That Time a Countess May Have Inspired Snow White

 Heyo! Happy Monday! This is the first That Time... of the year and I figured why not write about something a little fun and interesting. I learned about today's subject while doing my own nerdy research for fun. It is a woman lost to history, but who intrigues me. Despite being from nobility, I couldn't find a single portrait of her.

Franz Jutter's illustration from Schneewittchen (1905)

I'm sure most people are familiar with Snow White, whether it's the original Brothers Grimm's tale "Schneewittchen" or the 1937 Disney animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The story and film are both about a princess named Snow White who is tormented and then poisoned by her evil stepmother and then saved by her prince charming. Today you will learn about the woman who may have inspired her creation.

Countess Margaretha von Waldeck was born in 1533 to Philip IV, Count of Waldeck-Wildungen, and his first wife, Margarethe Cirksena in what was then known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. Her mother died in 1937 when Margaretha was just three years old.

By 1539, Philip IV married his second wife, Katharina von Hatzfeldt. It is thought that Katharina did not like her stepchildren very much and often sent them away to be raised by distant family. Margarethe is believed to be raised in the court of Philip III, Count of Nassau-Weiburg.

Ruins of Castle Valkenburg - Valkenburg, Nederland - 8 October 2006
Photo taken by K. Johnson

According to Gudrun Anne Dekker's book, Schneewittchen: blonde Tochter einer Adligen aus Ostfriesland: Eine historiche Spurensuche - or Snow White: Blonde Daughter of a Noblewoman from East Frisia: A Historical Search for Clues - Margaretha lived with her maternal uncle, Johan Cirksena at Valkenburg Castles in modern-day Netherlands. Then in 1549, her father sent her to the court of Mary of Hungary, who was governor of Habsburg Netherlands.

Bad Wildungen city documents claim Margaretha was famous for her beauty. She had several men of nobility vying for her affection including Philip II of Spain. It is believed they may have been in love, but because she was a Lutheran, their relationship could never be official.

Margaretha tragically died in March of 1554 at just twenty-one. Some believe she may have been poisoned for her involvement with Philip II, but there is no solid evidence to prove that.

NOW why is the Countess thought to be the inspiration for Snow White? In 1994, Eckhard Sander published Schneewittchen: Marchen order Wahrheit - or Snow White: Is it a Fairy Tale?. In the book, Sander claims that Margaretha is the inspiration for Snow White. Drawing similarities from her life to the fictional princess.

Margaretha may not have had an evil stepmother, but she did have an unfriendly one. Katharina had nothing to do with Margaretha's death and alleged poisoning because she died in 1546 and Philip IV didn't remarry until October 1554, which is seven months after his daughter died. So the Countess was not poisoned by her stepmother.

Sienbengebirge, 1900 || From Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division

As for where the dwarves come from, Philip IV owned copper mines. Sadly, a lot of the workers were children who lived in single-room homes in groups of twenty. The number of dwarves in the fairytale is seven and it might come from the fact that she traveled through Seibengebirge to live with her uncle in 1545. The Sienbengebirge translates to the seven hills.

There is no concrete evidence that Countess Margaretha von Waldeck actually inspired Snow White, but it's fun to wonder. She existed nearly three hundred years before the Brothers Grimm first published their fairytale.

If you enjoyed learning about this weird time in history, please check out my other That Time... posts! And if you have any other weird or interesting moments in history that interested you, drop them in the comments! I'm always looking for new things to learn and write about. Have a great week!