Hans Trapp is a famous character in the French provinces of Alsace and Lorraine. Also known as Hans von Trotha, he was a German knight and marshal serving under the Palatinate prince-elect. In the middle of the 15th century, he entered the world in the town of Krosigk, which is now a part of Saxony-Anhalt. As a knight, he lost everything, including his reputation and fortune, when he was excommunicated from the Catholic Church. Hans von Trotha started going around town while dressed as a scarecrow, turning into a figure known as Hans Trapp. This figure has a reputation for avarice and unscrupulousness in regional legends.
Compared to Other Christmas Figures
Hans Trapp acts as a warning character who urges youngsters to be nice, whereas Santa Claus rewards good conduct and Krampus punishes bad behavior more severely.
Hans Trapp is a well-known Christmastime companion of Santa Claus. While Santa hands out presents, Hans Trapp hands out floggings. He attempts to convince mischievous kids to straighten up and be good. This Christmas arrangement stands in stark contrast to the likes of Santa Claus and Krampus.
Santa Claus, in contrast to Hans Trapp, is renowned for giving gifts to nice children. However, Krampus, a Christmas monster from Austria and other areas of Germany, is infamous for tormenting misbehaving youngsters. Many people see Krampus as more dangerous and evil than Hans Trapp.
The Legend of Hans Trapp
Hans Trapp or, less often, Hans Trott is the name of the knight Hans von Trotha in local legend. The Alsace and Lorraine areas of France have long been familiar with the story of this character. The most widely accepted interpretation of the story portrays him as a nasty man who amassed his fortune by magical means and dealt with demons rather than through honest effort. Hans Trapp was so desperate to increase his influence that he made pacts with the devil.
When the Pope found out about this, he excommunicated Trapp and ordered that he be exiled from Alsace and have all of his property and fortune taken from him. He had been reduced to building himself a temporary dwelling in the Bavarian foothills, where he brooded and allowed his terrible ambitions to grow. Hans Trapp got a craving for human flesh and decided to indulge himself.
Finally, he took on the role of the feared Christmas scarecrow, donning a mask of straw and prowling the roadsides in search of a victim. One day, a little kid of around ten crossed Trapp’s route, and when the two met, Trapp stabbed the youngster repeatedly in the back with a sharp stick. Once returning to his lair, Trapp dismembered and cooked the victim.
The tale of Hans Trapp may be told in many different ways. Hans Trapp is a cannibalistic Christmas scarecrow in disguise in certain versions of the story who helps Santa Claus. Hans will abduct bad kids, take them into the woods, and devour them if they’re not good. However, in some other tellings, he is just a man of great riches and influence who allegedly struck a pact with the devil in exchange for supernatural abilities.
His Appearance
Hans von Trotha or Hans Trapp stood at 6 feet 7 inches, which was extremely tall for a time when the average man stood at 5 feet 7 inches. He became a legend in his home area of the Palatinate with the moniker “Hans Trapp.” Over time, he came to be represented not just as a ruthless or unethical man but also as a terrifying character for children, a restless ghost that prowled the Wasgau at night.
Hans Trapp, not the more common Knecht Ruprecht, was a character employed to terrify youngsters at the time of Saint Nicholas in neighboring Alsace. In an Alsatian German poem, Hans Trapp is portrayed as having a white beard, a pointed cap, and a rod, like Knecht Ruprecht.
The scarecrow’s straw symbolizes the hay with which Hans Trapp lured his victims, and the object itself is a reminder of his previous status as a prosperous landowner. What we do know about Hans von Trotha’s life is still interesting, even if we don’t know for sure that he turned to cannibalism and hunted children while costumed as a scarecrow.
The Story of Hans von Trotha
Once a rich aristocrat, Hans Trapp turned into a frightened outcast due to making pacts with demons and acquiring ill-gotten wealth.
Hans von Trotha was born into the noble House of Trotha around the middle of the 15th century. Two castles, Berwartstein and Grafendahn, in the Wasgau district of the Palatinate Forest in South Palatine were enfeoffed to him by the elector Palatinate in 1480. As a consequence of his conflict with Henry, Abbot of the Benedictine monks at Weissenburg Abbey, Hans von Trotha rose to prominence around the region.
Abbot Henry believed that the Electoral Palatinate’s acquisition of the castle was not legitimate because the monastery had only intended to place it under the Elector’s protection in 1453, when the Berwartstein Castle and other property, the so-called belongings, had been the property of the monastery. A disagreement over who should possess Weissenburg Abbey led to tensions between Hans von Trotha and Abbot Henry.
