The legend of the Brownies of Cologne was first told around 1800. The poem, which many people still know by heart, came later, but that’s another story. Many legends have a kernel of truth, but what is true about this legend? Where did the brownies come from? Who were they? We can’t say for sure, but there is a theory: at that time there were many small ore and silver mines, especially in the Bergisches Land region. These tunnels were often full of water, which had to be laboriously removed from the tunnel. And because the tunnels were often very low, this was usually done by children, who were also cheap. And this activity was called heinzen. At the beginning of the century, the first pumps were invented. The children were no longer needed and were simply sent away. But as they had to make a living, they were sent to work in the town houses. However, they were more likely to be exploited, as the French were also in Cologne at the time and they brought the idea of “egalité” with them, so servants were not so welcome. And so the children, the “brownies”, probably had to work secretly at night. Suddenly it all reads very differently:
And before some lazybones had woken up, all their day’s work was already done.
