Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl Stanhope
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Philip Henry Stanhope, 4th Earl Stanhope (December 7, 1781 – March 2, 1855), was an English aristocrat, famous for his shadowy role in the Kaspar Hauser case during the 1830s.
As an impoverished English aristocrat, Stanhope looked for his fortune in Europe, having close ties with House of Baden.
In 1829 he came to the town of Nuremberg to visit the "Wild Man" Kaspar Hauser. After a mysterious attack upon Hauser, Stanhope returned in 1830 with large sums of money paid in invoices issued by Baden banks. He reported to his specific "task", teaching the young boy aristocratic manners. Previous peers of the boy accused Stanhope of spoiling him with fancy clothes and costly presents. Stanhope executed "tests" of the boy's origins by talking to him in different languages, coming to the conclusion that Hauser was of Hungarian origin. Later Stanhope left the boy with a promise of an invitation to his castle back in England.
According to preserved letters from Hauser, the young boy fell into a romantic relationship with his aristocratic peer. Contemporary rumors suggested that this was more than platonic love. A legal pledge to get the boy into his official custody was overturned by a local court.
Finally Earl Stanhope came to the conviction that Hauser was a fraud and left him for good (1831). Later, after Kaspar Hauser's mysterious death in 1833, Stanhope strongly advocated the position that his death had been by suicide, which was proven by the autopsy to be false.
[edit] References
- ARTE TV Documentary film “Mordfall Kaspar Hauser”, premiere 17.08.2002
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Charles Long John Smith |
Member of Parliament for Wendover with George Smith 1806–1807 |
Succeeded by George Smith Francis Horner |
| Preceded by John Staniforth William Joseph Denison |
Member of Parliament for Hull with John Staniforth 1807–1812 |
Succeeded by John Staniforth George William Denys |
| Preceded by Thomas Thompson George Smith |
Member of Parliament for Midhurst with Thomas Thompson 1812–1816 |
Succeeded by Thomas Thompson Sir Oswald Mosley, Bt |
| Peerage of Great Britain | ||
| Preceded by Charles Stanhope |
Earl Stanhope 1816–1855 |
Succeeded by Philip Henry Stanhope |
