The Wild Man of Orford
Medieval fishermen caught a naked, hairy man in their nets. He was held in a new castle, ate raw fish, and one day swam away.
What was reported
The monk Ralph of Coggeshall recorded that in the reign of Henry II, fishermen off Orford in Suffolk caught a man in their nets. He was naked and hairy, with a long shaggy beard, and wouldn't or couldn't speak. He was kept at the newly built Orford Castle, where he ate raw fish and meat, and was taken to church but showed no understanding of it.
Once he was allowed to swim in the harbour inside a line of nets, but dived under them and escaped. He came back of his own accord for a while, then disappeared into the sea for good.
Explanations offered
Suggestions include a seal, a shipwrecked foreign sailor, or a person with a disability, or simply a wonder tale. Ralph also wrote down the story of the Green Children of Woolpit, a few miles away. Orford Castle still stands, and the wild man appears on local carvings.
- When
- Around 1167
- Where
- Orford, Suffolk, England
- Witnesses
- Recorded by the chronicler Ralph of Coggeshall
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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