There are people on Earth who have spent a huge amount of time in complete isolation from the world and from other people. It was either their own choice, or the imprisonment took place under duress. Whether it's a prisoner, a mystical hermit, or an eccentric recluse, their fates are sometimes tragic, but always compelling.
10. John Bigg
In 1649, towards the end of the English Civil War, the Puritan troops of Oliver Cromwell ("Round Heads") took control of the English Parliament and rushed to bring the reigning monarch Charles I to justice for high treason.
Simon Mayne, an English judge and MP at the time, became one of the state prosecutors in Charles's trial. Maine's subordinate, John Bigg, is rumored to be one of the hooded executioners who beheaded the king.
The quick trial and subsequent execution of Charles drew widespread disapproval. "Round-headed" Oliver Cromwell had to get rid of half of the parliamentarians throughout England in order to somehow take control of the situation.
Nevertheless, the situation remained extremely tense. For example, Thomas Hoyle, a participant in the massacre of the monarch, who managed to retain his seat in parliament, committed suicide on the first anniversary of Charles' death. The Royalists later said that he was constantly haunted by a headless ghost.
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Another member of the trial, Rowland Wilson, was said to have died of melancholy and overwhelming guilt that same year. John Bigg put himself in the hands of metaphorical death shortly after the execution of Karl. When the monarchy was restored in 1660, Maine was tried, convicted of regicide, and died in the Tower of London.
Perhaps out of fear or guilt, Bigg settled in an underground cave in Maine's house, and lived there all alone until the end of his days. He was last seen in an early 18th century photo, very similar to the Ewok (overgrown with hair) Star Wars character. That is, a person has isolated himself from the world for more than 40 years.
Despite his last name and oversized shoe size, John was not a giant. Whenever there was a hole in his clothes, he simply sewed a leather patch over it. Thus, its appearance was very peculiar and cumbersome.
9. Dorothy Paget
The eccentric racehorse owner Dorothy Page was an accomplished horse rider in her youth, but over the years she became obese. Having reached a weight of 127 kg and smoked about 100 cigarettes a day, Paige ended up looking twice her age.
She lost a bit of weight after several of the male equestrian sports fans who remained in her circle said that other members of the stronger sex were turned off by her. It is clear that there was no close man next to her.
Even when her trotter, Golden Miller, won the competition, people joked that he was most likely the only man she had kissed in her life. Although Paige looks bossy, intimidating and rude, Dorothy suffers from excessive shyness. At the racetrack, she isolates herself from society with a huge number of female assistants, and constantly puts on a blue tweed coat and beret.
Sometimes she locks herself in the closet, waiting for the crowd to disperse, and when traveling by train, she often rents an entire carriage to keep her personal space from invasion.
Dorothy communicates with her employees through notes, and solves all emerging issues using a specially developed color code system, while not addressing anyone by name. In addition to horses, apparently, only one other living creature felt the fullness of Paige's affection - this is Olga de Munn, the niece of Princess Meshcherskaya.
Meshchersky, a Russian immigrant, ran one of the Parisian schools where spoiled and rebellious Paige was forced to complete her formal education after she was kicked out of six other schools.
By age 54, Paige had become a complete hermit, living in her home at Chalfont Saint Giles. She isolated herself completely from the outside world, “swimming” only in the yellowed pages of the “Sporting Life” newspaper, and placing bets exclusively on the phone. She was so isolated from society that the bookmakers allowed her to place bets even after the races were over, because they were sure that, due to her seclusion, Paige would never find out about the deception.
Dorothy worked at night and slept during the day. Early one morning in February 1960, someone of the "colored" staff found her corpse, lying on the race schedule. The woman was 55 years old. Then a huge number of sour articles appeared in the newspapers with an overview of her lifestyle, which prompted Olga de Mann to make a public statement in defense of her unhappy girlfriend.
8. Kevin Tust
Kevin Tust is a lone hunter, but not in the usual sense of the word. He spent decades alone, kneeling for months on the west coast of New Zealand. And all in order to photograph the Canadian moose.
