Once upon a time there were twelve royal children – eleven brothers and one older sister, Elisa.

Pada zaman dahulu kala ada dua belas anak-anak raja – sebelas saudara laki-laki dan satu kakak sulung perempuan, Elisa.

One day the mother died, and some time later the king married again. The new wife, however, was an evil witch.

Suatu hari sang ibu meninggal, dan beberapa waktu kemudian sang raja menikah kembali. Tetapi sang istri yang baru ternyata adalah seorang penyihir jahat.

She turned the eleven princes into swans and sent them far away to a distant land beyond the large forest.

Dengan sebuah kutukan dia mengubah kesebelas pangeran menjadi angsa dan mengirim mereka pergi, ke sebuah negara yang amat jauh di belakang hutan besar.

She dressed the girl in rags and smeared an ointment onto her face that turned her so ugly, that even her own father no longer recognized her and chased her out of the castle.