The unsolved medieval mystery of the 'Green Children' of Woolpit

The story of the "Green Children" of Woolpit is a fascinating historical mystery that has intrigued people for centuries.

It is a tale of two children who appeared in a rural English village in the 12th century, reportedly speaking an unknown language and having green-colored skin.

According to the legend, the children were found in a field by reapers who were working nearby.

They were a boy and a girl, and they wore strange clothes that were unfamiliar to the villagers.

The children were taken to the village and were initially unable to communicate with anyone.

They refused to eat any of the food that was offered to them and seemed to be in a state of shock.

Eventually, the children began to eat beans and gradually adapted to their new surroundings.

They learned English, but they could not tell anyone where they had come from.

They claimed that they had come from a place called "St Martin's Land," which was a place where the sun never shone, and everything was perpetually green.

The children's skin gradually lost its green color, and they became fully integrated into the community.

The boy eventually became sick and died, but the girl survived and married a man from the village.

The story of the Green Children of Woolpit has been the subject of much speculation and debate over the years.

Some conspiracy theorists suggested that the children were aliens or from a parallel universe.

Others have suggested that they were from an underground kingdom or from a lost civilization.

However, there are more plausible explanations for the story. It is possible that the children were refugees or migrants who had been abandoned by their parents.

It is also possible that they were suffering from a medical condition that caused their skin to turn green, such as hypochromic anemia or chlorosis.

Another theory is that the children were Flemish immigrants who had become lost while trying to find their way to a nearby market town.

During this time, England was experiencing a lot of immigration, and it is possible that the children were part of a larger group of migrants who had become separated from their families.

The historical sources on the "Green Children" of Woolpit are limited and mostly anecdotal.

The story is believed to have originated in the 12th century, but the earliest known written account of it is William of Newburgh's "Historia Rerum Anglicarum," a chronicle of English history written in Latin in the late 12th century.

In this version, William describes the event in Woolpit as it was told to him by others, rather than from his own direct experience.

Another source that mentions the Green Children of Woolpit is found in Ralph of Coggeshall's "Chronicon Anglicanum," a medieval chronicle written in Latin in the early 13th century. 

Ralph briefly mentions the event in Woolpit but provides no additional details beyond what was already recounted by William of Newburgh.

Other later writers and historians also mentioned the story of the Green Children, such as Robert Burton's in his 17th-century work "The Anatomy of Melancholy."

However, these accounts are based on the same anecdotal evidence as the earlier sources and offer no additional information or insights.

Despite the various theories, the true origin of the Green Children of Woolpit remains a mystery.

The story has been passed down through the centuries and has become a part of English folklore.

It is a testament to the power of storytelling and the enduring fascination that people have with the unknown and the unexplained.