6th May 1699. Lemuel Gulliver, an English sailor, left for a cruise in the South Seas on board of the ship Antelope.
5th November 1699: the ship, overwhelmed by a violent storm, was shipwrecked and all the crew died…except for Gulliver, who reached the coast swimming. The hero, exhausted by the fatigue, rested on the sand and fell in a deep sleep: he was landed in the Country of Lilliput, inhabited by very small men. Gulliver, compared to them, looked as a real giant!
Since a few days, around the Country there was an excitement in the air: the Small King, King of Lilliput, has allowed the hand of his daughter Giulia to the prince David, son of the king Bombo, King of the near island Blefuscu. The following day, the marriage would take place, and the Small King was all busy with the last organizations. That evening, as every evening, the faithful guardian of the coast, Gabby, was searching the area when he ran across a big block never seen before: “But how” he thought, “I know this coast by heart. How is it possible that I have never noticed this huge rock?”
Gabby lighted with the lamp that strange object but…surprise…it was a hand!
The little man started to tremble of fear but, before running away desperately, he lighted the body of the owner of that hand: he was a giant, a monstrous giant! Why did he come to Lilliput?
Gabby didn’t waste time and, even though it was night, all the inhabitants of the city could hear his shouts: “Help me! There is a giant on the shore!”
The most curious people, still sleepy, looked out of the window and noticed a kind of tornado running through the streets. They couldn’t believe that the rocket could be the lazy Gabby.
The guardian arrived at the entrance of the Palace of the king and asked to the guardians the authorization to pass: “No” was the answer. “This is not the right time: the Small King is arguing with King Bombo about the song that is meant to be sung during the ceremony of the wedding of his daughter. The Small King claims that they should sing ‘Fidelity’, the anthem of Lilliput; instead King Bombo wants ‘For Ever!’ The anthem of Blefuscu!”
In that moment there was a yell: King Bombo, who was naturally contentious and wrangler, had completely lost his patience, and in front of the astonished look of the future bride and groom and the look of the cowardly Small King, he said these threatening words: “If it so… it will be war!”
So the King took his son’s arm and he dragged him out of the hall: then he went back for a while and with a punch he broke in a thousand pieces the beautiful cake prepared for the bride and the groom, who were already saying goodbye to their love dream.
Gabby, without understanding the gravity of the situation, took advantage of the fact that King was left alone and he rushed in front of the King shouting: “King, hurry up, there is a giant on the shore!”
“Do you think that is the moment to bother me? Here we are in a National Drama, everyone will suffer consequences for this” said the King distraught.
“But King, maybe the giant is a spy! We have to kill him anyway!”
“Spy? Giant?” repeated concerned the King. Call the guardians, hurry up, ring the bells, let’s all go to the shore!”
While a crowd of curious and a big group of guardians were getting closer to the area where Gabby had seen the giant before, King Bombo, before leaving the Country informed his three Lilliput spies: the two Slims and Poldo, about the open conflict between Lilliput and Blefuscu. “Ok, boss, you can go with no worries”, said the dangerous mugs.
In the meantime, on the shore, Gulliver was still sleeping in peace.
“Hurry up” said Gabby. “We shouldn’t to lose time: let’s collect all the necessary to immobilize the giant and let’s build a huge wagon in order to carry him up to the palace of the King: he will decide what to do with him.”
In a while, a web of cables, attached to many cranes, slowly lifted up the giant and placed him on the wagon that was placed under him. Finally, a group of men fastened that huge creature with ropes and strings.
At the end, with huge efforts, the Lilliputians dragged the victim up to the entrance of the palace, where the King was waiting.
“King, we are arrived!” shouted Gabby triumphant.
“Let’s carry him quickly inside!” answered the King from the inside.
“I wouldn’t disappoint you, King, but this colossus…is really too too big!”
The King looked out from the tower and he shouted terrified: “ Leave that creature where he is, before he awakens, look in his pockets…he could have dangerous items!”
These were the last words of the Small King before hiding himself very courageously under the blankets!
In fact, into the pockets of the young guy there was a dangerous item, and the Lilliputians sweated their guts out before getting him on the floor, they got scared to death when from that item, it banged a shot that destroyed one of the tower of the palace. It was a gun! In that moment the giant woke up and was surprised of seeing many busy little men.
