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Secrets of the Royals

Table of Contents
Secrets Of The Royals
Mad Monarchs
Kinky Kings of Spain
Juana the Mad of Castile (1479-1555)
the Queen who caressed her husband's remains.
Don Carlos of Spain (1545-1568) the Crown Prince who liked to beat
up girls.
Carlos II "The Bewitched" of Spain (1661-1700) the degenerated
monstrosity on the throne.
Philip V "El Rey Animoso" of Spain (1683-1746) the King torn
between desire and guilt.
Ferdinand VI of Spain (1713-1759) the King who brought peace to his
people but not to his mind.
Melancholic Majesties of Portugal
Isabel of Portugal (1428-1496) the Queen who introduced madness into
the Spanish Royal Family.
Afonso VI "The Glutton" of Portugal (1643-1683) a grinning moron on
the throne.
Barbara of Portugal (1711-1758), the Spanish Queen who was afraid to
die in poverty.
See: Ferdinand VI of Spain.
Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816) the Queen who thought she was
already in hell.
Silly Sovereigns of France
Charles VI "The Mad" of France (1368-1422) the kindly King who
turned into a murdering madman.
Charles IX "The Snotty King" of France (1550-1574) the murderous
mother's boy.
Anna de Coligny (1624-1680) the mad Dutchess with her mad
daughters. Latest addition!
"Princess Chubby" Marie Louise of Orlans (1695-1719) the notorious
Duchess of Berry.

Raving Royals of Great Britain

Robert III Stuart of Scotland (1337-1406) the King who left his son on
a tiny, rocky island.
Henry VI "The Mad" of England (1421-1461) the nave fool.
James I & VI of England and Scotland (1566-1625) the wisest fool.
Updated!
"Mad King" George III of Great-Britain (1738-1820), the King in the
strait-jacket.
Vicious Vikings of Scandinavia
Eric XIV Wasa of Sweden (1533-1577) the paranoid King poisoned
with pea soup.
Christian VII of Denmark (1749-1808) the King who let his doctor care
for both his country and his Queen.
Peculiar Princes and Princesses of The Low Countries
Anna Charlotte Amalie of Orange-Nassau (1710-1777) the confused
Countess of Baden-Durlach.
Alexander of the Netherlands (1851-1884) the Crown Prince, mother's
darling and recluse.
Charlotte of Belgium (1840-1927) the Empress of Mexico with a
handkerchief in front of her face.
Foolish Frsts of Germany
Anna of Saxony (1544-1577) the moody Princess of Orange-Nassau.
Maria Eleonore of Brandenburg (1599-1655) the Swedish Queen who
clung to her husband's remains.
John George IV of Saxony (1668-1694) the hot-tempered, love-sick
Elector.
Frederick William I of Prussia (1688-1740) the eccentric King who
collected tall soldiers.
Ludwig II "The Swan King" of Bavaria (1845-1886) the recluse who
built fairy-tale castles.
Part I: Ludwig's Youth.
Erratic Emperors of Austria
Rudolf II of Austria (1552-1612) the enlightened Emperor with dark
moods.
Ferdinand of Austria (1793-1875) the Emperor who wanted noodles.

Crazy Caesars of Rome

Gaius "Caligula" of Rome (12-31) the schizophrenic Emperor with the
bad temper.
Nero of Rome (37-68) the Emperor with the mother-complex.
Domitian of Rome (51-96) the Emperor who tortured flies.
Elagabalus "The Sun-God" of Rome (204-222) the narcissistic High
Priest of Baal.
Deranged Dukes of Italy
Pope Urban VI (1318-1389) the Pope who murdered his own
cardinals.
Filippo Maria Visconti of Milan (1392-1447) a cowardly and
suspicious Duke.
Gian Gastone de' Medici of Tuscany (1671-1737) the Grand Duke who
refused to leave his bed.
Isabella of Parma (1741-1763) a lovely Princess preoccupied with
death.
Terrible Tsars of Russia
Ivan IV "The Terrible" of Russia (1530-1584) Tsar, rapist and mass
murderer.
Fyodor I "The Bellringer" of Russia (1557-1598) the feeble-minded
Tsar fond of church bells.
Ivan V "The Ignorant" of Russia (1666-1696) the simple-minded Tsar,
ruled by his sister and his wife.
Ivan VI Antonovich of Russia (1740-1764) the baby Tsar who became
a vegetable.
Villain Voivodes of the Balkans
Vlad III the Impaler of Walachia (1431-1476) the Prince who impaled
thousands of people.
Erzsbet of Transylvania (1561-1614) the Countess who bit her
servants.
Sadistic Sultans of Turkey
"Mad" Mustafa I of Turkey (1591-1639) the Sultan fetched from the
Cage.
Murad IV of Turkey (1612-1640) the Sultan who hated women.

"Mad" Ibrahim I of Turkey (1616-1648) the Sultan who drowned his

entire harem.
Rakish Rulers of the Middle East
Safi I of Persia (1610-1642) the murderous Shah addicted to alcohol
and opium.
Nadir Shah Afshar of Persia (1688-1747) the Shah who took the Koh-i
Noor diamond.
Farouk of Egypt (1920-1965) playboy, glutton, kleptomaniac and King.
Appalling Autocrats of Asia
Sado "The Rice-Box Prince" of Korea (1735-1762) the Crown Prince
with the clothes obsession.
Lunatic Leaders in Antiquity
Nabonidus of Babylon (+539 BC) the King who ate grass and imagined
he was a goat.
Top 10 Mad Kings and Queens
10 (Allegedly) Mad Monarchs
The 5 Most Hilariously Insane Rulers of All Time
10 Monarchs Whose Madness Changed History
25 mad kings
Were there any homosexual kings, queens or emperors in history?

Secrets Of The Royals

by Gordon Winter and Wendy Kochman
St Martin's Press, New York 1990, ISBN 0-312-04415-1

Chapter 14 - Sexy Modern Royals

When Queen Victoria died senile in 1901, her elder son Albert Edward
came to the throne as KING EDWARD THE SEVENTH. Although he
was a fair old monarch who gave his name to what became famous as
the "Edwardian" age, Edward was a sexual cowboy who spent his whole
life chasing skirt in order to get as many notches on the butt of his pistol
as possible. More than ten thousand notches is a fairly conservative
estimate because he sampled at least four women a week from the age of
nineteen until he died at sixty-nine. The actual figure could be between
fifteen and eighteen thousand, though, because in good weeks he
managed six or seven different bed partners.
To regain his strength, Edward usually devoured an eight course
breakfast, and his dinners often ran to twelve courses. When it came to
sexual intercourse, however, Edward's eyes were greedier than his
famously fat stomach. Proof of this came when he tried to seduce an
outrageously sexy blonde wearing a long slinky silk dress at a party-only
to discover to his horror that the "blonde" was actually the transvestite
Russian prince Felix Yusupov, wearing full drag. (Source: Prince Felix
Yusupov: The Man Who Murdered Rasputin by Chris Dobson [Harrap,
1989].)
Rather more amusing for the king was the millionaire Indian prince who
was so impressed by His Majesty's sexual comings and goings that he
sent him an unforgettable birthday present: a golf bag made from an
elephant's penis.
Edward's best-known mistress was Lillie Langtry, the most outrageous
"Scarlet Woman" of her time. During the height of her affair with
Edward (then the Prince of Wales), a gossip columnist cunningly wrote
this sentence in a weekly London journal: "There is nothing whatever
between the Prince of Wales and Lillie Langtry." Readers were mystified

by this dotty denial but in the very next edition, in exactly the same
place, appeared the four words: "Not even a sheet"
Although she was a parson's daughter, Lillie Langtry was an uninhibited
character who disrupted many a sedate cocktail party with her
outrageous antics. But Edward's ardor for her cooled permanently when
she jokingly poured a large helping of melting strawberry ice cream
down the back of his neck at a boring dinner party.
Having fallen from the royal gravy train, Lillie took advantage of her
notoriety as a former Buckingham Palace intimate by becoming an
actress. During a whistle-stop tour of America in the early 1880s, she
stayed overnight in a- newly formed settlement in Texas where she
charmed the local judge Roy Bean so much (by her skill at poker) that
he named the town Langtry in her honor.
Lillie also had an affair with Prince Louis of Battenberg (father of Lord
Mountbatten) and by him is said to have given birth to an illegitimate
daughter named Jeanne Marie. Later still, Lillie married a baronet's son
and became the rather more sedate Lady de Bathe. She died in 1929 at
the age of seventy-six.
Another of Edward's sleeping partners was the even more famous actress
Sarah Bernhardt She not only had an affair with Edward, but also
claimed to have had one with his son, Prince I Eddy. She was also the
mistress of the Belgian prince Henri de Ligne, and her bastard son
Maurice was said to have been sired by him.
Sarah Bernhardt was as dramatic offstage as on. She kept a silk-lined
coffin in her bedroom, and the spiciest tidbit of gossip in London at the
time was that she once had sex with Edward as he lay supine, but very
much alive, in that coffin.
Just before she died in 1923; at the age of seventy-nine, Sarah coyly
indicated that she had "entertained" other famous lovers, such as the

French novelist Victor Hugo and Napoleon III, in the coffin and that its
pink silk lining had to be changed quite regularly-for wear-and-tear
reasons.
Edward's longest serving mistress was Alice Keppel, the wife of an earl.
She spent six weeks of every year making love to His Royal Highness in
the then-popular French coastal resort of Biarritz. Alice was a real
survivor who held Edward's hand as he lay on his deathbed in May 1910
and sobbed that if he died she no longer wished to live. This was not
quite true. She clung to life until 1947, when she died at the age of
seventy-eight.
Another long-favored mistress was "Daisy" Warwick, the wife of Lord
Brooke. But soon after King Edward died, Daisy tried to blackmail the
royal family by producing a collection of his sizzling love letters.
Although everybody in London society knew all about His Royal
Highness being an adulterer, these letters were political dynamite
because their publication in a newspaper would have proved it to the
workers-who were not supposed to know.
So Buckingham Palace arranged for an urgent application to be made to
the High Court, restraining Daisy from selling the letters to the gutter
press. Daisy then threw the royals into a dither by threatening to sell
them to one of America's biggest newspapers. At this stage, Arthur du
Cros, of the famous Dunlop rubber (tire) company, stepped in and paid
off 64,000 worth of Daisy's debts in return for the love letters. Mr. Du
Cros was later created a baronet. Daisy, by the way, died in 1938, at
seventy-six.
The most revealing story about Edward the Seventh-in terms of social
hypocrisy-is that while staying in a friend's house one night, he felt
rather randy and had to make do by calling for a maid. This was Rosa
Lewis, who was made to measure for Edward as she not only served him
adequately but told him about several other pretty little young servant
girls who would simply adore to be in royal service.

After accepting many of Rosa's recommendations, the king realized she

was far too talented to remain in below-stairs service to the top nobs and
should give them pleasure upstairs instead. So he gave her the money to
open London's (now respectable) Cavendish Hotel in Jermyn Street, just
opposite the back door of Fortnum and Mason's Royal Grocery shop.
There, from 1902 until she died in 1952, Rosa ran Britain's most famous
high-class brothel where she provided classy harlots for members of
Parliament, high-ranking military officers, and much of the aristocracy.
The hotel-brothel became so famous that in the forties and fifties many
members of the British nobility took their sixteen-year-old sons there to
introduce them to the pleasures of the flesh and, often, to discreetly
ascertain whether or not they were gay.
Rosa's guests were not all Brits. Her hotel was used by thousands of
visitors from overseas, including many of America's most prominent
politicians and millionaires, who were taken to the Cavendish by trusted
friends in London for discreet afternoon sessions of tea and crumpet.
And tarts. This world-famous cat house somehow managed to escape the
attention of Scotland Yard's vice squad. Not once during her fifty-year
reign as Britain's Queen of Sex was Rosa Lewis charged with keeping a
brothel.
Although King Edward the Seventh was a regular visitor at this house of
pleasure that he had bankrolled, he still admired his faithful wife
Alexandra, the lovely daughter of Denmark's King Christian the Ninth.
Alexandra didn't mind the fact that her husband had sex with thousands
of other women. What upset her was that all those other ladies knew
what a terrible sex life she had with him as he took less than a minute to
complete the sex act. In spite of this, Alexandra managed to produce
three daughters and three sons. Two of those sons went on to great fame.
Son number one was PRINCE ALBERT VICTOR, known as Prince
Eddy. Born in 1864, he was lazy, a poor reader, an atrocious speller, and

such a total dunce that his tutors despaired of him. Yet this did not stop a
university awarding him with an honorary doctorate of law.
When the truth leaked out about his backwardness, the royal family tried
to cover up by claiming he was "slightly deaf." They said this made it
difficult for him to hear what his teachers said. Some people might
wonder why this normally spoiled young prince was not supplied with
an ear trumpet if he did have a hearing defect. But of course he didn't,
because when it came to sex, Eddy was a genius who could hear the
rustle of silk knickers two boudoirs away.
The most disgraceful but nonetheless intriguing rumor about Prince
Eddy is that he was Jack the Ripper. Several books have linked him with
the sensational murders that rocked Britain in 1888. The common
denominator in these books is that Prince Eddy contracted syphilis from
one of the thousands of prostitutes in London's deprived East End area.
Some say Prince Eddy obtained his revenge by returning to the East End
one night and killing the disgustingly diseased tart by disemboweling
her. Other books state that her fellow prostitutes were murdered by
Queen Victoria's royal physician, Sir William Gull.
When Britain's Thames TV showed its three-part Jack the Ripper series,
starring the actor Michael Caine in 1988, it categorically named Sir
William as the Ripper. Viewers were told:
"We have come to our conclusions after careful study and painstaking
deduction. Other researchers, criminologists and writers may take a
different view. We believe our conclusions to be true."
Possibly to protect itself against hostile reaction from admirers of the
royal family, Thames TV did not suggest that Sir William Gull had been
"recruited" by Queen Victoria, or Prince Eddy, to kill the prostitutes. The
filmmakers explained that problem away by saying the royal physician
was just "insane."

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But the late Stephen Knight, in his book Jack the Ripper: The Final
Solution, took the subject further. He said Prince Eddy had fallen in love
with a Catholic shop-girl named Anne Crook, had secretly married her in
a Catholic ceremony, and that she had given birth to his child, a girl
named Alice. To prevent a religious scandal erupting, which could easily
have toppled the then unpopular Queen Victoria, Sir William Gull was
commissioned to kidnap Anne. He did, and rendered her insane by
operating on her brain-after which he had placed her in a mental
institution.
According to Mr. Knight, this disgraceful plot backfired because Anne
Crook had left her baby in the care of Mary Kelly, an amateur prostitute
living in London's East End who, in collusion with three full-time
whores, tried to blackmail the royal family.
The result, stated Mr. Knight, was that the British prime minister, Lord
Salisbury, sent Sir William to "eliminate" all those dangerous
guttersnipes in a desperate last-ditch attempt to protect the British
monarchy. To give the impression that a total madman was responsible,
Sir William Gull had cut out the prostitute's wombs and ovaries or
committed other atrocities, such as chopping off their breasts or ears.
Sir William is said to have died in 1890, but there is doubt about this
because, contrary to usual medical ethics, his death was certified by Dr.
Theo Ackland, who just happened to be his son-in-law.
Stephen Knight's findings were so well researched and convincing that
somebody thought him dangerous. Perhaps that is why he was smeared
by several newspapers, which tried to claim he had got his facts wrong.
He hadn't. His book, which was originally published by Harrap in 1976,
has been reprinted twelve times since by Grafton Books of London.
The whole Ripper saga has been confused, perhaps deliberately, by
various conflicting claims-the most ridiculous being that Moscow had

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sent a Russian spy over to kill those prostitutes, just to embarrass the
British government. No, that is not one of those anti-Kremlin jokes. The
claim appeared in Things I Know by William Le Quex in 1923.
Three years after the Ripper killings, Queen Victoria decided that Prince
Eddy, then second in1ine to the English throne, needed a strong-willed
wife to keep him in line. The woman chosen was the Princess of Teck,
and she agreed to take on the job. Their marriage was/planned for
February 27, 1892, but Prince Eddy died suddenly six weeks before that.
The Buckingham Palace version is that he died of influenza, though
other sources insist it was caused by a softening of the brain due to
syphilis.
His intended bride plunged herself into one year of mourning for her lost
beloved. After emerging from that mourning, Queen Victoria called her
in and told her there had been a change of plan and she must marry
Prince Eddy's brother, Prince George.
We are told' she was "affronted and embarrassed" by the idea. But the
truth is, she was most eager to be a possible queen and willingly obeyed.
The story was then put out that the Princess of Teck had never really
loved Prince Eddy but had always secretly loved his brother George, and
the couple were speedily married two months later in July 1893. They
enjoyed their honeymoon at Sandringham-where poor Prince Eddy had
died just eighteen months earlier!
When King Edward the Seventh went to heaven in 1910, Prince George
and his wife came to the throne as KING GEORGE THE FIFTH and
QUEEN MARY. The diaries of various royals unnecessarily confirm that
their marriage was one of total convenience and that no love was
involved on either side. But the public was later told that their marriage
developed into "a deep and lasting love."
Although she was a very German lady with not a drop of English blood
in her veins, Queen Mary's ramrod-back deportment was seen to

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epitomize British royalty for over forty years. Her regal appearance
hardly changed. Jeweled toques topped her tightly packed curls, and
there was always the same style of coat and silver-topped cane. Her
loyalty to the Crown was beyond any possible criticism-even to the
point, as we have seen, of being willing to die for it rather than endanger
the coronation of her grandchild, Elizabeth, in 1953.
There has never been one breath of sexual scandal about her. It is not
unkind to emphasize that she had not the slightest interest in sex. Some
historians have made this abundantly clear by recording her own
comment that when her husband did visit her royal bedchamber to
provide heirs, she "closed her eyes and thought of England."
This does not mean Queen Mary's character had no blemishes. The big
skeleton in her cupboard is that she was "unfortunately afflicted with
kleptomania." This is a disease affecting only the rich. When poor
people steal, they are thieves. If Queen Mary liked a Georgian snuff box
or a similarly valuable silver trinket when visiting the home of a friend,
she swiped it.
So many aristocrats complained to Buckingham Palace about her theft of
their objects d'art that Queen Mary's lady-in-waiting was told to watch
her like a hawk when she went visiting. If she slipped something into her
handbag, the lady-in-waiting would later retrieve it and mail it back to
the owner with a covering letter stating that it had been taken "by
mistake." Some psychiatrists say this kind of unnecessary stealing,
particularly shoplifting by rich women, is a subconscious substitute for
sex.
Queen Mary was a disinterested mother who gave little love or cuddles
to her children-. When she died in 1953 her son, then the Duke of
Windsor, told his wife, Wallis: "I'm afraid the fluids in her veins have
always been as icy cold as they now are in death."

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Queen Mary's husband, George the Fifth, had sowed plenty of wild oats
in his youth. At one time he shared a girl with his sexy and alleged
"Ripper" brother, Prince Eddy. They kept her in a luxury apartment in
London's St. John's Wood area. But, after marrying, George is said to
have settled down, and we are told he was a "paragon of virtue."
There is, however, one strange story about George. This surfaced in a
French newspaper named The Liberator when he became king. Copies
of the article were sent to all members of Parliament - obviously to
ensure that the royals did not get the news smothered. It was terribly
embarrassing because the story claimed that while in Malta, when he
was still Prince George, the king had legally married a British admiral's
daughter, Mary Culme-Seymour, and had sired several children by her.
This was political dynamite because, if true, those children were
claimants to the English throne. Furthermore, it was alleged that Prince
George had decided to abandon Miss Culme-Seymour only when his
brother Eddy died and the royal family delicately pointed out to him
that, as second in line to the throne, he should quickly discard this little
commoner.
The journalist who wrote this story was an E. F. Mylius and not
surprisingly, he was charged with writing lies. If he had been allowed to
get away with it,. some nasty-minded people might have thought that
King George's marriage to Queen Mary was not legal, which would have
meant that her children were illegitimate.
During the court hearing evidence was given that, quite apart from never
having married Prince George, Mary Culme-Seymour had not even met
him during the years in question (1879 to 1898). Journalist Mylius was
found guilty in 1911 and sentenced to one year in jail. After serving his
sentence, he had a pamphlet published in New York in which he
produced evidence, in the form of British newspaper clippings, that
witnesses had lied at his trial.

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This showed that Prince George had, in fact, met Mary Culme-Seymour
in August 1891 when she opened the dancing with him at a large ball in
Portsmouth. Ah yes, said Mary Culme-Seymour, "I had forgotten about
that." Mr. Mylius, who was still unable to get the justice to which he said
he was entitled, commented that he found it rather difficult to believe a
pretty young lady could forget the great honor of opening the dancing at
a ball with a handsome prince.
In 1917, toward the end of World War I, the British public developed
such a hatred of anything German that they kicked innocent little
dachshund dogs in the streets. Some people even suspected the Germanblooded British royal family of having secret sympathy for the hated
"Kaiser Bill"-Wilhelm the Second-who was, of course, Queen Victoria's
grandson.
The publicity experts at Buckingham Palace urged King George to
change the German name of his royal British house from Saxe-CoburgGotha. So the magic royal wand was waved and overnight the royal
family became known by the much more English-sounding name,
Windsor.
Another patriotic little story about King George is that he did not want to
give Britain's Victoria Cross medal to America's "Unknown Soldier"
when that revered serviceman was to be buried in Arlington National
Cemetery in 1921. Quite definitely not, said the king. Even when his
advisors explained that America had given its Congressional Medal of
Honor to the British Unknown Warrior one year earlier, George was not
impressed.
He said it was ridiculous to compare the illustrious British VC with the
Medal of Honor, which, he sneered, having been instituted in only 1862,
"has no history behind it." The British VC, by the way, was instituted by
Queen Victoria in 1856. So six years was obviously a long time in the
mind of old George Five. In the end, however, he was forced to grant the
VC to the anonymous American when the Whitehall diplomats pointed

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out that America was a valuable ally and could not be insulted with a
lesser medal.
Fate sometimes plays cruel tricks, King George the Fifth insisted that his
royal physician, Bernard Dawson, be sworn of the Privy Council-an
extremely unusual honor for a doctor. As we have seen, Lord Dawson of
Penn went on to thank King George by murdering him in 1936.
When that happened, George's son came to the throne as KING
EDWARD THE EIGHTH. Although his marriage to Wallis Simpson was
described by Winston Churchill as "one of the greatest love stories of
history," King Edward had sown a lot of wild oats in his youth. But he
was double smart. To prevent the gossip columnists writing scandal
stories about his affairs, he only bedded married women. Their husbands
did not complain as it usually raised their social standing and even
helped them make better contacts in the City, which brought them juicy
contracts.
One of his mistresses was Giulia Barucci. She was so open about it that
she went around London bragging "I'm the greatest whore in the world."
He also had a fling with Gloria Vanderbilt's twin sister, Thelma, Lady
Furness. She was not his first titled lady. At the age of twenty-one he had
quenched his sexual thirst with the much older Lady Coke. But it wasn't
the real thing so he moved on to Freda Dudley Ward, wife of a Liberal
member of Parliament.
Later, in September 1934 (when Wallis Simpson was away on vacation),
it is said he dallied with Freda's sister Vera, who gave birth to a boy in
mid-1935. After being educated at Eton, that boy become an actor and
played the part of Ned opposite Marlon Brando in the 1962 film Mutiny
on the Bounty. His name is Tim Seely, and in March 1988 the British
Daily Express ran a front page story naming him the Duke of Windsor's
"secret son."

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In this article, fifty-three-year-old Mr. Seely admitted that he bore an

extraordinary resemblance to the duke. "It is something I have had to
live with most of my life," he said. But it has not hurt him socially. He
still rides to hounds with the upper set-sometimes in the company of
Prince Charles.
When King Edward the Eighth abdicated for the love of Wallis Simpson
and went into exile as what the royal family described as the "Puke of
Windsor," his brother took the throne as GEORGE THE SIXTHalthough all his family called him Bertie.
As a child he was knock-kneed so they put his legs in painful iron braces
to make him walk properly and appear perfect. It didn't work. To make
matters worse, his father, King George the Fifth, was a bad-tempered old
bully when it came to disciplining kids and would threaten to punish the
left -handed little weakling if he didn't stop whining. That is probably
why the highly nervous Bertie became terribly shy, developed an
appalling stammer, nervous facial twitches, and a chronic stomach
complaint.
When Kingship was unexpectedly thrust upon him in 1936, he told his
wife he was terrified he would be unable to cope. Without that wife, he
never would have managed. In truth, Elisabeth was the real ruler behind
the throne but, just like any loving wife, she gave the outside world the
impression that he wore the trousers. Even more shrewdly, she pressed
the point that her husband was a shy and sensitive man who, in spite of
his terrible stammer and ill health, was absolutely determined to be a
good king for them. Pure unadulterated brilliance. No wonder the British
public came to love and admire him.
Nobody in the history of the British royal family has ever manipulated
the media as brilliantly as Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, who was later to
become world famous as the "Queen Mum."

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In 1940 when Buckingham Palace was slightly damaged by a German

bomb, she took full public relations advantage by telling journalists: "I'm
glad we have been bombed. It makes me feel I can look the [badly
bombed] East End in the face." No wonder Adolf Hitler had earlier told
his Nazi propaganda expert, Joseph Goebbels, to describe her as "the
most dangerous woman in Europe."
The Queen Mum scored another victory during World War II. With the
help of her husband, she gave the royal family the appearance of being
typically "English" once more. She helped to condition the British public
into forgetting about the German blood in the royal veins and the
incredible background of names such as Schleswig-HolsteinSonderburg-Glucksburg, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Wurttemburg, Teck,
Hanover, and Wettin. Yet even today, the real top-drawer aristocrats
smile patronizingly at the Royal House of Windsor, saying "They are
still Krauts after all, old chap."
Although she was born in England, the Queen Mother usually described
herself as a Scot. Great mystery surrounds her birth. It is definite that her
mother, Lady Glamis, gave birth to her in August 1900. But incredibly,
nobody seems willing to say where. Her father, Lord Glamis, illegally
forgot to register the birth, and for that he had to pay a fine of seven
shillings and sixpence. And when he did register the birth he
deliberately, or accidentally, gave the wrong place of birth-for which he
could have been fined under the Forgery Act.
So where was the Queen Mum born? In her wickedly irreverent book
Queen Elizabeth, a Life of the Queen Mother (Viking, 1986), the
brilliant writer Penelope Mortimer tells us that the odds are strong that
she was born in the backseat of a horse-drawn vehicle going through
central London (or parked under a lamppost). When asked to confirm or
deny this, the Queen Mum answered, through a spokesman, that she
"had no interest in the subject."

