Bluebeard

A rich man's blue beard made women afraid of him. His previous wives had vanished. After he entertained a neighbouring family lavishly, its younger daughter agreed to marry him.

Before a journey, Bluebeard gave his wife keys to his treasures and rooms. She could open everything except one small closet. He threatened dreadful consequences if she entered it.

While her friends admired the house, curiosity drew her downstairs. Inside the forbidden closet she saw blood and the bodies of Bluebeard's murdered wives. Terrified, she dropped the key. Its bloodstain would not wash away because the key was enchanted.

Bluebeard returned early and demanded the keys. Seeing the stain, he knew she had disobeyed. He told her that she must die. She begged for time to pray, and he granted a short delay.

Upstairs, she asked her sister Anne to watch for their brothers, who had promised to visit. Again and again she called to Anne for news. At first Anne saw only sunlight, grass and distant sheep. Finally she spotted two horsemen and signalled them to hurry.

Bluebeard called his wife down, seized her hair and raised his sword. Her brothers burst in. He tried to escape, but they caught and killed him.

With no other heirs, his wife inherited his fortune. She used some to help Anne marry the man she loved and to buy military commissions for her brothers. She herself married a worthy gentleman, with whom she left her former misery behind.