Hans Christian Andersen
Danish writer whose fairy tales, including "The Little Mermaid," are translated into more than 125 languages Show bio
Bio
Hans Christian Andersen, a washerwoman's son, left for Copenhagen at fourteen to become an actor. He got into the Royal Danish Theatre on his soprano voice, but that voice soon changed.
Andersen turned to writing after a theatre colleague told him he was a poet. He based several of his first fairy tales on folktales from his childhood. Andersen ended "The Emperor's New Clothes" with a child calling out that the Emperor wears nothing.
He won an international following with "The Little Mermaid" and came to be celebrated across Europe. Andersen, the washerwoman's son, received an unexpected invitation to the royal palace from King Christian IX.