Faust LegendsFaust Legendstranslated and/or edited by D. L. Ashliman© 1999-2005 ContentsDoctor Johann Faustus. (Abstracted from the FaustChapbook of 1587).Dr. Faust at Boxberg Castle (Germany, BernhardBaader).Dr. Faust's Hell-Master (Germany, Joh. Aug.ErnstKöhler).Dr. Faust in Erfurt (Germany, J. G. Th.Grässe).Dr. Faust and Melanchton inWittenberg (Germany, J. G. Th. Grässe).Dr. Faust in Anhalt (Germany, LudwigBechstein).Dr. Faustus Was a Good Man (a nursery rhyme fromEngland).Dafydd Hiraddug and the Crow Barn, (Wales,Elias Owen). This account is included here because of its similaritywith the Faust legends.Selected literary works based on the Faustlegend, with links to electronic texts.Selected musical works based on the Faustlegend.Related Links.Return to:Folklore andMythology Electronic Texts. Germanic Myths,Legends, and Sagas.Doctor Johann FaustusAbstracted from the Faust Chapbook of 1587Johann Faustus was born in Roda in the province of Weimar, ofGod-fearing parents.Although he often lacked common sense and understanding, at an earlyage he proved himself a scholar, mastering not only the Holy Scriptures,but also the sciences of medicine, mathematics, astrology, sorcery,prophesy, and necromancy.These pursuits aroused in him a desire to commune with the Devil,so--having made the necessary evil preparations--he repaired one night toa crossroads in the Spesser Forest near Wittenberg. Between nine and teno'clock he described certain circles with his staff and thus conjured upthe Devil.Feigning anger at having been summoned against his will, the Devilarrived in the midst of a great storm. After the winds and lightning hadsubsided the Devil asked Dr. Faustus to reveal his will, to which thescholar replied that he was willing to enter into a pact. The Devil, forhis part, would agree: to serve Dr. Faustus for as long as he should live, to provide Dr. Faustus with whatever information he might request, andnever to utter an untruth to Dr. Faustus. The Devil agreed to these particulars, on the condition that Dr.Faustus would promise: at the expiration of twenty-four years to surrender his body and soulto the Devil, to confirm the pact with a signature written in his own blood, andto renounce his Christian faith. Having reached an agreement, the pact was drawn up, and Dr. Faustusformalized it with his own blood.Henceforth Dr. Faustus' life was filled with comfort and luxury, butmarked by excess and perversion. Everything was within his grasp: elegantclothing, fine wines, sumptuous food, beautiful women--even Helen of Troyand the concubines from the Turkish sultan's harem. He became the mostfamous astrologer in the land, for his horoscopes never failed. No longerlimited by earthly constraints, he traveled from the depths of hell to themost distant stars. He amazed his students and fellow scholars with hisknowledge of heaven and earth.However, for all his fame and fortune, Dr. Faustus could not revoke thetwenty-four year limit to the Devil's indenture. Finally recognizing thefolly of his ways, he grew ever more melancholy. He bequeathed his worldlygoods to his young apprentice, a student named Christoph Wagner from theUniversity of Wittenberg .Shortly after midnight on the last day of the twenty-fourth year, thestudents who had assembled at the home of the ailing Dr. Faustus heard agreat commotion. First came the sound of a ferocious storm and then theshouts--first terrifyingly loud then ever weaker--from their mentor.At daybreak they ventured into his room. Bloodstains were everywhere.Bits of brain clung to the walls. Here they discovered an eye, and there afew teeth. Outside they found the corpse, its members still twitching,lying on a manure pile.His horrible death thus taught them the lesson that had escaped theirmaster during his lifetime: to hold fast to the ways of God, and to rejectthe Devil and all his temptations.Source: Abstracted from Historia von D. Johann Fausten(Frankfurt am Main: Johann Spies, 1587).Return to the table of contents. Dr. Faust at Boxberg CastleGermanyWhen Dr. Faust was in Heilbronn, performing his troublesome artsthroughout the region, he often went to Boxberg Castle, where he wasalways courteously received. Once he was there on a cold winter's day, strolling with the lords andladies of the palace along the garden paths on the east side of thecastle. The ladies complained about the frost, and he immediately causedthe sun to shine warmly, the snow-covered ground to turn green, and a massof violets and beautiful flowers of every kind to spring forth. Then athis command the trees blossomed, and -- following the desires of the group-- apples, plums, peaches, and other good fruit ripened on the branches.Finally he caused grape vines to grow and bear grapes. He then invitedeach of his companions to cut off a grape, but not before he gave thesignal to do so. When all of them were ready to cut away he removed thedeception from their eyes, and each one saw that he was holding a knifeagainst the nose