The Green Caldron of Woolpit
Woolpit, England—There have been a few stories of feral children appearing out of the woods throughout history. Victor of Aveyron is one of them. Of course, these children are studied meticulously to see what, if anything, can be done to reintroduce them into society. However, going back to the 12th century, there is an odd story of the green children of Woolpit. According to at least on of the children, their origin is nowhere near normal.
The History of the Green Children
On this day in the 12th century, a group of villagers discovered two children near Woolpit Suffolk. This was during the reign of King Stephen and feudalism, peasants and serfs, and knights following a chivalric code. The peasants lived in small shacks, wore simple tunics, and superstition and storytelling were supreme. Two green children happening by on a day in 1150 probably frightened and intrigued a few townspeople.
The villagers took the children to a local home owned by Sir Richard de Calne. The villagers found three things strange about them immediately: they were green skinned, their clothes were of an odd design, and they spoke a foreign language. Similarly, they only ate beans out of Sir Richard’s garden after refusing common food. There they lived for many years with Sir Richard and eventually began to adjust to a new diet.
Sometime later, the boy died of an illness. The girl, however, thrived and Sir Richard was able to teach her their language.
One day, she was able to tell their tale. They claimed to come from St. Martin’s Land; a country named and governed by the titular St. Martin. While working their father’s field, they heard a great sound. It rang like a bell, and they found themselves on the English Countryside amongst a field. While they said St. Martin’s Land believed in Christ (or at least it had churches), they were “contented” with the land of twiligh in which they lived.
According to the girl, they lived in an underground world connected to the surface by a single tunnel. Of course, this perplexed those who heard the tale. The girl eventually grew up, married, and had a single child. The villagers never completely understood where the children came from.
Deciphering the Mystery
We have discussed other historical mysteries on this blog. However, this one is very strange. Yet, there may be a few reasons for the green children of Woolpit and their strange story and appearance.
For one, they could have been Flemish, as the locals did not understand them at all. They also could have been malnourished, which caused their skin to change color. Sir Richard’s attention to their diets then caused them to return to a normal color. As stated by sources: “Furthermore, the green tint to the children’s skin could be explained by malnourishment, or more specifically ‘green sickness.'”
This more historical interpretations also note that King Stephen or King Henry very well could have killed the parents of the children, which set them off lost in the land. Their language then could have been Flemish or Dutch and their remarkable world might’ve possibly been the “darkness of nearby Thetford Forest.”
The second idea could be that they were exactly as they claimed: green people living in unlimited twilight who accidentally slipped into our world and met the locals. Remember, this was an era of superstition, curses, and witches. As such, gnomes and fairies were not out of the question.
To this day, all we have to go off of is some speculation, and a woman’s recollection of her childhood in what she perceived was a twilight realm.
