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Two green-skinned children appeared in a 12th-century English village

Mark Frauenfelder· ·3 min read · 0 reactions · 0 comments · 10 views
#history#folklore#medieval
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In the 12th century, two green-skinned children appeared in the village of Woolpit, England, claiming to come from a place called Saint Martin's Land. The children spoke an unknown language and initially refused food until they were given raw broad beans, which they consumed eagerly. Historical accounts from medieval writers document their story, with the girl eventually adapting to her new life while the boy tragically died shortly after their baptism.

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Boing Boing · Mark Frauenfelder
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Two green-skinned children appeared in a 12th-century English village Mark Frauenfelder 10:31 am Fri May 29, 2026 By Rod Bacon - This file was derived from: The "green children" of Woolpit on the village sign - geograph.org.uk - 1161413.jpg, CC BY-SA 2.0, Link The girl said she came from a place called Saint Martin's Land, where the sun never rose, and everything sat in permanent twilight. She and a younger boy had been herding cattle, heard a sound like the bells of a great church echoing across the fields, and then found themselves standing by a wolf pit in Suffolk, England. Their skin was green. King Stephen sat on the English throne, placing this in the 1150s, near the village of Woolpit (named for the wolf pits dug to trap wolves).

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