The King Who Wanted Silence

People all over the country told of giants. They were said to have piled up the great stones in Drenthe and tossed the hills onto the Veluwe. Near Haarlem, people knew Walberech. When robbers took her cattle, she strode after them across the sea, picked up their ship with one finger, and tossed it into the air. The robbers never ate again. Walberech ate them.

She carried her cows home under one arm and her horses under the other. The sheep grazed on her head.

Giants had great appetites, wore animal skins, and could live far longer than people. But none of that helped if there was no new king ready when the old one died.

Halichem was about fifty and had no wife.

He was a man of few words. The few words he did use were usually orders. He thought that was an excellent way to conduct a conversation.

His subjects worried about the succession. At last one giant dared to speak to the king.

Whatever words he chose, Halichem began to roar so loudly that all the other giants heard him.

The giants fled. Where their huge feet landed, hills and valleys appeared, according to the story. Only after several days did they dare to return. Halichem did not want to marry. He did not say why.

The people held a secret meeting. Apparently one giant had not been enough. They would send seven, preferably the strongest.

The delegation presented the king with a request. Seven enormous bodies stood before him as he received it.

Halichem would think about it.

The seven stayed where they were. This time no one had to flee.

The king went to find a wife himself. He found a giantess he liked, about four feet shorter than he was. The people were so pleased that they immediately began building a palace at Echt. It had to be ready quickly for the wedding, so not too much time was wasted on the design.

Meanwhile, Halichem got to know his fiancée better.

She told him about one giantess’s bracelet. Another’s earrings. An old suitor she had rejected and a young one who had been even worse. Then came the family of a cousin. It was a large family.

Halichem waited for a breath.

It came, but there was no room for a word.

She said that someone had compared her to a human. A human! That giantess would not be allowed at the wedding. Or perhaps she should be invited, so she could be made to understand exactly how unwelcome she was. What did Halichem think?

He opened his mouth.

“Let me finish.”

He closed it again.

She left her meal untouched so she could keep talking. For a giant, that was no small thing. She stopped only at night. Then Halichem lay awake and heard all over again about the cousin and the bracelet and the giantess who was not coming—unless she was.

The next morning, his fiancée was rested.

She had thought of something else.

Halichem grew quieter. His eyes began to burn. He looked so wretched that three old giants went to investigate. They asked his fiancée what was wrong with him.

They received such a thorough answer that they could not fit a single question in.

When at last they walked away, they shook their heads. The youngest declared that everything had a cause. The second thought it was better to turn around completely than only halfway. The oldest concluded that saying too little was dangerous, but apparently saying too much was as well.

They went to Halichem that night with their wisdom.

The king sat bolt upright when he heard their footsteps. He thought his fiancée had come for one last conversation.

“It’s us,” said the oldest. “There are matters of state to discuss.”

Halichem’s fist flew past his nose.

“Discuss?”

The old giant leaned his head back a little.

“You must not marry.”

Halichem threw his arms around him. He sobbed with relief. At last, advice short enough to follow.

“My people must know this too,” he said. At daybreak the heralds, his messengers, were to proclaim everywhere: anyone who wished to stay sensible and live their own life must never marry.

The giants obeyed. According to the story, no new generations came after that, and the entire giant people died out. The humans, whom they had looked down on, took over the land.

At Echt, people said, the giant’s house remained unfinished.

Halichem had brought about silence.