The keeping African Grey Parrots as pets is noted throughout history, probably back to biblical times. One early author of the latter part of the 1800's, Dr. W. T. Greene, wrote several volumes on bird species including "The Grey Parrot and How to Treat It", 1885. He believed this parrot was actually known to the ancient Hebrews some 4000 years ago. In early days the Grey Parrot was frequently called "Jaco" relating to the sound of their natural cry, possibly originating with Portuguese seafarers who kept their company on long sea voyages.
There are a number of literary citations and other examples of early keepings of this parrot as a pet. The wealthy nobility of Europe valued this pet for its attractiveness and speaking ability. In the early 1500's it is said that King Henry VII of England had an African Grey Parrot at Hampton Court.
A well-known manuscript by the German naturalist, Johann Matthäus Bechstein, in his classic treatise on cage birds written in 1774, describes an African Grey owned by Cardinal Ascanius. This pet parrot could recite the Apostles' Creed in an articulate and uninterrupted manner. The oldest surviving example of bird taxidermy is an African Grey Parrot that can be seen in the Westminster Abbey in London. It was the pet parrot of Frances Teresa Stuart, Duchess of Lennox, and it died in 1702, shortly after its mistress.