Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, the collectors of Grimm’s Fairy Tales, were born in Hanau.
Jacob Ludwig Karl Grimm was born in 1785, and his younger brother Wilhelm Carl Grimm was born in 1786. Hanau, a city in Hesse, was then part of the Holy Roman Empire. The brothers later became closely associated with Kassel, where they spent important years studying, working, and collecting traditional stories.
Their Kinder- und Hausmärchen, usually translated as Children’s and Household Tales, first appeared in 1812. The collection made them famous, but their work extended far beyond fairy tales. They also researched Germanic languages, legends, law, and folklore; Jacob became a major figure in historical linguistics.
A common mix-up is to name Kassel as their birthplace. Kassel was central to their early careers and the development of the collection, but Hanau is the city where both brothers were born. A monument to the brothers stands in Hanau’s central market square.