender, and their love was deep and sincere. They had an only daughter, whose beauty equaled virtue.

The king and queen loved her more than their lives.

Luxury and abundance reigned everywhere in the palace, the king's advisers were wise, the servants were hardworking and faithful, the stables were full of the most thoroughbred horses, the cellars were innumerable supplies of food and drink.

But the most surprising thing was that in the most conspicuous place, in the stable, stood an ordinary gray long-eared donkey, which was served by thousands of efficient servants. It was not just a whim of the king. The point was that instead of the filth that should have been littered with donkey bedding, every morning it was strewn with gold coins, which the servants collected daily. So beautiful was life in this happy kingdom.

And then one day the queen fell ill. Skillful scientists who came from all over the world could not cure her. She felt that her death hour was approaching. Calling the king, she said:

I want you to grant my last wish. When, after my death, you marry...

Never! - desperately interrupted her, fallen into grief, the king.

But the queen, gently stopping him with a gesture of her hand, continued in a firm voice:

You must remarry. Your ministers are right, you are obliged to have an heir and must promise me that you will consent to marriage only if your chosen one is more beautiful and slimmer than me. Promise me this, and I will die in peace.

The king solemnly promised her this, and the queen died with the blissful certainty that there was no other in the world as beautiful as she.

After her death, the ministers immediately began to demand that the king marry again. The king did not want to hear about it, grieving for days on end about his dead wife. But the ministers did not lag behind him, and he, having told them the last request of the queen, said that he would marry if there was one as beautiful as she.

The ministers began to look for his wife. They visited all the families where there were daughters of marriageable age, but none of them could compare in beauty with the queen.

Once, sitting in the palace and grieving for his dead wife, the king saw his daughter in the garden, and darkness covered his mind. She was more beautiful than her mother, and the distraught king decided to marry her.

He informed her of his decision, and she fell into despair and tears. But nothing could change the decision of the madman.

At night, the princess got into the carriage and went to her godmother, the Lilac Enchantress. She comforted her and taught her what to do.

Marrying your father is a great sin, she said, so we will do this: you will not argue with him, but say that you want to receive a sky-colored dress as a gift before the wedding. It is impossible to do, he will not be able to find such an outfit anywhere.

The princess thanked the sorceress and went home.

The next day, she told the king that she would agree to marry him only after he got her a dress that was not inferior in beauty to the sky. The king immediately summoned all the most skillful tailors.

Urgently sew for my daughter such a dress, in comparison with which the blue vault of heaven would fade, - he ordered. - If you do not follow my order, then you will all be hanged.

Soon the tailors brought the finished dress. Light golden clouds floated against the background of the blue firmament. The dress was so beautiful that everything living next to it faded.

The princess didn't know what to do. She again went to the Lilac Enchantress.

Demand the dress of the color of the month, - said the godmother.

The king, having heard this request from his daughter, again immediately called the best craftsmen and gave them orders in such a formidable voice that they sewed the dress literally the next day. This dress was even better than the first. The soft sheen of silver and the stones with which it was embroidered so upset the princess that she hid in tears in her room. Lilac-Sorceress again came to the aid of the goddaughter:

Now ask him for a dress the color of the sun,” she said, “at least it will keep him busy, and in the meantime we will think of something.

The king in love did not hesitate to give all the diamonds and rubies to adorn this dress. When the tailors brought it and unwrapped it, all the courtiers who saw it were immediately blinded, it shone so brightly and shimmered. The princess, saying that her head ached from the bright shine, ran away to her room. The sorceress who appeared after her was extremely annoyed and discouraged.

Well, now, - she said, - the most turning point in your life has come. Ask your father for the skin of his beloved famous donkey, who supplies him with gold. Go ahead, my dear!

The princess made her request to the king, and he, although he understood that this was a reckless whim, did not hesitate to give the order to kill the donkey. The poor animal was killed, and its skin was solemnly presented to the princess, dumbfounded by grief. Moaning and sobbing, she rushed to her room, where the sorceress was waiting for her.

Do not cry, my child, she said, if you are brave, sorrow will be replaced by joy. Wrap yourself in this skin and get out of here. Walk while your feet walk and the earth carries you: God does not leave virtue. If you do everything as I command, the Lord will give you happiness. Go. Take my magic wand. All your clothes will follow you underground. If you want to wear something, hit the ground twice with your wand and what you need will appear. Now hurry up.

The princess put on an ugly donkey skin, smeared herself with stove soot, and, unnoticed by anyone, slipped out of the castle.

The king was furious when he discovered her disappearance. He sent out one hundred and ninety-nine soldiers and one thousand, one hundred and ninety-nine policemen in all directions to find the princess. But it was all in vain.

Meanwhile, the princess ran and ran farther and farther, looking for a place to sleep. Kind people gave her food, but she was so dirty and terrible that no one wanted to take her into their house.

Finally, she came to a large farm, where they were looking for a girl who would wash dirty rags, wash pig troughs and take out slops, in a word, would do all the menial work around the house. Seeing a dirty, ugly girl, the farmer offered her to hire him, believing that it was just right for her.

The princess was very happy, she worked diligently day and day among the sheep, pigs and cows. And soon, despite her ugliness, the farmer and his wife fell in love with her for her hard work and diligence.

Once, while gathering brushwood in the forest, she saw her reflection in the stream. The vile donkey skin she wore horrified her. She quickly washed herself and saw that her former beauty had returned to her. Returning home, she again had to put on a nasty donkey skin.

