A German king allowed the women of a captured city to leave with whatever they could carry—but he never expected what came next..
In 1140, King Conrad III laid siege to the town of Weinsberg in what is now southwestern Germany, then part of the Holy Roman Empire. Before capturing the city, he granted the women safe passage and allowed them to take with them whatever they could carry on their shoulders.
Rather than gathering their valuables, the women emerged carrying their husbands. Faced with their ingenuity, Conrad reportedly laughed and chose to honor his promise, declaring that a king should always keep his word.
The women who saved both their husbands and their city became known as the Treue Weiber von Weinsberg (“Loyal Wives of Weinsberg”). The ruins of the castle still stand today and are known as Weibertreu (“Wifely Loyalty”) in memory of the famous story.