When the Prince was alive, he truly lived in happiness. He had grown up behind the tall walls of the palace where sorrow and hardship were never allowed to enter. Everything around him was filled with music, laughter, and delight. Because he was sheltered from the realities of life, he never knew tears or suffering. But after he died, the statue was built to honor him. From that high place, the Prince finally saw what he had never seen before, including cold homes, hungry children, exhausted workers, and silent pain spread across the city. The sight filled him with deep sorrow, and one night, even though the sky was clear, tears rolled down his jeweled cheeks. The Happy Prince discovered sadness only after his death, and it broke his heart.
That night, a small swallow flew under the statue to rest. It should have migrated to Egypt with the other birds, but because of its tender affection for a reed, it had stayed behind and was now alone. As it prepared to sleep, a cold drop of water fell on its head. Thinking it was rain, the swallow looked up and was shocked to see the Prince’s face wet with tears. Moved by pity, the swallow asked why a statue made of stone could cry. The Prince answered with a voice full of sadness that he had seen too much suffering in the city, and his heart could no longer endure the pain of others.
The Prince asked the swallow to help him with a small task before flying south. He explained that not far away, in a dark and freezing room, a poor mother was sewing late into the night to earn money while her sick child lay trembling with fever and thirst. The Prince said, “Take the ruby from the hilt of my sword and give it to them.” The swallow hesitated because the night was cold, but in the end it removed the red jewel and carried it to the mother and child. The moment the ruby arrived, hope lit up their tiny room.
The following night, the swallow came to bid farewell, but the Prince asked for help once more. He had seen a young writer sitting alone in a freezing attic, starving and unable to continue his work. The Prince said, “Take one of the sapphires from my eyes and give it to him.” The swallow felt heartbroken knowing that doing so would leave the Prince blind in one eye, but it obeyed. With the sapphire, the writer bought food and firewood and was able to write again with warmth in his heart.
On the third night, the Prince saw a little match girl crying desperately because she had dropped all her matches into the gutter and feared being beaten if she returned home with nothing. Without hesitation, the Prince said, “Give her the sapphire that remains.” The swallow begged him not to sacrifice any more, but the Prince gently replied, “I am only truly happy when I help others.” The swallow obeyed, and the girl ran home joyfully while the Prince became completely blind.
From that moment on, the Prince could no longer see, and the swallow became his eyes. Each day, the swallow flew over the city and told him where suffering could be found. The Prince then said, “Remove the gold leaves from my body and give them to the poor.” One by one, the swallow pulled the golden leaves from the statue and delivered them to families in need. With each leaf, people gained bread, firewood, and a reason to survive the harsh winter. The Prince lost his beauty, but he gave life to others.
When the final piece of gold had been given away, the Happy Prince no longer looked splendid. He appeared as a plain, gray figure made only of lead standing in the winter cold. Meanwhile, the swallow grew weaker each day. The cold was too harsh, and because it had stayed too long, it no longer had the strength to fly to the warm lands of the south. It shivered beside the Prince, telling him stories about Egypt, the pyramids, and the golden Nile, then asked for permission to kiss the Prince’s hand. The moment its tiny beak touched the statue, the swallow fell and died. At that same moment, the Prince’s leaden heart broke into two pieces.
The next morning, people saw that the statue no longer looked beautiful and decided to remove it. When they melted it in the furnace, all the gold turned to liquid, but the leaden heart would not melt. Considering it useless, they threw it onto a rubbish heap where the body of the little swallow lay.
At that moment, God spoke to His angels and said, “Bring Me the two most precious things in the city.” The angels returned with the broken leaden heart and the body of the swallow. God smiled and said, “The little swallow will sing forever in My garden, and the Happy Prince shall live eternally with Me in a place where sorrow cannot enter.” Their compassion became their everlasting glory.