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Way back in 1923, when Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon married her husband in

Westminster Abbey, she showed that she under stood all about the
mystique of monarchy-by agreeing with the archbishop of Canterbury
that the BBC should not broadcast the ceremony over the radio. Why.
not? Because "Some disrespectful people might hear it while sitting in
public houses with their hats on!" She was obviously referring to her
disgustingly vulgar working-class subjects, because the more refined
English do not wear hats when they sit in up-market hotels and cocktail
bars.
The Queen Mother also understood pictures. Skim through any of the
thousands of photographs showing the Queen Mum standing outside
Clarence House celebrating one of her many birthdays and you will see
that she usually tilted her head slightly to one side. Some Hollywood
film stars can learn from that clever trick as it puts "movement" into
what could otherwise look like a stiff or posed picture. Whenever the
Queen Mum did it, she gave the impression that she was nodding to each
and every one of us. Pure genius!
Just like Queen Mary, there has never been one breath of sexual scandal
associated with the Queen Mother although several gossip columnists
forecast she would marry her long time friend, Sir Arthur Penn, after her
shy, sensitive, and retiring husband died. But obviously, Sir Arthur was
not one of the marrying kind.
The only commoner we know to have kissed the Queen Mum full on the
lips was the American president Jimmy Carter. He clearly did not turn
her on, as the comment she leaked to the press was: "He will never be
forgiven for that!"
When King George the Sixth died of lung cancer in 1952, his daughter
came to the throne as QUEEN ELIZABETH THE SECOND. Just like
her mother, she has a perfect genius for the right kind of publicity.
Perhaps the best example of this came when a TV film unit was allowed

19

to photograph her enjoying a family picnic in the grounds of her holiday

home at Balmoral.
The Queen shrewdly made a point of allowing the camera men to film
her helping to wash and dry the plates and cutlery at the end of the meal.
And, exactly as intended, this down-to earth ploy gave tremendous
psychological reassurance to millions of suburban housewives who
turned to their husbands snoring on the sofa and cooed: "There you are,
you see. She's just like us really, isn't she?"
Without a shadow of doubt Elizabeth the Second is the best queen the
English have ever had. The only scandalous thing we have read about
her was written by Nigel Dempster, who has long been famous as the
high society and royal gossip columnist of the Daily Mail. On the very
first page of his super spicy book H.RH. The Princess Margaret. A Life
Unfulfilled, (Quartet, 1981) he wrote that when Queen Elizabeth married
her first love Prince Philip, she was: "as virginal as her eponymous
ancestor."
WOW! That raises a most fascinating question: Did Nigel not know that
the queen's ancestor, Elizabeth the "Virgin Queen" who ruled from 1558
to 1603 was certainly no virgin? That she had several young lovers and,
at the late age of fifty-four, even started a twelve-year affair with a
handsome young fellow of twenty? Really, Nigel, you should never have
associated our Queen Elizabeth with a shady lady like that.
To be fair though, it must have been a genuine mistake because the
Queen's name had never been tarnished by British press speculation
about her love life.
In fact, only one English person has ever dared to mention the subject of
sex in relation to Her Majesty the Queen. This was her son Prince
Andrew, who once said: "You know, the one thing I can never possibly
imagine is'11lY mother and father making love." Randy Andy's
comment is said to have made his father "furious" and "outraged" his

20

mother. (Source: Charles and Diana by that entertaining American

writer, Ralph G. Martin [Grafton Books, 1986.])
In 1941 an American named Henry "Chips" Channon made the most
astonishing prediction. Writing in his diary, he stated that the handsome
Philip of Greece "is to be our Prince Consort, and that is why he is
serving in our Navy."
This really was an incredibly accurate prophecy because Prince Philip
did not propose marriage to Princess Elizabeth until six years later in
1947-and even then, it took the world by surprise.
How on earth could Henry Channon have been privy to such a secret?
The answer is that he received it from an impeccable source-none other
than Princess Nicholas of Greece, who told him, on January 21, 1941,
that a marriage was "being arranged" between Philip and Elizabeth!
This rather contradicts the fairy-tale love-at-first-sight stories churned
out by Buckingham Palace. Could this be the reason why Sir Henry
"Chips" Channon has been denigrated by many historians as an
"unreliable diarist" and "an American snob who was obsessed by titles
and money?"
Overseas newspapers and magazines have nibbled at the subject of the
Queen's marriage to Prince Philip by claiming (about seventy times) that
it was "on the rocks," that he had a long-term woman friend who had an
interest in a top-society nightspot, and that there was a gigantic cover-up
about his alleged involvement in the infamous Profumo "sex and
secrets" scandal-which, in truth, should have been tagged the Stephen
Ward scandal.
The son of a vicar, Ward was born in 1912 and traveled to America
when' he was twenty. After studying at the College of Osteopathy in
Missouri, he returned to London as a doctor and achieved success by
giving relief to top-drawer people suffering backache and other muscular

21

problems-such people as Winston Churchill, Mahatma Gandhi, Paul

Getty, Nancy Astor, and Ava Gardner.
A sophisticated and elegant man, Stephen Ward also sketched portraits in
pencil and crayon of such famous people as Princess Margaret, the Duke
of Kent, the Duchess of Gloucester, and Prince Philip. Ward was not
your tradesman's entrance type of artist who was summoned to the
palace to do his sketches. He was friendly enough with Prince Philip to
have lunched with him in central London. Philip also visited Ward's
home several times.
In the early sixties, Ward turned from giving the nobility relief for their
back pains and focused on other parts of their anatomy. He introduced
them to pretty young working-class "models," such as Christine Keeler
and Mandy Rice-Davies who were only too delighted to oblige the
noblesse by having sex with them, and even dressing up as nannies and
spanking their bare bottoms for them.
In 1961 a British Intelligence officer named Keith Wagstaffe recruited
Stephen Ward as an undercover agent for MI5's Counter Intelligence
Section. Ward's assignment was to persuade a London-based Russian
naval attach, Captain Eugene Ivanov, to defect. The son-in-law of
Alexander Gorkin, the chairman of the Soviet Supreme Court, Captain
Ivanov was known to be an undercover agent for Russian Military
Intelligence (GRU).
Ward introduced Christine Keeler to Ivanov, but the plot went seriously
wrong because Ward had also introduced Christine to John Profumo,
who was then Her Majesty's war minister. Profumo had several sex
sessions with Christine, the most famous of which took place in the bed
of Profumo's actress wife, Valerie Hobson. When Fleet Street became
aware of this adulterous relationship, Profumo tried to silence them by
lying to Parliament that he had never had sex with Miss Keeler and that
he would sue the pants off anyone who dared to say he had.

22

When he was proven to be a liar, Profumo was forced to resign in total

disgrace. This made world headlines and brought horrendous
embarrassment to the Tory government. To deflect the massive media
heat from government, the British Establishment had to find a scapegoat.
The man chosen was Stephen Ward, who was framed on a charge of
living on the immoral earnings of Christine Keeler and Mandy RiceDavies -although both women later admitted telling lies against Ward
after being subjected to police pressure.
Stephen Ward denied all the charges. He said he had first been
introduced to Captain Ivanov by Sir Colin Coote, then the managing
editor of the British newspaper the Daily Telegraph. (Sir Colin, who died
in 1979, is now known to have been a long-term propaganda agent for
Britain's MI6.) Ward said he had later been recruited by British
Intelligence to persuade Captain Ivanov to defect, but that the
intelligence boys had disowned him in order to avoid becoming
embroiled in the Profumo scandal. Ward was not believed at the time
but, years later, several MIS officers admitted to various journalists that
Ward had been telling the truth about being a secret agent for the British.
Anyone wishing to know the full details can read two excellent books on
the subject. An Affair of State: The Profumo Case and the Framing of
Stephen Ward by Phillip Knightley and Caroline Kennedy (Cape, 1987)
and Honey trap by Anthony Summers and Stephen Dorril (Weidenfeld,
1987). Both books convincingly demonstrate how Stephen Ward was
framed by evidence produced in a manipulated trial, during which some
of the main prosecution witnesses were later shown to have lied under
oath.
Stephen Ward cheated the court that found him guilty of living on
immoral earnings. He committed suicide by swallowing a large number
of Nembutal capsules. At the time, his sketches were on show in a
Bloomsbury art gallery and something very odd took place there. A tall,
elegant, and well-spoken man walked into the gallery, selected every
drawing of the royal family, including those of Prince Philip, paid

23

5,000, and carried them away without giving his name. The man was
never identified although some journalists insist he was Sir Anthony
Blunt, the British Intelligence agent (later exposed as a double agent for
the KGB) who then worked at Buckingham Palace as Keeper of the
Queen's Pictures.
So ended Britain's favorite high society bedtime story. Until 1987, that
is. This was when Anthony Summers (co-author of Honeypot) made the
shocking allegation that photographs removed from the home of Stephen
Ward showed a likeness of Prince Philip alongside various naked girls.
Buckingham Palace did not react publicly to this distressing claim,
although they let it be known that they considered it "outrageous."
Today Christine Keeler lives quietly in a modest, low-rent apartment
about two miles from Buckingham Palace in an area of London aptly
named World's End.
Millionaire John Profumo is still a member of high society. After
cleansing himself morally and publicly by working for a charity in
London's East End, Buckingham Palace arranged for him to be
photographed shaking hands with Queen Elizabeth in 1971. In effect,
this gave the royal seal of approval to the man who once laid a dubious
lady on his wife's bed and then lied to Parliament. Four years later, just
to prove that Her Majesty's highly bred, elegant, honorable, repentant
and totally reformed former Minister of War really had been completely
forgiven, the Queen agreed to the now sweet-smelling Profumo being
accorded the high honor of the CBE-Commander of the British Empire.
Another naughty fellow who was given the cleansing royal handshake in
public was Major Ron Ferguson, the father of Prince Andrew's wife,
Fergie. His sexy saga exploded in May 1988 when the British Sunday
newspaper The People front-paged a fantastic scoop disclosing that
Fergie's dad had been a regular punter at a high-class London brothel.

24

Covering its back against the predictable cries of "Lies, all damned lies,"
the newspaper published a photograph of the galloping major licking his
lips salaciously as he emerged from the brothel, which, for reasons of
"respectability," called itself the Wigmore Massage and Sauna Club. The
People not only told how Fergie's father had paid blonde, brunette, and
redhead prostitutes, but also published photographs of three of the girls
he had paid for sex and other excitements! One of the girls described
what the major looked like without his clothing, including his freckles
and "patchy scabs like eczema."
Even more revealing was that during one session with a girl, Fergie's
father had asked her: "What does it feel like to be dealing with royalty?"
We can't help wondering whether the girl was quick-witted enough to
ask him what it felt like to be felt by a non royal.
The sexploits of Fergie's disgraced dad presented the Queen with a
major problem. Although she was privately "fuming with anger" about
his immorality (or stupidity in being caught), it was more important to
put on a great display of royal family unity. Ron Ferguson could not be
fired from his job as polo manager to Prince Charles, and he could
hardly be dropped socially as this would have been demeaning for his
daughter, Fergie, the Duchess of York-as well as reflecting badly on
Fergie's husband, Prince "Randy" Andy.
That is why, on June 5, 1988, the Queen gave Major Ron Ferguson that
now-famous "royal pardon" handshake at a polo match. Not by
coincidence, several press cameramen were there to record the royal
"cleansing" operation, and next day, most British newspapers carried
photographs of the Queen clasping the hand that had caressed those
blondes, brunettes, and redheads. That handshake was a clear royal
message to the terrible tabloids, which had been enjoying themselves
immensely. It was: "Now shut up."
But five days later, Sun columnist Fiona Macdonald Hull, who is as
delectable to behold as she is to read, accurately placed her finger on the

25

public pulse by writing: "The Queen has muddled me. She obviously
thinks that perverts who consort with prostitutes are acceptable, while
tax-fiddlers are not." (Fiona mentioned tax-fiddlers because earlier, the
Queen had withdrawn the Order of the British Empire decoration from
Britain's most-loved jockey, Lester Piggot, who had been jailed for
failing to disclose all his earnings to Her Majesty's tax inspectors.)
Fiona criticized the Queen for removing jockey Piggot's OBE with one
hand "while she extended the other to warmly greet Major Ronald
Ferguson." Pointing out that it was the Queen's duty "to set us all a
moral example," Fiona said that if any ordinary person had done what
Major Ferguson had done, he or she would not be allowed within
"spitting distance" of the Queen.
"But when it's one of their own, the Royal Family will forgive
ANYTHING. And you or I can either like it or lump it." Fiery Fiona
ended her article by stating: "If this is what Monarchy is all about, we
are better off without it."
Another married member of the royal family who caused great
embarrassment to the Queen was Princess Michael. In 1985 a British
paper secretly photographed her entering a London house for an alleged
overnight rendezvous with Texas billionaire John Ward Hunt. But this
whole affair was solved when Mr. Hunt, being a perfect gentleman,
refused to say one word to the British press and flew back to America on
the next possible flight.
The Queen then ordered Princess Michael to repair some of the damage
caused to the family name by being photo graphed in public cuddling up
to her long-suffering husband, Prince Michael, and gazing into his face
with absolutely sincere love and total adoration in her eyes. Although
she did it brilliantly, most people were not really fooled.
Despite all the sexual scandals and problems the Queen has had to
tolerate within her family, her marriage to Prince Philip is perfect-as far

26

as the British public is concerned. They know that their Queen, as

Defender of the Faith, is a good woman. She must be, because she is the
keeper of the nation's conscience and the guardian of Britain's (fastsliding) morality.
And publicly, Elizabeth and Philip really do try to set a good example.
They are proud when their children score a success, they adore their
grandchildren, and Philip is always loyal and protective toward his
Queen to the point that we are told her face still "lights up with pleasure"
when she sees him walk through the door.
Throughout the 1980s, the royal with the biggest marriage problem was
PRINCESS ANNE-though Buckingham Palace tried to convince the
public otherwise. When it comes to Anne and her husband, Captain
MARK PHILLIPS, we have personal knowledge that the palace is not
always totally honest. In April 1973 (when it was no secret in Fleet
Street that Mark was in love with Anne), we applied to the palace for
guidance in connection with interviewing the handsome twenty-fouryear-old Queen's Dragoon Guards officer.
After telling us how to contact Mark, the assistant press secretary at the
palace, Anne Hawkins, warned us: "For goodness sake, don't bore him
with questions about Princess Anne. You press men seem determined to
marry him off to the princess, but they are both on record as having said
there is no romance as such."
One hour later Mark Phillips, gave us an exclusive interview, which was
published. Mark has been unkindly described as "Foggy" by some
members of the royal family who seem to think he is "thick and wet,"
but we found him to be totally straight, honest, and intelligent. Obeying
the palace request, we conducted that interview without once mentioning
Princess Anne's name. How stupidly trusting we were! Six weeks later
Anne and Mark announced their engagement.

27

Yet even then we did not expose Buckingham Palace's double-talk.

Instead, to keep in their good books (so that they would continue to feed
us other stories), we wrote a shoelicking story telling how wonderfully
Mark had proposed to Princess Anne. In our published article, to our
everlasting shame, we repeated how "even the Royal corgis had seemed
to approve" and how they had wagged their tails when the engagement
was officially announced. Now there's a perfect example of how a
Buckingham Palace tale wagged the dog.
Princess Anne married Mark in November 1973 but the couple, although
they continued to share their home in Gloucestershire, agreed to go their
separate ways in other ways in 1980, at about the time Princess Anne
was pregnant with her second child, Zara (Arabic for "Morning Star").
They led virtually separate lives but, to keep the public happy, they
pretended to be man and wife for the sake of appearances. Yet even
when they made official overseas trips together, they stayed in separate
hotels.
This did not go unnoticed by the gossip columnists, who repeatedly told
their readers that Princess Anne's marriage was on the rocks, although
the Buckingham Palace press prestidigitators, with hands on heart,
solemnly denied any such thing. There was no doubt about it though,
because Mark was regularly photographed in the company of various
worn en
including the controversial good-time naughty girl Pamella Bordes, who
made world headlines when it was discovered that she had increased her'
bank balance by spending romantic 500 evenings with various
politicians and millionaires she had met while working as a researcher in
Parliament.
Princess Anne also made some friends of her own. One of them was her
handsome personal bodyguard, Sergeant Peter Cross of the Royal
Protection Squad. This affair reached a climax when a Buckingham
Palace spy discovered Anne was kissing and cuddling Peter privately,

28

and he was quietly removed by Scotland Yard for being "overfamiliar"

with the princess.
At that stage, Peter Cross presumed he had been ditched by Princess
Anne because she had tired of him. But later, just before Christmas
1980, when Princess Anne was four months pregnant with Zara, he met
her secretly at her Gatcombe Park home and discovered she had been
informed that he had left the Royal Protection Squad for domestic
reasons.
Realizing that he had been "framed," Peter decided to get his revenge by
offering a kiss-and-tell story to Fleet Street newspapers. He is said to
have asked for $700,000 on the basis that he had enjoyed a "special
relationship" with the princess. He did not get anywhere near that
amount, but a carefully worded part of his story was later published by
The News of the World in September 1985.
It was a fantastic scoop. Peter Cross said he had met Princess Anne
secretly on several occasions whenever she telephoned him and asked
him if he would like to spend "a day in the country" with her. Sometimes
they met at a cottage in the grounds of Princess Anne's country estate but
also two or three times at a friend's modest little house in Surrey where
they spent several hours together, completely alone.
Their friendship was such that the princess telephoned her former
bodyguard to say she was going into hospital to have baby Zara. Next
day, on May 15, 1981, Anne telephoned Peter Cross at his home to say:
"I've had my baby-it's a girl. We're both fine." One month later Peter was
invited to Princess Anne's home for lunch, and after the meal she took
him to the nursery to see the baby. Peter said he had given the little girl a
teddy bear he had bought for her and, one year later, he gave Zara a
jumpsuit for her first birthday.
Buckingham Palace did not appreciate Peter's disclosures one little bit,
and, in an attempt to trash his credibility, they let it be known that he

29

was "a vain man who had indulged in several extramarital affairs." Tuttut. The News of the World was proved correct though. In September
1989 it was officially disclosed that Princess Anne and Mark Phillips
were to be separated.
This "shocked" those members of the British public who had believed all
those denials of a marital rift issued by Buckingham Palace. But some of
the damage was quickly repaired by gushing newspaper stories that
Anne and Mark still "admire each other" and, although separated, will
remain "the best of friends. "
It is also reassuring to know that Princess Anne's two children
"understand," and that the problem of "sharing" them has mostly been
solved by the fact that their son, Peter Phillips (born in November 1977)
likes going out with his dad, whereas daughter Zara, who has a much
stronger bond with her mother, mostly accompanies her.
The big gossip around London town these days is that Princess Anne
will definitely apply for a divorce after paying Mark off with a big cash
settlement in the region of $2 million. Not that Princess Anne has any
intention of remarrying at the moment. Her friendship with former
bodyguard Peter Cross ended in November 1983 when she telephoned
him and asked him if he would like to enjoy "a day in the country." He
took a raincheck by saying he had a new girlfriend. Peter Cross is now
married to Angie, a dental nurse.
The latest man to be linked closely with Princess Anne is the dashingly
tall dark and handsome "Tiger" Tim Laurence. Their friendship came to
light in April 1989 when a Buckingham Palace servant of humble
background who was earning $10,000 a year (live in), became so
annoyed by the opulent life-style of the royals that she took possession
of four intimate letters from Princess Anne's unlocked writing desk. The
letters had been written to Princess Anne by the Queen's equerry Tim
Laurence, and, in them, he made it abundantly clear, that he was madly
in love with Anne.

30

Cleverly using a front man to protect her identity, the royal servant sent
the letters to Rupert Murdoch's newspaper The Sun, the only newspaper
in Britain that has consistently proved that it is not at all overawed or
frightened of the royal family.
In this instance, however, realizing that they did not possess the
copyright to Princess Anne's letters, The Sun behaved impeccably and
returned them to the palace unpublished. But word leaked out and the
super spicy story was chased by every newspaper. That's when Princess
Anne's love life once again hit the fan.
The tragedy here is that Anne is the most honest and down-to-earth
member of the royal family. When she married Mark Phillips, it was
considered unthinkable that he could remain middle-class Mark without
a title to his name. But Princess Anne felt otherwise. She refused
pointblank when the Queen offered to give him an earldom, as had been
done for the commoner Tony Armstrong-Jones when he married
Princess Margaret. Anne said it seemed rather pompous to her that Mark
should be given a high falutin' title just because he was marrying a
woman who was a princess by an accident of birth.
The same applied to Anne's children, Peter and Zara, who, at the time of
writing, are the only members of The Family not to have titles. The
Queen was insistent that they should be known as Prince Peter and
Princess Zara, but Anne said no way. Her actual comment on this subject
was: "They are not royal. The Queen just happens to be their
grandmother."
Princess Anne is an original who likes to do it her way. She has no
intention of copying Princess Diana's engaging but shrewd way of
saying "Cheese" for press cameramen and refuses to behave like a
performing. seal for them. She prefers to wear trousers, jumpers, and
check shirts rather than flashy dresses, saying she would like to be
judged by what she does, not by what she wears. Unlike Princess Di,

31

Princess Anne does not have vast walk-in closets containing thousands
of garments, and she does not have a private hairdresser who visits her
every day. Neither does she have a manicurist in daily attendance, as can
be seen from her often chipped and unpolished fingernails.
The hardest working member of the royal family, Anne hates trotting out
much of the tripe written for her by Buckingham Palace. Tripe, because
she has told friendly journalists that it's often "ridiculously pompous and
even patronizing." She loathes pretentious people and also those who
show off or crawl to her. She refuses to have the usual army of royal
kitchen maids at her country home and keeps a small staff who help her
by "mucking in" with the housework, with everybody wearing blue
jeans. When competing at horse trials, she likes to drop her Princess title
and asks to be known as plain Anne Phillips. In other words, we admit to
having a sneaking regard for her.
Compare all that with the Queen's cousin, LORD LOUIS
MOUNTBATTEN, he who was Mountbatten of Burma, Viceroy of
India, Chief of the Defence Staff, and a truly brilliant but sneaky man
who handled himself and manipulated everybody else so well that he
was known as the shop steward of the British royal family. That is until
1979, when the Irish Republican Army blew his body to pieces while he
was fishing on a small boat near his magnificent Classiebawn Castle in
the Irish county of Sligo.
Mountbatten was not only the most crashing snob in royal history but
also one of the naughtiest sex-wise. Yet he always managed to get away
with it. Most senior British journalists knew that Mountbatten and his
vastly rich wife, Edwina, spent most of their married life jumping in and
out of other people's beds. It was also no secret that Mountbatten was a
bisexual, which might explain why his wife searched for affection in the
arms of well-known public figures such as Indian Prime Minister, Pandit
Nehru.

32

Anyone wanting further details about Lord Louis can read The
Mountbattens (Constable, 1989), written by Lord Lambton who is no
amateur when it comes to sex scandals. He was a Cabinet Minister
serving as Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Defence and
was in charge of the Royal Air Force. In 1973 he was forced to resign
after being secretly filmed in bed naked (and smoking pot) with
London's then famous prostitute, Norma Levy.
Millionaire Tony, who now lives in happy exile in a sixteenth-century
villa near Siena, Italy, discloses in his meticulously researched book that
Mountbatten was not only a charlatan and a snob but also a pathological
liar who disguised his ancestry ("pastry cooks, tailors, and pastors") in
order to enhance his claims to royal status.
Not mentioned in Lambton's book are the latest and most astounding
claims against Lord Mountbatten. Someone in British Intelligence is
leaking rumors to authors and journalists that Mountbatten was a Soviet
sympathizer who secretly helped the Russians during the Cold War.
Equally incredible is the claim that Mountbatten was murdered on the
orders of the KGB, as they feared he might have been intending to
disclose his role as a Russian agent.
This rumor was ridiculed by some but in August 1989, top British
journalist Richard Ingrams opened a new can of worms. In his weekly
Observer column he stated that Mr. Alan Clark (now Britain's Minister
of State for Defence) had told him the same story about Lord Lambton.
It's a strange world. Apart from Her Majesty the Queen, nobody in the
royal family is safe from naughty disclosures these days. Except perhaps
the Queen's gentle and sensitive bachelor son, PRINCE EDWARD, who
was called a wimp by his angry father when he deserted the famously
tough Royal Marines in 1987 because he found their assault coarse.
Being a great lover of the performing arts, Edward decided to learn his
desired trade from the bottom up by taking a job as a tea boy working

33

backstage at a London theater. But you can safely bet that in years to
come he will end up laying them in the aisles as a famous impresario
mounting some great stars in a spectacular musical.
At the moment however, central stage is being occupied by the
astonishing antics of three of the prettiest young female royals. This
unusual soap opera started in October 1989, when newspapers in Italy,
France and Germany disclosed that Princess Margaret's unmarried
daughter, twenty-six-year-old LADY SARAH ARMSTRONG, was
living with her actor boyfriend Daniel Chatto who was described as "the
illegitimate half-brother of the two famous movie stars, James and
Edward Fox."
Major London newspapers disclosed this to the British public rather
tactfully by saying Lady Sarah was "quietly and discreetly" living with
Daniel. Sarah's father, Lord Snowdon, reacted by acidly telling a
journalist: "Sarah is a student and Daniel is a 'resting' actor. How can
they get married yet?"
Another shock for Buckingham Palace came when it was disclosed that
twenty-six-year-old LADY HELEN WINDSOR, the unmarried daughter
of the Duke and Duchess of Kent, was also "quietly and discreetly"
living with her art gallery boss, Tim Taylor.
As both girls are in line to the throne, these revelations caused severe
embarrassment to the Queen because she likes to perpetuate Victorian
values and cannot possibly be seen to condone any suggestion that her
young relatives are "living in sin." She was horrified when she heard that
foreign "paparazzi" cameramen were responsible for uncovering such
naughty goings on. They had shadowed the two pretty young ladies
night and day and had discovered they were keeping their bedroom
slippers at the homes of their boyfriends.
But the biggest shock for the Queen came a few days later when her
twenty-three-year-old unmarried cousin, MARINA OGILVY, created the

34

most diabolical royal scandal by telling her parents (Princess Alexandra

and businessman Sir Angus Ogilvy) that she was several months
pregnant by her commercial photographer boyfriend, Paul Mowatt, aged
twenty-four. Mum and Dad quite naturally suggested that a marriage
should be speedily arranged so that the royal baby would not be born a
royal bastard.
Being a fiercely independent girl, Marina said she didn't want a shotgun
wedding and that she was determined to live with boyfriend Paul for a
while to make sure they were right for each other. But as Paul did not
have any money, Marina asked her millionaire father to buy her a house.
Both parents were appalled at the idea of a young lady royal living in sin
while carrying a "love child" (only common people have bastards). So
much so that they not only refused to buy her a house, they also
threatened to cut her off from the family completely. And, as a little
taster-to show they meant business-they stopped Marina's monthly
pocket money of $420 and also instructed their lawyers to block her
from touching any of the substantial funds being held in trust until her
twenty-fifth birthday. To round all this off, Marina's boyfriend Paul was
told that if he ever darkened a royal doorstep again, the police would be
called and he would be arrested.
Marina was so incensed by all this that she went public and gave her
story to a British tabloid newspaper. The very first royal in British
history to do that! Suspecting that Buckingham Palace might arrange
some kind of kidnap in an effort to suppress the story, the newspaper
(Today) spirited Marina and her boyfriend off to a secret hideaway in
Ireland. When the story hit Page One, Buckingham Palace leaked some
viciously wounding stories to friendly newspapers. One was that Marina
and her boyfriend Paul hit the bottle just a little too much because at
least $750 worth of empty liquor bottles had been seen in the trash bins
outside the love nest they were sharing.

35

That shaft was presumably aimed at Paul, to indicate he was a bad

influence on sweet naive little Marina. But Marina did not escape the
vitriol either. Another story leaked to the newspapers alleged that she
was not quite right in the head, poor dear. She had earlier gone through a
"personality change" you see. And this had worried her distraught family
so much that they had thoughtfully placed her in a posh private clinic in
Surrey, where she had spent some time having "psychiatric counselling.
"
Being mightily displeased by the suggestion that she was off her rocker,
Marina made an astounding counter attack by going on television and
telling millions of viewers all her problems. The very first British royal
to do that! During the program she cried her heart out and begged her
parents to telephone her, saying: "I want you to stand by me and love
me. I am your child. I want you to understand that this is what I want."
British newspapers had a field day. Some of them lashed out at
Buckingham Palace for being "old-fashioned," whereas others said the
Palace must not knuckle under to permissive attitudes. The papers were
equally divided about Marina. Some described her as "a bewildered and
rather naive young mother-to-be," while others portrayed her as "a
vindictive and manipulative, Royal brat" who had betrayed her class.
When Marina's parents refused to weaken in the face of all this scandal,
she played her trump card and caused another avalanche of bad publicity
by writing a six-page letter to the Queen. Starting it with "Dear Cousin
Lilibet" (Queen Elizabeth's family nickname) shrewd little Marina
begged Her Majesty: "Please help me to save my unborn child." She
rounded this off nicely by alleging that her parents had tried to trick her
into having a secret abortion during "a routine check" with a top Harley
Street doctor.
That did it. Her Majesty the Queen simply could not risk becoming
embroiled in a highly religious controversy involving the royals in an
alleged abortion attempt. So Princess Alexandra took some of the heat

36

out of the explosive issue by denying she had wanted her daughter to
have the unborn baby's life terminated. She said poor little Marina must
be confused. In royal terms, that meant: "She's either mad, or a liar."
For some strange reason, Marina suddenly stopped shooting her pretty
little mouth off in public. Cynics claim she was paid to shut it. But even
then, she still put two fingers up many upper-class noses by moving into
the modest terraced home of her boyfriend's parents who live in the
relatively social backwater of suburban Kingston. This was a most
unusual act for Marina when you know she is twenty-fifth in line to the
English throne! Goodness gracious, whatever next?
Mad Monarchs
http://madmonarchs.guusbeltman.nl/madmonarchs/madmon.htm
This is a series of biographies on the personal lives of history's mad
royals. The absolute power they enjoyed often brought out the worst
features of their character. Many Royals had egocentric, megalomaniac
or paranoid tendencies and their mental states ranged from severe
psychotic and psycho-organic disorders to personality disorders and light
neuroses. Although not all Royals in this series were clinically mad, they
certainly were peculiar.
Kinky Kings of Spain
Juana the Mad of Castile (1479-1555) the Queen who caressed her
husband's remains.
Don Carlos of Spain (1545-1568) the Crown Prince who liked to beat
up girls.
Carlos II "The Bewitched" of Spain (1661-1700) the degenerated
monstrosity on the throne.
Philip V "El Rey Animoso" of Spain (1683-1746) the King torn
between desire and guilt.
Ferdinand VI of Spain (1713-1759) the King who brought peace to his
people but not to his mind.
Melancholic Majesties of Portugal

37

Isabel of Portugal (1428-1496) the Queen who introduced madness into

the Spanish Royal Family.
Afonso VI "The Glutton" of Portugal (1643-1683) a grinning moron on
the throne.
Barbara of Portugal (1711-1758), the Spanish Queen who was afraid to
die in poverty.
See: Ferdinand VI of Spain.
Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816) the Queen who thought she was
already in hell.
Silly Sovereigns of France
Charles VI "The Mad" of France (1368-1422) the kindly King who
turned into a murdering madman.
Charles IX "The Snotty King" of France (1550-1574) the murderous
mother's boy.
Anna de Coligny (1624-1680) the mad Dutchess with her mad
daughters. Latest addition!
"Princess Chubby" Marie Louise of Orlans (1695-1719) the notorious
Duchess of Berry.
Raving Royals of Great Britain
Robert III Stuart of Scotland (1337-1406) the King who left his son on
a tiny, rocky island.
Henry VI "The Mad" of England (1421-1461) the nave fool.
James I & VI of England and Scotland (1566-1625) the wisest fool.
Updated!
"Mad King" George III of Great-Britain (1738-1820), the King in the
strait-jacket.
Vicious Vikings of Scandinavia
Eric XIV Wasa of Sweden (1533-1577) the paranoid King poisoned
with pea soup.
Christian VII of Denmark (1749-1808) the King who let his doctor care
for both his country and his Queen.
Peculiar Princes and Princesses of The Low Countries
Anna Charlotte Amalie of Orange-Nassau (1710-1777) the confused
Countess of Baden-Durlach.

