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Historic Royal Palaces blog

Insights and behind the scenes from our palaces

The Boy on the Staircase: Peter 'the Wild Boy' from Hanover

11 March 2024

In 1726 the arrival of a 'wild youth' in the Great Drawing Room of St James's Palace caused a London sensation. A boy in his early teens had been found in German woods 'wild, naked… and knowing nobody'. Brought to England, he was nicknamed Peter 'the wild boy'.