- Pere Fouettard, Saint Nicholas‘ companion, punishes disobedient children with spankings or coal.
- Originating in Alsace, Hans Trapp embodies a similar fear during around Europe.
- Similar characters like Krampus, Ruprecht, and Zwarte Piet exist in different cultures.
Pere Fouettard means “Father Whip” in French. This character is also known as Hans Trapp in Alsace; Ruprecht in German folklore, Zwarte Piet in Dutch folklore, and Houseker in Luxembourg). He is a shady figure who goes out with Saint Nicholas on or about December 6th. Pere Fouettard gives children who are disrespectful spankings, while Saint Nicholas gives them presents. The delivery of coal or beets has taken on the role of spankings in several parts of France and Belgium.
Pere Fouettard’s Appearance
Although depictions of Pere Fouettard may vary somewhat from country to country, he is often represented as a frightening figure, dressed in fur, with a long beard, a gloomy visage, and untidy hair. He often carries a whip, a staff, or a bunch of twigs for protection. He threatens to stuff rebellious kids in his big bag and haul them away if they don’t behave or say their prayers.
Sometimes, the figure gives not coal or a whipping, but sugar beets. He is a synonym for bogeyman.
Many people also identify Pere Fouettard with commotion. His signature sound is made by the cracking of the whip, chains, bells, or cowbells that he carries. When he walks, the earth shakes from his hooves or enormous boots.
Origin of Pere Fouettard Myth
Some historians have connected Père Fouettard to the deity Pan and the figure of Herne the Hunter; he is comparable to both figures in that he symbolizes the “bad” and “dark” alter ego of the gift-bearer.
Three affluent lads on their way to a monastic boarding school are kidnapped by an innkeeper or butcher in the 1252 origin tale of Pere Fouettard (according to others, it’s from 1150). The couple murders and robs the kids. St. Nicholas finds out about the murder, brings the children back to life, and Pere Fouettard repents and joins St. Nicholas’ Christmas team. In an alternate telling, St. Nicholas sentences Pere Fouettard to work as his assistant.
During the 1552 Siege of Metz by Charles V’s troops, the legendary Pere Fouettard is claimed to have appeared to the citizens of the city. The citizens of the city paraded a dummy made in the image of the emperor around the streets before burning it. It’s possible that this dummy is where the myth all began.
Alternately, his first documented appearance was in 1737 in the County of Hanau-Lichtenberg. Some people attribute this nasty persona to the infamous murderous brute Marshal Hans von Trotha.
From his fortress at Berwartstein, not far from Wissembourg, he would rob the locals and hold travelers for ransom. Because of the legacy he left, people all across the area and beyond will remember him forever as Pere Fouettard (“Father Whip”).
Some have suggested that the meaning of the name comes from the term “trappen,” meaning the sound of his footfall was used to scare away ghosts.
The sound of his footfall was used to scare away ghosts.
Hans Trapp: A Similar Figure
Hans Trapp is a similar figure to Pere Fouettard that traditionally arrives on December 5 with Saint Nicholas and the Christkind (“Christ Child”). Hans Trapp is the antagonist; Saint Nicholas is unwavering in his job as guardian of children; and Christkind is a kind figure who hands out presents.
In 1897, Jules Hoches wrote the following about Hans Trapp:
Alongside his white companion, Christkind, he embodies a kind of Lucifer, a representative of the Devil, a biblical boogeyman. His symbol is a stick with tricolored branches, threatening children who fail to fulfill promises made to Christkind. He is called Hans Trapp and speaks only the Alsace dialect.
Every year on the afternoon of the fourth Sunday of Advent, monks and fearful townfolk lead the procession of Hans Trapp through the streets of Wissembourg. Amidst a cacophony of percussion, he rides in on a horse, hairy and black.
Pere Fouettard Around the World
Despite being linked with a different holiday, Pere Fouettard shares characteristics with other legendary figures like the namahages of Japan and the mariwines of the Amazon.
The identity and traits of Saint Nicholas’ sidekick are not universally agreed upon.
- His sidekick is known as Krampus in Austria, Bavaria, and the rest of the Austrian Alps.
- Ruprecht (or Knecht Ruprecht) in Germany; Houseker in Luxembourg.
- On the first Saturday of December, Pere Fouettard leads a procession of children and adults dressed as Saint Nicholas and his donkey through the streets of Fribourg, Switzerland.
- Several Pere Fouettards, or Schmutzli as they are known in Swiss German, accompany Saint Nicholas as he travels across German-speaking Switzerland.
- Pere Fouettard travels with Saint Nicholas in Belgium.
- Zwarte Piet is a cheerful character who helps Saint Nicholas bring gifts to youngsters on his annual visit to the Netherlands. A court ruled in July 2014 that the habit of painting a black face onto Zwarte Piet’s head and wearing a curly wig constituted discriminatory.
- His name is Belsnickel, and he lives in Brazil, in a town called Guabiruba that was settled by Germans.
- He is traveling with Belsnickel across southern Germany.