The Horrifying Eating Habits of Tarrare: The Man with an Insatiable Appetite
Have you ever heard of Tarrare? If not, you’re in for a wild, and somewhat stomach-turning, ride. Tarrare was an 18th-century French showman, soldier, and spy who is most famously known for his absolutely bizarre and often revolting eating habits.
This guy could (and did) eat just about anything – and I mean anything.
Who Was Tarrare?
Born around 1772, Tarrare’s real name remains a mystery, as does much about his early life.
By the time he was a teenager, he could eat a quarter of a cow’s worth of beef in one day. His family, unable to keep up with his monstrous appetite, eventually kicked him out. He wandered through France, performing as a freak show act, demonstrating his extraordinary capacity for food by devouring anything and everything in front of astonished (and often horrified) audiences.
Eating Habits That Will Make Your Stomach Turn
Let’s dive into some of the more repugnant details of what Tarrare was known to eat. Brace yourself – it’s not pretty.
1. Endless Consumption of Raw Meat: Tarrare’s diet primarily consisted of massive quantities of raw meat. He would devour anything from live animals to butcher scraps, seemingly without preference. Cats, dogs, and other small animals were not safe around him. He’d gulp them down whole, often still alive.
- Live Cats and Dogs: Tarrare didn’t stop at consuming traditional meats. He would eat live cats and dogs, tearing into their flesh with an unsettling fervour. He would begin by biting into their stomachs, quickly killing them before devouring the rest of their bodies. He would leave the bones and vomit up the fur later.
- Snakes and Lizards: Reptiles were also on Tarrare’s menu. He was known to swallow snakes and lizards whole, demonstrating an almost reptilian ability to consume prey that would terrify most people.
2. Non-Edible Objects: Believe it or not, Tarrare’s hunger didn’t stop at food. He was known to swallow corks, flints, stones, and even live eels. The live eel consumption is particularly nightmarish – he would swallow them whole, without chewing.
- Live Eels: One of the most horrifying spectacles was Tarrare’s ability to consume live eels. He would reportedly swallow these slippery creatures whole, allowing them to wriggle down his throat and into his stomach.
- Stones and Corks: Tarrare’s digestive prowess extended to non-food items. He swallowed stones, corks, and other inedible objects, seemingly without any immediate adverse effects, though the long-term impact on his health was undoubtedly severe.
3. Offal and Putrid Matter: His voracious appetite extended to the most disgusting of substances. He would raid hospital waste bins for discarded entrails and organs, and had no qualms about eating putrid, decaying meat. In fact, he seemed to prefer it.
- Rubbish and Offal: Tarrare frequently scavenged for food in rubbish heaps, eagerly consuming offal and other discarded animal parts. This included intestines, lungs, and other internal organs, often in an advanced state of decay.
- Human Blood and Corpses: During his time in a hospital, Tarrare’s eating habits took an even darker turn. He was caught attempting to drink the blood of patients undergoing treatment and was suspected of consuming human corpses. At one point a 14-month-old child disappeared from the hospital and Tarrare was immediately suspected of having consumed the toddler. Although the child’s fate at Tarrare’s hands was not proven beyond doubt, he was chased from the hospital never to return.
Tarrare’s Unsettling Appearance
Tarrare’s appearance was as unusual and unsettling as his eating habits. He was of average height and build, but his body bore signs of his abnormal consumption. His skin was loose and saggy, especially around his abdomen, which would balloon grotesquely after he consumed large quantities of food. When not engorged, his stomach would shrink dramatically, leaving folds of flabby skin hanging from his midsection, it was reported this flabby skin could be wrapped around his waist.
His mouth was particularly notable. He had an abnormally wide jaw, capable of stretching 4 inches apart to accommodate the incredible amounts of food he would cram into it. His teeth were stained and worn from gnawing on raw and often inedible objects. Tarrare’s lips were thin and nearly invisible, stretched tightly across his ever-hungry maw.
His breath, unsurprisingly, was foul, a constant reminder of the putrid things he consumed. His body emitted a strange, almost putrescent odour that no amount of washing could eliminate, likely a result of the decaying matter he regularly ingested. His eyes and cheeks were sunken, giving him a perpetually gaunt and haunted look, which added to the overall unsettling impression he left on those who encountered him.
Tarrare in the Military
You might be wondering, how did someone like Tarrare end up in the military? During the War of the First Coalition, Tarrare joined the French Revolutionary Army. However, the military rations were nowhere near enough to satiate him, leading him to consume anything he could find – from the mess hall’s leftovers to rubbish and animal dung.
Seeing potential in his peculiar abilities, military leaders decided to use him as a courier. The idea was simple: have him swallow documents, smuggle them across enemy lines, and then retrieve them from his excrement. Unfortunately, his first mission was a disaster, leading to his capture and subsequent torture by the Prussians. Eventually, he was released, but the incident highlighted just how desperate and bizarre military strategies could get.
The Tragic End
Despite seeking help from numerous doctors, Tarrare’s condition never improved. He was subject to various medical examinations, with doctors trying to understand his insatiable hunger. They found his stomach was unusually large and stretched, but couldn’t diagnose the underlying cause of his condition.
Tarrare’s life ended at the young age of 26, likely due to tuberculosis. His autopsy revealed a body that had suffered greatly from his eating habits: an enormous, ulcerated stomach filled much of his abdominal cavity.
Conclusion
Tarrare’s story is one of the most bizarre and grotesque tales in medical history. His insatiable appetite and the lengths he went to satisfy it remain a mystery to this day. Whether he was a medical anomaly or simply the victim of an undiagnosed condition, his legacy as the man who could eat anything continues to fascinate and repulse people centuries later.
Next time you’re tempted to binge eat, just remember Tarrare – and maybe reach for a salad instead.
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