38

Alexander of the Netherlands (1851-1884) the Crown Prince, mother's

darling and recluse.
Charlotte of Belgium (1840-1927) the Empress of Mexico with a
handkerchief in front of her face.
Foolish Frsts of Germany
Anna of Saxony (1544-1577) the moody Princess of Orange-Nassau.
Maria Eleonore of Brandenburg (1599-1655) the Swedish Queen who
clung to her husband's remains.
John George IV of Saxony (1668-1694) the hot-tempered, love-sick
Elector.
Frederick William I of Prussia (1688-1740) the eccentric King who
collected tall soldiers.
Ludwig II "The Swan King" of Bavaria (1845-1886) the recluse who
built fairy-tale castles.
Part I: Ludwig's Youth.
Erratic Emperors of Austria
Rudolf II of Austria (1552-1612) the enlightened Emperor with dark
moods.
Ferdinand of Austria (1793-1875) the Emperor who wanted noodles.
Crazy Caesars of Rome
Gaius "Caligula" of Rome (12-31) the schizophrenic Emperor with the
bad temper.
Nero of Rome (37-68) the Emperor with the mother-complex.
Domitian of Rome (51-96) the Emperor who tortured flies.
Elagabalus "The Sun-God" of Rome (204-222) the narcissistic High
Priest of Baal.
Deranged Dukes of Italy
Pope Urban VI (1318-1389) the Pope who murdered his own
cardinals.
Filippo Maria Visconti of Milan (1392-1447) a cowardly and
suspicious Duke.
Gian Gastone de' Medici of Tuscany (1671-1737) the Grand Duke who
refused to leave his bed.
Isabella of Parma (1741-1763) a lovely Princess preoccupied with
death.

39

Terrible Tsars of Russia

Ivan IV "The Terrible" of Russia (1530-1584) Tsar, rapist and mass
murderer.
Fyodor I "The Bellringer" of Russia (1557-1598) the feeble-minded
Tsar fond of church bells.
Ivan V "The Ignorant" of Russia (1666-1696) the simple-minded Tsar,
ruled by his sister and his wife.
Ivan VI Antonovich of Russia (1740-1764) the baby Tsar who became
a vegetable.
Villain Voivodes of the Balkans
Vlad III the Impaler of Walachia (1431-1476) the Prince who impaled
thousands of people.
Erzsbet of Transylvania (1561-1614) the Countess who bit her
servants.
Sadistic Sultans of Turkey
"Mad" Mustafa I of Turkey (1591-1639) the Sultan fetched from the
Cage.
Murad IV of Turkey (1612-1640) the Sultan who hated women.
"Mad" Ibrahim I of Turkey (1616-1648) the Sultan who drowned his
entire harem.
Rakish Rulers of the Middle East
Safi I of Persia (1610-1642) the murderous Shah addicted to alcohol
and opium.
Nadir Shah Afshar of Persia (1688-1747) the Shah who took the Koh-i
Noor diamond.
Farouk of Egypt (1920-1965) playboy, glutton, kleptomaniac and King.
Appalling Autocrats of Asia
Sado "The Rice-Box Prince" of Korea (1735-1762) the Crown Prince
with the clothes obsession.
Lunatic Leaders in Antiquity
Nabonidus of Babylon (+539 BC) the King who ate grass and imagined
he was a goat.
Copyright Notice

40

All rights reserved.

No part of the Mad Monarch Series of biographies may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise (except for
the inclusion of brief quotations in a review), without prior permission
of the copyright owner, J.N.W. Bos ([email protected]), and a
reference to the author's name and the web site's name and url
(www.madmonarchs.nl, see the FAQ).
Queen Juana I of Castile (1479-1555) is generally known as "Joan the
Mad"1. Despite her nickname, Juana's "madness" has often been
disputed; she may have been locked up for political reasons only. Either
way, she was a passionate woman, who fell madly in love with her
handsome husband and continued to caress him even after his death.
Juana was born on November 6, 1479, as the second daughter of Queen
Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon. Their marriage
had united Spain. Juana was a fretful, ailing baby that slowly developed
into a sullen and timid child. She was prone to moodiness and
melancholy and preferred solitude. Her aloofness was often mistaken for
royal dignity. Juana was well taught by the famous Italian humanists
Antonio and Alessandro Gerardino. She was intelligent, serious,
hardworking and pious and she read a lot of books. She conversed
fluently in Latin, danced gracefully and played clavichord and guitar. In
appearance she resembled her father's mother, the beautiful Juana
Enriquez, but in disposition she resembled her mother's mother, the mad
Isabel of Portugal.
At the age of 16, Juana was betrothed to Philip "The Handsome" of
Austria (1478-1506)2, only son of the Emperor Maximilian I. A fleet
with approximately 22,000 persons accompanied Juana to the Low
Countries in 1496. After a dangerous month at sea with 3 ships sunken,
Juana disembarked suffering from seasickness and a severe cold. Philip
was in no hurry to meet his bride; his sister Margaret welcomed Juana.
When Juana and Philip finally met, however, it waslust at first sight - for
both of them. Although they didn't speak each other's language, they

41

immediately ordered the nearest cleric to wed them then and there. The
cleric was hardly finished before the couple vanished into their bedroom,
flung off their clothes and passionately made love. The next day a
church wedding officially completed the union.
For Philip the attraction to the beautiful, dark haired Juana was carnal
and little more, but Juana became totally infatuated with her husband.
Philip (to the right) had a large nose, long hair and an athletic figure. He
was cheerful with an air of boyish zest, a jovial and gallant "Prince
Charming". His favourite pastimes were archery, the chase, and playing
cards.
At 18, Philip was already ruler of the Low Countries, which he had
inherited from his late mother, Mary the Rich of Burgundy. Still, his life
mainly consisted of feasting, drinking and chasing women - and he had
no intention to change his philandering ways. For Juana, however, only
absolute togetherness would do. She was too young and inexperienced to
realise that she expected too much from a politically arranged marriage.
Philip's flirtations and dalliances made her fly into jealous rages.
Philip was lazy and irresponsible, and he detested arguments. Juana (to
the left) was irritable, haughty, touchy, and moody. Often, she was
depressed and suffered from nervous fainting fits. Each time they had
quarrelled, Philip punished his wife by avoiding her bedroom for days.
Juana would then cry the whole night and bump up against the wall.
Still, despite Philip's flagrant unfaithfulness and the way he was treating
her, Juana remained madly in love with him. In 1498, Queen Isabella I
send an emissary to the Low Countries to question Juana, but she did't
tell him anything. The Spaniard sensed tension and unhappiness in her
and reported to her mother that Juana was too unstable to extend any
Spanish influence in the Low Countries.
Juana was ignorant of the political intrigues around her, and became
completely isolated at court. The women in her entourage were treated
badly and many of them were in actual want, but Juana could not help
them for she was kept short of money herself and Philip did nothing to

42

help. Ultimately, the only Spaniard left was Juana's treasurer, who used
Juana's income to bribe the Flemish. Juana spoke several languages, but
she still felt lonely in an alien country, and she was mistrustful of
everyone. In these circumstances Juana gave birth to Eleanor in 1498
and Charles in 1500. The heir's birth was celebrated with great splendour
and after 12 days he was baptised.
In the period 1497-1500, Juana's elder siblings, Juan and Isabel, and
Isabel's baby son, all died, leaving Juana as heiress of Spain, Mexico,
Peru and the Caribbean islands. Therefor, Juana and Philip were
requested to visit Spain. After the birth of another daughter in 1501, they
finally set out, leaving their children behind in Flanders. They met the
French King in Blois, and didn't arrive in Spain until early 1502. In
Burgos they watched a bull fight. On arrival in Toledo, Juana threw
herself in her father's arms, and hugged and kissed him. Queen Isabella I
(to the right) , however, was too devout and too self-disciplined to feel
much sympathy for either her overwrought daughter or her pleasureloving son-in-law. Due to her mother's chilly treatment, Juana's
nervousness increased. Cheerful Philip found the grim court life in Spain
both tedious and trying. The sequence of religious services seemed
endless, and the summer heat blazed like a furnace. To his abhorrence,
the Spaniards either kept their women hidden or used formidable
chaperones. Philip got the measles, too. Once he was recovered he
wanted to leave as soon as possible, but Juana was pregnant again. After
a violent quarrel in December 1502, Philip left Juana behind. When she
learned of it, she went berserk. Juana wanted to ride after him
immediately, but her mother had her locked up in castle La Mota
(below). Juana lapsed into brooding silences, knowing that Philip, back
in Flanders, would surround himself with buxom beauties.
Castle La Mota
The Spanish Sovereigns hoped that Juana's wild moods and lamentations
were due to her pregnancy, but after little Ferdinand's birth in March
1503, Juana grew more frenzied than ever. She yelled at the servants and
cursed the clerics. She wanted to return to her husband as soon as

43

possible, but she couldn't leave, because hostilities had broken out
between Spain and France. Queen Isabella I, fearing Philip's influence,
insisted that Juana remained in Spain for a time in order to prepare for
Queenship. On a cold November night Juana fled, half-clad, from the
castle. When the city gate closed before her, she threw herself against
the iron bars, while screaming and hurling abuses until exhaustion
overtook her. She fought off all efforts to protect her against the bitter
wind. She even threatened the bishop with death and torture for keeping
her locked up. When her mother arrived, Juana insulted her with foul
language.
Eventually, Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand had to let their daughter
go. Leaving her son Ferdinand behind, Juana returned to Flanders in
April 1504. She found out that Philip had taken a mistress and in a
quarrel Juana cut off the woman's long hair. Philip hit Juana in the face
and she retired to her room, where she remained for several days. Then
Juana began to use love potions and other sorceries, devised by her
Moorish serving maids. In disgust Philip ordered the girls dismissed and
had Juana confined to her room. In protest Juana went on a hunger
strike. A few days later the pair reconciled, but soon more violent
quarrels followed. During her rages, Juana would lash out at the people
around her with a stick.
In November 1504, Isabella I of Castile died and Juana (to the right) was
proclaimed Queen of Castile. Ferdinand II of Aragon asked his officials
to read to the Cortes some notes of the Spanish treasurer in Flanders,
portraying Juana's instability. The worried Cortes named Ferdinand
curator. Both Philip and Ferdinand tried to persuade Juana in handing
over the government to them. Meanwhile, Juana gave birth to a daughter
Mary in 1505. In January 1506, Juana and Philip left for Spain to claim
Juana's inheritance, but during a storm they found safety in English
waters and paid a visit to the English Court and Juana's sister, Catherine
of Aragon3. On arrival in Spain, Philip and Ferdinand used an mediator
to negotiate an arrangement for the government of Castile without

44

consulting Juana. She reacted furiously. Together the men tried to have
Juana declared incompetent to rule.
In September Philip began suffering from chills and a fever. After a few
days he was hardly able to swallow or speak and he sweat a lot. Juana,
pregnant again, stayed constantly at his bedside and cared for him.
Within six days Philip the handsome died at the age of 28. The sudden
death of her beloved husband toppled the delicate mental balance of the
pregnant Queen. She gave way to a storm of grief. She could scarcely
bare to be parted from the corpse and continued to caress it. From then
on Juana wore only black. Many people believed that Philip had been
poisoned by Ferdinand of Aragon, because they had been quarrelling
constantly. Juana, too, may have wondered if her ambitious,
Machiavellian father had poisoned her handsome husband.
Philip's embalmed body was temporarily interred in a monastery near
Burgos. Stories were spread that the Mad Queen had the coffin opened
every night and then embraced her beloved dead. In fact, Juana (to the
right) did have the coffin opened once and then looked at her husband's
remains, but not until five weeks after his death, as a response to
rumours that his body had been stolen. When the wrappers were
removed from the corpse, Juana began kissing its feet. She had to be
removed from the vault with force. When Burgos was struck by a
contagious disease, Juana decided to move to Torquemada. She wanted
to take the coffin with her, because it was en route to Philip's final
resting place, Granada. The coffin was opened for a second time to
ensure that Philip's remains were still there. Thus, Juana had his coffin
carried about on her journeying. It was guarded by an armed escort and
she had ordered that females were to be kept at a distance. She travelled
by night only and during the day they rested in monasteries, deliberately
avoiding nunneries.
When Juana was seized with labour pains on her gloomy procession in
January 1507, she refused the help of midwives and gave birth alone to a
daughter, Catalina. Meanwhile, the coffin was placed in a nearby church

45

before the altar, and Juana jealously ordered that women were forbidden
to come near it. After four months she started out again with the coffin.
When suddenly a storm broke, she refused to take shelter in a nunnery.
Again she had the coffin opened to gaze at the smelling remains of her
once handsome husband. She stopped in a little village and stayed there
for some more months, keeping the coffin with her. When she received
word that her father had returned from Naples, she opened the coffin a
fourth time before she set out to meet her father.
After his return, King Ferdinand had Juana shut away under close watch
in the castle of Tordesillas. Once more, he took over the regency in her
name. Juana's elder children, Charles, Eleonor, Isabella and Mary, had
been left behind in The Netherlands and found a new mother in Philip's
sister, Margaret of Austria. Juana clung desperately to her youngest
daughter as a last relic of her adored husband. She thought her husband
talked to her trough the prattling of her little daughter, and she guarded
her jealously. She let Catalina (to the right) sleep in an alcove that could
be reached only by crossing Juana's own room. The child's only
amusement was to look out of a window, but no one dared to take the
little Princess away from her hysterical mother. Two female servants
kept them company.
Ferdinand, King of Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearics, died
early 1516 without further surviving issue. Juana's son Charles came to
Spain to claim his inheritance and took his sister Eleonor with him. First,
they went to visit their mother in Tordesillas. In a tower overlooking the
river Duero, Juana lived with her daughter Catalina, then 10 years old.
Charles was distressed by the sorry sight of his sister, who wore a
sheepskin jacket, but he, too, left her with his mother4. He wrote to their
guardian: "It seems to me that the best and most suitable thing for you to
do is to make sure that no person speaks with Her Majesty, for no good
could come of it." Juana's food, usually just bread and cheese, had to be
left outside her door, because she refused to eat if anyone were there to
witness it.

46

Juana's madness is disputed, because Juana was clearly a victim of the

power-hungry men around her. Her father, husband, and son all wanted
to rule Castile for her. Their descriptions of her "hysterical tantrums" can
easily be explained by her passionate nature and the ruthless way she
was treated by her loved ones. One wonders if they would have left her
youngest daughter with her, if Juana had really been a dangerous lunatic.
Surely, she was moody, melancholic, hot-tempered, irresolute and
extremely jealous, but those symptoms are not factual proof of madness.
On the other hand, she much resembled her mad maternal grandmother,
Isabel of Portugal, and strange behaviour was a distinct feature of her inbreed descendants. After all those centuries, it is impossible to determine
if Juana merely suffered from a mild personality disorder or that she was
actually mad.
Early 1520, Charles V (to the right) paid another visit to his mother. In
September rebels seized the town of Tordesillas and with it Juana la
Loca. Mistrustful as always, Juana continued to ponder over their
proposals and refused to sign anything. She was "released" by a sudden
counter attack in December, and, again, shut away in the castle of
Tordesillas.
To Juana's dismay, her daughter Catalina finally left to marry her cousin,
King John III of Portugal (1502-1557), around 1525. Agitated and
lonely, Juana was to survive her husband by half a century. Often she
slept at the floor and refused to change clothes. She died on April 13,
1555, at the age of 75. When Charles V was informed of his mother's
death, the tiding induced his melancholy and thoughts of death. It made
him advance the date of his abdication. Crippled with gout, he retired to
prepare for his own departure from life.
Juana and her handsome husband were reunited in death; they were
interred together in the Royal Chapel in Granada.
Copyright 2003, 2009 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes

47

1 Joan the Mad (English), Juana la Loca (Spanish), Johanna die

Wahnsinnige (German), Johanna de waanzinnige (Dutch).
2 Philip didn't receive his nickname "the handsome" until after his death.
Another nickname was "Philippe Croit Conseil", because he did
regularly consult his advisers.
3 Catherine of Aragon was the 1st of the 6 wives of the notorious King
Henry VIII of England.
4 At the age of 18 Catalina was married to her cousin, King Joao III of
Portugal. She was the grandmother of Don Carlos (1545-1568).
Bibliography

Brouwer, dr. J: Johanna de waanzinnige (Een tragisch leven in een

bewogen tijd), Ad. Donker, 1977

Opfel, O.S.: Queens, Empresses, Grand Duchesses and Regents

(Women Rulers of Europe AD 1328-1989), McFarland & Company,
1989

Ralph Lewis, B.: Passion, Polictics and Juana: the Queen who lost
her mind, in: Royalty Magazine, Vol. 11, No. 3, 1991

Gies McGuigan, D.: The Habsburgs, W.H. Allen, 1966

Gring, S.M.: Amor im Hause Habsburg (Eine Chronique

Scandaleuse), Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, 1990

Andics, H.: Die Frauen der Habsburger, Verlag Fritz Molden, 1969

Erlanger, Ph.: Isabel van Castili en Aragon, Hadewijch, 1992

Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower,

1988

Panzer, M.A.: Das Katholische Knigspaar, in: Die spanischen

Knige (18 historische portrts vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart),
Verlag C.H. Beck, 1997

Parkinson Keyes, F.: The Land of Stones and Saints, Peter Davies,
1958

Fernndez Alvarez, M.: Charles V (Elected Emperor and

Hereditary Ruler), Thames and Hudson, 1975

Brenger, J.: A History of the Habsburg Empire 1273-1700,

Longman, 1994

Grierson, E.: The fatal inheritance, Victor Gollancz Ltd, 1969

48

Maesschalck, E. de: De Bourgondische vorsten 1315-1530,

Davidsfonds Leuven, 2008

The composer Verdi made Spanish Crown Prince Don Carlos (15451568) the hero of an opera. In reality, Don Carlos was sadly disturbed. In
his rages he would attack even the highest officials of the Court, while
the only thing he liked to do with girls was to whip them. Finally, his
father decided to take drastic measures..
When 16-year-old Philip II of Spain (1527-1598) married Maria
Manuela of Portugal (1527-1545), his father, the Emperor Charles V,
told him not to overstrain himself: he was not marrying to enjoy sex, but
to produce heirs. The warning seems to have been unnecessary, because
Philip II had always had a cold reserve and a gravity of manner. Within a
few months he was reproached by both his father and his parents-in-law
for treating his young wife coldly. Less than 2 years after the marriage,
Maria Manuela went into labour, but no experienced midwife could be
found. The delivery was very difficult and Maria Manuela survived the
birth of Don Carlos for only 4 days.
Don Carlos was deformed from birth; hunchbacked and pigeon-breasted
with shoulders of uneven height and his right leg considerably shorter
than the left. The crippled child was also retarded and slow in both his
physical and mental development. He was sickly and often had fevers.
He spoke in a high-pitched, girlish voice, and stuttered badly. Don
Carlos may have suffered a brain dysfunction at birth, which can cause
indiscriminately aggressive and impulsively violent behaviour. There
also seems to have been a recurring streak of madness in the Portuguese
Royal Family. Both Don Carlos' mother and grandmother were
Portuguese Princesses. In addition, Don Carlos' parents were double first
cousins. Due to the incestuous marriages of his immediate ancestors,
Don Carlos had only 4 great-grandparents, instead of the usual 8, and

49

two of them were sisters1: Juana "the Mad" and Maria of Castile. At that
time Juana the Mad (1479-1555) was still alive, shut away in the castle
of Tordesillas.
Maria Manuela of Portugal With his mother dead and his father often out
of the country, Don Carlos was lonely and shy and preferred seclusion.
His governess was the pious Leonor de Mascareas, who had previously
been his father's governess. The most important relative in his life was
probably his aunt Joanna (1537-1573), Philip II's youngest sister. But in
1552 she left to marry the Crown Prince of Portugal. She returned after
the death of her husband in 1554, leaving her son Sebastian2 in the care
of his grandparents. A widow at 16, charming and intelligent Joanna
assumed the regency for Philip II during the periods that he was out of
the country. She tried to take care of Don Carlos too, but he rejected the
attempts she made to win him over.
Philip II had been a widower for 9 years, when he married Queen Mary I
of England3 in 1554. Both were religious fanatics; Philip had his
inquisition, while the Queen's prosecution of Protestants in England had
earned her the nickname "Bloody Mary". On his way to the coast Philip
II went fishing, hunting and dining with young Carlos. On his arrival in
England, Bloody Mary adored her 11-year-younger husband with a
girlish ardour, but Philip found Mary physically repellent and
complained of her disgusting odour. In August 1555 he returned to
Spain. In the spring of 1557 he was back in England, but only for a few
months. Mary died in 1558.
Even as a little boy Don Carlos had been difficult. He used to bite in the
breasts of his wet-nurses and it was said that three of them nearly died of
the resulting wound. He finally started talking at the age of five, but it
remained difficult to understand what he said, because he couldn't
pronounce the letters 'r' and 'l'. Young Don Carlos At the age of seven he
was removed from female tutelage. Hardly 9 year old, he tortured little
girls, servants and animals, even maiming the genitals of a dog. During
his father's absence in the 1550s, there was a distinct regression in Don

50

Carlos' behaviour. He was self-willed and obstinate and when he had a

plan in mind, no one could divert him from it. His temper was wild and
unpredictable and it came combined with a kind of shrewd animal
cunning. Once, Don Carlos went into the stable and maimed the horses
so severely that twenty of them had to be destroyed. He was fond of
roasting small animals alive, especially hares. Once he bit the head of a
ring-snake. Eating seemed Don Carlos' other great hobby and this he did
very greedily. Originally short and thin, he began to put on weight as he
grew towards manhood.
In 1555 the Emperor Charles V abdicated, making Philip II King of
Spain. Tired and melancholic, the ex-Emperor retired to a monastery in
Spain. Upon hearing this, Don Carlos got the idea to visit his
grandfather. His governor had great difficulty preventing him from
mounting a horse there and then to go and see him. In May 1556 some
negotiations took place for a betrothal of Don Carlos and his cousin, the
Archduchess Anna (1549-1580). Other proposed brides for Don Carlos
were Mary I, Queen of Scots, and Queen Elizabeth I of England. Joanna,
Dowager Princess of Portugal, had plans to marry her nephew, too.
Another possible bride was Elisabeth of France (1545-1568), who was
of the same age as Don Carlos, but in 1560 Philip II married her himself.
The young Queen was suspected of having an affair with her stepson
Don Carlos, but this seems highly unlikely4.
Don Carlos' tutor admitted to Philip II that there was nothing he could
do to make the Prince learn. Courtiers tactfully argued that "Habsburg
children are always late developers", but as the years went by Don
Carlos still showed little interest in anything except food, wine and
women. In 1562 he was established at Alcal de Henares to attend
lectures at the university. There he developed a passion for the daughter
of one of the servants. It may have been in pursuit of her, that he
stumbled down dark stairs and suffered a great gaping wound in his
head. When he was found, he was unconscious and had to be carried to
his bed. Soon erysipelas set in and he was bled again and again. His
head swelled to enormous proportions and he lost his sight completely. A

51

surgeon performed a trepanning, in vain. Philip II hurried to Alcal,

spent his days and nights in prayer and called in quacks, while Don
Carlos raved in delirium. Then the Franciscan monks brought in their
precious relic, the remains of the holy Fray Diego who had died a
hundred years before. The holy mummy was put in the bed with the sick
Prince. That night Don Carlos dreamed of the blessed Diego, and from
that time his pulse steadied and he gained strength gradually.
After two months, Don Carlos had sufficiently recovered to be able to
walk into the next room, but he was never the same again. He began
exhibiting new signs of derangement. At first, the only results of the fall
were silence and a strange solemnity, alternated with most peculiar and
meaningless questions. Later, his conduct grew increasingly erratic,
violent and sadistic. Notorious were his tantrums and rages.
cousin Rudolf of Austria In the spring of 1564 Don Carlos' cousins
Rudolf (to the right) and Ernst of Austria came to Spain. Their father had
sent his representative, Adam von Dietrichstein, to accompany them and
to revive the plan for a marriage between Don Carlos and the
Archduchess Anna. When Dietrichstein inquired about the marriage,
however, the replies became evasive. Meanwhile, the Austrian
Archdukes discovered that the curbs of the Spanish court etiquette were
even more stringent than the Inquisition itself. Philip II always dined
alone. He did not eat with the Queen except on feast days. The family
passed the summer of 1564 in Aranjuez. Philip II was taken ill with
fever, but his sister Juana and his pretty young wife Elisabeth rode out
hunting with the Austrian Archdukes. In August 1564 Don Carlos finally
met his cousins and together they travelled to Madrid.
For years, Don Carlos' possible impotence had been a subject of
discussion at the Spanish court. The only thing Don Carlos liked to do
with young girls was to whip them. In the account books are records of
money being given to fathers of girls "beaten by order of His Highness".
With the plan of a marriage to the Archduchess Anna in mind, Don
Carlos underwent a "cure" at the hands of physicians and apothecaries

52

and a final test followed. Afterwards, Don Carlos hurried to the Austrian
Dietrichstein to boast that he had passed the test, "and five times over".
The doctors, however, were of the opinion that the results were
inconclusive. The French ambassador wrote that it seemed very unlikely
that the Crown Prince would ever have children and added: "He is
usually so mad and furious that everyone here pities the lot of the
woman who will have to live with him."
In his rages Don Carlos would attack his servants and even the highest
officials of the Court. Throwing himself on one of his staff, he tried to
hurl him out of the window. A shoemaker who presented Don Carlos
with a pair of boots that were not to his liking, was forced to cut up the
boots and eat them. Once Don Carlos flew at the throat of a cardinal,
shrieking with rage, dagger in hand, threatening his life. The cardinal fell
on his knees begging for mercy. Another time he threatened Fernando
Alvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alba5, with his sword. The Duke seized him
roughly by the arm and took the sword away. Incidents like these no
doubt strained the relations between father and son, and Philip II seems
to have become more hostile towards Don Carlos.
King Philip II of Spain In the 1560s, a revolt broke out in the
Netherlands, where Philip II (to the right) was determined to stamp out
Protestantism. Don Carlos dreamed of ruling over the Netherlands. He
tried to borrow money and conceived wild plans to flee to Flanders. He
may even have made contact with some of the Dutch leaders. Philip
planned to make a journey to the Netherlands himself, taking Don
Carlos and his Austrian nephews with him, but when the ships finally
sailed, they carried troops under the Duke of Alba, with orders to
suppress the rebellion. In 1566 and 1567 Queen Elisabeth, who had
always been friendly to her stepson, gave birth to Princesses and Don
Carlos may have felt even more neglected and left out.
The Venetian ambassador noted that Don Carlos was given to appalling
rages and that he was extremely arrogant, but he also spoke of his love
of truth, his religious devotion and his charity. In December 1567 Philip

53

II allowed his 22-year-old heir to preside over the state council, but Don
Carlos turned all the business of the council upside-down. He tried to
involve his illegitimate uncle Don Juan in a plot, but Don Juan informed
the King. Around the same time Don Carlos told his confessor that he
wanted to kill "a man" and everything suggested that this "man" was
Philip II. On January 17, Philip returned to Madrid and immediately held
a meeting with his political and theological advisors. That night, as Don
Carlos lay in bed surrounded by weapons, the door of his chamber
suddenly flew open. By the flickering light of torches, he saw his father
enter with his advisor and confessor. Don Carlos fell on his knees,
begging his father to kill him outright. He was forcibly prevented from
throwing himself into the fire that burned on the hearth. "If you kill
yourself, that will be the act of a madman," his father said coldly. "I am
not mad," Carlos wept, "but desperate." His Aunt Juana and his
stepmother Elisabeth tried to intercede on his behalf, but their attempts
were to no avail. Don Carlos was confined in the tower of Arvalo
castle, where his mad ancestor Isabel of Portugal had ended her days.
The only light in the room came from a window high in the wall.
From that moment on the heir to the throne was to be kept in
confinement, dead to the world. It was forbidden to mention Don Carlos
in conversation or even in prayers. To the Pope, Philip II explained in a
private letter: "It has been God's will that the Prince should have such
great and numerous defects, partly mental, partly due to his physical
condition, utterly lacking as he is in the qualifications necessary for
ruling, I saw the grave risks which would arise were he to be given the
succession." To his Aunt Catherine, Queen of Portugal6, Philip wrote: "I
have been compelled to place my son in strict confinement. [..] This
determination has not been brought about by [..] any want of respect to
me; nor is this treatment of him intended by way of chastisement - for
that, however just the grounds of it, would have its time and its limit. [..]
The remedy I propose is not one either of time or of experience, but is of
the greatest moment [..] to satisfy my obligations to God and my
people."

