Which Hans Christian Andersen story features an emperor deceived by invisible clothing?

Hans Christian Andersen’s story featuring an emperor deceived by invisible clothing is The Emperor’s New Clothes. Andersen published it in 1837.

Two swindlers arrive at the emperor’s court and claim that they can weave magnificent cloth invisible to anyone who is stupid or unfit for office. The emperor sends officials to inspect the work, but each pretends to see the cloth because they fear being judged incompetent.

The emperor eventually appears in a public procession wearing the supposedly magical clothing. The crowd also stays silent until a child points out the obvious truth: the emperor is wearing nothing. The child’s statement breaks the social pressure that has sustained the deception.

Andersen adapted elements from earlier European sources, including a Spanish collection associated with the writer Juan Manuel. His version became the best-known form of the story. The modern expression “the emperor’s new clothes” describes a situation in which people praise something plainly defective because they fear contradicting authority or the crowd.