of the person next to him. The part of the garden wherethis took place has ever since been called "the violet garden." Another time Faust left Boxberg Castle at a quarter past eleven inorder to be at a banquet in Heilbronn at the last strike of twelveo'clock. He got into his carriage hitched to four black horses and droveaway like the wind, and he did indeed arrive in Heilbronn punctually atthe strike of twelve. A man working in a field saw how horned spirits paved the way beforethe carriage, while others pulled up the paving stones from behind andcarried them away, thus destroying every trace of the pavement. Source: August Schnezler, Badisches Sagen-Buch (Karlsruhe:Verlag von W. Creuzbauer, 1846), v. 2, pp. 613-614. Schnezler's source: Oral tradition, as recorded by Bernhard Baader inMone's Anzeiger für Kunde teutscher Vorzeit, 1838. This legend was also published in Bernard Baader, Volksagen aus demLande Baden und den angrenzenden Gegenden (Karlruhe: Verlag derHerder'schen Buchhandlung, 1851), no. 367, pp. 327-328. The story of hypnotic deception in the garden is reminiscent of anepisode at the end of the Auerbach's Cellar scene in Goethe'sFaust, part one. Link to a German-language version of the above legend: Dr. Faust zu Boxberg. Return to the table of contents. Dr. Faust's Hell-MasterGermanyAccording to legend, there is a book, named Dr. Faust's Hell-Master,which teaches the art of controling spirits, even of making the devilsubservient to oneself. It is said to be buried beneath a thorn bushbehind the Chemnitz Castle, on the road to the Küch Forest. Manyadvocates of the black art have unsuccessfully attempted to find thisbook. Source: Joh. Aug. Ernst Köhler, Sagenbuch des Erzgebirges(Schneeberg and Schwarzenberg: Verlag und Druck von Carl MoritzGärtner, 1886), no. 277, p. 229.Return to the table of contents. Dr. Faust in ErfurtGermanyAt one time the renowned Dr. Faust sojourned in Erfurt. He lived inMichelsgasse next to the great Collegium. As a learned professor and with the permission of the academic senatehe lectured in the large auditorium of the Collegium Building about Greekpoets. Indeed, he explained Homer to his audience, the students,describing the heroic figures of the Iliad and the Odyssey sorealistically that the students expressed their desire to see them withtheir own eyes. He made this possible, conjuring them up from theunderworld, but when the students saw the powerful giant Polyphemus, theyall became terrified and wanted to see or hear nothing more from him. He drove through the narrowest street in Erfurt with a double-span loadof hay, for which reason this street has ever since been called "Dr.Faust's Street." Once he came riding a horse that ate and ate and could never besatisfied. Another time he tapped all kinds of wine from a wooden table and madethe drunken drinking companions think that they saw grapes. They wanted tocut them from the vines, but when he caused the deceptive image todisappear, each one had another one's nose in his fingers instead of winegrapes. A house in Schössergasse is said to still have an opening in theroof that can never be closed with roofing tiles because Faust used it forhis cloak rides. He is said to have created a magnificent winter garden and provideddelicious meals for numerous noble guests, thus achieving a highreputation. Soon everyone in Erfurt was talking of nothing but Dr. Faust, and itwas feared that a great many people would be led astray through hisdevilish arts. Thus a learned monk by the name of Dr. Klinge was sent to convert him.But Faust did not want to be converted. In response to the masses andprayers directed at tearing him away from the devil, Dr. Faust said, "No,my good Dr. Klinge, it would be disreputable for me to break the contractthat I signed with my blood. That would be dishonest. The devil hashonestly upheld his promises, and I will also keep my word with him." "Then go to the devil, you cursed piece of devil's meat and member ofthe devil's band!" cried the monk angrily. "Go to the eternal fires thathave been prepared for the devil and his angels!" And the monk ran toRector Magnificus and reported to him that Dr. Faustus was a totallyunrepentant sinner. Then Faust was banished from the city of Erfurt, and never again has asorcerer been accepted there. Source: J. G. Th. Grässe, Sagenbuch des PreußischenStaats, vol. 1 (Glogau: Verlag von Carl Flemming, 1868), no. 453, pp.339-340. The episode with the drunken companions was incorporated into theAuerbach's Cellar scene of Goethe's Faust, part one. Return to the table of contents. Dr. Faust and Melanchton inWittenbergGermanyIt is not true, as some claimed as early as the middle of the sixteenthcentury, that Dr. Faust grew up in Wittenberg and earned a doctorate oftheology there, that he lived near the outer gate and had a house andgarden in a street named Schneegasse (which never existed), and that hewas strangled by the devil in the village of Kimlich, a half mile fromWittenberg, in