She was dressed in a plain black dress with a high muslin collar and a black turban.
She appeared to be disoriented and was speaking a language the locals didnt understand.
The woman was first found by the village cobbler and his wife.
Mrs. Worrall was fascinated by her exotic appearance though, but Mr. Worrall was more cautious.
Many were arrested and transported to Australia.
Mr. Worrall tried to communicate with the girl using signs and asked her for any papers she might have.
But the girl didnt have any.
She emptied her pockets, and out popped a few halfpennies and a fake sixpence.
Carrying counterfeit money was a serious crime and attracted the death sentence.
But the girl did not seem to understand the seriousness of these offences.
The inn where Princess Caraboo spent her first night at Almondsbury.
But nobody could understand her foreign tongue.
By now word had spread of the attractive foreign stranger and curious members of society came to visit Caraboo.
A painting of Princess Caraboo by Edward Bird.
Photo:Wikimedia
The story fascinated Mr. Worrall and his friends.
Princess Caraboo delighted guests with her strange language and eccentric manners.
Soon newspapers were full of descriptions of Princess Caraboo, and she became a national figure.
When she left the house she would wear a turban.
Princess Caraboo pampered by the ladies.
Mary started working at the young age of eight.
She spun wool and weaved, and occasionally worked on local farms.
Later she worked as maid in various houses in Exeter and London.
Many of her employers described her as odd and eccentric.
She also appeared to have given birth to a child in 1816, who died shortly after.
After staying with the gypsies for some time, she headed back through Exeter to Bristol.
Script made up by Princess Caraboo.
Mary pretended at various times to speak French and sometimes to speak Spanish.
Amazingly, the man said he understood.
That night she stayed in a lodge and created a new identity for herself.
The very next morning, she headed out towards the village of Almondsbury as the famed Princess Caraboo.
The press made her into a working-class heroine who had deceived high society and exposed upper class vanity.
Mr. Worrall was a kind-hearted man who took pity on Mary.
A blue plaque commemorating Princess Caraboo in Almondsbury.
