Tansy was a female hedgehog resident of Redwall Abbey. As a youth, she was a good friend of Craklyn the squirrel, Piknim the mouse, and Arven the squirrel Dibbun, who used to call her "Tansy Pansy". The elders always liked her, and she was given permission to leave the Abbey by herself, something most younger Redwallers weren't allowed to do. As one who was clever and very perseverant, she was the head searcher in the quest for the Tears of all Oceans, which were secreted within the Abbey's walls. The quest began after Tansy and Arven accidentally stumbled into a crack that contained the skeleton of Graylunk, in the Mossflower quarry. Tansy received a visit from the spirit of Martin the Warrior in her dreams and was inspired by him during her quest.
After successfully finding all six pearls in order to ransom Abbot Durral from corsairs, the rescuers safely returned with Durral, so she flung them into the ocean to be forever lost and unable to cause strife and greed in anybeast.
For her good sense and responsibility, Tansy was made Abbess of Redwall while still relatively young. Durral had received dreams from Martin the Warrior on how to choose his successor.
As an older Abbess, she was a good leader, and helped the Redwallers to explore the underground remains of the fortress of Kotir.
Trivia[]
- According to Craklyn, Tansy was the first hedgehog to rule as Abbess. She is also the only hedgehog Abbess on record.
- A beverage called Tansywine was named in Tansy's honor.
- A Tansy is a type of flower.