Tale of ‘tallest man in world’ – from Cardiff
STANDING at 8ft 4in inches tall, George Auger towered over the population of 19th-century Cardiff.
Born in 1882 to average-sized parents, by the age of 14 he had already passed 6ft in height.
As he kept sprouting upwards, his celebrity status also continued to grow – he went from from regular policeman to personal escort to Queen Victoria – before he found himself in the employ of legendary showman PT Barnum.
As a young man growing up in St Mary Street, George first began his career as a police officer in Cardiff.
Thought to be the tallest officer in the history of the force, he was known for his “soft demeanour” and charm.
From there, “George the Giant” moved on to London, where, due to his sheer size, he was promoted to his place in Queen Victoria’s personal escort squad.
It is said that it was the Queen herself who gave her escort the nickname of “Captain” to fit his stature, despite the fact he was not a ranked officer.
According to local historians, George’s big break came when the Barnum & Bailey Circus arrived in town. The circus show was the brainchild of American showman Phineas Taylor Barnum, the subject of Hugh Jackman’s blockbuster The Greatest Showman. The legend goes that when George visited the circus on its arrival to London, he arrived with his 5ft 4in wife Bertha perched on his arm. “Auger attended and when he stepped up to view the resident circus giant he found that he stood a full head taller than the professional. Auger was immediately offered employment as ‘The Cardiff Giant,’” explains Carmarthen antique fair organiser Robert Pugh. In 1903, working as part of the circus troupe, George made it to America, where he appeared as part of the Barnum & Bailey Circus at Madison Square Garden. Billed as the “Cardiff Giant – positively the tallest man on Earth”, he quickly became quite a celebrity and counted Hollywood actor Douglas Fairbanks senior among his friends. Not just content to be a circus curiosity, however, George also harboured a longing to be on the stage. In 1906 he wrote a play called Jack the Giant Killer which premiered on the Orpheum vaudeville stage and ran for nearly 10 years due to its popularity.
Two years later, the so-called world’s tallest man returned to his hometown as part of the production.
A 1908 report in the Western Mail – titled “Tallest Man In The World” and sub-headed “Giant’s Return To His Native Cardiff” – reads: “George Auger, the tallest man in the world, is appearing this week at Cardiff Empire, and interest is quickened by the fact that he is a native of the city.
“Mr Auger has spent many years in America.
“He is an actor of repute, as well as the premier giant”
Accompanied by a photograph of George, the Western Mail reporter wrote that, unlike some “giants”, Auger had not developed obesity, and that he talked with ease on a vast variety of topics, had literary attainments, had travelled much and was well-read.
Auger told the reporter: “I am 8ft 3in in height and weigh 365lb.
“It is interesting to recall that I was born in St Mary Street, Cardiff, on December 28, 1882.
“I have relatives still living in Kidwelly at Lydney (Gloucestershire). My mother’s name was Connop, and she came from Kidwelly.
“I am an author by profession. I produce plays and parts of music.”
By the 1920s, George considered himself retired but he was then approached in 1922 by silent film star Harold Lloyd and offered a role in the film Why Worry?
Tragically, the story of George the giant came to an end later that year. He was 40 years old when he was reportedly taken ill with indigestion and died in his New York apartment.
His pet dog Ringling, a small bulldog, refused to leave the room where his master’s coffin had been placed. Twelve pallbearers were required to carry the speciallymade coffin and, as George weighed 386lb, a lifting device was set up to lower it into his grave at the Holly Grove cemetery.