This study examines two stories from the Middle Ages: The Dutch knight novel, Karel ende Elegast and the Hungarian folk tale, Mátyás király lopni megy [King Matthias goes stealing]. In both stories, the king in disguise goes to steal with an accomplice (an expe­ri­enced thief). As a result, an attack on the king on the next day is prevented. The motif of the king in disguise having to go stealing to uncover a conspiracy against him is a universal fairy tale motif. In different countries and cultures, one can find this wandering motif from Norway to Mongolia. In this study, we want to make a Hungarian contribution to this research.

This study examines two stories from the Middle Ages: The Dutch knight novel, Karel ende Elegast and the Hungarian folk tale, Mátyás király lopni megy [King Matthias goes stealing]. In both stories, the king in disguise goes to steal with an accomplice (an expe­ri­enced thief). As a result, an attack on the king on the next day is prevented. The motif of the king in disguise having to go stealing to uncover a conspiracy against him is a universal fairy tale motif. In different countries and cultures, one can find this wandering motif from Norway to Mongolia. In this study, we want to make a Hungarian contribution to this research.

This study examines two stories from the Middle Ages: The Dutch knight novel, Karel ende Elegast and the Hungarian folk tale, Mátyás király lopni megy [King Matthias goes stealing]. In both stories, the king in disguise goes to steal with an accomplice (an expe­ri­enced thief). As a result, an attack on the king on the next day is prevented. The motif of the king in disguise having to go stealing to uncover a conspiracy against him is a universal fairy tale motif. In different countries and cultures, one can find this wandering motif from Norway to Mongolia. In this study, we want to make a Hungarian contribution to this research.