54

Crown Prince Don Carlos In confinement Don Carlos went on hunger

strikes and was force-fed with soup. Then he started swallowing things even a diamond ring7. His general behaviour became more disturbed. A
process was brought against Don Carlos in which he was not allowed a
defending counsel. On July, 9 1568 the judgement pronounced Don
Carlos guilty of treason for he had plotted the death of his father the
King, and had conspired to become sovereign of Flanders. The penalty,
it said, was death. Philip II said he believed that his son's health was in
such a state that a relaxation of the precautions of his diet would
eventually result in excesses leading to his death. Then Philip II shut
himself away and sat, melancholy and taciturn, in an armchair for days
on end.
Meanwhile, Don Carlos was seized with a raging fever and incessant
vomiting. He poured ice water on the floor of his prison chamber so that
he might lie naked in it. Snow was brought in great vessels. For days he
ate only fruit. Then he asked for a pastry. An enormous, highly spiced
pie was made for him and he devoured it all and drank more than 10
litres of water with it. Afterwards, he became violently ill. When the last
sacrament was administered, he vomited the host. On July, 24 Don
Carlos was dead - poisoned at his father's insistance, it was rumoured.
The French minister wrote that they gave Don Carlos soups that were
prepared primarily in the chamber of Ruy Gmez, who was in charge of
the Prince. According to Antonio Prez, a member of the household of
Ruy Gmez, a slow poison was mixed with the Prince's food.
Elisabeth of France, Queen of Spain It was announced briefly that the
heir to the throne had "died of his own excesses". Philip's young Queen,
22-year-old Elizabeth of France (to the right), grieved so bitterly over
her stepson's death that Philip II forbade her to weep. She was several
months gone with child, the longed-for heir to replace Don Carlos. Early
October she fainted, was bled again and again and gave birth
prematurely. Both mother and child died almost at once. In 1570 Philip
II married his niece, the Archduchess Anna, thus starting a new series of

55

incestuous marriages that would in 1661 result in another monstrous heir

to the Spanish throne: Carlos II.
Copyright 2000, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 In stead of 16 great-great-grandparents, Don Carlos had only 6.
2 Sebastian I of Portugal was Don Carlos double first cousin and he was
unbalanced, too.
3 Bloody Mary was daughter of Catharina of Aragon, a sister of Juana
the Mad.
4 Elisabeth wrote home to her mother that her sexual encounters with
Philip II were very painful.
5 "Alba" is pronounced as "Alva".
6 Catherine, Queen of Portugal, was Don Carlos' maternal grandmother.
7 Don Carlos thought that diamonds were poisonous.
Bibliography
Parker, G.: Philip II, Cardinal, 1979
Gies Mc Guigan, D.: The Habsburgs, W.H. Allen, 1966
Green, V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Sitwel, E.: The Queens and the hive, Appendix D, The Reprint Society
London, 1963
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Milton, J. & Davidson, C.: One family, two empires, Cassel, 1981
Vacha, B.: Die Habsburger (Eine Europische Familiengeschichte),
Verlag Styria, 1993
Grierson, E.: The Fatal Inheritance, Victor Gollancz, Ltd, 1969
Andics, H.: Die Frauen der Habsburger, Verlag Fritz Molden, 1969
Brouwer, J.: Philips Willem (De Spaanse Prins van Oranje), Het
Spectrum.

56

Schwarzenfeld, G. von: Rudolf II (Ein deutscher Kaiser am Vorabend

des Dreiigjrigen Krieges), Verlag Georg D.W. Callwey Mnchen,
1979
Mariotti Masi, M.L.: Bianca Cappello (Een Venetiaanse aan het hof van
de Medici), Fontein, 1986
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Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
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The Kings of Spain descend from Queen Juana "the Mad" of Castile
(1479-1555), who was mentally unstable and prone to fly into rages. Her
descendants increased her inheritance by inbreeding: they preferred to
marry either their cousin or their niece. These incestuous marriages
resulted in the mentally and physically handicapped king Carlos II
(1661-1700), who possessed the physical peculiarities of the Habsburgs
to an extent that made him little short of a monstrosity.
Queen-Mother Marianna The Habsburg King Carlos II of Spain was
sadly degenerated with an enormous misshapen head. His Habsburg jaw
stood so much out that his two rows of teeth could not meet; he was
unable to chew. His tongue was so large that he was barely able to speak.
His intellect was similarly disabled. His brief life consisted chiefly of a
passage from prolonged infancy to premature senility. Carlos' family
was anxious only to prolong his days and thought little about his
education, so that he could barely read or write. He had been fed by wet
nurses until the age of 5 or 6 and was not allowed to walk until almost
fully grown. Even then, he was unable to walk properly, because his legs
would not support him and he fell several times. His body remained that
of an invalid child. The nature of his upbringing, the inadequacy of his
education, the stiff etiquette of his court, his dependence upon his

57

mother and his superstition helped to create a mentally retarded and

hypersensitive monarch.
King Philip IV of Spain had fathered 5 sons in two marriages, but upon
his death in 1665 the 3-year-old Carlos (below left) was the only one
that had survived. He became King of Spain and his Austrian mother
Mariana (above right) assumed the regency, assisted by her favourite
clergyman. In 1675, Carlos was presented with a decree to prolong the
powers of his mother on the grounds of his own incapacity. Carlos
refused to sign the document and he secretly wrote a letter to his bastard
half-brother, Don Juan. Later, he was forced to pay a visit to his mother.
After two hours, he emerged crying from her room. Once and for all
Carlos' act of rebellion had ended.
Young Carlos II Carlos II suffered one further disability, politically more
significant than all the rest: his inability to consummate his marriages
was evident from his birth. Nevertheless, he was married twice. His first
wife was the French Princess Marie Louise of Orlans (1662-1689)1.
When the Sun King informed her of the proposed marriage and added
that he could not have done more for his own daughter, Marie Louise
alledgedly replied: "But you could have done more for your niece!".
Poor Marie Louise was distraught. From the time of her betrothal in July
until her departure for Spain late in September 1679, she spent much of
her time weeping.
Raised in the gaiety of the French court, Marie Louise was suffocated by
the gloomy Spanish Court with its Francophobe courtiers. Marie
Louise's French servants were accused of plotting, her nurse was
tortured, and her French-speaking parrot was strangled. Because it was
forbidden to touch the Spanish Queen, Marie Louise once nearly died
from a fall from a horse; a bold man, who had the courage to rescue her,
escaped as fast as his horse could take him. Her frequent letters to her
father detailed the atmosphere of hostility and isolation in which Marie
Louise lived. In these circumstances, she gave in to gluttony.
Still, Carlos II was font of his wife. For 10 years, the couple struggled in
vain to beget a child. It seems that, although Carlos attempted

58

intercourse, he suffered from very premature ejaculation, so that he was

unable to achieve penetration. Marie Louise confided in the French
ambassador, that "she was really not a virgin any longer, but that as far
as she could figure things, she believed she would never have children".
The French ambassador even managed to get a pair of Carlos' drawers
and had them examined by surgeons for traces of sperm, but the doctors
could not agree about their findings.
2nd wife Maria Ana Marie Louise became increasingly corpulent and
died in February 1689 after 2 days of agony2. Her death made a deep
impression on Carlos; he demanded the opening of the coffins
containing the decaying relics of his predecessors.
Within 3 months, Carlos was remarried to Maria Ana (1667-1740, to the
right) of the fertile Neuburg Line of the Wittelsbach family. She was
exorcised to promote her fertility, but she couldn't cure Carlos' sexual
defects either. Like the Queen-Mother, Maria Ana supported the
Austrian Habsburgs, and amassed a hugh amount of money. Still, like
her predecessor, she let the life of a prisoner. Often she was seen staring
out of the window, which was strictly forbidden to the Queen of Spain.
King Carlos II of Spain Carlos' invalidity could have been caused by a
bone disease, acromegaly, the result of an inherited endocrine
dysfunction. This illness would explain his strange physical appearance,
his over-large head and his impotence. The illness gave rise to fits of
dizziness and what seem to have been epileptic spasms. The description
of the numerous ailments that afflicted him from birth - suppurating
ulcers, diseased bones and teeth, nervous difficulties - can also suggest
congenital syphilis, the quite probable result of his father's frequent
visits to the brothels of Madrid. A serious attack in 1627 and the
syphilitic symptoms marking his final illness sustain the hypothesis of
syphilis. An additional cause of his mental and physical defects can be
found in he fact that his father and mother were uncle and niece and that
their immediate ancestors were freightening closely related, too.
King Carlos II of Spain
Over the years Carlos grew steadily worse. He was lame, epileptic and
bald at the age of 35. His hair had fallen out, his teeth were nearly gone

59

and his eyesight was failing. In 1698 he had three fits and became deaf.
The doctors put freshly-killed pigeons on his head to prevent dizziness
and applied the steaming entrails of mammals to his stomach to keep
him warm, but he died nevertheless. "Many people tell me," Carlos once
said, "I am bewitched and I well believe it; such are the things I
experience and suffer." His death started the War of the Spanish
Succession.
Copyright 1996-2009 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

"People tell me that Princesses are stupid. I wonder that we are not all
idiots."
Princess Eulalia of Spain (1864-1958)
Footnote
1 Marie Louise was a daughter of Philippe of Orlans, the only brother
of Louis XIV the Sun King, and Henriette Anne of Great-Britain. That
Duke of Orlans is described by Louis de Rouvroy (1675-1755), Duke
of Saint-Simon: "He was a potbellied little man, propped up on heels
like stilts; gotten up like a woman with rings, bracelets, and jewels
everywhere; a long wig, black and powdered, spread out in front;
ribbons wherever he could put them; and exuding perfumes of all
kinds...".
2 Marie Louise suffered from abdominal cramps, diarrhea and a feeling
of suffocation. Marie Louise and her mother, Henriette Anne of GreatBritain, may have suffered from the heriditary disease porphyria. For
more information on porphyria see George III of Great-Britain or
Frederick William I of Prussia.

60

Bibliography
Green, V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Erlanger, Ph.: The age of courts and kings (Manners and morals 15581715), Weidenfeld and Nicholson, 1967
Petrie, Ch.: The Spanish royal house, Geoffrey Bles, 1958
Mitfort, N.: The Sun King, Book Club Associates, 1966
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Brenger, J.: A History of the Habsburg Empire 1273-1700, Longman,
1990
Pevitt, Ch.: The Man who would be King (The Life of Philippe
d'Orlans, Regent of France), Quill, 1998
Nichols Barker, N.: Brother to the Sun King (Philippe, Duke of
Orlans), The John Hopkins University Press, 1989 Added!
Ragsdale, H.: Tsar Paul and the question of madness, Greenwood Press,
1988
Gies Mc Guigan, D.: The Habsburgs, W.H. Allen, 1966
Milton, J. & Davidson, C.: One family, two empires, Cassel, 1981
Read, J.: The Catalans, Faber and Faber, 1978
Blitzer, Ch.: Age of Kings, Time-life Books, 1967
Kalnein, Alb. Gr. von: Karl II (1665-1700), in: Die spanischen Knige
(18 historische Portrts vom Middelalter bis zur Gegenwart), C.H. Beck,
1997
Europa in de Gouden Eeuw, series: 7000 Jaar Wereld-Geschiedenis,
Lekturama, 1977.
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Vermaas. Info: FAQ or RSS Feed.
Philip V "El Rey Animoso" of Spain (1683-1746) was a grandson of
Carlos II's half-sister, Marie Thrse, and Louis XIV "the Sun King" of
France. From his father's side Philip had inherited the insatiable sexual
appetite of the Bourbons1. His mother was a Wittelsbach and from her

61

he inherited melancholia, at times amounting to madness, and an

indulgence in long periods of seclusion, which have marked some
members of that family from generation to generation. Philip
experienced intermittent attacks of manic depression, which made it
impossible for him to govern effectively or even, on occasions, at all. He
was a sombre, serious-minded and devout man, cold, silent, sad and
sober, knowing no pleasure except hunting, solitary and retiring by
preference and habit and fearful of society. He had a suspicious nature,
distrustful of everyone. Philip lacked confidence in himself. In France he
had undergone a deliberately repressive education, encouraging docility,
because he was a younger son; Philip had been trained not to be King.
In 1700 his illustrious grandfather placed young Philip on the vacant
Spanish throne. His accession was contested by the Austrian Archduke
Charles (1685-1740) in the War of the Spanish Succession. In 1703 it
seemed as if Andaluca was at the mercy of the English, and it was due
to the Queen's enthusiasm that the province rose in arms. The Archduke,
supported by the Catalans, entered Madrid in 1705, but in 1707 Philip
regained possession of the Kingdom of Aragon. Philip's energy in
rallying the people of Castile to the defence of his crown earned him the
title of 'animoso' or 'the inspired'. The turning point came with the death
of the Austrian Emperor in 1711 and the subsequent election of the
Archduke as Emperor Charles VI. It wasn't until 1713 that the Treaty of
Utrecht was signed and Philip was universally recognised as king of
Spain.
Philip V of Spain The continual physical possession of a woman was a
necessity to Philip, but he combined it with an abnormally scrupulous
conscience, so that he spurred inappropriately and continuously from his
confessor's closet to his wife's bed. When Philip had married his first
wife, the 14-year-old Marie Louise of Savoy (1688-1714), she kept him
waiting for two nights to teach him an early lesson. Nevertheless, she
momentarily diverted him from his serious routine, inducing him to play
games like 'hide and seek' and the 'cuckoo game'. His first separation
from her during his Italian campaign in 1702 put a severe strain upon

62

both his physical and mental health, but the conscious Philip refused to
take a mistress. He rushed back to Spain to become - in the eyes of most
observers - the slave of his wife. Philip kept Marie Louise at his side day
and night to such an extent that their bodily functions were made to
synchronise. However, four pregnancies, the strain of the war years, the
agonies, the sleepless nights and the icy rooms proved too much for
Marie Louise. Doctors filed pompously past the dying Queen and
examined her from a distance, because etiquette forbade them to touch
the Queen. Philip V was both the most affectionate and the least
considerate of husbands; until the last minute he wanted to enjoy those
delights, which he could not know again for a long time, without
sinning. He had to be torn from her deathbed2.
The widower shut himself up in the palace of Medina Coeli. He wept
and waited eagerly to replace Marie Louise, for his health could no more
be satisfied with his celibate life than his conscience would permit him a
mistress. Philip's sexual and psychological peculiarities were well
known in diplomatic circles and as soon as Marie Louise died the
chancelleries of Europe set to work to find a new Queen of Spain. After
seven months Philip married Elisabeth Farnese of Parma (1692-1766)
and fell under the influence of this domineering woman. She kept Philip
entirely to herself and made him inaccessible to everyone else. Elisabeth
used Philip's sexual demands as a means of bargain and control to
establish her ascendancy over him. Her refusal aroused his anger; he
shouted and threatened, sometimes did worse. She held firm, wept, and
on occasion defended herself. Thus she became the real ruler of Spain.
Not once in thirty years did Philip V leave her. Elisabeth even
accompanied him on his hunting and shooting expeditions - wearing
men's clothes - and in the military campaign of 1719. She was never
popular to her new subjects, but she was utterly indispensable to her
husband.
Spain had lost all her Italian possessions through the Treaty of Utrecht,
and - since Philip had sons by his first wife - it was the aim of Elisabeth
Farnese to regain these for her children. In due course she obtained the

63

throne of Naples and Sicily for her eldest son, Charles3, and the Duchies
of Parma and Piacenza for her second son, while a third son would
become archbishop of Toledo at the age of 12. She reigned by the rule of
favourites and the first was the Italian Julio Alberoni, who had
recommended her to the King.
Philip increasingly fell victim to a deep melancholia from which it was
difficult to arouse him. The first serious attack occurred in 1717, when
Alberoni reported symptoms of hysteria verging on madness. Philip
complained that he felt as if a fierce internal fire was consuming him, as
if the sun was sending a piercing ray to the very centre of his body.
Philip shut himself up in his room with only the Queen for comfort,
though even she could become an outcast if she refused his slightest
whim and especially his sexual demands. Only his confessor was
welcome from the outside, because Philip was convinced that he was
dying in mortal sin. His hypochondriacal delusions and his belief that
"disasters were a divine punishment for his personal inadequacies" are
symptomatic of a manic depression. In 1718 he recovered sufficiently to
resume his public duties, but he was an unexpectedly aged man with a
shrunken body and a pronounced stoop. In 1722 Louis de Rouvroy
(1675-1755), Duke of Saint-Simon, met him and wrote: "He was very
bent, shrunken, his chin poked far in advance of his chest; he planted his
feet straight, touching one another, and though he moved quickly
enough, his knees were more than a foot apart. His speech was so
formal, his words so drawled, his expression so vacuous, that I was quite
unnerved."
In January 1724 Philip V astonished everybody when he announced his
decision to abdicate in favour of his eldest son, Louis I (1707-1724). His
melancholia, low self-esteem and religious scruples made Philip believe
that he was incapable of ruling well. Possibly, he felt obliged to
withdraw and live a life of retreat in preparation of eternity. At the
moment of his abdication he said: "Thank God I am no longer a King,
and that the remainder of my days I shall apply myself to the service of
God and to solitude". However, in August the 17-year-old Louis died

64

suddenly from smallpox and Elisabeth Farnese persuaded Philip to

resume the crown.
Philip V of Spain Philip's day, like that of his grandfather the Sun King,
was well ordered. From the early 1730s, he imposed an eccentric
timetable on the court, which remained unchanged for the rest of his
reign. The King went to bed about 8 o'clock in the morning, rising at
midday to have a light meal. At 1 o'clock he dressed and went to mass,
then received visitors, and spent the evening looking out of the window,
playing with his clocks, or being read to, until it was time for a musical
or theatrical entertainment. After midnight, usually around 2 o'clock, he
called in his ministers to transact business, until 5 o'clock in the
morning, when supper was taken with the windows closed.
Periodically, Philip V was afflicted by fits of manic depression. He was
seriously ill in the spring of 1727, at times lethargic, sometimes
passionate and excitable, acting violently towards his doctors. At times,
he lost his head completely, biting his arms and hands; at night he
screamed, shouted and sang. When the Queen tried to curb his religious
devotions, he responded by violent abuse and beatings. The Queen was
covered in bruises, while the King screamed and sang and bit himself.
He suffered from delusions, believing that he could not walk because his
feet were of different size. For a while, he believed he had turned into a
frog. He spent entire days in his bed in the middle of his excretions,
refusing to have his hair or toenails cut or his beard shaved. Pen and
paper were kept out of his reach, because an impulsive abdication was
feared 4.
For a time Philip V returned to a semi-normal life, allowing himself to
be shaved for the first time in 8 months. By August 1732 he once more
retired to bed. He would not even rise to have his meals and was again
careless of his appearance; he didn't change his clothes in nineteen
months. He refused to see ministers or sign documents, leaving Spain
without government. In the Spring of 1733, Ferdinand (1713-1759), a
son of Philip's first marriage, managed to persuade Philip to be shaved

65

and to have his linen changed. That summer his depression changed into
the frenzied activity of mania. Fearing Ferdinand's influence, Elisabeth
Farnese persuaded Philip to issue an order forbidding Ferdinand and his
wife to appear in public or receive foreign diplomats. Elisabeth Farnese
now completely dominated her passive husband, and in the following
years she tried to interest him in music and other diversions to alleviate
his melancholia, at the same time ensuring that he knew of policy only
what she wanted him to know. In 1738 Philip's mental instability
reappeared. Philip made frightful howlings and all possible means were
taken to prevent people from being witness to his follies. These repeated
bouts of manic depression were finally brought to an end by a stroke on
July 9th, 1746.
Copyright 1996-2006 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 When Madame de Maintenon was seventy-five and Louis XIV was
seventy, she told her confessor that it tired her very much to make love
with him twice a day. "These painfull occasions", she said, were really
too much for her.
2 Philip did not attent his wife's funeral; he was out hunting.
3 In addition Charles became King of Spain in 1759.
4 In 1728 Philip managed to get hold of pen and paper and send a note
to the president of the council of Castile announcing his abdication, but
Elisabeth Farnese recovered the note in time.
Bibliography
Erlanger, Ph.: The age of courts and kings (Manners and morals 15581715), Weidenfeld and Nicholson, 1967
Lynch, J.: Bourbon Spain 1700-1808 (A history of Spain), Basil
Blackwell, 1993
Mitfort, N.: The Sun King, Book Club Associates, 1966
Petrie, Ch.: The Spanish royal house, Geoffrey Bles, 1958
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988

66

Green, V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Jargreaves-Mawdsley, W.N.: Eighteenth-Century Spain (1700-1788),
MacMillan Press Ltd, 1979
Read, J.: The Catalans, Faber and Faber, 1978
Pevitt, Ch.: The man who would be King (The Life of Philippe
d'Orlans, Regent of France), Quill, 1997
Recommended Reading
Kamen, H.: Philip V of Spain (The King who Reigned Twice), Yale
University Press, 2001
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Ferdinand VI of Spain (1713-1759), Philip V's son and successor,
suffered from a similar mental illness as his father. He was moody,
uxorious, suspicious and irresolute, and he went about daily in
apprehension of a sudden violent death. His ugly wife, Barbara of
Portugal (1711-1758), was also neurotic and subject to melancholia, but
she was indispensible to her husband. Her death finally drove Ferdinand
to complete lunacy.
Ferdinand was born on September 23, 1713, in the Bourbon Royal
Family, as the 3rd surviving son of Philip V of Spain (1683-1746) and
Maria Luisa of Savoy (1688-1714). His birth weakened his mothers
already delicate health, and she died the following February. His father's
second wife, Elizabeth Farnese, completely ignored Ferdinand, caring
only for her own children. Ferdinand's elder brothers, Luis and Philip,
died respectively in 1724 and 1719, leaving Ferdinand Crown Prince of
Spain. In 1728, Ferdinands prestige increased for a while, when his
father had a severe episode of mental illness and an impulsive abdication

67

was feared. Elizabeth Farnese, however, was continually inciting

animosity between Ferdinand and her own eldest son, Carlos (17161788). As a result, Ferdinand developed a neurotic and reserved
character.
Ferdinand married at the age of 15, and it was thought by many that he
had to sacrifice his feelings to diplomacy in marrying the 17-year-old,
pockmarked Maria Teresa Barbara of Portugal (1711-1758). At the first
sight of his bride-to-be, Ferdinand had made a terrible face, but soon he
came to be very fond of his wife and by 1732 he depended completely
upon her. Barbaras mouth was large and her lips were thick. She had
much spirit, vivacity, and understanding and expressed herself
gracefully. Unfortunately, the Royal House of Bragana was not free of
mental disturbances either; Barbara and Ferdinand were both neurotic
and subject to melancholia. Ferdinand had a short and stocky body, and,
like his father, he was oversexed. Hargreaves-Mawdsley suggests that
Ferdinand may have suffered from priapism, a painful state of prolonged
erection. It is, however, more likely that Ferdinand had inherited the
insatiable sexual appetite of the Bourbons1.
The couple's position at court was very precarious. Ferdinand and
Barbara were shunned by the entire court, and they were not allowed to
leave their quarters, except for important official ceremonies, like the
ceremonial transfer of an urn with the remains of a medieval King
Ferdinand to a silver tomb in the cathedral of Seville in May 1729.
When Philips madness returned in the summer of 1732, Ferdinand was
included in a regency council. Philip refused to talk, except to say a few
words to his wife and to Ferdinand. His silence, he said, was because he
was really dead and, therefore, could not speak. In the Spring of 1733,
Ferdinand finally managed to persuade Philip to be shaved and to have
his linen changed. That summer, Philips depression changed into the
frenzied activity of mania.
Ferdinand VI Ferdinand VI el Discreto (to the right) was proclaimed
King of Spain and the Indies on August 10, 1746, at the age of 32. It was

68

said that "Queen Barbara had succeeded Queen Elizabeth". The new
King was of no particular ability, but Spain at least had a King born in
Spain and served by Spaniards. While being Crown Prince, his
domineering stepmother had always excluded Ferdinand VI from policy
making and kept him out of public affairs. The French ambassador
reported: He is in no way acquainted with affairs in general or
particular. Luckily, Ferdinand had the wisdom to recognise his
limitations and put affairs in the hands of his wife and able ministers.
Barbara of Portugal was no Elizabeth Farnese; she strongly supported
the diplomacy of neutrality. The new conjuncture of peace, reform and
good luck placed unprecedented revenue at Ferdinand's disposal. He
designated large sums for charity, as in the hot summer of 1750, when he
cancelled taxes in drought-stricken Andaluca, and in 1755, after the
Lisbon earthquake. He endeared himself to the people with his kindness
and tact.
Alas, Ferdinand's magnanimity did not stop Elizabeth Farnese from
complotting against him, so he sent her in retirement to San Ildefonso.
There, she eagerly awaited the moment that Ferdinand should die and
her son Carlos could succeed to the Spanish throne.
Ferdinand VI was good-natured, shy, indolent, hesitant and irresolute.
Regularly, he had terrible rages, followed by melancholic moods and a
complete loss of self-confidence. King Ferdinand and Queen Barbara
present Farnelli with the Cross of Calatrava Ferdinand found respite
from his depressions in plays and the opera. He founded the Academia
de San Fernando de Bellas Artes in Madrid. Besides the arts, Ferdinand,
like all Bourbons, was also interested in the hunt. Usually, the animals
were driven together for a royal slaughter. Following a good days
hunting, the Spanish court would retire to the riverside for a musical
evening. The monarchs relaxed under a red velvet pavilion with silver
trim. Among the boats on the river were ships in the shape of a peacock
and a deer.
the castrate-singer Farinelli Queen Barbara had a love for ostentation
and luxury and became extremely corpulent. Since her youth, she had
been trained by the composer Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757) and as a

69

result she could sing with merit, play the harpsichord and even compose.
Scarlatti had followed her to Spain, where he became the court music
master. Barbara and Ferdinand were also patrons of the castrate-singer
Farinelli (1705-1782, to the left). He had earlier been employed by
Elizabeth Farnese and Philip V, but he had always remained on friendly
terms with the heir to the throne. The royal couple liked to sail from
Aranjuez down the river Taag with Farinelli singing for them. The
Queen would often accompany him on the harpsichord. Gradually,
Farinelli gained a great ascendancy over both Ferdinand and Barbara,
but he was not politically interested and never misused his position,
refusing all bribery attempts. In 1750, he was awarded with the Order of
Calatrava (above right).
Ferdinand was also influenced by his confessor, Francisco Ravgo.
During his reign, the role of the Spanish Inquisition was diminished, but
the old Habsburg censorship laws were reinstated in 1752.
On July 16, 1748, part of the Summer Palace of Aranjuez burned down.
Ferdinand had it rebuild with a special room included for small opera
performances. During Ferdinands reign, three royal astronomical
observatories were founded. The mines both in Spain and America were
reopened with a royal share in the profits. Roads and irrigation were
improved and the state finances were reorganised, increasing the
revenues.
In 1750, Ferdinand arranged the marriage of his youngest half-sister,
Antonia (1729-1785), to Victor Amadeo, heir to the throne of Sardinia2.
Ferdinands youngest half-brother, Luis Antonio (1727-1785), had been
appointed Archbishop of Toledo at the age of 12. In 1754, Ferdinand
indulgently let him relinquish his ecclesiastical dignities for the
pleasures of the flesh. Ferdinand also paid off the exorbitant
expenditures of his half-brother Felipe (1720-1765)3, who was finally
recognised as Duke of Parma in 1748.
Barbara of Portugal Barbara of Portugal (to the right) spent much of her
time in a state of neurosis. Like her husband, she went about daily in
fear of sudden death, which her corpulence and asthmatic tendency may

