Mythology

Kiddelsmehnchen of Echternach

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Kittelsmännchen, Echternach Goblin
Category: Goblin

The Myth

In the buildings of Echternach Abbey there once haunted a goblin known as the Kiddelsmehnchen. He was said to tease and trouble the inhabitants in many ways.

An old man who worked in an outbuilding, burning potash day and night, was often visited by the little being. While the man sat quietly beside his cauldron, praying with his face buried in his hands, the goblin would sometimes enter and begin hammering loudly on a nearby anvil. Sparks flew, the building shook with the noise, and yet the old man remained calm. After a time, the strange blacksmith would leave as silently as he had come.

The same man was sometimes tasked with guarding a nearby cloth bleaching ground at night. Once he saw someone moving about the canvas in the darkness. He called out, but received no reply, and followed the figure toward the door. Just as he reached out to seize the supposed thief, the figure vanished into thin air. Only then did he realize that the Kiddelsmehnchen had tricked him.

The goblin also frightened others in the abbey. When the porters sat quietly in the evening and the children were already in bed, the creature would cause loud clattering, banging, and cries in the corridors and stairways, as though horses and donkeys were running through the building and terrified children were calling for help. But whenever people rushed out to investigate, everything was silent and no trace could be found.

At other times the goblin would drop from the roof in the form of a barrel, causing a terrible crash. When the people gathered to see what had happened, they found nothing at all.

Thus the Kiddelsmehnchen continued to trouble the abbey with its tricks and noises, appearing and disappearing at will.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Das Kiddelsmehnchen (Kittelsmännchen) zu Echternach. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Kittelsmaennchen.html

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Engelbertchen of Ehnen

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Engelpferdchen, The Angel Horse
Category: Goblin

The Myth

In Ehnen, in a very old house that still stands today, a goblin was once said to live. He was known as Engelbertchen, or sometimes as the Angel Horse.

At times he appeared in the form of an old man with a silver-white beard. At other times he was seen riding a small white horse. He would rush up and down the tall stone spiral staircase of the house with great speed, and the loud clattering frightened the people who lived there.

At midnight he could also sometimes be heard dragging tables or moving furniture about the house, though no one saw him doing it.

In later years, however, the disturbances ceased, and nothing more was heard of Engelbertchen.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Engelbertchen oder Engelspferdchen. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Engelsbertchen.html

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Goblin of Mamer Churchyard

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Mamer Churchyard Goblins
Category: Goblin

The Myth

In Mamer, a gravedigger known for drunkenness and theft was once digging a grave in the churchyard on Christmas Eve. As he worked, a boy passed along the path singing. Angered by the noise, the gravedigger rushed at him and beat him.

Afterward, he reached for his brandy bottle to drink. Then he noticed a little man dressed in white sitting several graves away with his tongue stuck out. Fear seized him, and he tried to leave, but the strange spirit prevented him from escaping. When he resisted, the little figure struck a metal object with a small hammer, and it rang loudly.

At once, a light appeared in the sacristy, and twelve more goblins emerged. They seized the gravedigger and forced him into an open grave, where they surrounded him. The first goblin complained of being cold, and the others brought him fire in a shovel, which he drank. They then ordered the gravedigger to drink as well. When he refused, they forced the fire into his mouth.

After this, they twisted his legs up over his back and forced his head between them. Finally, they hurled him back into the churchyard, where he lay unconscious.

The next day he fell ill, and the boils covering his body convinced him that what had happened to him in the churchyard had been no dream.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Die Kobolde auf dem Kirchhofe zu Mamer. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Kobolde_Mamer.html

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Goblin of Holzer Busch

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Hierschermännchen, Hedemännchen
Category: Goblin

The Myth

In the Holzer Busch, between Bondorf and Holz, there was said to live a little dwarf known as the Hierschermännchen. This small being often spoke with people and would even allow them to carry him.

Another creature of the same kind was said to dwell at a place called Misère. It was known as the Hedemännchen, and people spoke of it as a similar small goblin who lived in the area.

Thus two little goblin-like beings were remembered in the region, each tied to its own place in the countryside.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Zwei Kobolde bei Bondorf. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Kobolde_Bondorf.html

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Dwarfs of Wallebroch

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Diekirch Goblins, Plattfüßchen
Category: Dwarf

The Myth

In a ravine between Diekirch and Ingeldorf, it was said that the Knights Templar once gathered. Yet the people of the region spoke of them not as knights, but as small beings — goblins who lived underground.

In a nearby plain called Wallebroch, another group of these creatures assembled for their councils. They were known as the Plattfüßchen, a kind of goblin said to dwell beneath the earth.

