ENO LEGENDS

THE ENO FAMILY ASSOCIATION

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ENO LEGENDS

Henno and the Fairy Maiden

There is a Norman story about a knight named Henno, presumably our half-mythical ancestor, who was out hunting one day when he happened upon a beautiful maiden sitting by herself in a forest clearing. Naturally, Henno fell in love with her immediately, took her home and married her without undue delay.

But there was a catch: She made Henno promise to leave her alone for one day each week. Smitten as he was, Henno readily agreed.

They married and settled down in the castle whose master Henno apparently served. Mrs. Henno’s day of privacy always began after morning Mass, but Henno’s mother noticed that her daughter-in-law would always slip out of the chapel before the eucharistic bread was consecrated. One day the suspicious lady followed the girl to the couple’s apartment, where mom was horrified to see that she was a “shape shifter” – able to change into other creatures and, as would be obvious to any casual observer, was a fairy. This particular day, the kid made the unfortunate decision to turn into a snake.

Mom raced away and came back with Henno and a priest. The latter threw some holy water at the snake, which turned back into the girl, then vanished out the window in a whirl of sparks and smoke.

Talk about Eno men marrying monster women! If this was our ancestral mother, it explains alot.