The Heartwarming Story Of Christian The Lion
The story of Christian, the lion, is one of the most surprising about the deep love that can arise between man and other animals. It is a true story, which is documented through various means and which raises some unresolved questions.
It all started in London in 1969. A couple of young Australians named John Rendall and Anthony “Ace” Bourke went shopping at Harrods department store. To their surprise , they found that a lion cub was for sale. He was just a baby and the owner wanted to get rid of him because he had spoiled his merchandise the night before.
The boys bought the lion and brought it to their own home. Together with a couple of friends, they began to raise him and noticed that he was very sociable and friendly. When the little cub was one year old, it was no longer possible to have him in the house. They then decided to take him to a furniture store that they themselves managed and which was curiously called “Sophistocat” (something like “meeting the cat”).
The sad goodbye of Christian, the lion
Neither Rendall nor Bourke ever imagined that their little friend would grow up at such a rapid rate. In a short time it was impossible to keep it in the furniture store. It no longer fit anywhere and unintentionally caused a lot of damage everywhere. So they went to a friend priest and asked him to let him stay in the parish cemetery. The priest agreed.
Christian the lion continued to grow. He was already an adult and he ate in an outrageous way. Maintaining his diet cost his human friends a fortune. They began to understand that it would soon be impossible to allow her to live in London. After all, it was a beast. What if it got dangerous? He was always very friendly, but you never knew …
Two movie stars visited Christian and suggested to the owners that they put him in the hands of George Adamson, a famous Kenyan conservationist. He would take care of taking it to its natural habitat and allowing it to live like a real lion. The boys agreed, not without feeling great sadness. It was the best for everyone.
Christian returns to the jungle
The young men agreed to take Christian to the Kora National Park in Kenya. It was the ideal place for a new life to begin. His conservationist friend reunited him with another older male lion, whom everyone called “Boy.” He also united them with a female, to form a new herd. Little by little the animals were moving away from the humans, until one day they did not return anymore.
A year after this, Rendall and Bourke took the initiative to go visit their friend Christian. It was a bit far-fetched. He had already returned to his habitat and was now acting like an ordinary lion. Anyway, the guys wanted to at least see him, know he was okay. The conservationist alerted them. They had to be very careful. Christian could attack them.
The young men went to the surroundings of Kora and waited a while. They then started calling Christian, but he didn’t show up anytime soon. At last a lion was seen peering out cautiously from the rocks. The boys kept calling him. Quickly, the lion reacted and went out to meet his old friends. Against all odds, he remembered them perfectly. He lunged at them, hugged them, and licked their faces. All this was recorded on video.
A story without answers
A year later something even more extraordinary happened. After the last meeting, Christian went back into the jungle. They were able to verify that he had become king of a pride of lions. From one moment to another, it disappeared. Nothing was heard from him again in more than nine months. His human friends wanted to visit him again, if at all.
Without knowing how or why, a day before the boys arrived, Christian returned to haunt the places around Kora. The next day the same scene from the first meeting was repeated. The lion looked at them warily at first and then pounced on them, as if it were the same cub they had raised. The only difference is that it had already doubled in size, after the last time they had seen it.
The story of Christian and his human friends was made into a documentary containing real footage. A novel was also written based on his story and countless articles in various newspapers and magazines around the world. There are still no definitive explanations for this endearing and wonderful relationship between a “beast” and a couple of boys who decided to offer her their affection and, more importantly, a future understanding her needs.
