The story of the steadfast tin soldier
Tin soldiers exist much longer than this fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875). But the story is still famous and there are still toy soldiers that portray this fairytale about love and loyalty. Andersen wrote it in 1838.
The story begins with twenty-five tin soldiers. They are given to a boy as a birthday present. One of the soldiers is missing a leg. When the soldiers are in the living room, the one-legged soldier falls in love with a ballet dancer made of paper. The dancer lives in a castle and the soldier shares a box with twenty-four others. When the boy goes to bed, all the toys in the living room come to life.
A little toy devil that lives in a box is jealous on the soldier and curses him. Also this devil was in love with the dancer. The next (rainy) day the tin soldier blows out of the window. Two street boys find him and put him on a paper boat. The boat floats through the rainwater into the sewer. In the sewer rat stops him, but then floats further. At the end of the sewer, the boat sinks and a fish swallows up the tin soldier. The fish is hit on the hook of a fisherman and eventually ends up in the kitchen of the boy's house. The tin soldier is found by the kitchen maid and returns to the other soldiers.
The boy is very happy when he finds the soldier again. His sister opens the box with the devil as a joke to frighten the boy. The boy is so frightened by this that he lets the soldier fall into the fire. The dancer is so scared again that she loses her balance and ends up in the fire. The good fairy who lives in the Christmas tree sees it and whispers magic words out of pity. At that moment, a soldier and a dancer walk outside on the street. They see each other and run towards each other, shouting with joy. The only thing left in the fire is a tin heart and a paper flower.
Other versions
There is also a version in which a boy throws the soldier into the fire without reason or because he is influenced by the devil in the box. When the door opens, the dancer blows into the stove. The maid only finds a tin heart the next day.
There is also a version in which a boy throws the soldier into the fire without reason or because he is influenced by the devil in the box. When the door opens, the dancer blows into the stove. The maid only finds a tin heart the next day.
Toy soldiers with one leg……
There are toy soldiers and dancers that portray this fairy tale. Many flat figures but actually you can find them in more and more forms. What we find we put on this page below. You can also browse a comic book. It is in Dutch for copyright reasons, but the drawings speak for themselves.
There are toy soldiers and dancers that portray this fairy tale. Many flat figures but actually you can find them in more and more forms. What we find we put on this page below. You can also browse a comic book. It is in Dutch for copyright reasons, but the drawings speak for themselves.
