Once upon a time there lived an old queen whose husband had died a long time ago, and she had a beautiful daughter. As she grew up, she was promised far beyond the field to a king's son. When the time came for them to be married and the child had to leave for a foreign kingdom, the old woman packed her a great deal of precious jewels and jewelry, gold and silver, cups and jewels, in short everything that belonged to a royal bridal treasure, for she loved her child dearly. She also gave her a chambermaid to ride along with her and deliver the bride into the hands of the bridegroom, and each was given a horse for the journey, but the horse of the king's daughter was called Falada and could speak. When it was time to say goodbye, the old mother went into her bedchamber, took a little knife and cut her fingers so that they bled. She held a white cloth under them and dropped three drops of blood into it.

The king's daughter put the lappet in her bosom in front of her, sat on her horse and rode off to her bridegroom. When they had ridden for an hour, she felt a hot thirst and said to her chambermaid, 'Get off, and draw me water from the brook with my cup, which you have taken for me, I would like to drink once'. If you are thirsty," said the chambermaid, "get down yourself, lie down by the water and drink, I don't want to be your maid. Then the king's daughter descended with great thirst, bent over the water in the brook and drank, and was not allowed to drink from the golden cup. Then she said, "Oh God!" and the three drops of blood answered, "If your mother knew, her heart would burst in her womb. But the king's bride was humble, said nothing and got back on her horse. So they rode on for several miles, but the day was warm, the sun was shining, and she was soon thirsty again. When they came to a river of water, she called once more to her chambermaid, "Get off and give me a drink from my gold cup," for she had long since forgotten all the evil words. But the chambermaid spoke even more haughtily, 'If you want to drink, then drink alone, I may not be your maidservant'. Then the king's daughter descended with great thirst, lay down over the flowing water, wept, and said, "Oh, God!" and the drops of blood answered again, "If your mother knew, her heart would burst in her womb. And as she drank in this way and leaned over, the little cloth in which the three drops were fell from her bosom and flowed away with the water without her noticing it in her great fear. The chambermaid, however, had been watching and was glad that she had gained control over the bride, for the fact that she had lost the drops of blood had made her weak and powerless. When she wanted to get back on her horse, which was called Falada, the chambermaid said, "I belong on Falada, and you belong on my horse," and she had to put up with that. Then the chambermaid ordered her with harsh words to take off her royal clothes and to put on her bad ones, and finally she had to swear in the open air that she would not speak of this to anyone at the royal court; and if she had not taken this oath, she would have been killed on the spot. But Falada saw all this and took care.

The chambermaid now mounted Falada and the true bride mounted the bad horse, and so they went on until they finally arrived at the royal castle. There was great joy at their arrival, and the king's son jumped out to meet them, lifted the chambermaid from her horse and thought she was his wife: she was led up the stairs, but the king's true daughter had to remain standing below. Then the old king looked at the window and saw her standing in the courtyard, and saw how fine she was, how delicate and how beautiful. I took her with me on the way for company; give the maid something to work on, so that she does not stand idle. But the old king had no work for her and knew nothing but to say, "I have a little boy who tends the geese, she may help him. The boy's name was Kürdchen (Conrädchen), and the real bride had to help him tend the geese.
Soon the false bride said to the young king, 'My dearest husband, I beg you to do me a favor. He answered, 'I will do it gladly.' 'Now then, let the flayer be called and there cut off the neck of the horse on which I rode, because it annoyed me on the way.' Actually, however, she was afraid that the horse would speak as she had dealt with the king's daughter. Now this had got so far that it should happen and the faithful Falada should die, then it also came to the ear of the right king's daughter, and she secretly promised the flayer a piece of money, which she wanted to pay him, if he would do her a little service. In the city there was a big dark gate, where she had to pass through with the geese in the evening and in the morning, 'under the dark gate he would like to nail Falada's head, so that she could still see him more than once'. So the drudge promised to do that, cut off the head and nailed it under the dark gate.
Early in the morning, as she and Kürdchen were drifting out from under the gate, she said as she passed by

'o you Falada who hang,'

the head answered

o you maiden queen, as you walk,
if your mother knew,
her heart would burst.'

