Another day, another Santa alternative.
This time it’s “Hans Trapp”, originating from both French and German traditions.
Also going by the name “Hans Trott”, this is possibly the only tale that can still be traced back to an actual person – that person being “Hans von Trotha”, who lived between 1450 and 1503 and was a German knight and marshal of the prince-elector of the Palatinate.
Although the real Hans von Trotha never harmed children, he did indeed cause enough havoc to be remembered through this festive legend. As legend goes, Hans von Trotha was a very tall, imposing figure whose ghost stories were initially referred to him as “The Black Knight” and were often shared by adults with children to persuade them to behave. Today, the ghost of Hans Trapp is said to appear disguised as a cloaked scarecrow. The story goes that he was a cruel man of great wealth living in France. He was believed to have acquired his riches through dark magic and pacts with demons, and as such, he was excommunicated by the church, losing his property and all his money. The local villagers banished him to the woods in nearby Germany.
Driven mad by isolation and wanting revenge on the villagers, he hatched a plan to disguise himself as a scarecrow and steal a child to eat. He waited in a field until a young farm boy walked past. He stabbed him with a sharpened stick and brought him back to his lair to cook. Just as he was about to take his first bite, he was struck by lightning and died.
His spirit rises from the dead every Christmas, abducting naughty children into the forest where they will never be seen again.
When the fear of being put on the naughty list just isn’t enough, make like the rest of Europe and put the fear of the Boogyman into naughty children.
-Sam 
