“Beauty And The Beast” May Be Your Favorite Fairytale, But Did You Know That This Childhood Classic Is Actually Based On A True Story?

Emily Chan |

Oct 5, 2023

kharchenkoirina - stock.adobe.com- illustrative purposes only, not the actual person

Everyone knows the story of Beauty and the Beast, but most are not aware of where the tale originated. Dr. Amy Boyington (@history_with_amy) is a historian, and she shared a video on TikTok about the real-life people and events that inspired the creation of Beauty and the Beast.

The fairytale is based on the story of Petrus Gonsalvus and his wife, Catherine. Petrus was born in the Canary Islands around the year 1537. His birth name was Petro Gonzales.

Petrus suffered from hypertrichosis, which was a rare condition that caused him to grow thick, dark hair all over his body. He was captured when he was ten years old and sent to the royal court of France.

He became the property of King Henry II and was regarded as an animal of sorts. He was even kept in a cage because it was unknown if he would be a danger. The king took a special interest in Petrus. Once Petrus was deemed not dangerous, the king wanted to see if he could tame “the wild man” and turn him into a respectable gentleman.

Petrus was given the education of a young nobleman and learned everything from military tactics to Latin. Aside from Latin, he was taught how to write and speak additional languages. It turned out that he was very intelligent, and he became more educated than most of the aristocracy.

King Henry II died from jousting injuries in 1559. The king’s widow, Catherine de Medici, decided to marry Petrus off to someone. She found a beautiful maiden, who was the daughter of one of her servants, to be his wife.

The maiden’s name was Catherine, and it was said that Catherine was not given any details about who she would be marrying. She was only told that he was a nobleman.

Petrus and Catherine went on to have seven children together. Two of their daughters, Antoinetta and Madeline, and their son, Henry, were all born with the same condition as Petrus.

The family toured Europe, regularly visiting different royal courts. They grew to be famous since many were intrigued by their hairy appearances.

kharchenkoirina – stock.adobe.com- illustrative purposes only, not the actual person

The family was always the property of a royal figure. In 1589, they caught the attention of the Duke of Parma, who had them sent to his home city. However, he died before he could meet with them. His wife Margaret, the Duchess of Parma, took the family under her wing.

Eventually, the family settled down in Italy under the protection of the duchess. Sadly, Petrus and Catherine’s children were taken away from them and gifted to others as pets.

Catherine died in 1623, but the fates of Petrus and his children remain unknown.

@history_with_amy

Learn about the true story that inspired ‘Beauty and the Beast’! #historytok #historytiktok #history #historywithamy #historyfacts #historybuff #16thcentury #weirdhistory #beautyandthebeast

? original sound – Dr Amy Boyington