70

have encouraged. She was also fearful that, if her husband died before
her, she would be plunged into poverty. In reality she accumulated a
fortune far in excess of her own needs and by her will she gave it all to
her brother, Joseph I of Portugal. She established a convent in Madrid
where she wanted to retire as a widow. It was opened in September
1757, but by that time her coughing had increased. Soon afterwards, she
took to bed suffering terrible pain. As the months passed, boils broke out
over her whole body. Near the end, she could hardly breathe, and her
once corpulent body had shrunken to a hardly more than a carcass.
Ferdinand refused to be separated from her even during the last stages of
her illness. Queen Barbara died on August 27, 17584.
So close had the royal couple become, that the loss of his wife drove
Ferdinand to complete lunacy. Having never considered any woman
other than his ugly wife, he was thrown into a frenzy by suggestions of
remarriage. He abandoned the capital and settled in the monastery of
Villaviciosa, refusing to see anyone or sign official documents. For days,
he would not speak, at other times he screamed, threw things, and stuck
out at his entourage. When Farinelli came to try the magic of his voice,
Ferdinand put his hands over his ears.
Ferdinand became a danger to himself and others. He imagined that his
body was being destroyed from within. His fits of rage were increasingly
violent, often banging his head against the wall. After an outbreak like
that, he would collapse and become inert. In his rare, lucid intervals he
would only discuss his illness. For a time, he refused to lie down,
because he imagined that he would die, if he did so. Then, he begged for
poison, tried to commit suicide with a pair of scissors and tried to hang
himself with knotted napkins and draperies. He would go without sleep
for ten days on end, wandering wildly around his apartments without
any covering but his nightshirt, and then for days he would refuse to
leave his bed, making in his bed all his excrement, which he threw at
those who served him. He did not want to be washed, shaved, dressed
or fed, taking soup only. Ferdinand lingered on in this state of depression
for a year. Near the end, he refused to eat altogether and became thinner

71

and thinner. He died in a convulsive fit in the midst of his own

excrement on August 10, 1759.
Copyright 1998-2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 The Bourbons sexual peculiarities were notorious:
a Louis XIV of France (1638-1715), Ferdinands great-grandfather,
had, even at the age of 70, twice a day sex with his wife.
b Philip V of Spain (1683-1746), Ferdinands father, was persuaded
only with considerable difficulty to forsake his wifes bed the night
before she died. She died from tuberculosis, but it was whispered that
she was exhausted by the physical importunities of her oversexed
husband.
c Don Felipe (1747-1777), eldest son of Ferdiand's half-brother Carlos,
was a lunatic, who sexually assaulted any woman with whom he came in
contact.
2 When their sister, Maria Theresa, died in 1746, Ferdinand had tried to
marry Antonia to her sisters widower, the French dauphin, but Louis
XV of France had declined the offer.
3 Felipe was the father of Isabella of Parma (1741-1763).
4 The opening of her will destroyed Barbaras popularity, because she
had accumulated a fortune and left it to her brother, Pedro (1717-1786),
who was to marry his niece, the Mad Queen Maria I of Portugal (17341816).
Bibliography
Green, V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Bergamini, J.D.: The Spanish Bourbons (The History of a Tenacious
Dynasty), G.P. Putnams Sons, New York, 1974
Jargreaves-Mawdsley, W.N.: Eighteenth-Century Spain (1700-1788),
MacMillan Press Ltd, 1979
Petrie, Ch.: The Spanish Royal house, Geoffrey Bles, 1958
Lynch, J.: Bourbon Spain 1700-1808 (A history of Spain), Basil
Blackwell, 1993
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988

72

Barbier, P.: Farinelli (Het leven van een castraatzanger), Van Gennep,
1996
Pieper, R.: Ferdinand VI (1746-1759), in: Die spanischen Knige (18
historische Portrts vom Mittelalte

Melancholic Majesties of Portugal

Isabel of Portugal (1428-1496) introduced madness into the Spanish
royal family. Among her immediate descendants were Juana the Mad
(1479-1555) and Don Carlos (1545-1568). As a young girl, Isabel was
married to a husband twice her age. She fought with his favourite for his
affections, but she couldn't enjoy her victory for long..
Isabel of Portugal was a cousin of King Afonso V of Portugal. Her father
was Prince Joao of Portugal (1400-1442), Duke of Beja, who had
married Isabel of Braganza, a daughter of his illegitimate half-brother. In
1447 Isabel of Portugal appeared on the stage of history, when King
Juan II of Castile (1405-1454) was looking for a bride. Juan II was not a
typical medieval warrior King; he was more interested in literature and
had surrounded himself with the best writers and poets of the time. In
1445 his first wife, Mary of Aragon, had died. Juan had an adult son
Henry (1425-1474), who was married to Blanca of Navarra (1420-1464).
For seven years their marriage had remained unconsummated and Henry
was generally known as "El Impotente". Therefore, Juan II contemplated
a second marriage. His constable and childhood friend, Alvaro de Luna,
proposed Isabel. The Pope gave a dispensation of consanguinity and
Juan II and his court went down to Madrigal de las Altas Torres to meet
Isabel. The wedding took place on July 22.
Fourty-two-year-old Juan II was bewitched by his young bride, several
years younger than his own son. Isabel, however, was less happy. She
was a beautiful young girl with dark eyes. Like many other Portuguese
Princesses, she was inclined to melancholia. She was also headstrong,

73

jealous, ambitious and possessive. It was bad enough for her to have
Alvaro de Luna constantly around, but it was really insufferable that his
dictates extended into the bedroom. On the pretext of the King's health,
De Luna even tried to set the hours and limits of their couplings! But
Isabel did not want to share her husband, let alone the throne. Soon a
struggle for power developed between Juan's wife and his favourite. De
Luna had been faced with powerful enemies before, but this one was
different; a lovely Queen, all smiles, using caresses and whispered pleas
in bed. The timid King, torn between old friendship and new passion,
was slowly yielding to Isabel's amorous persuations.
Juan II of Castile On April 22, 1451, after a hard confinement, Isabel
gave birth to a daughter, named Isabel after her mother. Afterwards
Queen Isabel fell ill and plunged into "profunda tristeza". She shut
herself up, sat motionless and staring. During her depressions she
refused to speak to anyone but the King. The strain of childbirth had left
her a nervous invalid. Tiring her husband with her hysterical tantrums,
she finally managed to convince him to get rid of De Luna and they
involved Alonso Prez de Vivero in the plot. When De Luna found out,
he murdered Prez in a fit of frenzy. Isabel could now easily persuade
Juan (to the right) to order De Luna's arrest for murder. He was
executed.
On November 15, 1453 Isabel gave birth to another heir, Alfonso.
Around that time Juan's health declined rapidly. He could often be found
weeping, some say for the death of his loyal friend De Luna. In July
1454 he took to his bed for the last time and Henry the Impotent was
hastily summoned.
Henry the Impotent Henry (to the right) was a youth with protuberant
eyes and a wide flat nose. He had divorced his wife in 1453 on the
grounds that their marriage had never been consummated. He claimed he
had never achieved "crpula carnal" with the Princess and that he was
not similarly incapacitated with other women. It was assumed to be the
result of a supernatural spell, a medieval concept for a psychological
block. Blanca added that she had never offered the slightest hindrance to

74

the marital act. She was subjected to a humiliating investigation by a

pair of married matrons of high standing and conscience, who concluded
that she was still a virgin. In addition, a priest was sent to the brothels of
Segovia to investigate the sexual habits of the Crown Prince. What the
girls there told him, left no doubt of Henry's sexual prowess. It is
possible that Henry felt more at ease with women of the streets than with
his aristocratic wife. On the other hand, prostitutes who sell their body
could easily have been bribed to give a false testimony. A German
physician, Hieronymus Mnzer, who examined Henry, later wrote: "His
penis was thin and weak at the base, but huge at the head, with the result
that he could not have an erection." Impotent or not, Henry had not
given up hope for an heir and in 1455 he married Isabel's cousin, the gay
and coquettish Juana of Portugal (1439-1475), a sister of King Alfonso
V. With her Henry continued his desperate efforts. The couple even tried
some form of artificial insemination. However, his second wife
remained intact too.
Arvalo Castle After his accession to the throne, Henry sent his young
stepmother Isabel and her two little children to the austere and gloomy
castle of Arvalo (to the right). Isabel, who was used to living in
luxurious palaces, was now forced to a frugal life due to her
parsimonious stepson. Although still in her 20s, Isabel was so virtuous a
widow that she never allowed herself to be left alone with a man. Thus,
she lived in a state of great seclusion and depression all the time and
over the years her mental abilities gradually deteriorated. Around 1452
her daughter Isabel was taken from her care and sent to a convent in
Avila to continue her education there.
At court the dashing Beltrn de la Cueva had become the favourite of
both the King and Queen. Then, in 1461, the unbelievable happened:
Queen Juana was pregnant. She gave birth to a daughter called Juana
after her mother. She is better known as "La Beltraneja", because many
believed that Don Beltrn was her real father. After the birth Don Beltrn
received the title of Count of Ledesma. Despite the rumours, King Henry
IV tried to keep up the appearance of a proud father. The crude attempts

75

at artificial insemination could have resulted in a pregnancy, but Henry

too, must at least have had doubts about that. Around that time Young
Isabel and Alfonso, who had kept their unhinged mother company for
years, were invited at court. Left behind in Arevlo, Isabel of Portugal
withdrew still further into the shadows of melancholia, until her mind
gave way completely. She recognised no one and in the end she didn't
know who she was. Often she was fleeing up and down the dark stairs of
the castle tower pursued by ghostly voices calling De Luna's name.
Henry's former favourite, Juan Pacheco, Marquis of Villana, became
increasingly jealous of the favours bestowed on Don Beltrn. In 1465 he
and other disgruntled Grandees started a civil war, declaring Isabel's
eleven-year-old son Alfonso King. On the pretext that Alfonso went to
visit his mother, they seized the castle of Arvalo and garrisoned it with
their own men. In August 1567 a great battle was fought near Olmedo.
Henry was nowhere to be found, while his wife had fled with La
Beltraneja to Segovia. In July 1468 fourteen-year-old Alfonso was
suddenly taken ill. He died after a few days. In September Henry and
young Isabel met for a reconciliation. Henry received homage from the
nobles and young Isabel was recognised as the heir to the throne, thereby
disinheriting La Beltraneja. Queen Juana angrily left her husband, took a
lover and gave birth to two additional children.
Isabel I of Castile In 1469, when young Isabel (to the right) was
threatened with confinement by her half-brother Henry IV, she pretended
to go and visit her mother in Arevlo, but instead travelled to Valladolid,
where she secretly married Crown Prince Ferdinand of Aragon. When
Henry died in 1474, Young Isabel was crowned as Queen Isabel I and in
the following civil war she and Ferdinand defeated La Beltraneja and her
suitor, Afonso V of Portugal. As Queen, Isabel I continued to supervise
her mother's care. In 1496 tidings reached her that her mother was dying.
A last time she returned to Arvalo. It had been years since the poor,
deranged woman had recognised her daughter. This time Isabel of
Portugal had covered her face, so that no one could look at her. She was

76

buried at the Monastery of Miraflores, near Burgos, where her husband,

Juan II, and her son, Alfonso, were entombed, too.
Copyright 2001, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Bibliography
Miller, T.: Henry IV of Castile, Victor Gollancz Ltd, 1972
Parkinson Keyes, F.: The Land of Stones and Saints, Peter Davies, 1958
Erlanger, Ph.: Isabel van Castili en Aragon, Hadewijch, 1992
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Livermore, H.V.: A new history of Portugal, Cambridge University
Press, 1976
Crow, J.A.: Spain: The Root and the Flower (A History of the
Civilization of Spain and of the Spanish People), Harper & Row
Publishers.
Panzer, M.A.: Das Katholische Knigspaar, in: Die spanischen Knige
(18 historische portrts vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart), Verlag C.H.
Beck, 1997
Louda, J. & MacLagan, M.: Lines of Succession (Heraldry of the Royal
Families of Europe), Orbis Publishing, 1981
Thiele, A.: Erzhlende genealogische Stammtafeln zur europischen
Geschichte, Band II-1, R.G. Fischer Verlag, 2000
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The mentally and physically handicapped King Afonso VI The

Glutton of Portugal (1643-1683) is described as a grinning moron.
His mode of dress consisted of six or seven coats one over the other and
three or four hats perched one on top of the other. Afonso preferred wild

77

pastimes, and used to pay surprise visits to nunneries to make love to the
nuns. Instead of rising to attend mass in the chapel, Afonso requested the
chaplain to celebrate it in his bedroom, while he snoozed between the
sheets. He had fixed a very short time limit for sermons anyway. After
his marriage, Afonso neglected his ambitious wife, who soon conspired
to have him dethroned.
Portugal had been an independent Kingdom until 1580, when the main
royal line became extinct, and the country was occupied by Spain for 60
years. After a swift coup, Joao of Bragana (1604-1656) was proclaimed
King Joao IV of Portugal in 1640. The Duke of Bragana had stayed on
his estate, while others completed the coup for him. Joao descended in
the male line from an illegitimate son of King Joao I The Great of
Portugal (1358-1415), and in the female line from King Manuel I of
Portugal (1469-1521). The new King soon became depressed, possibly
as a result of the strain of the government and the insecurity of
Portugals independence. An attempt on his life by an assassin, paid by
Spain, aggravated his mental condition. In 1647, Joao proposed to
abdicate and retire to the Azores, but the plan was never carried out.
With his wife, Luisa de Guzmn of Medina Sidonia (1613-1666), Joao
had 5 surviving children, but both Theodsio (1634-1652) and Joana
(1636-1653) died as teenagers. Their undisciplined younger brother, 10year-old Afonso, shed no tears, but exclaimed jubilantly: Hurrah! Now
I shall be King of Portugal. Three years after the death of his eldest son,
King Joao, suffering from kidney-stones and the family affliction of
gout, died on November 6, 1656.
Afonso was proclaimed King Afonso VI, and his capable Spanish
mother assumed the regency. Luisa de Guzmn vigourously pursued the
war against Spain, and succeeded in marrying off her only surviving
daughter to the English King1. King Joao had not appointed tutors to his
younger sons, Afonso and Pedro (1648-1706), but had kept them by him.
Now their mother appointed Francisco de Faro to instruct Afonso.
Although he spent most of his time in riding, and watching dog-, cockand bull-fights, Afonso did at least learn to read and write.

78

Luisa de Guzmn with the white streak in her hair Alfonso VI was born
on August 21, 1643. An illness at the age of 3, possibly a form of
poliomyelitis, left him partially paralysed in the right side. It may also
have affected his understanding. A disfigured foot made him limb. He
grew up as a vicious, unpleasant moron, who savagely killed animals for
his pleasure. Looking out of the palace windows, Afonso used to watch
the street boys throwing stones and fighting in the streets. One day, he
had spotted Antonio Conti, who offered him knifes and toys, and
persuaded him to join their games. Thus, Afonso and Antonio became
friends. Their favourite game was boxing, and one day the King was
found with a swollen and bleeding nose. His mother tried to wean him
from these wild pastimes, and forbade Antonio Conti to enter the palace.
Deprived from Antonios company, Afonso became completely
unmanageable, and refused to eat food. Thus, his attendants gave way,
and allowed Antonio Conti to return. He soon established himself in a
room next to Afonso, and began to lead the King off on nightly
excursions, attacking respectable citizens, and raiding taverns. Groups of
street boys streamed through the palaces anti-chambers, and arranged
dog-fights on the palace grounds. Soon Antonio Conti assumed all the
airs of a royal favourite. Afonso invested him with the Order of Christ,
and made Antonios younger brother an Archdeacon. He also bestowed
honours and emoluments on Antonios companions, too.
In June 1661, Luisa de Guzmn (to the right)2 had the favourite arrested,
and put on a ship for Brazil. Afonso was furious. With the help of his
attendants, 17-year-old Afonso declared that his minority had ended, and
assumed the government. His new favourite, Luiz de Vasconcelos e
Sousa (1636-1720), Count of Castelo-Melhor, gained full power.
Afonsos loyal supporters started shouting abusive epithets, and
throwing missiles at his mother, especially when she was engaged in
prayer. Due to these insults, Luisa de Guzmn decided to retire to a
convent. In Februari 1666, she was dying and summoned Alfonso to her
side. He was hunting in Salvaterre, and lingered 3 days on the way.
When he finally arrived, his mother was already death.

79

Castelo-Melhor and the other ministers ruled without reference to

Afonso, but at least they tried to make Afonso behave like a King. Told
what to do, he did it; told what to say, he said it. Still, his way of life
infuriated the Portugese clergy. Instead of rising to attend mass in the
chapel, Afonso requested the chaplain to celebrate it in his bedroom,
while he snoozed between the sheets. He had fixed a very short time
limit for sermons, anyway, and ruthlessly banished from Portugal every
preacher who exceeded it by even a second. He used to pay surprise
visits to nunneries, making love to the nuns, or organising amateur
theatrical performances in the convent chapels. He also had sex with
women of light reputation. Men were assassinated, when he suspected
them of being successful rivals in their affections. His councillors hoped
that his behaviour would improve with the influence of a good wife and,
after various negotiations; their choice fell on Maria Francisca of
Savoy-Nemours Duchess Maria Francisca of Savoy-Nemours (16461683, to the right)3.
In August 1666, Afonsos 20-year-old bride arrived over sea. She was
still suffering from seasickness, when Afonso rowed out to meet her. His
greeting was simply a grin. At the age of 23, Afonso was already far too
fat due to his gluttony and indolence. He used to take his meals in bed,
and usually ate and drank so much that he was sick afterwards. His
mode of dress consisted of six or seven coats one over the other and
three or four hats perched one on top of the other. His bride must have
noticed the difference between the ridiculous looking and stupidly
grinning King Afonso and his athletic younger brother, Pedro4, who
stood beside him. Afonso was not impressed by his beautiful bride,
either. He escorted her to the church, but he found the ceremonies
boring, and left her to preside over the celebrations, while he dined
heavily in bed.
Maria Francisca of Savoy was ambitious. She requested and obtained
admission to state council meetings. Soon, she allied with her 19-yearold brother-in-law and together they managed to force the count of
Castelo-Melhor to retire. Afonso attacked the courtier who brought him
the news with a dagger, and chased him round the room. Pedro II of

80

Portugal The King was now in the hands of his wife and his brother, who
had become quite font of each other. In November 1667, Maria
Francisca moved her entire household to the Esperana convent and left
a letter for Afonso, expressing regret that she had been unable to fulfil
her marital duties. She asked for permission to return to France and a
refund of her dowry. Afonso rushed to the convent and demanded
admisson, but the gates were not opened. Afonso did not know what to
do and returned to Lisbon. On November 23, Pedro (to the right) had his
elder brother declared unfit to rule and forced to sign an act of
abdication and a testimonial that his marriage had never been
consummated. Afonso signed both documents. Ah, well! he is said to
have remarked, I dont doubt that my poor brother will soon regret
having been mixed up with this disagreeable French woman as much as
I do.
Maria Francisca petitioned the church authorities for the annulment of
her marriage on the grounds that it had never been consummated.
Afonso was described as impotentia coeundi et generandi and
evidence of his sexual incapacity was given in minute and intimate
detail. Both Afonso and Maria Francisca swore oaths that they had made
every possible attempt to consummate the marriage. Further examination
of the two spouses, as demanded by canon law, was regarded as
superfluous, and the marriage was declared null and void. The Cortes
asked the regent not to allow Maria Francisca to return to France for the
necessity of succession. Within a week of the annulment, Maria
Francisca married Pedro and the marriage was a happy one with a
daughter born in 1669.
Afonso was at first confined to rooms in the palace at Lisbon, but in
1669 he was taken to the Azores, where he made the life of his
attendants as intolerable as his own. In 1672, a plot was discovered
trying to restore Afonso to power and to marry him to the Spanish
Queen-Mother, Maria Anna of Austria (1635-1696)5. The partisipants of
the plot were executed. A fear of more plots caused Pedro to have
Afonso transported back to the mainland in 1674, where he spent the last
years of his life in close confinement at Sintra (above), where he trod out

81

a path on the stone floor by pacing up and down. He had nothing to do

except to grow even fatter. His former wife wrote to her sister:
Sometimes he talks as little as if he were of the other world; and he
very nearly went there the other day, for, after getting drunk according to
his wont, he fell with his head in a basin of water, where he would
certainly have been drowned if someone had not promptly pulled him
out; but, though he lives as a brute beast, he lives, and that is sufficient
to keep us always axious and explosed to the malice of our enemies. He
had occasional occurences of reason, but his paralysis gradually got
worse and he developed dropsy. If he wanted to be moved, fat Afonso
had to ly down on the floor, in order that an attendant might roll him out
into the passage. One morning in September 1683, Afonso woke up
screaming and demanding that mass should be said. He died the same
day. His former wife, Queen again, died three months later6.
Copyright 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Catherine (1638-1705) married "Merry Monarch" Charles II of
Great-Britain (1630-1685).
2 Louisa de Guzmn was always depicted with a white streak in her
hair.
3 Maria Francisca was a daughter of Charles Amadeus of Savoy
(1624-1652), Duke of Nemours, and Elisabeth de Bourbon-Vendme
(1614-1664). She was closely related to the French royal family; her
grandfather was Csar de Bourbon, Duke of Vendme, an illegitimate
son of King Henry IV of France.
4 Pedro had great physical strength and liked to twist horse-shoes
between his fingers to show how strong he was.
5 Maria Anna of Austria was the widow of her own uncle, King Philip
IV of Spain (1605-1665).
6 Pedro II remarried Mary Sophia of the Palatine, who bore him sons.
Among their descendants were
- Barbara of Portugal (1711-1758), who married King Ferdinand VI
of Spain, and

82

- Mad Queen Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816).

Bibliography
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Livermore, H.V.: A new history of Portugal, Cambridge University
Press, 1976
Gribble, F.: The Royal House of Portugal, Kennikat Press, 1970
Bivar Guerra , L. de: Die Braganza, in: Die groe Dynastien, Sdwest
Verlag Mnchen, 1978
Kroll, M. & Lindsey, J.: European Royal Families, Country Life Books,
1979
Pereira dos Santos, M.A. & Abreu e Lima, J.P. de: Casa Real Portuguesa
(Alianas Matrimoniais), Mediatexto, 2004
Links
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Count_of_Castelo_Melhor
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Francisca_of_Nemours
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Within a royal family that has been dominated by inbreeding and

madness for centuries, Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816) was the first and
maddest Queen regnant. When her loved ones died one after the other,
she began suffering from delusions. The most agonising shrieks echoed
through the palace corridors..

83

Maria was born on December 17, 1734, as Maria Francisca Isabel Josefa
Antnia Gertrudes Rita Joana, daughter of Joseph I of Portugal (17141777) and Mariana of Spain (1718-1781). Many of her relatives suffered
from religious mania and melancholia. Maria's maternal grandfather was
Philip V of Spain (1683-1746), who was periodically afflicted by fits of
manic depression, sometimes lethargic, at others passionate and
excitable. Joo V had nuns as mistresses In his more lucid periods he
was driven by two obsessions: sex and religion, and as a result, torn
between desire and guilt. Maria's paternal grandfather, Joo V of
Portugal (1689-1750, to the right), was also highly sexed and religious,
choosing nuns to be his mistresses1. From 1742 onwards, Joo V
suffered several strokes, paralysing the left side of his body. Gradually,
he, too, sank into a deep melancholia. Near the end of his life Joo V had
left the government in the hands of incompetent advisors, mostly
churchmen. After his death Maria's irresolute father, Joseph I, busied
himself with hunting and playing cards, while Portugal was governed by
Sebastiao Jos de Carvalho e Melo (1699-1782), who received the title
of Marquis of Pombal in 1770. Despite his enlightened reform, Pombal's
reign was a reign of terror, arousing social discontent. Portugal's prisons
were soon crowded with noblemen and priests.
Maria and her sisters Maria Ana (1736-1813) and Dorothea (1739-1771)
grew up together at court. Marias mother had several miscarriages
before the birth of the youngest sister, Benedita, in 1746. The royal
family often travelled from one palace to another, and their furniture and
furnishings travelled with them, including their beds, bedding, and even
glassware. Maria's father was font of music, and royal singers and
musicians travelled with the royal family to the country palaces. The
King really loved his daughters and enjoyed playing with them and
taking them on walks. The palace of Belm had an indoor riding school,
where Maria learned to ride horses. She studied French and read Latin,
and she was taught to draw and paint by the best artists in the country.
She and her sisters were proficient on different instruments, and also
studied singing. In addition, Mary studied religion and theology.

84

In her youth, Maria already spent long hours at her devotions, enthralled
by the ritual. Attending morning mass and evening prayers at the palace
chapel, she also joined in the festivities of the many saints days and
other religious festivals, like the celebration of the salvation of converts.
She used to kiss the names of God, Mary, and all saints and angles in
any book she opened. Saintly dolls of all sorts and sizes were scattered
around her bedroom. At times, Maria longed to enter a convent. Her
faith was strengthened further in the summer of 1753, when she nearly
died of a violent inflammatory fever. She was bled six times, and a
wooden statue of Jesus, believed to have miraculous powers, was placed
in her bedroom. Early next morning, some of the worst symptoms began
to remit, and, gradually, Maria regained her strength. She became tall
and slender with sharp features and a warm smile. She was kind and
affectionate, timid and shy. In her teens, Maria already suffered from
bouts of melancholy and nervous agitation.
An earthquake, followed by a tidal wave, hit Lisbon in 1755 and 30,000
people were killed. Although the Royal family was in Belm at the time
of the earthquake, for a long time Joseph I refused to enter any of his
surviving palaces, preferring to live in a tent. One evening in September
1758 Joseph returned to Belm2, when his coachmen, finding a gate
jammed, took a side road. Suddenly, three mounted men appeared under
the darkness of an arch and fired several shots at the Royal carriage. The
King was hit, and ordered his coachman to drive straight to his surgeon
at Junqueira, thus avoiding a second ambush. Joseph was treated for
bullet-wounds in his arm, shoulder and chest. Rumours circulated that he
had been ambushed by the Tvora family. The Marquis of Tvora was an
enemy of Pombal and his daughter-in-law was one of Joseph's
mistresses. Nothing more was heard of the affair until December, when
the Tvoras, the Duke of Aveiro, a few other nobles and a number of
jesuits were arrested. Confessions were produced under torture and later
retracted, but the Marquis and his second son withstood the torture and
revealed nothing. On a public scaffold the elder Marchioness of Tvora
and her two sons were beheaded. The old Marquis and the Duke of
Aveiro had their bones broken and the whole scaffold was set alight.

