The Lion Christian was born on August 12, 1969 at the Ilfracombe Zoo, Devon, England.A few months later, Christian and her younger sister were sold to Harrods store in London.This place is expected to show animals for Christmas to serve customers.
Ace Bourke and John Rendall were then two tourists from Australia in London visited Harrods and stumbled upon the lion.Right from the first time they met, they were impressed with the animal, so they decided to buy money and give it the name Christian with the belief that it would become one of the most memorable lions in history and change.Human prejudice against animals is dubbed this lord of the forest.
Both live with Christian in London.They realized that this animal was especially kind, sociable and friendly.At that time, there was no lion care guide, so the two young men had to put their faith in their instincts and life experiences to raise Christian.
Christian lives in a large basement under the furniture store, sophistocat, clearing with Ace and John's workplace.Each afternoon, the two took the little lion to the garden near the home to exercise and play.
Christian lion was bought by Ace and John as young.The animal is even extremely gentle for children.
Christian played with Ace and John in the park.
Christian grew very fast and in just a few months, this animal had the size that was not suitable for the basement under the house.In addition, another obstacle in Christian is that this animal often scared customers.Ace and John began to feel the lion's future.
One day, Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna visited Sophistocat Furniture Shop to buy a few items.It is known that these are two actors in the 1964 Born Free movie, talking about the true story of the couple George and Joy Adamson trying to bring the female lion Elsa to the natural world.This film has achieved a lot of success.
Like most people, Bill and Virginia felt Christian very beautiful and attractive.They asked Ace and John to contact George Adamson to return Christian to the natural world in Kenya.
Return to Kenya
It was a fact that Ace and John never thought of.On the Christian side, this animal is about to be one year old and becomes stronger.Later, Christian left London and moved to the house of actor Bill Travers in rural areas.Here, animals living in a cage are built in the yard.George Adamson, who expressed his endless interest in the fifth -generation European lion, Christian, then tried to return the animal to the natural world, where it belonged to.He discussed with the Kenya government about finding a safe area for Christian for months to leave.In the end, they chose a land located in northeastern Kenya called Kora based on many factors including locals, tourists and hunters.
Mr. George Adamson and Christian.
The documentary film The Lion AT World's End and Christian The Lion recorded the journey to return to Africa in 1970 of Christian was made.After being present in Kenya, the first challenge for Christian was to meet the boy, the adult male lion who appeared in the movie Born Free.This animal after injury has been returned to live in the natural world.
Another challenge waiting for Christian is the hostile environment and indigenous wild lions always try to find ways to chase "foreigners" like Christian and Boy out of their territory.At this time, George Adamson realized that Christian has never lost its natural instincts but this animal is still young and inexperienced.Christian's first year in Kora was not smooth at all.
During this time, many photographers came to Kora to record Christian photos, the photos that until decades later still make people ecstatic.
The heritage of the Christian lion
George always has a lot of love for Christian and describes the mischievous, happy and courageous animal.1 year later, in 1971, Ace and John came to Kenya to see Christian again.Earlier, experts advised both not to visit animals because their lives may be threatened in case Christian no longer remembered anything about their two owners.However, Ace and John ignored all advice and decided to find Christian.
It was a special and unforgettable reunion.Immediately after seeing Ace and John, Christian rushed to hug two former owners.Although not expressing emotions, the animal's actions have said it all, it rushes to Ace and John's body, putting their heads on the loving arms of the two.On the side of Ace and John, they are extremely happy when the pet has never forgotten them.
40 years later, the clip posted on YouTube attracted tens of millions of views and appeared on big programs such as Oprah Winfrey, The View, Ellen (more than 100 million views).All have contributed to the introduction of Christian with the audience from the new generation, thereby helping people feel more interested in the natural environment, environmental issues and animal welfare.
The emotional reunion of Christian and two former owners deducted in the documentary film made by George Adamson.
It is known that Christian often leaves the place where George Adamson built it for it.Typically, the animal returned after a short time to travel but gradually, the time it was "home" was increasingly long.The last time people saw Christian in 1973 when it went towards Meru National Park.
After many years of living in a wild environment full of dangers, Christian has become big, increasingly smart and brave.This makes Ace and John believe that animals can live well for many more years.Even if luckier, Christian's descendants still exist today.
Later, George Adamson continued the mission to bring other lions back to the natural environment and monitor their lives until he died in 1989.
Christian's life is the inspiration for the George Adamson wildlife conservation fund, operating mainly in Mkomazi National Park.The director here, Tony Fitzjohn, used to be the assistant of Mr. George Adamson and worked during the time Christian was still living in Mr. George's garden in Kora.Now, Tony is considered as one of the most successful conservation projecters in Africa.He once said that everything would never happen without Christian.That lion is the origin of everything.
(Source: We Heart, Kenya Safari)