A long time ago, there was a miller who had a beautiful and clever daughter. The miller was so proud of her that he told the King a lie: "My daughter can spin straw into gold."
The King loved money. He brought the girl to his palace and led her to a room full of straw. "Spin all of this into gold by morning," he ordered, "or you will die." Then he locked the door.
The poor girl sat and cried because she had no idea how to turn straw into gold. Suddenly, the door opened and a strange little man walked in. "Why are you crying?" he asked.
After she explained her problem, the little man said, "What will you give me if I do it for you?"
"My necklace," she replied.
The little man took the necklace and began to work. By morning, all the straw was gold. The King was happy, but he wanted more. He put her in a larger room with even more straw. Again, the little man appeared. This time, the girl gave him her ring, and again he turned the straw into gold.
On the third night, the King took her to a huge room. "If you finish this," he said, "I will marry you and make you Queen."
When the little man appeared, the girl had nothing left to give. "Promise me your first child when you are Queen," the little man said. The girl didn't think she had a choice, so she agreed. The little man finished the work and the King married the miller's daughter.
A year later, the Queen had a beautiful baby. She had forgotten all about the little man until he suddenly appeared in her room. "Give me what you promised," he said.
The Queen was horrified and offered him all the riches of the kingdom instead. The little man felt a bit sorry for her. "I will give you three days," he said. "If you can guess my name, you may keep your child."
The Queen stayed awake all night making a list of every name she knew. On the first and second days, she tried names like Timothy, Benjamin, and even funny names like Hunchback, but the little man always said, "That is not my name."
On the third day, a messenger returned from the forest. He said, "I saw a small house with a fire outside. A strange little man was dancing on one leg and singing:
'Today I bake, tomorrow I brew,
The Queen’s small child I’ll take from you.
She will lose the game, for she doesn't know
That Rumpelstiltskin is my name!'
The Queen was delighted. When the little man arrived that evening, she asked, "Is your name John?"
"No," he laughed.
"Is it Tom?"
"No!"
"Then... is your name Rumpelstiltskin?"
The little man screamed with rage. "A witch told you that! A witch told you!" He was so angry that he kicked his foot deep into the floor. He had to pull it out with both hands and then he ran away into the forest. He was never seen again, and the Queen lived happily with her child.