85

Thus Pombal removed all resistance to his rule, while the King remained
passive and idle.
As Maria grew up, marriages were proposed to much elder men, like a
Britisch Prince, one of her Spanish uncles3, or her Portuguese uncle,
Pedro (1717-1786), but nothing came of it. Maria was already in her
twenties, when talk of a marriage to Pedro resurfaced. Finally, on June 6,
1760, at age of 25, Maria married her 42-year-old uncle Pedro. Despite
the age difference, their marriage was quite happy. The couple was very
pious and visited several masses every day.
Pedro had inherited the palace of Queluz, but he had it torn down and
started constructing a pink miniature Versailles, which wasn't completed
until 1794. There, the couple lived and brought up their children. Their
first child, Joseph (1761-1788), was born shortly before midnight on
August 20, 1761, in a room filled with priests, secretaries of state,
courtiers and attendants. The birth of an heir was celebrated with
cannon-fire and illuminations. Maria attended a bullfight in honor of her
newborn son on September 24. The next year, in October, she miscarried
in the sixth month of her pregnancy. The following September, Maria
gave birth to a Prince, who lived for just 3 weeks. Two healthy children
followed: Joo (1767-1826) and Mariana (1768-1788). Two more
daughters, born in 1774 and 1776, died young. Pombal arranged that his
adherents educated Maria's eldest son, because he knew Maria was
opposed to his policy.
In 1776, Joseph suffered from a stroke that deprived him of speech and
his wife assumed the regency. Before his death in February 1777, he
married Maria's eldest son, 16-year-old Joseph, to Maria's youngest
sister, 30-year-old Benedita (1746-1829). Mercifully, this incestuous
marriage remained barren.
Pedro III was both husband and uncle At Maria's accession, her
husband-uncle Pedro III (to the right) was given the title 'King', coins
were struck in their joint names and all acts and deeds mentioned them
both, but the Queen was the real sovereign and her uncle-husband only
her consort. Maria dismissed Pombal, amnestied his political prisoners,

86

including the surviving Tvoras4, and recalled all exiles except the
Jesuits. Maria's rule soon calmed the discontent among the nobility, but
her conscience was sorely tried. She found it difficult to undo things that
were done in her father's name, but she also thought her father's soul
might be suffering eternal torment for having permitted Pombal to
persecute Christ's representatives on earth. Once, in 1780, Maria
scratched out her signature exclaiming that she was "condemned to very
hell". She was carried off to her apartments in a state of delirium. By
1786, the Queen's behaviour had become increasingly odd.
Pedro was chiefly concerned with prayers and masses. A contemporary
noted that Pedro talked much about goodness and justice, but that he had
no knowledge of mankind or business and that he was easily governed
by those immediately around him, especially if they belonged to the
church. Apparently, he was also unable to read or write. Still, Maria and
Pedro were deeply devoted to each other, and Maria suffered intense
grief at his sudden death on May 25, 1786, after a 12-day illness. On the
evening of the 27th Maria kissed her husband's hand for the last time
before the coffin left the palace. Royal festivities were banned, and state
receptions resembled religious ceremonies. Their pregnant daughter
Mariana wasn't told about her father's illness and death until several
weeks after she had given birth to a son.
Two years later, Maria's eldest son, Joseph, who had married his aunt
Benedita, died childless of smallpox5. Within two months, Maria's only
surviving daughter Mariana had died, too, a few days after giving birth.
In the same year Maria's confessor and chief minister had both died, too.
Maria I of Portugal went mad Maria (to the right) had always shown a
tendency toward religious mania. When her loved ones died one after
another, she retreated into uncontrollable grief and melancholia. She was
afflicted by stomach pains, depression, fever and insomnia. The
melancholy fits and recurring nightmares increased. Reports of the
revolution in France further disturbed her. The Queen's courtiers, who
had been rotting for years in prison, were vengeance-obsessed and often

87

half-crazed, and their presence did not much to enlighten the atmosphere
at court.
Around 1790, Maria sank into a state of permanent melancholia. The
English author William Beckford visited the pink palace and reported:
"Queen Maria, fancying herself damned for all eternity, therefore on the
strength of its being all over her, eats barley and oyster stew Fridays and
Saturdays and indulges in conversations of a rather unchaste nature."
She fancied she saw her father's image "in colour black and horrible,
erected on a pedestal of molten iron, which a crowd of ghastly phantoms
were dragging down.".
In 1792, the ministers concluded that their Queen was mad and turned to
her only surviving son, the amiable Joo, with the request to "assume the
direction of public affairs". In the meantime, they summoned Dr. Francis
Willis, who had treated George III of Great Britain, to come to Portugal
in order to treat the Queen. At first Maria seemed to show some signs of
improvement, but they did not continue for long. Soon, she took a turn
for the worse. Willis left Portugal in 1793 without realising any
improvement in her condition.
In 1795, a fire destroyed the Ajuda Palace and the whole court moved to
Queluz. There, Maria often lay all day behind closed shutters, her
quarters resounding with her demented cries. At times, she ran about the
palace corridors pitifully wailing "Ai Jesus!" in a state of delirium.
Beckford wrote: "The most agonising shrieks - shrieks such as I hardly
conceived possible - inflicted on me a sensation of horror such as I had
never felt before. The Queen, herself, whose apartment was only two
doors off from the chambers where we were sitting, uttered those
dreadful sounds, "Ai Jesus. Ai Jesus!" did she exclaim again and again
in the utterances of agony."
In 1799, good-natured Joo was officially named Prince Regent. He was
a clumsily built, lethargic and awkward youth, who had never been
known to loose his temper, and yawned at parties. Joo always carried in
his pocket 2 small boxes, one containing snuff and the other grilled
chicken's legs to gnaw at idle moments. He had already fathered 4

88

children with his young bride, the Spanish Carlota Joaquina, who was
known as "the ugliest royal ever" with bloodshot eyes, a hooked noose,
bluish lips, uneven teeth and "unruly and dirty hair" - even on her hands.
She stood hardly more than 4 feet, 6 inches in height.
Napoleon invaded Portugal in 1807 and the Royal family fled, carrying
the Royal gold, state papers and art treasures with them. The convoy of
coaches and mule carts was accompanied by shierks of "Ai Jesus!". On
November 29th, a wind sprang up from the east and the ships finally
sailed off. When the French entered Lissabon, they were still in sight of
the shore. Heavy storms raged for several days, shattering the convoy,
and the entire court suffered from seasickness. The mad Queen,
however, seemed to benefit from the sea air.
The ship landed in Bahia, Brazil, on January 22, but it was not until
March 7, that the Royal Family entered Rio de Janairo. The Brazilians
welcomed the Braganas warmly, but Maria was terrified of the natives
prancing around her chair. She screamed that she was in hell with devils
pursuing her. Afterwards, the Royal family settled in a rich planter's
estate near Rio the Janero, where Maria was confined to an old convent
of the Carmelites. She suffered from dysentery and fever, and oedema in
her hands and feet. Every day the mad Queen was taken around in a
wheelchair. For the last 2 months of her life, Maria was confined to bed.
Every day, when her son, Joo, came to visit her, she screamed: "I don't
want to see anyone! I want to die!" She fianlly died on March 20, 1816.
Her only surviving child became King Joo VI.
Copyright 1997-2011 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Footnotes

89

1 Joo V's favourite convent was the nunnery of Odivelas, where he kept
an apartment lined with carpets and mirrors. Two of his many bastards
were conceived there.
2 Joseph I was returning from an evening with his favourite mistress,
Teresa Leonor, wife of Luis Bernardo, heir of the Tvora family. See
also: The Tavora Affair.
3 The British Prince was William Augustus (1721-1765), Duke of
Cumberland, who was to remain a bachelor.
The Spanish Infante was Luis (1727-1785) resigned his ecclesiastical
dignities in 1754, but remained a bachelor until 1776.
4 The remaining Tvoras refused to leave prison until their innocence
was proclaimed.
5 Maria had refused to have him vaccinated.
Bibliography
Livermore, H.V.: A new history of Portugal, Cambridge University
Press, 1976
Opfel, O.S.: Queens, Empresses, Grand Duchesses and Regents (Women
Rulers of Europe AD 1328-1989), McFarland & Company, 1989
Roberts, J.: The Madness of Queen Maria (The Remarkable Life of
Maria I of Portugal), Templeton Press, 2009
Cheke, M.: Carlota Joaquina (Queen of Portugal), Books for Libraries
Press, 1969
Bivar Guerra , L. de: Die Braganza, in: Die groe Dynastien, Sdwest
Verlag Mnchen, 1978
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Ragsdale, H.: Tsar Paul and the question of madness, Greenwood Press,
1988
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:24:36. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
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90

Silly Sovereigns of France

France was already a monarchy in the 5th century and the first mad
French King was probably Clovis II "the do-nothing" of Neustria (633657) who was said to have gone mad after stealing the arm of a death
martyr. His great-grandson was an even feebler nonentity and became
known as Childeric III "the idiot". Robert of Clermont (1256-1318 ),
ancestor of the Bourbons, received several sledge-hammer blows on his
head in a tournament and became psychotic and deranged. The sickly
King Charles IX (1550-1574) was a mentally unstable sadist with mad
rages. The sisters Marie Louise (1695-1719) and Louise Elizabeth
(1709-1742) of Orlans were both spoiled beyond redemption and
became ill mannered, licentious and sadly disturbed women. After the
abolition of the French monarchy, the Orlans claimants tried to
strengthen their claim by intermarriage with as a possible result the two
mentally handicapped grandchildren of the current pretender. However,
the most famous mad King of France was Charles VI (1368-1422), who
had the conviction that he was made of glass and about to break.
Charles VI of France became King at the age of 12. He was a dreamy,
sentimental, agreeable and pleasure-loving young man. Soon his uncles,
the Dukes of Anjou, Berry, Burgundy and Bourbon, took over the
government, raised taxes and plundered the treasury. The Hundred Years
War against England had left France short of funds and in 1382 revolts
broke out in many parts of France. In 1388 Charles, aided by his bother
Louis of Orlans (1371-1407), removed his uncles from power and
replaced them with a group of his father's councillors of humble origins.
Charles meets Isabeau In 1385 the beautiful Bavarian Princess Isabeau
(1371-1435) had been sent to France to become Charles' bride. For 16year-old Charles it was love at first sight. He could not take his eyes off
her and he arranged for the marriage to take place immediately because
he could hardly sleep till the marriage was consummated. The attraction
was only physical to begin with, because she did not speak French, and
he did not understand German. The first years of their marriage were

91

happy and the young couple held lavish festivities lasting for days.
Charles VI was taller than average with a broad chest and he was a good
horseman and a skilled archer. He was affable, liberal, generous and kind
and used to greet even lowly people. The sensual Isabeau, however, soon
turned out to be a frivolous and selfish woman. All she wanted from life
was to have enough means to have her desires fulfilled. She had no real
interest in France and never bothered to speak French well.
In April 1392 Charles suffered from a mysterious illness which caused
his hair and nails to fall out. He was hardly recovered, still suffering
from occasional bouts of fever and behaving incoherently, when he set
out on a punitive expedition after an assassination attempt on one of his
advisors. On a hot day in August Charles rode at the head of a group of
knights, when a wild-looking man ran up to his horse and spoke some
words of doom and betrayal. While they continued their journey, a page
accidentally dropped a lance. Suddenly Charles rushed forward with a
drawn sword and killed 4 of his own men before he could be
overpowered. Lifted from his horse, Charles lay flat and speechless on
the ground, his eyes rolling wildly from side to side. His attendants
found an ox-cart to carry him. For two days Charles was in a coma. With
the help of a physician, Guillaume de Harcigny, he made a partial
recovery. When Charles heard that he had killed four of his own men, he
wept. From then on his mental health was seriously undermined.
On January 28, 1393 the Queen gave a ball masque and Charles VI and a
group of his courtiers dressed up like 'wild men' in linen costumes. They
were accidentally set alight by a torch and four of them burned alive.
Charles was saved by the Duchess of Berry, who threw her voluminous
skirts over him. Queen Isabeau fainted in terror. Nevertheless, the
accident made a deep impression on Charles and in June he was in the
grip of another serious attack of insanity. A surgeon drilled some holes in
Charles' skull, hoping to relieve pressure on his brain. Although Charles
felt some momentary relief after the operation, he suffered a relapse in
1395. In 1397 Charles became aware that his brain was clouding again
and requested to have his dagger removed. Some churchmen and

92

university doctors came to believe that Charles was the victim of sorcery
and around 1398 some attempts were made to exorcise him. Once
Charles cried out: "If there is any one of you who is an accomplice in
this evil I suffer, I beg him to torture me no longer but let me die!"
King Charles VI the mad Charles' attacks of insanity became more
frequent and of longer duration. Still, there were intervals of months
during which Charles was sane except for the uncertainty of his temper,
alternating between passive listlessness and excitable gaiety. During the
attacks Charles had delusions, claiming that his name was Georges,
denying that he was the King or had a wife or any children. He ran from
room to room until he collapsed from exhaustion, wailing that his
enemies were upon him. Later, when he was kept in dark and closely
shuttered apartments, he attacked with maniacal fury any servants or
doctors who attempted to enter. He smashed the furniture and urinated in
his clothes. In their own apartments, Charles' youngest daughters could
hear their father's wailing and screaming. On one occasion, Charles
regained his senses unexpectedly and was stricken with horror at his
own condition, and even more so when he saw the misery of his
daughters. He immediately ordered a gold goblet to be sold to buy
suitable clothes for them. Later, Charles went through a stage of
believing that he was made of glass 1 and that if people came too near
him he would break. Thus he insisted that iron rods should be inserted
into his clothing to prevent him from breaking.
For some months in 1405 Charles refused to change his linen, to bathe
or to be shaved, and as a consequence he was afflicted by skin trouble
and lice. His physicians hoped to cure Charles with shock treatment.
They arranged for some men to blacken their faces and hide in his room.
When the King entered they all jumped out, presumably shouting:
"boo". As a result Charles agreed to be washed, shaved and dressed and
for a few weeks his behaviour was more reasonable.
On behalf of the succession the beautiful Isabeau continued to submit to
the embraces of her mad husband until 1407. Charles' attitude to Isabeau
show the ambivalent characteristics of schizophrenia; in his

93

derangement Charles felt a strong resentment to his once beloved wife.

His wild lusts often kept Isabeau in fear for her life and thus she
arranged for a pretty young girl, Odette de Champdivers, to take her
place. Meanwhile, voluptuous Isabeau found consolation in the arms of
her debonair brother-in-law, Louis of Orlans (1371-1407)2. From the
moment Isabeau had set foot in France, this elegant, ambitious and
dissolute youth had been pursuing her. Soon they went everywhere
together, often for weeks at a time, flagrantly enjoying themselves. The
legitimacy of Isabeau's younger children was doubted and her
relationship with Louis was at its height when Young Charles (14031461) was born. Isabeau lavished more care upon this puny and sickly
11th child than on the others.
While his body remained healthy, Charles VI was soon unable to
concentrate, make decisions or govern at all. Even in his more lucid
moments he did whatever those who were with him told him to do, so
French politics became a rivalry for the ear of the King. A fierce power
struggle developed between Louis of Orlans and John "the Fearless" of
Burgundy (1371-1419)3 until John instigated the murder of Louis in
November 1407. The Queen, who had recently lost her 12th child
shortly after its birth, openly joined the party of her lover's murderers
and soon became best friends with John the Fearless. The Duke was now
opposed by Count Bernard VII of Armagnac (1362-1418), who married
his daughter to the Orlans heir, and the power struggle intensified with
both parties massacring their enemies. When King Henry V of England
(1387-1422) invaded France in 1415, his exhausted force of 5000 men
defeated a French army five times its size in the famous Battle of
Agincourt.
Isabeau of Bavaria At Vincennes, Queen Isabeau lived with her pets4
and was free to do as she chose. In the course of years, she had become
abnormally fat. Suffering from gout, she was unable to get around
without a wheelchair. She had also developed a phobia of open spaces.
Bernard of Armagnac guarded the interests of her children and, when he
found out that Isabeau was plotting with the Duke of Burgundy, he took
revenge by informing the King - during one of his periods of

94

comparative sanity - about the Queen's dissolute behaviour. Spurred on

by his heir, Young Charles, Charles VI actually decided to make a stand
and rode with his son and the Count of Armagnac to Vincennes to arrest
the Queen's supposed latest lover, Louis de Boisbourdon. He was
tortured, strangled and thrown into the Seine in a leather sack. Isabeau
was banished to Tours, officially for the "dissolute behaviour of her
ladies-in-waiting", but it is likely that they mainly blamed the Queen
herself. Although kept under strickt guard, Isabeau remained on good
terms with John the Fearless, who had her released by 1418 and brought
to Chartres. Soon afterwards, her new favourite, Jean de Villiers,
murdered Bernard of Armagnac and carved the cross of Burgundy on his
chest.
Charles VI le Fou In 1419 the 16-year-old heir to the throne was
discredited, when John the Fearless was hacked to death at a meeting
with him. In return for a pension, Queen Isabeau disinherited the Crown
Prince, "Charles, who calls himself the Dauphin". She gave her daughter
Catherine (1401-1438) in marriage to Henry V of England, the victor of
Azincourt, and recognised them as heirs to the throne. Henry V brought
Charles VI, who had been living in a state of neglect at Senlis, back to
Paris. There he was taken ill with fever in 1421. He recovered after
eating enormous quantities of oranges and pomegranates. In the autumn
of 1422 he fell ill again and with only strangers at hand he died. Henry V
had died the same year and Henry's baby son was crowned King Henry
VI (1421-1471) of both England and France.
Charles' mysterious illness of 1392 could have been typhus or
encephalitis. If this disease was encephalitis, then it could very likely
have been a contributory factor to the bizarre features of Charles'
behaviour, for encephalitis can cause a marked character change and
give rise to impulsive, aggressive and intemperate activity, similar in its
symptoms to those of schizophrenia.
The disease porphyria is another possible diagnose. Although few
medical details regarding Charles VI are known to us, porphyria has
been diagnosed among his ancestors5. It is a rare hereditary disease with

95

many painful physical symptoms, like an inflammation of the bowels, a

painful weakness of the limbs and sometimes loss of the power of
feeling. Severe attacks can result in visual and auditory disturbances,
delirium and progressive senility. Joan of Bourbon, Queen of France
Charles' immediate ancestors were closely related to each other. His
mother was the French Princess Joan of Bourbon (1338-1377, to the
left). Like her brother, father and grandfather, Joan was slightly unstable;
"elle en perdi son bon sens et son bon memore". She suffered a complete
nervous breakdown in 1373 after the birth of her 7th child. At the age of
12 Joan had been married to Charles V "the Wise" of France (13371380), who was "racked with gout"6 in his hands and feet and died at the
age of 43. Charles VI could have inherited bad genes from both his
parents.
The mental capabilities of mad Charles' eldest son, Louis of Guyenne
(1397-1415), were also questioned. He was a dissolute youth who spent
his nights in revels and his days recovering from them. He and his
brother John of Touraine (1398-1417) both died young and under
mysterious circumstances. Charles' successor, Charles VII, was
inconsistent, capricious, irresponsible, suspicious, fearful of
assassination attempts and very insecure. He had a phobia for bridges
after John the Fearless had been murdered on a bridge in his presence.
Some weeks before his death Charles VII had a psychotic reaction,
refusing all food. One of mad Charles' daughters, Michelle (1395-1422),
became melancholic in 1419 following the involvement of her brother in
the murder of her father-in-law, John the Fearless. The daughter who
married Henry V may have introduced the disease porphyria into the
British Royal family. Her eldest son, Henry VI of England and France,
went mad, too, losing both his French and English possessions; her son
by a Welsh lover was an ancestor of the Tudors and Stuarts.
Copyright 1997-2005 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes

96

1 One of his descendants, Mad King George III of Great-Britain (17381820), suffered from the same delusion.
2 It is impossible to determine if the Queen actually committed
adultery with her brother-in-law, but near the end of his life Louis of
Orlans and Isabeau were very close and clearly enjoyed each others
company. When Young Charles was born in 1403, Isabeau showed more
interest in this 11th child than in her other children. However, in 1419
she explicitly disinherited Charles after his involvement in the murder of
the Duke of Burgundy. Louis of Orlans was also accused of having
seduced the Duchess of Burgundy. He did recognise 2 illegitimate sons:
Jean (1402-1468), count of Dunois, and Philip (1445), governor of
Coucy.
3 In France he was known as "Jean sans peur" and in the Low
Countries he was called "Jan zonder vrees".
4 Isabeau surrounded herself with dogs, cats, swans, owls, turtle-doves,
leopards and a monkey.
5 See: Purple secret (Genes, 'Madness' and the Royal Houses of
Europe) by J.C.G. Rhl, J.C.G., M. Warren, and D. Hunt and George III
and the mad-business by I. MacAlpine & R. Hunter.
6 Symptoms of porphyria have often been misdiagnosed as "gout".
Bibliography
Beek, H.H.: Waanzin in de middeleeuwen, De Toorts, 1969
Castries, Duc de: (The lives of) The Kings and Queens of France, Alfred
A. Knopf, 1979
Croix, R. de la: Die Valois, in: Die grosse Dynastien, Sdwest Verlag
Mnchen, 1978
Green,V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Rhl, J.C.G., Warren, M., Hunt, D.: Purple secret (Genes, 'Madness' and
the Royal Houses of Europe), Bantam Press, 1998
MacAlpine, I. & Hunter, R.: George III and the mad-business, Penguin,
1969
Hallam, E. (ed.): The Plantagenet Encyclopedia (An alphabetical guide
to 400 years of English history), Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1990

97

Hibbert, Ch.: Agincourt, in: British Battle Series, Pan Books, 1971
Earle, P.: (The Life and Times of) Henry V, Kings & Queens Series,
Cardinal, 1975
Infamous women paper dolls, Bellerophon Books, 1994
Regan, R.: (The Guinness Book of) Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995
Winwar, F.: Joan of Arc, Bantam Books, 1948
Costain, Th.B.: The Last Plantagents, The Pageant of England Series,
Tandem, 1973
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Thiele, A.: Erzhlende genealogische Stammtafeln zur europische
Geschichte, Band II, Teilband 1,
Europische Kaiser-, Knigs- und Frstenhuser I: Westeuropa, R.G.
Fischer Verlag, 2001
Introduction
Wood, I.: The Merovingian Kingdoms (450-751), Longman, 1994
Wright, E. (ed.): The Medieval and Renaissance World, Hamlyn, 1982

The sickly King Charles IX of France (1550-1574) was a mentally

unstable sadist with mad rages. As he grew up, he became so violent that
courtiers genuinely feared for their lives. Once, he savagely attacked his
sister with his fists. During the festivities of her marriage Charles gave
the order to murder thousands of protestants in the Saint Bartholomews
Day Massacre. Still, Charles was a mothers boy, who even after
attaining his majority, continued to refer major decisions to his dominant
mother.
Childhood
Charles IX (to the right) was born on June 27, 1550 as Charles
Maximilien, Charles IX as a child a younger son of Henry II of France
(1519-1559) and Catherine de Medici (1519-1589). Immediately after
Charles birth, his father rushed back to his elder mistress, Diane de
Poitiers (1499-1566)1, who lived at Anet. Charles and his siblings often
travelled by barge from Saint-Germain to Anet. The castle's grounds
contained a little zoo with wolves, wild boar, lion cubs, a bear and

98

animals from Africa. There were also horses, dogs and caged birds to
play with. In addition, passing troupes of travelling actors and acrobats
were hired to entertain the children. Catherine regularly ordered pictures
of her children to be painted. May-be because Henry II and Catherine
had both been neglected as children2, they overindulged and spoiled
their own.
The younger children were brought up with companions of their own
age at the castle of Amboise with its walled garden. They were usually
moved away from any chance of infection during the summer months,
when outbreaks of plague were common. In May 1551 the milk of
Charles' wet-nurse was supposedly not good, because "the milk made
the baby emotional". Another wet-nurse was sought.
Anne de Montmorency (1493-1567) was, as Grand Master of the
Household, officially responsible for the royal children. Cardinal Charles
of Lorraine (1524-1574) supervised the childrens bible studies.
Catherine herself was also involved with the children's education,
upbringing and health, and had them tought to paint, sketch, write verse
and carve wood. Charles seems to have had a genuine artistic talent. He
was also thought Italian, Latin, Greek and history. He took no pleasure
in studying, but did it to please his mother.
On June 22, 1559, Charles lovely elder sister, Elisabeth (1546-1568),
was married by proxy to the austere and pedantic King Philip II of Spain
(1527-1598)3. In the following festivities, a tournament was held on
Friday June 30. King Henry II, always proud of his physical prowess,
jousted in his armour of black and silver, the colours of his mistress. His
opponents lance broke and hit the Kings face, driving splinters into his
temple and eye. Afterwards, Henrys body became swollen with
infection, impairing his sight and speech. He died on July 10, 1559. His
widow was prostrate with grief. For the first 2 days, Catherine remained
on the floor of the death-chamber, sobbing uncontrollably. Gradually,
she mastered herself. She was to wear mourning for the rest of her life,
and Friday was to remain a day to be dreaded.

99

The new King was Charles brother, Francis II (1544-1560), who had
recently been married to Mary Queen of Scots (1542-1587)4. Two of
Marys maternal uncles5, the Cardinal of Lorraine and Duke Francis
Scar Face of Guise (1519-1563)6, became the actual rulers of the
country.
At that time Paris and the northeast of France were staunchly Catholic,
but in the south the protestants, called huguenots, wanted freedom of
worship. The Guise regents, however, encouraged their persecution,
introducing the death penalty for heresy in November 1559. Fearing
death, some Protestant nobles wanted to kidnap Francis II to remove him
from the Guises influence, but the plot was discovered. On March 15,
1560, 9-year-old Charles and his mother, elder brother and sister-in-law
witnessed the executions of 57 conspirators. Each time a condemned
man mounted the steps to the scaffold, his remaining comrades sang a
Psalm, and so it continued throughout the day. Some bodies were hung
from the balconies of the castle of Amboise and for several days
afterwards, bodies floated down the river Loire.
Francis II had been suffering from tuberculosis for years. On November
17, he became seriously ill. An abscess in his ear was giving more
trouble than usual and his headaches became excruciating, when a lump
formed behind his ear. At midnight of December 6, Francis II died. He
was not quite 17 years old.
Adolescence
Charles became the new King at the age of 10. He was crowned as
Charles IX in Reims on May 15, 1561. His mother, Catherine de'
Medici, obtained the regency. She presided over the council, initiated
and controlled state business, directed domestic and foreign policy, and
made appointments to offices. She was the first to receive and open
dispatches before the King signed them. Catherine insisted on sleeping
in her sons room. She surrounded Charles with servants and tutors she
could rely on to make their reports to her. She even went hunting with
her son, riding hard and with courage.
As a child Charles is described as having "a narrow, rat-like little face
and a sly expression". Charles had a disfiguring birthmark between his
nose and upper lip, giving him the nickname The Snotty King. Later,

100

he grew a moustache to cover it. The Venetian ambassador wrote that

Charles had "fine eyes like his fathers". Despite a weak constitution,
Charles loved physical exercise, like a game of royal tennis. After the
least exertion, however, he had to rest for a long time. Charles was
essentially a kind and generous boy, who wrote charming poetry, but he
also had a curious, unstable nature. Occasionally, he fell prey to
ungovernable outbursts of temper. He became excited by the sight of
blood during a hunt. His frenetic dedication to hunting was obsessive,
even by the standards of his time. Like his brothers, Francis II and Henry
of Anjou (1551-1589)7, Charles was prone to septic sores, infections,
and, as they grew older, fits of dementia8. In 1563 Ambroise Par
(1510-90) was appointed as the King's official surgeon after he had
successfully cured Charles' forearm from blood-letting injuries.
In the southwest of France monks were being killed and churches
pillaged in the autumn of 1561. In March 1562, Francis Scar Face of
Guise stumbled on some protestants worshipping in a barn and began
shooting. The protestants took this massacre as a declaration of war and
one of their leaders, admiral Gaspard de Coligny (1519-1572), managed
to acquire English troops and subsidies. Francis Scar Face and Anne
de Montmorency9 responded to this Protestant threat by taking the King
and Queen-mother prisoner, declaring that "if the King thought of
changing his religion, they would not hesitate to change their King".
Charles, sobbing bitterly, was lifted into a litter, while Catherine, trying
to maintain her composure, was put into another. They were taken to
Paris.
In Feburary 1563, Francis Scar Face was killed by a shot in the back
as he laid siege to Orlans. From then onwards, Catherine de Medici
tried to settle the civil war by compromise, but again and again new
hostilities broke out between the rivalling parties. This continuing
turmoil, pillage and economic instability was ruining France.
Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de Medici (to the right) had Charles, at the age of 13,
declare his majority before the Parliament of Rouen on August 17, 1563.
The next day, to show that he was Gods anointed, he touched for

101

Kings Evil and supposedly healed many sick persons. Henceforth,

Charles IX assumed official responsibility for his mothers acts,
continuing to refer all decisions to her. The Queen Mother, knowing how
entirely she possessed her son, did not care for his opinions, certain as
she was that she could change them in an instant.
One day, while Catherine was giving an audience to the papal nuncio,
Charles and a group of friends, dressed up as Cardinals, bishops and
abbots, and burst into the Queen Mothers chamber, riding a donkey.
Catherine had a good laugh, but the dismayed nuncio reported
everything back to Rome.
The Journey
The Queen Mother decided to go on a two-years progress through the
country with the King and the Court. The tour started with a magnificent
festival at Fontainebleau, where Charles staged a masked tournament
followed by jousts. The royal progress set off in March 1564. After a
few days, Charles came across a pig with a litter of newborn piglets.
When he picked one up to caress it, the pig attacked him. Charles,
enfuriated, brutally killed the pig. During their stay at Troyes, Charles,
as annointed King, touched the feet of some scrofulous. In Bar-le-Duc
he stood godfather at the baptism of the son of his sister Claude (15471575)10 and her husband, Duke Charles of Lorraine (1543-1608). The
royal party left Lyons in haste after a sudden outbreak of plague. At
Marseille, the young King and his courtiers took part in a mock naval
battle. The following winter was intensely cold, and at Carcassonne
Charles had a lot of fun in a snow fight.
In the summer of 1565, near the Spanish border, they met with
Catherines favourite daughter, Elisabeth, third wife of Philip II of
Spain11. Catherine inspired fear in all her children and even Elisabeth
once confessed that, whenever she got a letter from her mother, she
trembled before opening it. Catherine also had some interviews with the
hardliner Duke of Alba, Fernando Alvarez de Toledo. The meeting was
seen by the huguenots as a ploy to acquire Spanish troops to destroy
them12. In May 1567, Alba marched with an army from Genoa through
Savoy and then along the eastern frontier of France. Again, the
huguenots feared a Spanish invasion to destroy them, and soon decided

102

on some pre-emptive strikes, resulting in a battle against an army led by

Montmorency, who was fatally wounded13. Meanwhile, Alba had
arrived in The Netherlands and tried to stamp out Protestantism there,
starting the Eighty Years War.
Rivalry
The Venetian ambassador described Catherine de Medici at the age of
51: "No step, however unimportant, is taken without her. Scarcely has
she time to eat or drink or sleep, so great are her harassing cares. She
runs here and there between the armies, doing a mans work, without a
thought of sparing herself. Yet, she is loved by no one in the land."
As her sons were growing up, Catherines difficulties in managing them
increased. To the Spanish ambassador she confessed: "I no longer have
the same authority as I did. My sons are men now and I do not have the
controlling hand in affairs, which I once had." She had Charles younger
brother, Henry of Anjou, appointed as lieutenant general of the Realm
after Montmorencys death. Hitherto petted by his mother, Anjou got a
change to prove himself, when, in 1569, German mercenaries defiled
catholic churches, burning the bones of the Saintly King Louis IX and
the heart of King Francis I. At the Battle of Montconcour on October 3,
18-year-old Anjou defeated the Huguenot forces. The King was jealous
of his younger brothers brilliant success at the battlefield. Anjou had
always been Catherines favourite son14 and Catherine tried to bring
Charles to reason by constantly playing on his jealousy and fear of his
intelligent brother, whom he knew to be waiting impatiently to succeed
him.
Anjou supported the Catholic cause, but as the Huguenot admiral
Coligny returned to Court, Charles gradually turned more and more to
him as his guide and friend, and even started calling him father.
Coligny was soon dominating the Royal Council and urging for war on
Spain to give aid to the Dutch protestants, because he knew Charles was
longing to outshine his brothers military glory. Charles insisted on
joining the army, and the court settled for a while near the front line,
until a new treaty was negotiated in August 1570.

