Kaspar Hauser’s alleged noble origin – New molecular genetic analyses resolve the controversy
Walther Parson,
Christina Amory,
Turi King,
Michaela Preick,
Cordula Berger,
Anna König,
Gabriela Huber,
Katja Anslinger,
Birgit Bayer,
Gottfried Weichhold,
Timo Sänger,
Sabine Lutz-Bonengel,
Heidi Pfeiffer,
Michael Hofreiter,
Dietmar Pfründer,
Carsten Hohoff,
Bernd Brinkmann
Affiliations
Walther Parson
Institute of Legal Medicine, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria; Forensic Science Program, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA; Corresponding author
Christina Amory
Institute of Legal Medicine, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
Turi King
Department of Life Sciences, Milner Centre for Evolution, University of Bath, Bath, UK; Department of Genetics, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK; School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
Michaela Preick
Evolutionary Adaptive Genomics, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
Cordula Berger
Institute of Legal Medicine, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
Anna König
Institute of Legal Medicine, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
Gabriela Huber
Institute of Legal Medicine, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
Katja Anslinger
Institute of Legal Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
Birgit Bayer
Institute of Legal Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
Gottfried Weichhold
Thermo Fisher Scientific, Munich, Germany
Timo Sänger
Institute of Forensic Medicine, Medical Center, University of Freiburg and Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
Sabine Lutz-Bonengel
Institute of Forensic Medicine, Medical Center, University of Freiburg and Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
Heidi Pfeiffer
Institute of Legal Medicine, University Hospital Münster, Münster, Germany
Michael Hofreiter
Evolutionary Adaptive Genomics, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
Dietmar Pfründer
Private Scholar, Gaiberg, Germany
Carsten Hohoff
Institute of Legal Medicine, University Hospital Münster, Münster, Germany; Privatinstitut für Forensische Molekulargenetik GmbH, Emsdetten, Germany; Institut für forensische Genetik, Münster, Germany
Bernd Brinkmann
Institute of Legal Medicine, University Hospital Münster, Münster, Germany; Institut für forensische Genetik, Münster, Germany
Summary: Kaspar Hauser’s parentage has been the subject of research and debate for nearly 200 years. As for his possible aristocratic descent through the House of Baden, there is suspicion that he was swapped as a baby, kidnapped, and kept in isolation to bring a collateral lineage to the throne. In the last 28 years, various genetic analyses have been carried out to investigate this possible aristocratic origin. Previous results using less sensitive Sanger and electrophoresis-based methods were contradictory, and moreover, the authenticity of some samples was disputed, thus leaving the question open. Our analyses using modern capture- and whole genome-based massively parallel sequencing techniques reveal that the mitochondrial DNA haplotypes in different samples attributed to Kaspar Hauser were identical, demonstrating authenticity for the first time, and clearly different from the mitochondrial lineage of the House of Baden, which rules out a maternal relationship and thus the widely believed “Prince theory”.
