In the late 19th century, there lived an extremely tall man who cast a shadow on most others: Julius Koch, who lived between 1872 and 1902. Standing at a height of 8 feet 1 inch, he was one of the 29 tallest people in recorded history who were over 8 feet. Julius Koch was not the tallest living person at the time (this honor goes to John Rogan, the tallest Black person in history), but Koch was easily the tallest human being in Europe. Koch consumed five or six meals a day, including stewed fruit, apples, prunes, and milk.
The Star is Born
In the late 1800s, during a time when Europe was full of extraordinary humans and circus entertainment, there was a young giant from Switzerland named The Giant Constantin who became quite a popular figure. Julius Koch was believed to be a native of Mauensee, in the canton of Lucerne.
Koch first arrived in Lille, France, in 1897, before he became famous in Paris. He was only 19 years old but already weighed about 330 pounds (150 kg). Koch was still growing rapidly at the age of 19.
Like most other tallest people in history, he suffered from gigantism, the result of a tumor in the pituitary gland and the subsequent overproduction of growth hormone.
On a special day in January 1899, Julius Koch appeared at the Folies Bergère in Paris. In the same year, he was seen at the London Pavilion for another freak show. He was a well-proportioned young giant, and his presence excited the audience (and also frightened some).
People were simply amazed when this 8-foot-1-inch-tall man walked the stage since he was nothing like anything they had seen before. His feet were extremely large, over 17 inches long (44 cm), big enough to keep him balanced. His hands were around 15 inches in length, and his femurs were 30 inches, the longest ever measured in a human.
The Making of a Giant
What made Koch even more special was that his family members were all of normal height. Neither of his parents nor his only brother were beyond his normal stature.
When Julius Koch was 13, he was already over 6 feet in height, and at the age of 14, he was around 6 feet 4 inches. As Koch grew up, he supposedly added five inches to his height every year. He was athletic and well-formed. He ate too much food, mostly milk and beef tea, to help him grow.
Koch reportedly ate around 12 to 14 pounds of meat every single day (5.5 to 6.5 kg). At lunch, he consumed about one and one-half pounds of roast meat and a couple of pints of beer. The Giant Constantin had a chest size of 53 inches.
Julius Koch’s Life Was Challenging
But despite his height, his knees were not strong, and he had trouble walking. Koch also bent down to go through almost every door. Julius Koch had a tough time with stairs as well due to his weak knees.
Every time after his performance, two people had to help him just put on his coat. For this task, the men employed ladders to level themselves with the giant. Even his bed, which he always traveled with around Europe, needed eight people to carry around.
At one point, his legs were seriously harmed from a number of falls, and gangrene forced their amputation.
Other Tall People Around the Time of Julius Koch
There were other tall people around during that time, too. The tallest man in the British army was Private H. Barter, at 6 feet 8 inches. He was only 18 years old and still growing. He was even taller than Major Oswald Ames, who used to be the tallest in the army.
But both of them were much shorter than Ivan Stepanovich Loushkin, a Russian giant who stood at 8 feet 5 inches (256 cm). Loushkin was a soldier in the Russian Guards and got three medals.
Besides Julius Koch, there were other giant men and women around. Miss Mariedl (Maria Fassnauer), a giant lady from Tyrol, was 7 feet 0.5 inches tall. She got a marriage proposal from Mr. Barral, a tall Australian farmer’s son who stood around a similar height. His father, one of the tallest men in Australia, allegedly stood 8 feet 3 inches in his socks.
Lewis Wilkins, the Oklahoma Giant, allegedly stood at 8 feet 2 inches, had a 66-inch chest, and weighed 365 lb. Chang the Chinese Giant, or Zhan Shichai, stood over 8 feet tall and also weighed 365 lb (165 kg).
But among all these tall people, Julius Koch was the tallest in terms of how well-documented he is.
The Legacy of Julius Koch
Koch passed away on March 30, 1902, in Mons, Belgium. The Mons Museum of Natural History has his skeleton on display. The Giant Constantin, a short film he starred in, premiered in 1902. He was known as Le Géant Constantin in France.
References
- The causes and consequences of pituitary gigantism – PubMed (nih.gov)
- Constantin – IMDb