The first attempt to "populate" New Zealand with moose took place in 1900. Then there were only four of them, 10 individuals died during a harsh sea voyage from Canada. By the time they arrived at the site, the animals were described as tame, domesticated ponies. During that epic journey, they also became addicted to cookies. One of them lived for many years near the place where they were disembarked, probably in the hope of finding cookies.
The next shipment of moose "arrived" in Fjordland in 1910. There were 10 individuals in total: four males and six females. This “implant” attempt was more successful, despite the fact that one of the females injured the humerus on the day of arrival, and the other was killed a week later. Free from "liver" dependence, these moose quickly adapted to new conditions. Their descendants were rarely seen, but were seen until 1953.
As time went on, it was believed that the Canadian elk had long since become extinct due to competition for food with the increasing size of the red deer population. However, biologist Tast found evidence that several moose survived. Now he lives all alone in the wilds of the Fjordland to capture live moose on film.
His many months of solitary stays and field studies have yielded some results. DNA analysis of the wool of various animals he found in the Fjordland confirmed that their origin is associated with the Canadian elk. The search for Tast continues.
7. Blanche Monnier
She spent 25 years of her life locked in a completely dark room, always half-starved and naked. All this time, Monier lay on a mattress covered with lice in her own excrement. Her only friends were the rats with whom the woman shared her piece of bread. By the time she "got closer" to the rats, she was already very old and began to slowly go crazy. What was her crime?
Blanche fell in love with a man who belonged to a family below her family in social status. It is fair to say that Monier was the victim of a terrible injustice, and that love does not always win.
After an anonymous tip-off, the woman was discovered by the French police and released in 1901. Initially, it was believed that she would not make it out, and although she later physically bounced back more or less, her sanity was never restored. Meanwhile, the world was shocked to learn that the woman who later became known as the "sequestered Poitiers" was locked up by her own family after she refused to renounce her love for an unsuccessful local lawyer.
Blanche Monnier was an attractive, energetic brunette who several of the city's wealthy men wanted to marry. But much to the dismay of her upper-class family, she gave her heart to an ordinary lawyer.
The Monier family, believing that their reputation would end if the union of their daughter and a lawyer was approved, decided not to let the marriage take place, restricting the young girl. The idea of imprisoning her brother was an official, but the idea itself belonged to the mother, who hoped that the girl would soon change her mind. But Blanche never changed her mind.
Her beloved lawyer died 16 years before Blanche was saved. When the details of the shocking crime surfaced, the woman's mother was imprisoned, where she soon died of heart failure, realizing the true horror of her crime.
6. 5th Duke of Portland
The true scale of the mystery of this person's solitude is difficult to imagine. Returning to the Victorian era, it is worth noting that the Duke, it was stated, remained locked up on the territory of his private estate, Welbeck Abbey, was the real Jekyll and Hyde (a tale of a multiple personality by Scottish writer Robert Stevenson).
An extensive network of underground passages and chambers was built under his mansions, perhaps designed to help him lead a double life.
The story of this man's life could well serve as the basis for writing a Victorian novel. Some experts even suggested that this man became the inspiration for the unfinished novel by Charles Dickens, The Mystery of Edwin Drood.
A widow named Anna Maria Druce has insisted for decades that her father-in-law, Thomas Charles Druce, the owner of a Baker Street textile shop, was none other than the Duke of Portland. …
Although Thomas Drews died 15 years before the Duke's death, Anna claimed that the funeral was a hoax. She asked for the body to be exhumed, and she was sure that the coffin was either empty or full of lead. Thomas Drews, on her assurances, faked his own death in order to "surrender" himself entirely to the duke. Anna never gave up on her seemingly outrageous history, especially when it came to the legacy of the Portland estates.
In 1903, Anna was assigned to a special institution, after diagnosing the woman with some mental disorders. After that, other members of her family continued to insist on Anna's theory, although the evidence they provided turned out to be false. Therefore, several of the main witnesses in the case received harsh penalties for perjury. When, nevertheless, Thomas Drews's coffin was opened in 1907, and the body was found there, the case was dropped due to "unfounded claims."
However, Anna Maria's version may very well be true. Consider the evidence that the witnesses spoke of.
The Duke gave his orders mainly through notes. During travels, the curtains on the windows would always be drawn, and he moved in a separate train car, which, presumably (!) Was in, because no one knew for sure.