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Charles IX as an adult As he grew up, Charles IX (to the right) became

tall and physically strong, but his physical and mental problems
increased with his age. His body was supported by over-long, spindly
legs, and he could not walk altogether straight. His muscular arms hung
from bowed shoulders. His body grew weaker with each debilitating
crisis. Charles was far more emotional than reasonable and he was
mentally unbalanced to the point of insanity; he was prone to insane,
murderous anger. At any moment Charles could burst into sudden fits of
such maniacal rage that even the Queen Mother feared him. Only
Margot (1553-1616), his youngest sister, knew how to calm Charles
tantrums.
Charles excessive passion for the chase was, in part, an attempt to
exorcise murderous fantasies. He preferred to use the knife, because he
liked blood, and insisted on seeing the spurting blood of the stag.
However, mere hunting and field-sports did not satisfy his blood lust.
Charles had murderous bouts in which he amused himself by torturing
and dismembering domestic animals. He also liked lashing people till
they bled. When hunting was impossible, he would turn blacksmith and
would beat out weapons for his armoury until he was prostrate with
exhaustion.
Like his elder brother Francis, Charles became tubercular. In the summer
of 1568, he was fever-racked and grew progressively waker. He was
reaching the later stages of tuberculosis. By mid-august Charles had
made a slow recovery, although still looking frail and thin. Soon,
Charles fell ill again, suffering from high fevers. He was routinely bled,
causing an infection in his arm, whereupon a huge abcess developed.
Again, he recovered sufficiently to resume his tasks.
mistress Marie Touchet Early 1569, Charles IX fell in love with warm,
simple and honest Marie Touchet (to the right). His mother encouraged
the affair, because Marie was the one person at Court who cared for
Charles for himself. Marie provided the neurotic King with some peace
and understanding. When he stole away from the Louvre to her little
house, Charles went, so he said, "from Purgatory to Paradise".

104

On November 26, 1570, Charles married Elizabeth of Austria (15541592)15, a small, pretty, gentle and pious girl of 16. After the
consummation of his marriage, Charles boasted it resembled a "German
corset bloodied by a pistol shot". Soon, Charles loved both his wife and
his mistress. His mistress was also kind to his wife, respecting her piety
and approving of her habit to spend most of the night in prayer.
Elizabeth gave birth to a daughter, Marie-Elisabeth (1572-1578), who
died young. Marie gave Charles an illegitimate son, Charles de Valois
(1573-1650)16.
Margot's Wedding
Around 1570, Charles sister Margot was in love with Henry de Guise
(1550-1588) and they exchanged notes and letters through a lady-inwaiting. One night, the couple was discovered in an unused bedroom in
a far corridor of the Louvre. Guise escaped by the window, but the
encounter was reported to the King, who, hearing of it, rolled on the
floor, tearing his hair, screaming blasphemies and vowing to kill Guise
for his presumption. When his fit had spent itself, Charles burst into his
mothers room at 5 oclock in the morning, still wearing only his
nightgown. He demanded that his sister be sent for immediately. When
Margot entered the room, Charles savagely attacked her with his fists
and the poor Princess fell to the floor and fainted. His rage exhausted,
Charles flung out off the room, leaving his mother to repair the damage
he had done. For an hour, Catherine dressed Margots wounds, restored
her dress and rearranged her hair. Guise was soon married off to a rich
widow.
sister Margot The tension between Margot (to the right) and her mother
and brother increased when she was told she had to marry her relative
Henry of Bourbon (1553-1610), King of Navarre. Margot and Henry had
known each other during their growing-up and they didnt get along.
Margot took at least one bath a day, while Henry had even an aversion to
one bath a year, and always stank of garlic. For hours Margot lay crying,
stretched on a wooded coffer, while her mother alternately stormed and
coaxed. Margot remained silent for days.

105

Navarre was a protestant and the marriage was intended to unite the
protestant and catholic factions. To attend the wedding huguenots and
catholics invaded the capital, itself a hotbed of catholic fanatics. The
marriage took place on August 18, 1572, a stifling hot day, and was
performed in the open air. Margot was elaborately dressed, but, when the
Cardinal put her the question of her consent to have Navarre for her
husband, she did not reply. Spectators saw Guise gaze at her intently. As
she returned his look and still said nothing, her brother the King stepped
forward, and angrily pushed her head down in token of consent.
Henry of Anjou claimed that, in the days after the wedding, Charles IX
was "strangely moody and impatient, harsh in his manner and more so in
his replies". Catherine and Anjou became convinced that Coligny had set
up the King against them and they decided to get rid of him17. They
confided in the widow of the murdered Francis Scar Face, who
blamed Coligny for her husbands death, and a gunman was hired18. On
August 22, Coligny was shot, but as he accidentally bent down, he was
only wounded in the arm. Charles sent his own surgeon to the admiral.
Later, he went to Colignys bedside and embraced him with genuine
emotion, still calling hem mon pre. Soon, armed bands of huguenots
were parading through the city, demanding justice.
The next day, Catherine and Anjou spent 2 hours urging their case on 22year-old Charles, trying to convince him of a Huguenot plot with his
life and throne at stake. At last Catherine succeeded in averting
Charles vengeance on her by turning his wrath to the huguenots. As a
result of the emotional strain of Catherines insistence, Charles got a fit
of maniacal rage. His voice broke into a hysterical scream and a thin
foam of blood appeared on his lips as he gave his authorisation: "Kill the
admiral if you wish; but you must kill all the huguenots, so that not one
is left alive to reproach me. Kill the lot! Kill the lot! Kill the lot!"
With this licence to kill, the catholics slaughtered more than 7000
huguenots on August 24, 1572, St. Bartholomews Day. As the killings
were taking place, Charles joined in, taking shots at his fleeing
Huguenot subjects from one of the Palace windows. Coligny was
stabbed to death and his body was tossed out onto the street. Henry of
Navarre owned his life to his temporary conversion to the Catholic

106

faith19. In the following weeks, the massacres spread to the southern

provinces.
Death
Gradually, Charles IX became maddened by his infirmities both in body
and mind. His rages became so violent that courtiers genuinely feared
for their lives. Eventually, attacks of complete dementia would seize the
King. By the end of 1573, his health was failing rapidly, although he
lingered on for months. He was in extreme pain, but remained clear and
coherent to the end. In his last days, he produced a constant bloody
sweat. He was in great physical and mental agony. According to
Huguenot propaganda, Charles fancied in his delirium that he was
surrounded by the blood of the huguenots he had ordered to be slain. In
his dying confession, however, Charles IX showed remorse for all his
sins, but made no mention of St. Bartholomews Day. He finally
succumbed to tuberculosis on May 30, 1574, dying quietly in his sleep.
He was not quite 24 years old.
Copyright 2008-2012 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Footnotes
1 When Henry II was 12 years old, his father had entrusted his
education to the widowed Diane de Poitiers. Although she was 20 years
his senior, she later became Henrys mistress and was to remain in his
affection until his death.
2 In his youth Henry II had been a hostage in Spain, while Catherine
had been an orphan.
3 From his first marriage with his cousin, Maria Manuela of Portugal
(1527-1545), Philip II of Spain had a mad son, Don Carlos (1545-1568).
4 As a widow, Mary Queen of Scots married her cousin, Henry Stuart
of Lennox (1545-1567) and gave birth to James I & VI of England and
Scotland (1566-1625).
5 Mary Queen of Scots was a daughter of Mary of Guise (1515-1560)
and James V of Scotland. The Guises were a younger branch of the
family of the Dukes of Lorraine.

107

6 In battle a lance had pierced Francis cheek. His son Henry (15501588) later acquired a similar scar and nickname in the battle of
Dormans.
7 Charles brother Henry of Anjou, later Henry III of France, was
originally known as Edouard-Alexandre, but later he changed his name
to Henry.
8 The sores, infections, and, fits of dementia may have been caused by
congenital syphilis, although thats not likely in this case.
9 To complicate things, Coligny was a nephew of Montmorency.
10 Claude was as misshapen as her namesake grandmother.
11 By order of Philip II protestants were excluded from the meeting.
12 News arrived from Florida in January 1566 of French protestants
being massacred there by Spanish troops.
13 In March 1569, the protestant Duke Louis of Cond, a little
hunchback with considerable military skill, who belonged to a distant
branche of the French royal family, was taken prisoner and savagely
murdered.
14 Haldane suggests that Catherines obsessive love for her son Henry
was a result of her own sexual frustrations; in every other respect her
coolly calculating mind successfully controlled her feelings, but that
Catherine was secretly dominated by this passion.
15 Elizabeth of Austria was a sister of Maria Anna (1549-1580), the 4th
wife and niece of Philip II of Spain. His 4th marriage gave Philip II his
son Philip III, the grandfather of the inbred King Carlos II (1661-1700).
16 Charles de Valois was married in 1591 to Charlotte de
Montmorency (1636). Their granddaughter, Marie Franziska, married
Louis de Guise 1622-1654), and had a son Louis Joseph (1650-1671),
who married Elisabeth of France (1646-1696), a granddaughter of King
Henry IV.
17 In May 1569 Coligny had already been poisoned, but he recovered.
His younger brother, however, died of it.
18 Erlanger suggests that Catherine de Medici wanted the Guises to
murder Coligny and then Colignys adherents to murder De Guise thus
eliminating the leaders of both parties.

108

19 In 1589, after the death of Henry of Anjou, Henry of Navarra was to

become King Henry IV of France, again converting to the catholic faith.
His marriage with Margot remained childless and Henry divorced her to
marry Marie de' Medici.
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109

Melchior-Bonnet, S.: Chteaux of the Loire, Librairie Larousse, 1987

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Wikipedia: The Guise Family

Pretty Countess Anna de Coligny (1624-80) married a younger son in a

minor branch of the House of Wrttemberg. After giving birth to
numerous children, Anna gradually became mad. Sadly, four of her
daughters, Heinrika, Anna, Elisabeth and Hedwig, became mentally
incapacitated, too. Her only surviving son, Leopold Eberhard, although
certainly not mad, was to flaunt all conventions by marrying his
illegitimate children to each other.
Georg II of Wrttemberg-Mmpelgard, Anna's husband Georg (1626-99,
to the left), Duke of Wrttemberg and Count of Mmpelgard
(Montbliard in nowadays France), was born on October 5, 1626, around
noon, as a younger son in a minor branch of the German House of
Wrttemberg. He was only 4 years old when his father, Ludwig
Friedrich (1586-1631), died. It was the era of the devastating 30-YearsWar, and George, his mother and elder half-siblings were forced to flee
Mmpelgard multiple times. As he grew up, Georg gradually became
more stubborn, irritable, suspicious and choleric.
Anna de Coligny Georg spent many years in France. There, in 1648, he
met and fell in love with pretty Countess Anna de Coligny (1624-80, to
the right). When he married her on April 29, 1648, his family regarded
the marriage as a mesalliance, because she wasn't a Princess1. Born on
September 4, 1624, around 15:30, in the castle of Chtillon-sur-Loing,
Anna was the youngest child of Count Gaspard III de Coligny (15841646) and his wife Anne de Polignac (1598-1651). In her youth Anna de
Coligny had already exhibited some strange behavior. Once she had

110

some sort of seizure, and tried to climb like a cat against the tapestries
on the wall.
When she was 21 years old, Annas father died. Shortly afterwards,
Anna seems to have had some sort of secret affair with a Marquis de
Vineuil, and, for a while, her mother feared for a pregnancy. Thus, Anna
was taken to Belfort to live with her sister Henriette (1618-73). It was in
Belfort that Anna met Georg of Wrttemberg.
After their marriage, Georg and Anna lived at castle Horburg. From
1650 onwards Anna gave birth to 5 daughters and 3 sons. The 2 eldest
sons died young. The youngest daughter, Hedwig, was born in 1667 in
Mmpelgard. Finally, in 1670 the long-awaited son and heir, Leopold
Eberhard, was born.
In 1662, after his half-brother had died childless, Georg became reigning
Duke of Mmpelgard as Georg II. Georg was a Lutheran, who read daily
in the bible, while his wife Anna was a fanatic Calvinist. After Georg
had tried to convert his wife to Lutheranism around Christmas 1662, the
marriage soon deteriorated. Around that time Anna's mental health began
deteriorating, too. Gradually, Anna was to become mad.
Eleonora Charlotta, Anna's daughterSylvius Friedrich of WrttembergOels, Anna's son-in-law One of their daughters, Eleonore Charlotte
(1656-1743, to the left), was courted in 1670 by a relative, Duke Silvius
Friedrich of Wrttemberg-Oels (1651-1697, to the right). They
exchanged letters for a while until they were married in 1672, when she
was 15. At first the marriage was happy, although it saddened Eleonore
Charlotte that she remained childless. More and more, however, her
husband suffered from a nervous state. He displayed unpredictable
behavior, and sank into a state of complete dependence on his wife. As a
result, Eleonore Charlotte became the de-facto ruler of Oels.
In 1676 Mmpelgard was occupied and partly destroyed by the French,
and Georg and his family had to flee. In 1679 the Ducal family was able
to return to Mmpelgard. The next year, however, the French occupied it
again. From then until 1698, the family stayed mainly in Oels with

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George's daughter Eleonore Charlotte, who was to spend too much

money to keep up appearances for herself, her father and her siblings.
Anna de Coligny died mentally incapacitated on January 13, 1680,
around 14:00 in the castle of Reichenweier. Her mad eldest daughter,
Heinrika (1654-1680), became so overwrought that she took to bed and
refused all food. She died 10 days later. Anna was interred in the crypt of
the castle church of St. Maimboeuf on March 8, Heinrika the day after.
Friedrich Ferdinand of Wrttemberg-Weiltingen and Elisabeth, Anna's
daughter After their mothers death, Eleonore Charlotte took care of her
younger sisters, and tried to marry them off. She only managed to do so
with Elisabeth (1665-1726). She was married at the age of 24 to a
relative, Duke Friedrich Ferdinand of Wrttemberg-Weiltingen (16541705, to the right with his wife). She gave birth to 2 daughters and a son,
who died young. In the summer of 1696 Elisabeth, too, became
melancholic first and then incurably mad. She was locked up in an
apartment with walls lined with mattresses.
Another sister, Anna (1660-1733), hoped for a marriage with a Count of
Birkenfeld of the House of Wittelsbach2, but nothing came of it. Later
she became mad, too, and was locked up and cared for in Blamont. Once
she walked with a knife into the church, where she was seized by force
by the clergyman. From 1701 onwards, Anna of Wrttemberg was
allowed to live in Ostheim for more than 20 years. There, she
surrounded herself with dogs, cats and weasels. When one of her dogs
died, she had it interred in a magnificent mausoleum, especially build for
her dogs. Thus, she became known as The Dog Princess. After she had
the clock of the town hall removed, because it made too much noise to
her liking, and refused to return it, Anna had to return to her brother in
Mmpelgard.
The youngest of the sisters, Hedwig (1667-1715), was for a short time
engaged to King Karl XII of Sweden (16821718). Her whole life she
remained convinced they were still engaged. She continued to write him
love letters that were never send. Once she walked around in the park

112

without proper clothing, shouted after by passers by. Hedwig stayed

mainly with her sister Eleonore Charlotte in Oels, where they both
converted to the catholic faith in 1702. Later, the two sisters ended up
penniless in Breslau in Silesia.
Georg II of Wrttemberg-Mmpelgard, Anna's widower
The father of those strange Princesses, Anna de Coligny's widower
Georg II of Wrttemberg (to the left), seems to have been a bit of a nerd.
He usually wore simple clothes. Georg liked to spend time with learned
men, like Descartes. He also read Tacitus. He was said to have read the
whole bible at least 500 times during his life. He could read French,
Hebrew, Greek and Latin. He corresponded with ex-Queen Christina of
Sweden (1626-89), who was intelligent, moody and strange, too.
Georg obstinately refused to recognize the overlordship of France, so in
the period 1684-98 Mmpelgard was administered by his cousin
Friedrich Carl of Wrttemberg-Winnental (1652-98) until the Treaty of
Ryswyck was signed. Then Georg and his only son were finally able to
return to Mmpelgard. Georg survived his mad wife for 19 years and
died, aged 72, on June 1, 1699, between 11 and 12 oclock in the castle
of Mmpelgard. He was interred on the 23th.
The only surviving son of Georg and Anna, Leopold Eberhard (16701723), was called The dissolute and The most shameless libertine.
Being the long-awaited heir, he was thoroughly spoiled as a child.
Around the age of 10, he still couldnt read or write in either German or
French, but his strange father had then decided to hire a teacher in the
Arabic language.
Later, Leopold Eberhard had been placed under guardianship of the
regent, Friedrich Carl of Wrttemberg-Winnental. Like him, Leopold
Eberhard followed a military career in Austria. As an adult Leopold
Eberhard turned out to be very short-tempered and irritable. During his
life he was to behave unconcerned and unscrupulous.
Around 1693 Leopold Eberhard fell in love with a baker's daughter,
Anna Sabina Hedwiger (1676-1735), whom he may have secretly and
morganatically married, as he later claimed. She gave birth to 5 children.
Later, Leopold Eberhard befriended Richard Curie, and started having

113

sex with Curies 4 daughters: Henriette Hedwig (1675-1707), Polyxne

(1708), Sbastienne and Elisabeth Charlotte (1684-1733).
Leopold Eberhard persuaded Anna Sabina to take Henriette Hedwig as
her lady-in-waiting. In 1700, after Anna Sabina had retired to the castle
of Hricourt, Leopold Eberhard lived openly with Henriette Hedwig
until her death. They had 8 children. In 1718 Leopold Eberhard decided
to marry the last remaining sister, Elisabeth Charlotte, with whom he
had 7 children. He repeatedly sent requests to the Emperor to legitimize
his morganatic children, commonly known as The Mmpelgard
Bastards, but the Emperor refused.
In 1719 Leopold Eberhard flaunted conventions even more by
incestuously marrying 2 of his children with Anna Sabina, Georg
Leopold (1697-1749) and Leopoldine Eberhardine (1697-1709), to 2 of
his children with Henriette Hedwig, Eleonora Charlotte (1700-73) and
Carl Leopold (1698-1758).
When Ludwig Eberhard died of a stroke on May 25, 1723, around 20:00,
the Duchy of Mmpelgard was claimed by a distant male relative.
Copyright 2012 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Footnotes
1 Although the Coligny were mere counts, they were distantly related
to the Kings of England and Prussia through a connection with the
Dutch stadtholders.
2 Likely Johann Karl (1638-1704), Count Palatine of BirkenfeldGelnhausen, who married his first wife in 1685. She died in 1695. His
elder brother Christian (a male ancestor of the Kings of Bavaria) and a
distant cousin were both married when Anna was still a small child,
while the next generation was too young.

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Bibliography
Raff, G. Hie gut Wirtemberg allerwege II (sources), BTB mbH, 1993
Raff, G. Hie gut Wirtemberg allerwege III (sources), Hohenheim Verlag,
2002
Lorenz, S., a.o.: Das Haus Wrttemberg (Ein Biographisches Lexxikon),
Kohlhammer, 1997
Vehse, C.E.: Die Hfe zu Wrttemberg, Kiepenheuer, 1992
Wikipedia: Gaspard III de Coligny
Wikipedia: Leopold Eberhard, Duke of Wrttemberg-Montbliard
Last modified: 08/14/2014 16:54:16. Images & Content: Joan Bos.
Info: FAQ.
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Marie Louise of Orlans (1695-1719) has often been described as The
French Messalina. She was an ill-mannered teenager who indulged in
all sorts of pleasures offered at the glittering court of the French Sun
King. Behind that faade, however, one can find an unhappy young
girl. Completely ignored by her mother from birth, Marie Louise was
forced to grow up fast. Married at the age of 14, she became 5 times
pregnant, but none of her children survived more than a few weeks.
The story of Marie Louise starts in 1692, when her illustrious
grandfather, Louis XIV The Sun King of France (1638-1715), shocked
society by giving his illegitimate daughter, Franoise Marie, in marriage
to his legitimate nephew, Prince Philip II of Orlans.
Marie Louises mother, Franoise Marie (1677-1749)1, was proud, lazy
and egoistic. She spoke slowly with an abominable pronunciation. Her
head shook continually and one of her shoulders was higher than the

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other, giving her a slight limp. Philip II of Orlans Between 1693 and
1716, she gave birth to 7 daughters and 1 son, but she made no effort at
all to discipline them properly. She didn't care about her children and
found it too fatiguing to have them around. Once, when the Sun King
reproached Franoise Marie for the behaviour of her eldest daughter, she
answered him: I do not know her any better than your Majesty does, for
I have never taken any part in my children's education.
Marie Louises father, Philip II of Orlans (1674-1723), was witty,
intelligent and talented, but the jealous Sun King had made sure that he
had few opportunities to use his talents. Frustrated and self-indulgent,
Philip filled his days with debauchery. His mother, Liselotte of The Palts
(1652-1722), wrote: He is quite crazy about women. Provided they are
good-tempered, indelicate, great eaters and drinkers, he troubles little
about their looks. He liked to shock; he refused to hide his womanising
and was a confessed atheist. In addition, he was so foul-mouthed that his
wife was ashamed to invite people to diner. Still, he was a loving father
to his elder children.
The couple's eldest daughter died as a baby in October 1694. On August
20, 1695, Marie Louise Elisabeth2 was born. At the age of 6, Marie
Louise became so ill that the physicians gave up on her. Eventually they
even thought that she was dead. In despair, her father threw out the
quacks and personally nursed his little girl back to health. From then on
he spoiled her tremendously. She was too indisciplined ever to learn to
dance, but she could sing and had a talent for mimicry. Marie Louise
came out hunting with the King for the first time in November 1704.
At the age of 14, she had her own little court of ladies at the PalaisRoyal. At the same time, her ambitious mother was already scheming to
arrange a marriage for her with the 23-year-old Prince Charles (16861714), Duke of Berry. The Sun King, their grandfather3, first objected to
the marriage, fearing that chubby Marie Louise would not be able to
conceive. For a whole year, Marie Louise laced herself very tightly,
scarcely ate and did exercises. As a result, her waist diminished and the
marriage was decided upon. It took place in July 1710 in the brand new
Chapel at Versailles. On Marie Louise's wedding day, her heartless

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mother quarrelled with her, because her father had given her diamond
earrings for her wedding that her mother had wanted to wear.
The bridegroom was a gay young man, but he was not very bright. His
main interests were riding, shooting, playing cards and eating well.
Liselotte of The Palts wrote: He would not be so silly if he had not been
brought up in such ignorance; but he knows nothing whatever. Proud
Marie Louise detested him and was sure to let him know it. At court she
was always squabbling about etiquette and rank. She was several times
reprimand for it by the Sun King. In 1711, at the age of 15, Marie Louise
experienced her first troublesome pregnancy. Custom demanded she
remained lying down the whole day and as a result Marie Louise became
very irritable. Her husband did his best to appease her, but he was not
very successful and had to endure terrible scenes. Philip of Orlans
would call on her every day and then spend several hours with her. It
was around that time that the - never proven - rumours about an
incestuous love affair between father and daughter started. In July, the
Court left Marly for Fontainebleau and, despite the advice of the Court
physician, the Sun King demanded that pregnant Marie Louise travelled
with the court to Fontainebleau. During the journey, she became very ill,
but was forced to continue her journey. Then her boat ran into the
foundations of a bridge and broke in two. Marie Louise was badly
shaken. The baby girl she bore died within a few hours.
Marie Louise of Orlans If she wished, Marie Louise could be agreeable
and amiable, but she had a violent temperament and her pride was
immense. After the death of her brother-in-law in 1712, Marie Louise
and her husband became first in rank after the King4. Subsequently, her
moods improved. Again pregnant, her waters broke after 7 months. In an
exhausting 3-day confinement, Marie Louise gave birth to a son and
heir, who died 2 weeks later. The King now treated her affectionately
and even lent her the Crown Jewels for the festivities of the betrothals of
the Princes of Cond and Conti. Marie Louise's clothes were of the
richest fabrics, covered with emeralds, rubies and diamonds. She was an
excellent musician and sang with talent. The chase was her principal

117

diversion, but she was also very fond of feasting, gambling and eating.
Around that time Marie Louise is described by her grandmother,
Liselotte of The Palts, as: Berry is madder and more impertinent than
ever.
At first, the weak Prince Charles was not much troubled by Marie
Louise's violent temper, extravagant caprices and free ways. He tried to
love his wife, but he could hardly ever see her. She hunted in the
mornings and afterwards busied with her toilette. Whenever she had a
few spare moments, she gave them to her father. Often, she spent hours
with him alone. Philip II of Orlans was a talented painter and once
painted his daughter in the nude. Over the years the rumours of incest
increased and could not be silenced5. A pamphleteer6 even accused
Marie Louise of being pregnant of her fathers child. Liselotte of The
Palts wrote: My son and his daughter are so much attached to each
other, that unfortunately it makes people say vile things about them.
Obstinate and passionate, Marie Louise often behaved brutally and
haughty towards her father and sometimes treated him worse than a
servant, but he continued to tolerate every whim of his eldest daughter.
Charles became furiously jealous of the father-daughter relationship.
The Duke of Saint-Simon7 wrote about Marie Louise: Her arrogance
bordered on folly, and she was capable of the lewdest indecencies. [..]
She did all she could to make M. the Duke of Berry, who was genuinely
pious and completely honest, give up religion. [..] She lost no time in
having affairs, which were conducted so indiscreetly, that he soon found
out about them. Her daily and interminable sessions with M. the Duke of
Orlans, where it was clear that he [Berry] was not wanted, put him in a
rage. [..] At each of the many informal meals she took, she became dead
drunk, and threw up whatever she had eaten.
In November, 1713, Charles of Berry had become fed-up with his wife's
tantrums, and began an affair with her chambermaid8. In reaction, Marie
Louise took as her lover one of her husband's equerries, La Haye, known
at Court as Monsieur Tout-Prt. He was well built and a good
horseman, but, according to contemporaries, he was more body than

118

brain. His wife's indiscretions made Berry so angry that he once kicked
her, and threatened to have her confined in a convent. Continually, the
couple had public battles and shamefaced interviews with the Sun King.
Then, on April 26, 1714, Charles fell from his horse, while he was out
hunting. He was purged by the doctors, and vomited a good deal of
blood and "black matter", before he expired on May 4. Marie Louise had
become a widow at the age of 18. She didn't regret the loss of her
husband, but raged at falling from the position of first lady in France to
that of an unwanted widow. Marie Louise remained in bed, ordering her
whole apartment to be decorated in black, and all the windows to remain
closed. Again pregnant, she was ill in April and May. A girl was born
prematurely in July. She lived for only 12 hours.
Luxembourg Palace Upon the death of the Sun King in 1715, the Duke
of Orlans became regent of France. From then onwards, Marie Louise
lost her last inhibitions and devoted her life to excess. She asked her
father to give her the Luxembourg Palace as a residence. He granted the
request and at once Marie Louise ordered her mother and grandmother
to leave the palace. She appointed her current lover, the Marquis of
Roye9, as captain of her newly formed guards.
Childless and undisciplined, Marie Louise became her fathers
companion in vice. She gambled recklessly and once lost 180.000 livres
in one game. She adored drunkenness and became an alcohol addict with
a preference for geneva. Her father came to dine with her lovers at the
Luxembourg Palace, while she went to the Palais-Royal to sup with his
mistresses. She also took part in his infamous suppers. They were
attended only be his intimate friends, who cooked and served
themselves. During the evening the conversation sparkled like the wine
in their glasses. An evening could also feature nude dancers from the
Opera, who staged orgies of the classical past. All intimates had
nicknames for each other and Marie Louise was called Princess
Chubby. She ate enormously and was extremely fat10 at the age of 20.
As soon as she awoke in the morning all sorts of things were brought to
her to eat. She would rise at 12 o'clock and eat until three, then return to

