Before you keep scrolling, know that there is a SECOND full Knecht Ruprecht comic at the end of this post! So if you’re more interested in the comics and less interested in the backstory, be sure to scroll down for comic number 2! Don’t miss it!
Now back to everyone’s favorite festive feral foundling, Knecht Ruprecht! He’s the most famous demonic Christmas attendant that you’ve (probably) never heard of. In many parts of Germany, Knecht was even more popular than Krampus!
During St. Nikolaustag (the feast of St. Nicholas), Christmas processions take place all over German-speaking countries. In these processions, St. Nicholas is sure to be present, appearing in a glitzy pope-like outfit with a tall hat on his head and a golden crook in his hand. He’s also accompanied by Knecht, who typically wears a black or brown robe with a pointed hood. Sometimes the person plays Knecht will walk with a limp, due to an injury that Knecht Ruprecht supposedly sustained as a feral child of the woods. He usually carries a staff or switch made of birch branches, and lugs a large sack of ashes on his back (which he uses to beat children with if they don’t know their prayers).
Like most Christmas demons, Knecht Ruprecht seems to be a bastardized version of a much older pagan figure. It’s worth mentioning that, in German, Ruprecht is one form of the name Robert, which was a common name for the devil. Ruprecht is also related to Robin Goodfellow, who was a mischievous Pan-like character from pagan times. Robin and the devil both have strong ties to the horned gods of the woods, which may be why Knecht Ruprecht has a reputation for being a feral wild child and trickster.
It’s likely that Christians borrowed his likeness to create the character that people now recognize as Knecht Ruprecht.
I, personally, find it endlessly hilarious that St. Nicholas adopted Knecht and turned him into a completely neurotic prayer fiend/Christmas slave. According to most accounts, though St. Nicholas did raise Knecht himself, the relationship between them was always more like master and servant rather than father and son.
Old Nicholas may have been a saint and a miracle worker, but even he screwed up his one and only kid.
That’s what inspired this next comic, which I made last year, but which was too long to fit into today’s instagram post. It’s times like these that I’m glad I have this Substack, because it’s the perfect place to share extra content like this that doesn’t have a home in the screwy algorithm world of instagram.
I hope you enjoy it.
Aww. ❤️
I hope you’re staying safe and warm and happy as the holidays get closer and closer. Thanks for being here, and Murrey Crimnesh from one feral weirdo to another.
With love,
🎄Becca Lee, the Haunted Librarian🎄
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PS - I made this as a design for a Christmas card last year, but since it’s a little too late for you all to order Xmas cards for this season, I tweaked it and made it into a Lock Screen instead. Enjoy!