His astonishment lasted only for a while, because a rain of little stones suddenly knocked him down: no, it weren’t the Lilliputians but it was King Bombo, who has begun his attack form his ship! Gulliver stood up, …and the bombarding stopped magically!
The enemy thought that it was right to go back and to keep on with the war in another moment.
“We have won!” shouted Gabby, bouncing on the foot of his rescuer, who could only feel a little tingling. The King had to be courageous: he had to thanks that giant, who seemed to be arrived from the sky in the utmost moment of need.
“Don’t be afraid of me” was saying in the meantime Gulliver to the scared Lilliputians. “Is in this way that you take care of your guests? My name is Gulliver, and I am an English sailor…and shipwrecked. If you want we can be friends!”
The King gave a big party in honour of the rescuer of the country: dances, songs, sweets and wine cheered up everyone, except Giulia, who was perturbed by the last events, therefore she didn’t please the guest with her presence.
Gabby explained to his new friend the reasons why the princess was suffering, and Gulliver swore to himself that he would have done something to get the smile back on the lips of the young girl and her lover.
In the meantime, in Blefuscu, King Bombo was sending a message to his spies in Lilliput, the two Slims and Poldo: “Find a way to eliminate the Giant of Lilliput, otherwise we could not attack anymore. Get rid of him in any way otherwise you will be in troubles!”
The three spies got the message and thought quickly about what to do: in a corner of the square, the Lilliputians had exposed the “machine of the thunder”, which was the gun of their friend.
It would have been very easy to take it and use it in the right moment… in order to kill the giant!
The theft perfectly succeeded. The Slims therefore answered to the King, sending a message too: “Everything ok, King! Attack tomorrow morning: we will try to make the giant die under your eyes!”
But in Blefuscu, another person was looking forward to go back to Lilliput: he was the poor prince David, who didn’t see the time to see again his loved Giulia. The young guy left, without saying it to his father, he reached the palace of the Small King and he started to sing a sweet song under the window of her beloved. Giulia immediately recognized the voice of her prince and rushed down on the stairs in order to reach him, but the guardians stopped her and stood between them and the prince. In that moment a huge hand lifted up the princess and David: he was Gulliver that, determined to help the two, took them on the shore in order to let them talk in peace.
“But tell me” said Gulliver all at once.
“What is the main difference between those two songs that are the main reason of the argument between your two fathers?”
“If I have to tell you the truth” answered Giulia “the two songs are very similar: the words are slightly different, but the melody is exactly the same!”
“Therefore is easy to satisfy everyone! During your ceremony you can sing both songs as if were only one!” exclaimed Gulliver
“What a fantastic idea!” said David.
“We have to communicate this to our fathers!”
With this promise, the two lovers said good bye one to each other and Gulliver took the princess back home.
The next day, the awakening wasn’t sweet for the Lilliputians: King Bombo was attacking again!
Gulliver calmed down everyone, saying that he would have gone to welcome those party poopers on the shore. Prince David, who wanted to reach his loved to be sure that she wasn’t in danger, ran across the three spies and heard them saying: “When the giant will get close to the ships of King Bombo we will kill him with the gun. Hurry up. We have to carry it up to there!”
The prince understood that Gulliver was in danger of life, and he could not permit this!
In that exact moment, when the giant was pulling the ship on the shore, as if it was a little ship of paper, a shot exploded in the air…but it didn’t hit Gulliver, the Prince instead was hit.
Everyone, friends, enemies, ran close to the victim of such a stupid war: the two kings looked one each other in the eyes penitent, and they didn’t dare to get closer to Giulia who had rushed over there crying heart-broken.
Gulliver lifted up the Prince on the palm of his hand and he noticed that he was only slightly hurt. Therefore he lifted up the Princess too and he whispered into her hear that her lover was safe and that now she had to sing the two anthems together: ‘Fidelity’ and ‘For Ever’.
The young girl didn’t wait longer: her sweet voice deeply touched the two Kings, who had difficulties to understand the difference between the end of one song and the beginning of the next one. The Prince opened his eyes and a big applause, hugs and kisses completed the day.
The next day, the two lovers, got married and, some time after, the Lilliputians helped Gulliver, who was homesick, to build a ship to get back in the sea.
And so the worth sailor left…but in his heart he always kept the memory of the Great Country of Lilliput!