The next day was a holiday. Left alone in her closet, she took out a magic wand and, tapping it twice on the floor, summoned a chest of dresses to her. Soon, impeccably clean, luxurious in her sky-colored dress, all in diamonds and rings, she admired herself in the mirror.

At the same time, the king's son, who owned this area, went hunting. On the way back, tired, he decided to stop to rest at this farm. He was young, handsome, beautifully built and kind-hearted. The farmer's wife cooked dinner for him. After eating, he went to inspect the farm. Going into a long dark corridor, he saw in the depths of his small locked closet and looked through the keyhole. His surprise and admiration knew no bounds. He saw such a beautiful and richly dressed girl, which he had not even seen in a dream. At the same moment he fell in love with her and hurried to the farmer to find out who this beautiful stranger was. He was told that in the closet lived the girl Donkeyskin, so named because she was dirty and vile to such an extent that no one could even look at her.

The prince realized that the farmer and his wife did not know anything about this secret and it was pointless to ask them. He returned to his home in the royal palace, but the image of a beautiful divine girl constantly tormented his imagination, not giving a moment of peace. From this he fell ill and fell ill with a terrible fever. The doctors were powerless to help him.

Perhaps, they said to the queen, some terrible secret is tormenting your son.

The excited queen hurried to her son and begged him to tell her the reason for his grief. She promised to fulfill his every wish.

The surprised queen began to ask her courtiers who the Donkey Skin was.

Your Majesty, - one of the courtiers, who was once on this distant farm, explained to her. - This is a terrible, vile, black-skinned ugly woman who cleans up manure and feeds pigs with slop.

No matter what she is, the queen objected to him, it may be a strange whim of my sick son, but if he wants it, let this Donkey-Skin bake a cake for him himself. You must get him here quickly.

A few minutes later the runner delivered the royal order to the farm. Hearing it. Donkey Skin was very happy about this opportunity. Happy, she hurried to her closet, locked herself in it, and, having washed and dressed in beautiful clothes, began to cook a cake. Taking the whitest flour and the freshest buttered eggs, she began to knead the dough. And then, by accident or on purpose (who knows?), the ring slipped from her finger and fell into the dough. When the cake was ready, she put on her ugly greasy donkey skin and gave the cake to the court runner, who hurried to the palace with it.

The prince greedily began to eat the cake, and suddenly he came across a small gold ring with an emerald. Now he knew that what he had seen was not a dream. The ring was so small that it could fit only on the prettiest finger in the world.

The prince constantly thought and dreamed about this fabulous beauty, and the fever seized him again, and even with much more force than before. As soon as the king and queen learned that their son was very seriously ill and there was no hope for his recovery, they ran to him in tears.

My dear son! cried the saddened king. - Tell us what you want? There is no such thing in the world that we would not get for you.

My dear father, - answered the prince, - look at this ring, it will give me recovery and heal me from sorrow. I want to marry a girl who will fit this ring, no matter who she is - a princess or the poorest peasant woman.

The king carefully took the ring. Immediately he sent out a hundred drummers and heralds to inform everyone about the royal decree: that girl, on whose finger a gold ring is put on, will become the bride of the prince.

First came the princesses, then came the duchesses, baronesses, and marchionesses. But none of them could put on the ring. They twisted their fingers and tried to put on the ring of the actress and seamstress, but their fingers were too thick. Then it came to maids, cooks and shepherdesses, but they also failed.

This was reported to the prince.

Did Donkey Skin come to try on the ring?

The courtiers laughed and replied that she was too dirty to appear in the palace.

Find her and bring her here, - the king ordered, - everyone without exception should try on the ring.

Donkeyskin heard the drums and the cries of heralds, and knew that it was her ring that had caused such a commotion.

As soon as she heard a knock on her door, she washed, combed her hair and dressed nicely. Then she threw on the skin and opened the door. The courtiers sent for her with laughter led her to the palace to the prince.

Do you live in a small closet in the corner of the stable? - he asked.

Yes, Your Highness, the smut replied.

Show me your hand, - asked the prince, experiencing unprecedented excitement before. But what was the astonishment of the king and queen and all the courtiers when a small white hand stuck out from under the dirty, smelly donkey skin, on the finger of which a gold ring, which turned out to be just right, slipped without difficulty. The prince fell to his knees before her. Rushing to pick it up, the dirty girl bent down, the donkey skin slipped off her, and everyone saw a girl of such amazing beauty, which only happens in fairy tales. Dressed in a dress the color of the sun, she shone all over, her cheeks would be the envy of the best roses of the royal garden, and her eyes the color of the blue sky shone brighter than the largest diamonds of the royal treasury. The king beamed. The Queen clapped her hands in joy. They begged her to marry their son.

Before the princess had time to answer, the Lilac-Sorceress descended from heaven, scattering around the most delicate fragrance of flowers. She told everyone the story of Donkey Skin. The king and queen were immensely happy that their future daughter-in-law came from such a rich and noble family, and the prince, hearing about her courage, fell in love with her even more.

Invitations to the wedding flew to different countries. The first was sent an invitation to the father of the princess, but did not write who the bride was. And then came the day of the wedding. From all sides, kings and queens, princes and princesses came to her. Some arrived in gilded carriages, some on huge elephants, ferocious tigers and lions, some flew on fast eagles. But the richest and most powerful was the father of the princess. He arrived with his new wife, the beautiful widowed queen. With great tenderness and joy, he recognized his daughter and immediately blessed her for this marriage. As a wedding gift, he announced that his daughter would rule his kingdom from that day forward.

This famous feast lasted for three months. And the love of the young prince with the young princess lasted a long, long time.