Thus the land between Diekirch and Ingeldorf was believed to shelter hidden underground folk who met in secret places and lived unseen beneath the ground.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Zwerge bei Diekirch. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Zwerge_Diekirch.html

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Gnome near Ettelbrück

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Ettelbrück Gnomes, Warken Gnomes
Category: Gnome

The Myth

In earlier times, many gnomes were said to live around Ettelbrück. They were believed to come especially from the Nuck and from the Deiwelsbaach. The village of Warken was thought to be particularly troubled by them, and people said they emerged from Witry’s stable there.

The gnomes were believed to multiply quickly, and their numbers grew so great that the inhabitants of Ettelbrück decided to hunt them down. They were thought to have holes scattered throughout the mountains, which led to underground caves where they lived.

Even today, these openings in the ground are said to be known as fox holes, recalling the places where the gnomes were once believed to dwell.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Die Wichtelmännchen bei Ettelbrück. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Wichtlein_Ettelbrueck.html

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Little Gnomes of the Nuck

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Nuck Gnomes, Ettelbrück Nuck Wichtelcher
Category: Gnome

The Myth

On the Nuck near Ettelbrück, little gnomes were once said to live.

They kept horses of their own, and it was said that they nailed the horseshoes on backwards. Because of this, anyone who followed the tracks could never tell whether the gnomes had come or gone.

Thus their dwelling remained hidden, and no one could know when they moved in or when they left.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Die Wichtelcher auf der Nuck. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Wichtlein_Nuck.html

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Little Gnome of Pirmesknapp

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Pirmesknapp Gnomes, Buderscheid Gnomes
Category: Gnome

The Myth

On the Pirmesknapp near Buderscheid, it was said that a castle of the Knights Templar once stood and that all who lived there perished in a single night.

Yet when the people of the region spoke of these Templars, they often described them not as knights, but as little men — gnomes who lived in underground dwellings built of brick. These small beings were believed to serve the sanctuary of the mountain and to dwell beneath it in hidden chambers.

A similar story was told of the church called Heidenkirch in Heiderscheidergrund. There, too, the little gnomes were said to have lived in brick-built underground homes.

Thus the memory of the vanished castle and the old sanctuary became joined with the tales of the small folk who were believed to dwell beneath the earth.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Wichtelcher auf dem Pirmesknapp. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Wichtlein_Pirmesknapp.html

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Wichtelcher of Riedgeskeher

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Gösdorf Gnomes, Riedgeskeher Wichtelcher
Category: Gnome

The Myth

In the village of Riedgeskeher near Gösdorf, little gnomes once lived who were said to be about two feet tall.

For a long time, the food that people carried with them to their work disappeared without explanation. No one knew how or where it had gone. Later it was discovered that the gnomes were taking it.

The cloths used for sowing seeds were also said to vanish in the same mysterious way.

Thus the people believed that the little gnomes of Riedgeskeher were living among them, quietly taking what they needed.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Die Wichtelcher zu Gösdorf. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Wichtlein_Goesdorf.html

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Gnome of Heiderscheidergrund

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Paper Mill Gnomes, Heiderscheid Wichtelcher
Category: Gnome

The Myth

More than a hundred years ago, when gnomes were still said to wander the earth, there stood a paper mill in Heiderscheidergrund on the site where houses stand today. Although the mill often lay idle during the day, its owner prospered greatly and produced the finest paper in the region.

As soon as night fell, however, the mill would suddenly begin to run and continue working until morning. Many people wondered at this, unable to understand how it was possible.

The reason was that a few meters above the mill, the little gnomes had their dwelling in a hill. They were fond of the mill owner and every night brought him heaps of rags, which kept the mill working without pause.

This went on for some time, and the people rejoiced in their prosperity. But at last they began to worry. They feared that the gnomes must be stealing the rags from others and that it was wrong to profit from such acts. They spoke to the pastor, who thought carefully and advised them to make a cap sewn from seven different pieces of cloth, each a different color, and hang it before the gate. By this means, he said, they would be rid of the little beings.

When the gnomes came again that night and saw the cap hanging there, they grew sorrowful and said, “Here hangs our reward.” They turned away and never returned.

After their departure, misfortune befell the owners of the mill. They could no longer make good paper, their business declined, and they fell into poverty and debt. In the end, they died in grief.

The grotto in the hill where the gnomes once lived can still be seen, though its entrance is now almost entirely blocked with rubble, and few dare to venture inside.

When the gnomes left, they went to Ahlhausen, not far below Esch-sur-Sûre. Later they were driven away from there as well, and since then no one has seen them in the region, though their former dwelling at Ahlhausen is still pointed out.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Die Wichtelcher im Heiderscheidergrund. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Wichtlein_Heiderscheidergrund.html

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