The Wicked Witch of the East is a fictional character created by American author L. Frank Baum. She is a crucial character but appears only briefly in Baum's classic children's series of Oz novels, most notably The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900). The Wicked Witch was a middle-aged, malevolent woman who conquered and tyrannized the Munchkin Country in Oz's eastern quadrant, forcing the native Munchkins to slave for her night and day. Her charmed Silver Shoes (changed to ruby slippers in the 1939 film musical) held many mysterious powers and were her precious possession. The Witch is killed when Dorothy Gale's farmhouse lands on her at the start of the first book. Her body turns to dust, leaving behind the magical shoes to be passed to Dorothy.
The classic Oz books The Wicked Witch of the East was believed to be more powerful than the Good Witch of the North, but not as powerful as Glinda, the Good Witch of the South. She also appeared to be more powerful than Mombi, as the Good Witch of the North was able to defeat Mombi, but was powerless to overthrow the witch of the east and free the Munchkins. She was not in any way related to the Wicked Witch of the West (as is made out to be in several adaptions) but was in league together with her, the Wicked Witch of the North, and the Wicked Witch of the South to conquer and divide Oz among themselves in four sections as recounted in Baum's fourth Oz book, Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz (1908). After the fall of Pastoria, the last mortal King of Oz, the old witch conquered the eastern section of Oz and held the native Munchkins in her bondage for a number of decades.
She had lived in a rather humble dwelling deep within the woods in a cottage located somewhere in Oz's eastern quadrant called Munchkin Country. She was bribed by an old woman who owned a beautiful Munchkin maid Nimmie Amee, who worked for her as a full-time servant, and happened to fall deeply in love with a local woodsman by the name of Nick Chopper. The woman gave her two sheep and a cow if the witch promised to prevent Nimmie Amee from marrying Nick and in leaving the old woman, the Wicked Witch of the East resolved to enchant Nick Chopper's ax. The curse cast upon it caused him to eventually turn into the Tin Woodman when he hacked all his own limbs off one by one, replacing the parts that were amputated with a hollow tin one, until he was all made of tin from his head to his feet. Once a man of tin with no human heart, Nick Chopper believed he no longer had the proper emotions that were required to love Nimmie Amee—much to the Wicked Witch's satisfaction. A year later, it was while the witch was out in the Munchkin meadows looking for herbs and spices to cast yet another one of her wicked spells, that Dorothy's falling farmhouse unexpectedly fell from the sky and accidentally crushed her to death after it was released by a cyclone from Kansas:"Who was she?" asked Dorothy. "She was the Wicked Witch of the East, as I said," answered the little woman. "She has held all the Munchkins in bondage for many years, making them slave for her night and day. Now they are all set free, and are grateful to you for the favor."She had helped certain Munchkins (such as Nimmie Amee's original mistress and the tinsmith Ku-Klip) with her witchcraft, under certain circumstances (usually at a reasonable cost). Among her exceedingly cruel actions was not just the enchantment of the woodman Nick Chopper's ax, but also Captain Fyter's sword, which caused him to turn into the Tin Soldier.
Adaptations In most adaptations and references to the Wicked Witch of the East, it is usually in her famous appearance, under a house, with only her feet exposed. Notable recent exceptions include the 2005 ABC television film The Muppets' Wizard of Oz and Disney's 2013 theatrical film Oz the Great and Powerful.
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