the presence of several scholars and students. However, hedid spend time in Wittenberg and was tolerated there for a while, until hebecame so crude that they tried to imprison him, and then fled to anotherplace.While in Wittenberg he approached Philipp Melanchton, who read the book tohim, scolding him and warning him that if he did not immediately desistfrom his evil ways he would come to an evil end, which did indeed happen.He did not repent.Now one day at ten o'clock in the morning Master Philipp was leavinghis study on his way downstairs to eat when Faust, who was with him atthat time, and whom he had vigorously scolded, said to him: "MasterPhilipp, you always approach me with rough words. Someday, when you areabout to sit down to a meal, I am going to cause all the pots in thekitchen to fly up the chimney, so that you and your guests will havenothing to eat."Thereupon Philipp answered him: "Desist from such talk! I ---- on yourart!" And he did desist.Another old God-fearing man also tried to convert him. To show histhanks, Faust sent a devil to the man's bedroom to frighten him as he wasgoing to bed. The devil walked about in the room, grunting like a sow. Theman, however, was not afraid. Armed with his faith, he ridiculed thedevil: "What a fine voice you have! You are singing like an angel who wasnot allowed to remain in heaven because he wanted to be God's equal andwas thus thrust out for his pride and now wanders through people's housesin the form of a sow!" With that the spirit, not wanting to be in a placewhere he was ridiculed because of his apostasy and his wickedness,returned to Faust and complained to him how he had been receivedthere.Dr. Faust, however, did lead a student astray. Dr. Lercheimer himselfknew one of his friends well into an advanced age. This man had a crookedmouth. Whenever he wanted a hare, he would go out into the woods, make hishocus-pocus, and a hare would run right into his hands. Source: J. G. Th. Grässe, Sagenbuch des PreußischenStaats, vol. 1 (Glogau: Verlag von Carl Flemming, 1868), no. 453, pp.391-392.Philipp Melanchton (1497-1560), humanist,classical scholar, theologian, and professor at the University ofWittenberg, was an important associate of Martin Luther in the protestantreformation.Return to the table of contents. Doctor Faust in AnhaltLudwig BechsteinOne winter the renowned Doctor Faustus came to the Count of Anhalt.Seeing that the count's wife was pregnant, Doctor Faustus asked her if shedid not desire something special to eat, as is often the case withexpectant mothers. He said that with the help of his magic powers he couldget her anything she wanted. The countess graciously accepted his friendlyoffer and told him that a great desire of hers would be satisfied if shecould have some fresh fruit such as grapes, cherries, and peaches, insteadof the dried confection and nuts that she currently had. But she thoughtthat neither he nor any other magician could get such things in the middleof a harsh winter.Doctor Faustus took three silver platters, set them in front of thedining room window, muttered a magic formula, then soon returned withfresh fruit. The first platter was filled with apples, pears, and peaches;the second with cherries, apricots, and plums; and the third filled withred and green grapes. He invited the countess to partake of the fruit,which she did with great pleasure.When it came time for Doctor Faustus to take leave of Anhalt, herequested the count and the countess to accompany him on a walk, for hewanted to show them something new. This they did, accompanied by thecount's entourage. Approaching the castle gate, they saw a newlyconstructed palace on the hill called Rombühl. Water birds wereswimming in its broad moats. The palace had five towers. As the party camecloser, they found that two of the towers and the outer yard were alivewith a menagerie of rare animals which were walking a jumping aboutinside, without injuring one another. There were apes, monkeys, bears,chamois, ostriches, as well as other animals.An elaborate breakfast awaited them in one of the halls. Doctor Faust'sfamiliar, Christoph Wagner, served as waiter, and music was sounding froman unseen source. The food and wine were such that everyone ate and drankwith great pleasure until they were full.After spending more than an hour in this place, the party left thebeautiful palace. As they were approaching Anhalt Castle they looked backat the new palace and saw and heard it go up in flames, with the sound ofrifles and canons. Faustus and Wagner had disappeared, and they all weresuddenly as hungry as lions. They had to have breakfast once again, foreverything that they had eaten had been merely an illusion.Source: Ludwig Bechstein, Deutsches Sagenbuch (Meersburg andLeipzig: F. W. Hendel Verlag, 1930), no. 412, p. 285. First published1852.Return to the table of contents.Dr. Faustus Was a Good ManEnglandDr. Faustus was a good man,He whipped his scholars now and then,When he whipped them he