there were once upon a time a king and a queen who lived happily together , and they had twelve children , all of whom were boys . one day the king said to his wife : ' if our thirteenth child is a girl , all her twelve brothers must die , so that she may be very rich and the kingdom hers alone . ' then he ordered twelve coffins to be made , and filled them with shavings , and placed a little pillow in each . these he put away in an empty room , and , giving the key to his wife , he bade her tell no one of it . the queen grieved over the sad fate of her sons and refused to be comforted , so much so that the youngest boy , who was always with her , and whom she had christened benjamin , said to her one day : ' dear mother , why are you so sad ? ' ' my child , ' she answered , ' i may not tell you the reason . '
twelve .
how many children did the king and queen have ?
how many children did the king and queen have ?