Then she went quietly on to the city, and they drove the geese into the field. And when she had arrived at the meadow, she sat down and opened her hair, which was like gold, and Kürdchen saw it and was pleased how it shone, and wanted to pluck some out for her. Then she spoke

'woe, woe, wind,
take Kürdchen his little hat,
and let them hunt with you,
until I braided and snatched,
And put back on.'

And there came such a strong wind that it blew away the little hat of the dwarf over all the land, and it had to run after him. By the time it came back, she had finished combing and putting it on, and he couldn't get any hair. Then Kürdchen was angry and did not speak to her; and so they tended the geese until evening, when they went home.
The next morning, as they were drifting out from under the dark gate, the virgin said

o you Falada, since you hang,'

Falada replied

o you maiden queen, since the gangest,
if your mother knew,
her heart would burst.

And in the field she sat down again on the meadow and began to comb out her hair, and Kürdchen ran and wanted to reach for it, then she spoke quickly

'woe, woe, wind,
take Kürdchen his little hat,
and let them hunt with you,
until I braided and snatched,
And put back on.'

Then the wind blew and blew the little hat far away from his head, so that Kürdchen had to run after it; and when it came again, she had long since straightened her hair, and it could not catch any of it; and so they tended the geese until evening came.
In the evening, after they had come home, Kürdchen went before the old king and said, "I don't want to herd geese with that girl any longer. Why?' asked the old king. 'Well, it annoys me all day long.' Then the old king ordered him to tell him how he was doing with her. Then Kürdchen said, "In the morning, when we pass under the dark gate with the herd, there is a horse's head on the wall, to which she speaks.

'Falada, since you are hanging,'

there answers the head

o King Maiden, since you are walking,
if your mother knew,
her heart would burst.

And so Kürdchen continued to tell what was happening in the goose meadow, and how he had to run after the hat in the wind.
The old king ordered him to go out again the next day, and he himself, as it was morning, sat down behind the dark gate and heard how she spoke to the head of Falada: and then he also went after her into the field and hid himself in a bush in the meadow. Soon he saw with his own eyes how the goose-maid and the goose-boy brought the herd, and how after a while she sat down and unbraided her hair, which shone with brilliance. Immediately she spoke again

'woe, woe, wind,
Kürdchen grabbed his little hat,
and let them hunt with you,
until I braided and snood,
And put back on.'

Then a gust of wind came and drove away Kürdchen's hat, so that it had to run far, and the maid silently combed and braided her curls, which the old king observed. Then he went back unnoticed, and when the goose-maid came home in the evening, he called her aside and asked her why she was doing all this? I am not allowed to tell you that, and I am not allowed to tell anyone my sorrow, because I have conspired in the open air, because otherwise I would have lost my life. He penetrated her and left her no peace, but he could get nothing out of her. Then he said, 'If you don't want to tell me anything, then tell the iron stove there your sorrow,' and went away.

Then she crawled into the iron stove, began to wail and weep, poured out her heart, and said, "Here I sit, abandoned by all the world, and yet I am a king's daughter, and a false chambermaid has brought me by force to the point that I have had to take off my royal clothes, and has taken my place with my bridegroom, and I must do mean service as a goose maid. If my mother knew that, her heart would burst in her womb.' The old king, however, stood outside by the stove pipe, listening to what she said. Then he came in again and told her to get out of the oven. Then royal clothes were put on her, and it seemed a miracle how she was so beautiful. The old king called his son and told him that he had the wrong bride: she was only a chambermaid, but the real one was standing here as the former goose-maid. The young king was delighted when he saw her beauty and virtue, and a great feast was arranged, to which all the people and good friends were invited. The bridegroom was seated at the top, the king's daughter on one side and the chambermaid on the other, but the chambermaid was blinded and no longer recognized her in the shining jewelry. When they had eaten and drunk, and were in good spirits, the old king gave the chambermaid a riddle, what such a one would be worth, who had deceived the lord in such and such a way, and thus told the whole course and asked 'what judgment is this one worthy of?' Then said the false bride 'she is worth nothing better than to be stripped stark naked and put into a barrel shod inside with pointed nails: and two white horses must be harnessed to drag her down alley after alley to death.' 'This is you,' said the old king, 'and you have found your own judgment, and after this it shall be done to you.' And when the sentence was executed, the young king married his right wife, and both ruled their kingdom in peace and bliss.