Many years later, workers found a tunnel that linked his London home to Baker Street. Due to the duke's isolation, no one knew exactly when he was in his room. They left him food, but no one saw when he ate it or if he ate at all. Even when he was ill, the duke communicated with the attending physician through the door, who spoke about a possible diagnosis based on the symptoms that the duke voiced.
In addition, the windows of his office on Baker Street were always covered with red velvet curtains, and employees were told not to bother the boss when the curtains were closed. When the duke's whereabouts were known, Drews would mysteriously disappear from sight and vice versa. After Druce's funeral, the Duke began to reside permanently in his abbey.
5. John Slater
John Slater, a former Royal Marine Special Forces soldier, was a famous English eccentric personality with a penchant for long, very long and lonely walks along the coastlines. After being discharged from military service because “the time had come when I lost interest in learning how to kill people using my hands,” Slater embarked on a self-discovery mission, spending months on the streets of London among the homeless.
After that, he began to be thrown from side to side, he changed many jobs and ruined relationships with relatives and friends. At one point, he volunteered to be a human exhibit at the London Zoo for six months to raise money for the giant pandas. His offer was rejected.
Later, he went barefoot to set the world record, intending to walk the entire coastline of his country. He ended his "walk" dressed in brightly striped pajamas, while his collie escort carried suede booties.
To raise money for charity, he also walked the entire coastline of Scotland in just four months. He later built a working car out of broken old racing cars, broken washing machines, ironing boards and Coca-Cola bottles.
Eventually, he grew a long beard and lived in a remote oceanfront cave on the west coast of Scotland. For the past ten years, at least four months a year, he has spent in this cave. Twice a day he was forced to pack up his things and carry them to the back of the cave due to the tides. At night, the cave was filled with rats, which crawled on it and interfered with sleep. Unsurprisingly, his wife refused to accept this lifestyle and they divorced.
As crazy as it may seem, Slater completely settled in his cave. “It's as quiet here as in a cathedral. She helps me think. I am addicted to the harmony of tranquility. Only here you can hear the breath of the planet, which creates incredible energy in your heart,”he once told The Herald newspaper.
Slater also talked about his dream of one day telling the world about his mystical ideas and deep wisdom, which was born in him in a cave.
4. Mary Molesworth
After her debut at the Dublin Theater, Mary's talent and beauty was admired throughout Ireland. Unfortunately, the publicity of this story caught the attention of Colonel Rochfort, a man known for his bad temper.
Mary did not want to marry him, but her father insisted. The colonel was a very wealthy man and could offer Mary land and title. So, against her will, Mary Molsworth became Lady Belevedere in 1736, giving birth to several children.
Forgotten and alone, she began spending time with the Earl's brother Arthur and his wife Sarah. A few months later, the count received a letter stating that his wife was cheating on him with his brother during his absences. Belevedere was furious and threatened to shoot Arthur on the spot, which forced him to flee the country. Meanwhile, he imprisoned Mary in his estate in Gaulstown. She was kept under vigilant protection, while she managed to escape only once.
The poor woman ran to Dublin to seek protection from her father, but he refused to help her and immediately gave her to her husband's guards when the latter came to look for her.
Mary spent 16 years in captivity. People, apparently, completely forgot about her, remembering only when Arthur returned to his homeland. He appeared before the court, which found him guilty and ordered him to pay a huge fine - compensation. But Arthur did not have such a sum, so he ended up in prison. After that, Mary was held captive for another 16 years. After the death of the count in 1774, her own son released her.
After her release, they wrote about her: “Who would have believed that she was a woman whose beauty we have heard so much about. She is weak and tortured. There can be no question of any beauty! Her hair is white as snow, in her eyes there is a wild extinguished shine, it's scary to look in them, she speaks in a trembling voice that almost turns into a whisper, and her clothes were fashionable 30 years ago!"
Even on her deathbed, Mary continued to speak of her innocence, as did Arthur Rochfort, who died in his prison cell. Their tragic story became one of the greatest scandals in 18th century Ireland.
