Zusammenfassung
Zusammenfassung von Sagen der Schweiz
Go deeper: the whole of Sagen der Schweiz
About 4 h 20 min to read.Für wen es gedacht ist
Readers who love folktales, mountain scenery and old castles will enjoy this collection. It also suits travelers bound for the Alps and anyone who likes short tales by the fire.
Worum es in diesem Buch geht
Picture a fairy boat, its sails catching golden light, gliding over Lake Geneva behind eight snow-white swans. A tall woman in white smiles at the sprites around her. Anyone who glimpses this boat sees a wish come true, even one the dreamer never dared to speak.
That is how Legends of Switzerland begins. H. A. Guerber gathered tales that Swiss families have told by the fire for centuries. You travel canton by canton and meet saints, giants, dwarfs, ghosts and shepherds, in a country whose storms and avalanches shaped its imagination as much as its rocks.
In dieser Zusammenfassung
- 1A fairy boat and a spinning maidenFree
- 2When cows were giants and giants were children
- 3Cruel hearts meet strange punishments in Vaud
- 4Fools, spirits and a tailor's wild night
- 5Generosity and wit in Fribourg and Neuchâtel
- 6Bears, saints, dwarfs and a magic horn
- 7A lost hawk, an oath and an apple
- 8Pride and greed turn green pastures to ice
- 9Saints, the Devil and a restless Pilate
- 10A traveler's guide told by the fireside
Punkt 1 von 10
A fairy boat and a spinning maiden
The book opens on Lake Geneva, where a fairy boat with a lateen sail is drawn along by eight snow-white swans. A tall woman in white stands at the mast, and winged sprites scatter flowers at her feet. Wherever the boat touches land, the soil bursts into bloom.
The second tale is tied to the Church of Sainte Marie Madeleine in Geneva. When local Christians set out to build it, a pious girl named Madeleine, famous for the fineness of her thread, promised to give everything she could spin. Other givers lost interest, but she only spun faster. The workmen cheered her on each time they passed her house, and that cry grew into the refrain of a song still sung at the yearly festival.
Out of gratitude, the masons carved spindles and spinning wheels all over the church. A place remembers the people whose patient goodness shaped it.
That’s 1 of 10 key points.
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Go deeper: the whole of Sagen der Schweiz
About 4 h 20 min to read.Questions about Sagen der Schweiz
What is Legends of Switzerland about?
It is a collection of Swiss folktales gathered canton by canton, from Geneva to the Grisons. The stories feature saints, giants, dwarfs, fairies, the Devil, knights and shepherds, and many explain a lake, rock, castle or mountain.
Who is Gargantua in Swiss legend?
Gargantua is a huge, simple-minded and kind giant of the Golden Age. He sits on Mont Blanc, scoops out the Rhone valley and the basin of Lake Geneva, and gives Salève and Monthey their names.
Do I have to read the tales in order?
No. Each legend stands on its own and takes only a few minutes to read or hear. The book is arranged like a journey through the cantons, so you can start anywhere and enjoy it.
What is the main message of the legends?
Many tales praise generosity, hospitality and honest work, and warn that pride, greed and cruelty bring ruin. Others laugh warmly at foolish people, and many give a story to a real rock, lake, castle or pass.
Cite this edition
Guerber, H. A. Legends of Switzerland. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/legends-of-switzerland.
Guerber, H. A. (2026). Legends of Switzerland. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/legends-of-switzerland (Original work published 1899)
Guerber, H. A. Legends of Switzerland. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/legends-of-switzerland.
@book{guerber2026legends,
author = {Guerber, H. A.},
title = {Legends of Switzerland},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/legends-of-switzerland},
note = {First published 1899}
}