The conflict started when Hans von Trotha had a dam built, cutting off water to Weissenburg, a community located close to the contested Berwartstein Castle. After Henry voiced his displeasure, Hans von Trotha issued an order to break the dam, leading to widespread flooding and economic losses in the community.
As the conflict heated up, the abbot sought the intervention of Pope Innocent VIII. Hans von Trotha received a papal summons challenging his allegiance to the Catholic Church. Instead of responding to the Pope’s summons, Hans von Trotha sent him a letter accusing him of immoral behavior. As a result, the Catholic Church excommunicated Hans von Trotha and the Emperor banned him from the empire.
Annual Parade of Hans Trapp
On the 4th Sunday of Advent every year, Wissembourg—once the abbots’ city at war with Hans von Trotha—hosts a procession. With a population of 8,000, this lovely commune is located in the Bas-Rhin department in the Grand Est region of northeastern France. Along with Hans Trapp, a Christkindl, an additional gift-giving Christmas figure from Alsace, also participates in the procession.
The yearly Hans Trapp procession is a result of the character’s continued relevance in contemporary festivities. Before the famed Hans Trapp figure makes his debut, the stage is prepared by drummers and fire jugglers. After that a formidable man with a black jacket and a bushy beard appears. To find out whether the kids have been excellent this year, he asks them directly on the stage. After that, the nighttime procession culminates with a fireworks show.
What Happened to Hans von Trotha?
Hans von Trotha, a member of an aristocratic family with roots in the Saalekreis district in Germany, was the fourth son of Marshal Thilo von Trotha, the Archbishop of Magdeburg. It is estimated that Hans was born in Krosigk (modern-day Saxony-Anhalt) somewhere in the middle of the 15th century. He was also the younger brother of Thilo von Trotha, Bishop of Merseburg (born in 1443), although his precise birthday is unknown. The raven is a common heraldic symbol for aristocratic families, and you can see one on Hans von Trotha’s coat of arms.
Originally from what is now southern Germany and Lorraine, Hans von Trotha married Anna of the aristocratic house of Helmstadt. Elector Louis the Pacific enfeoffed him with Berwartstein Castle in 1511, and he and his wife had one son, Christoph. The son married Sturmfeder von Oppenweiler and the couple produced a daughter named Martha, who married Frederick the Old of the aristocratic House of Fleckenstein in Alsace, but she passed away in 1536. Without any male heirs to carry on the family name, Christoph’s line died out with his death in 1545.
Christoph’s son-in-law and widower, Frederick the Old of Fleckenstein, inherited the lordship of the castles of Berwartstein and Grafendahn. Hans von Fleckenstein, the great-grandson of Hans von Trotha, took over after his death in 1549. Hans von Trotha and Christoph von Trotha became the only members of the aristocratic von Trotha family with a Palatine lineage.
Today, the great hall of Berwartstein Castle has a mural depicting the conflict between von Trotha and the monks. The space is utilized as a public restaurant with seating for up to 150 people.
Similar Christmas Characters to Hans Trapp
The European Christmas legend has many entities that serve as foils for the generous Saint Nicholas, including Hans Trapp, Krampus, Knecht Ruprecht, and Père Fouettard. They are mostly similar characters, mainly distinguished by the regions where their stories originate.
- Krampus: In the Alpine traditions of Austria and Bavaria, there exists a demonic half-goat creature known as Krampus. As he goes, he rattles shackles menacingly behind him. He has a birch to use as a whip for misbehaving kids and a basket or bag to use as a hostage if necessary.
- Pere Fouettard: On Saint Nicholas Day (6 December), Père Fouettard is said to accompany St. Nicholas as he visits homes, handing out lumps of coal and/or beatings to misbehaving children while St. Nicholas offers presents to good ones. The northern and easternmost parts of France, the southern part of Belgium, and French-speaking Switzerland are where his fame is greatest.
- Knecht Ruprecht: On the evening of December 5th, Saint Nicholas and his helper, the Knecht Ruprecht, pay visits to the homes of children in northern and central Germany. Kids are supposedly beaten with Knecht Ruprecht’s sack of ashes if they can’t pray during Christmas, but they are given apples, almonds, and gingerbread if they can. In other versions, he punishes misbehavior with lumps of coal, rods, and stones.
- Hans Trapp: On the other hand, the French areas of Alsace and Lorraine are home to Hans Trapp. He was a local legend in Alsace, known for his shadiness. He lost everything, including his reputation and fortune, when he was excommunicated from the Catholic church. In his scarecrow costume, he began to wander the countryside. During the holiday season, he often travels with Santa Claus. Hans Trapp is like Santa Claus when it comes to dispensing corporal punishment. He argues that bad kids can change for good if they only try.