made them dance,Out of Scotland into France,Out of France into Spain,And then he whipped them back again!Source: Henry Bett, Nursery Rhymes and Tales: Their Origin andHistory, 2nd edition (London: Methuen and Company, 1924), p. 72.Return to the table of contents.Dafydd Hiraddug and the Crow BarnWalesThere is an incredible tradition connected with this place, Ffinant,Trefeglwys. It is said that an old barn stands on the right-hand side ofthe highway. One Sunday morning, as the master was starting to church, he told oneof the servants to keep the crows from a field that had been sown withwheat, in which field the old barn stood. The servant, through some means,collected all the crows into the barn, and shut the door on them. He thenfollowed his master to the church, who, when he saw the servant there,began to reprove him sharply. But the master, when he heard the strangenews, turned his steps homewards, and found to his amazement that the talewas true, and it is said that the barn was filled with crows. This barnever afterwards was called Crow-Barn, a name it still retains.It is said that the servant's name was Dafydd Hiraddug, and that he hadsold himself to the devil, and that consequently, he was able to performfeats, which in this age are considered incredible.However, it is said that Dafydd was on this occasion more subtle thanthe old serpent, even according to the agreement which was between them.The contract was, that the devil was to have complete possession of Dafyddif his corpse were taken over the side of the bed, or through a door, orif buried in a churchyard, or inside a church. Dafydd had commanded, thaton his death, the liver and lights were to be taken out of his body andthrown on the dunghill, and notice was to be taken whether a raven or adove got possession of them; if a raven, then his body was to be takenaway by the foot, and not by the side of the bed, and through the wall,and not through the door, and he was to be buried, not in the churchyardnor in the church but under the church walls. And the devil, when he sawthat by these arrangements he had been duped cried, saying:Dafydd Hiraddug, badly bred,False when living, and false when dead.Source: Elias Owen, Welsh Folk-Lore: A Collection of the Folk-Talesand Legends of North Wales, Being the Prize Essay of the NationalEisteddfod, 1887 (Facsimile reprint, Felinfach: Llanerch Publishers,1996), pp. 159-160. Return to the table of contents. Selected literary works based on the FaustlegendThe hyperlinks will take you to texts (at external sites) of the works.Return to this site with the "Back" button on your browser. Anonymous. Historia von D. Johann Fausten (Frankfurt am Main:Johann Spies, 1587). Christopher Marlowe. TheTragicall History of D. Faustus (1604). Gotthold Lessing. Faust (fragment, 1784). Friedrich Maximilian Klinger. FaustsLeben, Taten und Höllenfahrt (1791). Adalbert von Chamisso. Faust: Ein Versuch (1804); PeterSchlemihls wundersame Geschichte (1813). Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Faust: Eine Tragödie (Erster Teil,1808; ZweiterTeil, completed 1831, published 1833).Christian Dietrich Grabbe. Don Juan undFaust (1829). Nikolaus Lenau. Faust: EinGedicht (1836) Woldemar Nürnberger. Josephus Faust (1847) Heinrich Heine. DoktorFaust: Ein Tanzpoem, nebst kuriosen Berichten über Teufel, Hexen undDichtkunst (1851). Vischer, Friedrich Theodor. Faust: Der Tragödie dritter Teil (1862). Paul Valéry. Mon Faust (1946). Thomas Mann. Doktor Faustus (1950).Return to the table of contents. Selected musical works based on the FaustlegendHector Berlioz. The Damnation of Faust (1846), a dramaticcantata based on a French version of Goethe's work by Gerard de Nerval.This composition is also staged as an opera. Charles Gounod. Faust (1859), an opera based on part one ofGoethe's work. Libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré. Franz Liszt. A Faust Symphony (1854, revised 1857-1861).Return to the table of contents. Related LinksMaster BuilderLegends, in which a mortal tricks a supernatural being (typically atroll or a giant) into helping him build a grand edifice, have much incommon with the Faust stories. Devil's BridgeLegends. In these tales (type 1191) the devil builds a bridge, but isthen cheated out of the human soul he expected as payment.Bearskin.Folktales of type 361, in which a man gains a fortune and a beautifulbride by entering into a pact with the devil.The DamnableLife and Death of Stubbe Peeter is a werewolf legend that shares manymotifs with the Faust legends. Straightening aCurly Hair. Folktales of type 1175, in which a demon helper isdefeated because he cannot straighten a curly hair.Deceiving theDevil, a folktale of type 1176, in which the devil loses control overhis intended victim by failing to catch and return broken wind.Return to:Table of Contents.Folklore andMythology Electronic Texts. Germanic Myths,Legends, and Sagas. Revised December 1, 2005. |
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