3. Christopher Knight
Christopher's classmates spoke of him as a quiet, intelligent and slightly inhibited person. After graduating from high school in 1984, Christopher showed little interest in computers and then went into the Maine woods. Over the next 27 years, he was reportedly seen only once. A random tourist bumped into him, they greeted him, and he walked on.
Local residents realized that someone was hiding in the forest belt, because their houses were regularly robbed. Knight has completed hundreds of break-ins over several decades. He stole sleeping bags, clothes, propane cans, radio batteries, and a huge amount of food and alcohol.
At the time of his arrest, Knight claimed that the glasses were his only property, however, representatives of the law later found his haven and everything else was stolen. While clearing his camp, two pickup trucks were packed with things. Knight spent time in the woods playing the Nintendo Gameboy, meditating on an overturned bucket, watching TV, building fires in winter, reading stolen books and magazines, and getting drunk and listening to the radio.
His arrest caused a storm of emotions in the media. Overnight, he became almost a legend: people wrote poems about him, offered to pay bail and even wanted to marry him. Knight declined to be interviewed and turned down all offers of help. His lawyer transferred the donated funds to a fund to compensate people who suffered from his thieves' activities.
Knight spent several months in prison, then he was recognized as an alcoholic and sent to participate in a special three-year program designed to help a person adapt to society.
He had to attend weekly psychological counseling and register with representatives of the law. Nevertheless, no mental abnormalities were found in the person, he was just comfortable alone.
2. William Beckford
Beckford was the only legitimate son of an incredibly wealthy sugar tycoon. After receiving the inheritance in 1770, Lord Byron named him "the richest son of England". Byron, as well as some other influential writers of that time, did not speak of him otherwise than a genius.
So why did a man with such talent and such money end up becoming an outcast and living alone in a tower? And how did he manage to squander his entire fortune?
Beckford was an archetypal romantic who spent limitless amounts of money on his fantasies. He never stopped collecting rare books, furniture and art.
At first glance, one might think that it is unlikely that his addiction has somehow influenced the stable annual income from plantations in the West Indies. But with the abolition of the slave trade, the situation in the sugar industry began to change and profits dropped significantly. On top of that, Beckford wasted money on the architectural design of his abbey at Fonthill.
Fonthill was an amazing Neo-Gothic work. It took years to complete it, but since Beckford was primarily concerned with its aesthetic beauty rather than the practical realities of the physical world, the abbey collapsed two years after Beckford sold it in 1823.
Completely distraught at the loss of his monumental pride, Beckford moved to Bath, where he became obsessed with building huge towers. He began to lead a reclusive life in his famous Lansdowne Tower, which is an unusual work in the neoclassical style with a height of 37 meters, which stands to this day.
He also left behind one of the greatest underestimated treasures of Gothic literature - his very characteristic creative novel, The Arabian Tale. It is freely available on the Internet.
1. "Terrible" Tommy Silverstein (Tommy Silverstein)
Tommy Silverstein was one of the most violent criminals in American history. Imprisoned in 1977 for armed robbery, his sentence was changed to "life without pardon" after he killed two inmates.
He was called a "no human contact" person after he killed a guard at Marion Prison. Some human rights activists argue that his verdict is contrary to the American constitution, which officially outlaws severe punishment.
Silverstein spent several months in solitary confinement at Atlanta Prison before being transferred and locked up in solitary confinement at Leavenworth Prison, where he spent 18 years. Finally, his final destination was Supermax Prison in Colorado.
The former governor of this prison spoke of this man as a "pure version of hell." Now Silverstein is literally buried in his cell behind a soundproof door for 23 hours a day. He eats alone and gets only one hour of solitary rest inside a slightly larger cell. Some say this hellish environment is deliberately created to drive prisoners crazy and make them more accommodating.
The harmful psychological effects of solitary confinement are documented. Silverstein claimed that he experienced depression, hallucinations, disorientation, and memory loss. He also said that he went beyond what most people can psychologically accept. Silverstein has been living in solitary confinement for over 30 years. While this is a record for US federal penitentiaries, surprisingly, some inmates have been stuck in solitary confinement in Louisiana prisons for even longer.
For example, Herman Wallace spent 41 years in such a cell and died three days after his release at the age of 71.