119

her apartment, where she rested, lying on a couch. At 4 o'clock fruit,

cream and salads were served to her. She never went to bed before 2
o'clock. She disliked exercise except hunting, and, like her mother, she
was extremely lazy.
Marie Louise was first at all the court festivities. She had her apartments
and carriage decorated in white and silver. Later she changed everything
to gold. In 1718, she gave a famous ball at the Luxembourg Palace in
honour of her aunt Elisabeth Charlotte, the Duchess of Lorraine. Its
splendour surpassed anything of the kind previously seen. She served
132 hors-d'oeuvrs, 32 soups, 60 entres, 130 hot entremets, 60 cold
entremets, 72 plats ronds, 82 pigeons, 370 partridges and pheasants and
126 sweetbreads. The dessert consisted of 100 baskets of fresh fruit, 94
baskets of dried fruit, 50 dishes of fruits glaces and 106 compotes. One
night Marie Louise and 2 other young women enacted for her guests the
"Judgement of Paris", all three stark naked. Her confessor attended her
suppers regulary, because, Marie Louise said, she found it less
embarrassing to exhibit her sins than to confess them.
Marie Louise's may have suffered from the eating disorder bulimia
nervosa. It probably started during her adolescence after the period of
intense dieting which enabled her to marry Charles of Berry. The
supposed association between corpulence and infertility and the deaths
of all Marie Louise's children shortly after birth may have increased an
obsession with her chubby body. She clearly had periods of
gormandising or "binge eating" and became extremely fat. Like many
girls with bulimia, Marie Louise preferred food with a soft texture, like
fruit, cream and salads. Binges usually begin with feelings of unbearable
tension and irritability. Afterwards, bulimics usually suffer from feelings
of self-reproach and depression. The Duke of Saint-Simon described
how, at informal meals, Marie Louise threw up whatever she had eaten.
From 1716 onwards, Marie Louise's behaviour gradually changed. She
had fallen desperately in love with a Gascon lieutenant, Armand dAydie
(1692-1741), Count of Riom11. He was short and fat, had a yellowish

120

face with pimples12 and was neither clever, nor amusing, but he seems
to have been hugely endowed13. In July 1716, Marie Louise bought the
post of Colonel of the Soissonais regiment for him. She supposedly
married Armand d'Aydie secretly in the autumn14. He bullied her
around, but his behaviour merely added fuel to Marie Louise's passion.
Gradually, the haughty Princess became the Count's slave. Every
morning, she would send messages to him asking what he would like her
to wear, and, when she obediently dressed according to his orders, he
would make her change everything again. He made her constantly suffer
his caprices, and even deprived her of her freedom. She became
neurotic, was afraid of dying and often wept. In public, she behaved
sweet and humble, regularly visited church and seemed devoted to God.
In June 1717, her grandmother wrote: She gives me all possible marks
of friendship, and often shows me such politeness that I am moved by
it. Marie Louise's life had begun alternating between unconstrained
excesses and religious mania. When she was troubled by remorse, as in
December 1716, she used to retread to a Carmelite convent, where she
fasted rigidly, prayed, flogged herself, and rose during the night to recite
with the nuns. After a while, however, she would put her rosaries aside
and return to the Court and its pleasures.
Her father, the regent, forbade the couple to mention the scandalous
marriage to anybody. When Liselotte of The Palts, having heard some
rumours, asked Marie Louise about it, she replied: Can you believe me
capable of such a stupid move, I, who am accused of such intense
pride?". Soon, Marie Louise became pregnant by her lover. Her father
was furious, because Marie Louise hadn't properly concealed her
pregnancy. Princess Chubby continued to eat and drink unlimited
quantities. Early 1719, she became seriously ill. The religious authorities
refused to administer the last sacraments, as long as the Count of Riom
was in the palace, but to give in would seem like a confession and thus
result in a scandal. Marie Louise, in agony, refused to comply. After a
few days, her father, the regent, found a way out of the impasse by
commanding Armand d'Aydie to join his regiment in Spain. After the

121

birth of a daughter15 on March 28, Marie Louise slowly recovered, but

her health had been fatally undermined.
The regent's visits to his daughter were now rare, short and stormy.
Trying to make amends, Marie Louise organised a supper on the terrace
at Meudon in her father's honour, but she caught a chill from the night
air. Afterwards, she remained ill with fevers. Throughout May her ilness
increased. Liselotte of The Palts wrote: She had such an atrocious pain
in the soles and toes of both feet that she cried. By July, she was again
at the point of death. She lost consciousness, recovering it but slightly, at
long intervals, and only for a few moments. She died at midnight on July
20, 1719, shortly after her 24th birthday. Post-mortem indicated a fifth
pregnancy, a diseased liver, and a supposedly deranged brain. Her
fathers grief was unendurable16. The Duke of Saint-Simon wrote: He
[..] wept so much that I feared he would suffocate. When his great
explosion of grief had subsided a little, he began to talk about the
misfortunes of this world, and of the short duration of what is most
agreeable. He died 4 years later.
Copyright 2001, 2007, 2009 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Franoise Marie's mother and Marie Louise's grandmother was
Franoise-Athnas (1641-1707), Marquise de Montespan, the notorious
mistress of the Sun King.
2 Her full name was Marie Louise Elisabeth. She is best known as La
Duchesse de Berry and Mademoiselle de Chartres. She is also
described as both Marie Louise" and Louise Elisabeth. To distinguish
her from her younger sister Louise Elisabeth (1709-1742), I call her
Marie Louise.
3 Marie Louise and Charles of Berry were closely related. Charles'
father, the Grand Dauphin, was a halfbrother of Marie Louise's mother
and a cousin of Marie Louise's father. In addition, Charles' mother and

122

Marie Louise's paternal grandmother belonged to different branches of

the Wittelsbach family.
4 Another brother had become King Philip V of Spain.
5 Marie Louise's sister Adlade (1698-1743) was also rumoured to be
her father's mistress. She became an abbes, but her abbey was described
as a palace of delight.
6 The pamphleteer was the young Franois Marie Arouet, who later
became known as "Voltaire".
7 Louis de Rouvroy (1675-1755), Duke of Saint-Simon, was a friend of
Philip II of Orlans, while his wife was Marie Louise's lady-in-waiting.
8 After Berry's death the chambermaid bore a posthumous chaild, and
Marie Louise was to maintain both mother and child until the end of her
own life.
9 Louis de la Rochefoucault (1672-1751) was known as the Marquis
de Roye.
10 Bulimia Nervosa usually begins in adolescence between 15 and 19
years of age after a period of intense dieting. Although many girls with
bulimia have a normal weight, other bulimic individuals become
overweight as a result of their binge eating.
11 Antoine Nompar de Puyguilhem (1632-1723), Duke of Lauzun, had
spent 10 years in a fortress for wanting to marry the Sun King's cousin.
His nephews, Armand and Blaise-Marie d'Aydie, both became the
Duchess of Berry's lovers.
12 Armand's face was so covered with pimples that it looked like an
abscess.
13 According to Liselotte of The Palts, Armand soll wie ein Esel
geschaffen sein.
14 The Sun King and the Grand Dauphin had also contracted secret
marriages.
15 The daughter by Riom either died shortly after birth, or became a
non at Pontoise. The sources disagree.
16 Her mother hadn't even bothered to visit Marie Louise during her
final illness.
Bibliography

123

Soissons, Cnt de: Six Great Princesses, Holden & Hardingham

Pevitt, Ch.: The man who would be King (The Life of Philippe
d'Orlans, Regent of France), Quill, 1997
Mitford, N.: The Sun King, Book Club Associates, 1969
Shennan, J.H.: Philip Duke of Orlans (Regent of France 1715-1723),
Thames and Hudson, 1979
Lewis, W.H.: The Scandalous Regent (A Life of Philippe, Duc d'Orlans
1674-1723 and his family), Andre Deutsch, 1961
Lebigre, A.: Liselotte van de Palts, original title: La Princesse Palatine,
Hadewijch, 1990
Mangan, J.J.: The King's Favour (Three eighteenth-century monarchs
and the favourites who ruled them), Part II: The Fishes' Daughter, Alan
Sutton, 1991
Burke's Royal Families of the World, Burke, 1980
Willis, D.: The Descendants of Louis XIII (Genealogy), Clearfield, 1999
Cromer, R.J.: Abnormal Psychology, W.H. Freeman and Company, 1995
Herold, J.Ch.: Love in five temperaments, Hamish Hamilton, 1961
Last modified: 08/20/2013 16:13:26. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
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Raving Royals of Great Britain

King Robert III of Scotland (1337-1406) was a gentle and hesitant man,
who lacked the ruthlessness of his devious and ambitious brothers,
Robert of Fife and Alexander the Wolf. Depressed and disabled by a
kick from a horse, Robert III was unable to protect his sons against their
wicked uncles.

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Robert III was born in 1337 as John Stewart of Carrick. His father,
Robert II Stewart (1316-1390), was related within the forbidden degrees
of kinship to his mother, Elizabeth Mure. John and his brothers had
already been born when their parents asked the pope for a dispensation
and were finally properly married in the late 1440s. The uncertainty
surrounding John's legitimacy undermined his authority as King and
even led to a bitter conflict between his descendants and the
unquestionable legitimate descendants of Robert II Stewart's second
marriage.
The elder Robert Stewart was a son of Marjorie Bruce of Scotland
(1297-1316). He had fought in the Scottish independence wars and on
occasion he had acted as Guardian of the Realm. After the death of
Marjorie's half-brother in 1371, he became Robert II, King of Scots. By
then, his youthful vigour had deserted him and he was nearly blind with
'red bleared eyes'. His control of the government progressively
weakened until he appointed his eldest son, John of Carrick, in 1384 to
enforce authority on his behalf. John ruled Scotland until 1389, when he
was crippled by a riding accident. Afterwards he was unable to engage in
military pursuits and trusted the management of the government entirely
to his brother, the ambitious Robert of Fife (1341-1420).
A year after his accident, John of Carrick succeeded his senile father as
King of Scots. John assumed the style of "Robert III", because the
Scottish King John Balliol had been a rival of King Robert I Bruce and even worse - a vassal of King Edward I of England. The new Queen was
his wife, Annabella Drummond (1350-1401), who had given birth to
seven children. Their eldest son, Robert, died in infancy. In 1378 David
was born and a third son, James, followed in 1394. Robert III as a
young man Sickly and limping John Stewart had always been a gentle,
kind and warm-hearted man, but he was hesitant. He had the best of
intentions and he looked dignified with his long snowy beard, but he
lacked the ruthlessness needed to control the Scottish nobles. On his
accession he was already a chronic invalid and a depressive. Living in
troublesome medieval Scotland, his invalidity undermined Robert III's

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authority and probably worsened his depression. Gradually he became

an ailing recluse. Once, when discussing his end with his wife, Robert
III asked to be buried in a dunghill, beneath the epitaph "Here lies the
worst of Kings and the most miserable of men".
Soon it became apparent that the ruthless regent Robert of Fife was
mainly concerned with his own advancement and turbulent Scotland
plunged into total disorder. Another brother of the King, the ruffianly
Alexander "the Wolf of Badenoch"1, was Justiciar of the North. He
entertained his guests by burning down parts of the great Ruthiemurchus
Forest to drive out and hunt down deer, wild boar, wolves and clansmen.
In his castle on an isle of Loch Indorb, the Wolf had a dark dungeon with
about three feet of icy water, so that incarcerated suspects had to remain
standing, or drown. If they survived a few days and nights, they were
believed to be innocent. His wife had brought the Wolf the Earldom of
Ross, but Alexander refused to be separated from his mistress and
contemplated a divorce. When he was reprimanded by the bishop of
Moray in an ecclesiastical court, The Wolf took revenge in 1390 by
burning down the bishop's beautiful cathedral, two monasteries and
much of the town of Elgin.
A notorious tournament was held in 1396 on the North Inch of Perth as
an entertainment before the King and court and vast crowds. Thirty men
of the Clan Chattan fought against thirty men of another clan. They were
clothed in a short kilt and armed with sword, dirk, axe, crossbow and
three arrows each. To the music of the pipes they slaughtered each other
until after a long time only a dozen survived - all badly wounded. As a
result of the acceptance of the outcome of this judicial combat and the
slaughter of so many local champions in it, the following years the
central highlands were more peaceful.
Robert III's eldest son, David, was a high-spirited and charming, but
spoiled young man. He rivalled for power with his uncle, Robert of Fife.
In 1399 the Queen persuaded her husband to proclaim their eldest son
Duke of Rothesay and delegate Royal authority to him. However, David
was wild and irresponsible and often lacked good judgement. He was

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betrothed, but repudiated the girl, turning her father into an enemy.
Moreover, Robert of Fife was not so easily set aside. In 1402, a few
months after the Queen's death, he persuaded Robert III to order his own
son's arrest. David was incarcerated in his uncle's Falkland Palace,
where he died. Historians assume he succumbed to dysentery, possibly
as a result of neglect, but many contemporaries believed he had actually
been starved to death.
Robert III began to fear for the fate of his only surviving son, young
James. In February 1406 he had James taken in secrecy to Dirleton
Castle to wait for a ship to transport him to France. Base Rock Robert
of Fife sent a large force after the Crown Prince and when a battle was
fought near-by, James was put in a rowing boat and ferried to the Bass
Rock (to the right) in the Firth of Forth. The 11-year-old heir to the
throne and his guardians were left for about a month on the tiny,
windswept, rocky island among the boiling seas, before a ship arrived to
bring James to France. Robert of Fife informed the English King, who
arranged the ship's interception. Thus James became a prisoner of the
King of England for 18 years. When Robert III heard of his son's
capture, he became even more depressed. He refused any food and died
within a few days on April 4, 1406. At his own request he was not buried
with the other Kings at Scone but in nearby Paisley abbey, because he
did not believe himself fit for such an honour.
Copyright 1997-2000 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
" A Prince for Peace, that had for Mars no Mind,
Abhorring Warrs and all Intestine Strife.
Noght to be Cross'd with Kingly Cares Inclined,
Bot loving more a calme and quiet Life:
A King indeed, and yet in Sho bott sitts,
For to his Brother he the Care Committs. "

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Bibliography
Tranter, N.: The story of Scotland, Neil Wilson Publishing, 1987
Prebble, J.: The Lion in the North, Penguin Books
Ross, S.: Monarchs of Scotland, Lochar Publishing, 1990
Linklater, E.: The royal house of Scotland, Sphere Books Limited, 1972
Bingham, C.: Kings and Queens of Scotland, Dorset Press, 1976
Horan, M.: Scottish executions, assassinations and murders, Chambers,
1990
Mackie, J.D.: A history of Scotland, Dorset Press, 1978
Sutherland, E.: Five Euphemias (Women in Medieval Scotland 12001420), Constable, 1999
Mure Mackenzie, A.: The Rise of the Stewarts, Olvier & Boyd Ltd.,
1957
Hallam, E. (ed.): The Plantagenet Encyclopedia (An alphabetical guide
to 400 years of English history), Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1990
Weir, A.: Britain's royal families (The complete genealogy), Pimlico,
1996
Ashley, M.: British Monarchs (The Complete Genealogy, Gazetteer and
Biographical Encyclopedia...), Robinson, 1998
Dictionary of British Kings and Queens, Bookhampton Reference,
Geddes & Grosset, 1995
Moncreiffe of that Ilk, Sir. I.: The Highland Clans (The dynastic
origins,..), Barrie & Rockliff, 1967
Recommended Videos on Scottish History:
Mary, Queen of Scots, 1971.
Braveheart, 1995, DVD. William Walace's fight for Scotish freedom.
Not historically accurate.
Also available: VHS and VHS Widescreen Edition.
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:24:49. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ, RSS Feed, or Mailing List.

128

Henry VI of England (1421-1461) displayed qualities that would have

done credit to a monk, but not to a Medieval King. He was gentle, nave,
chaste, prudish and pious, and constantly engaged in mediation and
prayer. After loosing his French possessions, Henry suffered a mental
breakdown, relapsing into a state of passive withdrawal, wholly
indifferent to what went on around him. Meanwhile, his relatives fought
for power, resulting in a civil war known as the war of the roses.
The Baby King
Henry was born on December 6, 1421. His father was the Great Henry V
(1387-1422), victor of Agincourt and conqueror of France, who died
within a year of his sons birth. His mother was Catherine (1401-1437),
a daughter of Charles VI The Mad (1368-1422), King of France. She
became a widow at the age of 20, and soon formed a liaison with a
Welsh squire, Owen Tudor (1400-1461), busying herselve raising a
new family1.
As a baby, Henry succeeded his father as King Henry VI of England on
September 1, and his grandfather as King Henry II of France on October
11, 1422. He was frequently paraded at public ceremonies and crowned
in England in 1429 and in France in 1431. During his minority, Henrys
uncle, Humphrey (1390-1447), Duke of Gloucester2, was protector of
England. He was a fine scholar, but he was quarrelsome and a poor
statesman; he was usually add odds with the Council.
In 1426, Henry was placed in the care of Richard Beauchamp (13821439), Earl of Warwick. He was to teach Henry manners, literature and
languages. He obtained a document authorizing him to reasonably
chastise Henry, when required, without being held accountable for it at
any future time. Henry, ever terrified of doing the wrong thing, withdrew
into himself, and took refuse in religion. He could already recite the
religious services at the age of 6.
On January 3, 1437, Henrys absent mother died. By the end of the year,
at the age of 16, his minority ended, and Henry VI assumed personal
rule. He wasnt really interested in politics, and he was easily influenced.
As a result, the executive power fell into the hands of a narrow clique of
men, who had access to Henry. Among them were the Beauforts3,

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William Ayscough, bishop of Salisbury, and William de la Pole, Earl of

Suffolk.
The Saint
Henry VI of England Henry VI (to the right) was kind and gentle, and
quite exceptionally nave. He would never say an untrue word to any. He
was chaste, pious and generous, and constantly engaged in mediation
and prayer. He attended divine worship often two or three times a day.
He used to complain that he was too often interrupted by affairs of state,
and could never read any holy teachings without disturbance. Henry was
also interested in learning; around 1440 he founded colleges at
Cambridge and Eton.
Henry always wore a long and sombre gown with a rolled hood, a black
coat reaching below his knees and black shoes or boots. On occasion,
when custom demanded that he wore the crown, Henry atoned with a
hair shirt under his clothes. Amid a licentious Court, Henry had prudish
views on sex and nudity, and he used to avoid the company of women.
Once, when young ladies with bare bosoms were brought before him to
dance, Henry quickly averted his eyes, turned his back upon them, and
went out to his chamber, talking of shame. He was also abhorred to see
men bathing naked.
At the table, Henry was frugal, to save as much food as possible for the
poor. His generosity made ever greater demands on the exchequer, as did
his continual remission of fines and penalties. At a time when the
disembowelling of criminals was a welcome public spectacle, Henry
abhorred all forms of bloodshed, and frequently intervened to spare the
lives of criminals and traitors. He also pardoned nobles who had
conspired against his own life.
The French Connection
Inspired by Joan of Arc (1412-1431), France was slowly retrieving its
territories. In 1435, Philip, Duke of Burgundy, made a separate peace
with Charles VII of France (1403-1461), a younger brother of Queenmother Catherine. When Henry VI was told of Philips desertion, he
burst into tears. The collapse of English rule over France speedily
followed. Brittany was lost in 1449. The next year, Normandy was lost.

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When riots broke out in 1450, Henry put on armour and rode through the
streets demonstrating great physical courage, but he refused to fight.
Suffolk was accused of mismanagement and killed. William Ayscough
was killed, too. By 1453, the English territories in France were lost
forever.
Margaret of Anjou In April 1445, Henry had married 16-year-old
Margaret of Anjou (1429-1482, to the right), a niece-by-marriage of
King Charles VII. Margaret was not only good-looking, but also
courageous, fiery and tempestuous. She was unsuited to Henrys meek
and forgiving temperament, but seems to have conceived a protective
affection for him. Henry simply adored her, and was easily dominated by
his wife. The couple spent much of their time together. Gossip accused
the elder Edmund Beaufort (1406-1455), Duke of Somerset, of being
the Queens lover. Margaret, however, was too ambitious to care about
the courtship of gallants; her favourites were mature councillors.
While Henrys marriage remained childless, a distant relative, Richard of
York (1411-1460), was the heir-apparent. He descended from two sons
of King Edward III and his claim to the throne was even better as
Henrys. From 1450 onwards, a quarrel ensued between Richard of York
and Edmund the Elder4. The quarrel would eventually result in a bloody
feud between the two branches of the Royal family. It later became
known as the War of the Roses, because Henrys family members had
a red rose in their heraldic shield, while the Yorkists had a white rose in
theirs.
The Madness
Throughout his life, Henry VI had attacks of melancholy and depressive
psychosis. For some years, it had been rumoured that Henry was
insane and behaved childish. His daze was described as a sign of
sanctity. Due to the mismanagement of the nations affairs with the
English being driven out of France and the great nobles divided, Henry
was under a lot of pressures. As a result, Henrys nervous state grew
daily worse. He suffered his first mental breakdown in the summer of
1453. It started with a rash and sudden terror. Afterwards, Henry
relapsed into a state of passive withdrawal, unable to speak, lift up his
head, or even to move a muscle of his body. Henry had no natural sense

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or reasoning power, and was wholly indifferent to what went around

him. He was carefully tended and fed.
During this period of insanity, after 8 barren years of marriage, Margaret
gave birth to a son, Edward, by the end of 1453. When the baby was
shown to Henry, he remained immobile like a statue, looking upon the
Prince only once, immediately casting down his eyes again; he took no
notice and said no word. He didnt even recognise his wife. The Royal
physicians tried a series of drugs, purgatives, baths and bleedings, but
their patient remained impassive. He wouldnt wash or dress of his own
account. Potions, syrups, laxatives, clysters and bloodletting followed.
Henrys head was shaved and purged to rid the brain of its black bile
and so restore the balance of the humours. Still, Henry remained
passive, and found difficulty in moving about without assistance. It did
not escape those around him that his symptoms were all too similar to
those displayed by his maternal grandfather, Charles VI The Mad.
With Henry unfit to rule, Richard of York was appointed as Protector in
March 1454. Richard fulfilled the office with integrity and hard work,
but he arrested his rival, Edmund Beaufort, in the Queens apartments,
and had him committed to the Tower. In August, Henry showed some
signs of returning normality, but it wasnt until Christmas that Henry
uttered a few words. In January 1455, he was finally recovering his
health. Amnesia had blocked out all that had happened during his illness.
He expressed bewilderment at the birth of his son, who, Henry said,
must have been conceived by the Holy Ghost.
The War of the Roses
In February, 1455, Richard of York was dismissed and Edmund Beaufort
was restored to power. On May 22, York took to arms and Beaufort died
in battle. Henry VI, totally deserted by his men, and wounded in the
neck, was found by the Yorkists. They had now gained control, but
Henry still retained the loyalty of most of the nobles. In the autumn,
however, a second attack of insanity occurred. Again, Henry sat without
moving, paying little attention to what was happening around him.
Henry recovered in February 1456, when Yorks second Protectorate
ended.

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Margaret of Anjou Henry VI wanted peace, but Queen Margaret (to the
right) vindictively continued the feud with York. Over the years many
reversals of fortune occurred. Henry continued to suffer from attacks of
mental confusion, while his wife remained adamant in refusing to agree
to any concessions. Heads were chopped off and bodies were mutilated
after every battle, adding to the bloodshed. In July 1460, Henry VI was
captured, but he managed to escape in February 1461, rejoining his wife.
Margaret devoted all her energies to keeping Henry on the throne and
thus protecting her sons inheritance. When she had no more money to
pay her soldiers; they started looting, raping and burning, thus
antagonising the people.
In December 1460, York had been slain in battle, but his son Edward
(1442-1483) continued the feud. He captured and beheaded Henrys
stepfather, Owen Tudor, in February 1461. On March 4, Edward was
installed as King Edward IV, while Henry and Margaret were forced to
flee to Scotland. Various strongholds, especially in Wales, held out for
Henry, but they had not enough money or manpower to pose a serious
threat to Edward. Hopes of an uprising failed to materialise, and, in
1464, Henry became a wandering fugitive, hiding in the forests.
Meanwhile, his wife and son tried to muster support in France.
The End
In July 1465, Henry was caught. He was taken to London, bound to his
saddle, and imprisoned in the Tower. He patiently endured hunger, thirst,
mocking, derisions, abuse, and many other hardships. On October 3,
1470, to his astonishment, Henry was suddenly transferred to
luxuriously furnished apartments, and addressed once again as King. He
was dressed up in Royal robes and made to ride in procession through
the city. Richard Neville (1428-1471), Earl of Warwick5, had reconciled
with Queen Margaret after a quarrel with Edward IV6. To cement the
alliance, Henrys only son, Prince Edward, married Warwicks teenage
daughter, Anne Neville (1456-1485)7. Young Edward had grown up in
army-camps, and, disturbingly, talked of nothing but of cutting off
heads, or making war.
In April, Edward IV re-entered London, while Queen Margaret landed
with an army at Weymouth. At Tewkesbury, on May 4, 1471, she was

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defeated, and her only son, 17-year-old Edward, was put to death.
Margaret was carried off to London and imprisoned. Henry had now lost
his wits, his two Kingdoms and his only son. In May8, Henry VI was put
to death in the Tower of London to prevent further rebellion in his name.
His burial place soon became a shrine, attracting large numbers of
pilgrims.
Copyright 2009 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Catherines Tudor grandson was later to ascend the English throne as
King Henry VII. Henry VIIs mother was Margaret Beaufort (14431509), a daughter of John Beaufort and niece of Edmund the Elder.
2 In The Netherlands Humphrey is mainly known as one of the four
husbands of the ill-fated Jacqueline of Bavaria (1401-1436), Countess of
Holland and Hainaut.
3 The Beauforts belonged to the royal family, although they were
excluded from the succession. Family members were John (1403-1444),
Edmund the Elder (1406-1455), Edmund the Younger (1438-1471)
and Joan (1445), who had married firstly King James I of Scotland and
secondly James Stuart The Black Knight of Lorne.
4 Henry VI and the Beauforts descended from different marriages of
John of Gaunt, one of the many sons of King Edward III. Henrys
grandfather, Henry IV, had taken the throne by deposing King Richard
II, who descended from Edward IIIs eldest son. Richard of York
descended in the female line from an elder brother and in the male line
from a younger brother of John of Gaunt.
5 Richard Neville became known as The Kingmaker. He was a sonin-law of Henrys old tutor, Richard Beauchamps.
6 Edward IV had antagonised Warwick by marrying his mistress and
favouring her relatives over Warwicks.
7 As a widow Anne Neville was to marry Richard III, the younger
brother of Edward IV.
8 The date of Henrys murder varies in different sources from May 21
to 27.
Bibliography

134

Green, V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Fraser, A. (ed.), Cheetham, A.: (The Lifes of the) Kings and Queens of
England, Henry VI (1422-71), Macdonald Futura Publishers, 1980
Harvey, J.: The Plantagenets, Fontana/Collins, 1975
Brewer, C.: The Death of Kings (A medical history of the Kings and
Queens of England), Abson Books London, 2005
Erlanger, Ph.: Margaret of Anjou, Queen of England, Elck Books, 1970
Ashdown, D.M.: Royal Children, Robert Hale, 1979
Costain, Th.B.: The Last Plantagents, The Pageant of England Series,
Tandem, 1973
Turton, G.: The Dragons Breed (The Story of the Tudors from earliest
times to 1603), Peter Davies, 1970
Lofts, N.: Queens of Britain, Hodder and Stoughton, 1977
Norwich, J.J.: Shakespeares Kings, Viking, 1999
Hallam, E. (ed.): The Plantagenet Encyclopedia (An alphabetical guide
to 400 years of English history), Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1990
Hallam, E. (ed.): Medieval Monarchs, Tiger Books International, 1996
Weir, A.: Britain's royal families (The complete genealogy), Pimlico,
1996
Recommended Movie
The Tower of London (1939) with Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, Ian
Hunter as Edward IV and Miles Mander as Henry VI.

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135

King James I & VI of England and Scotland (1566-1625) has a curious

likeability for people interested in human oddity. King Henry IV of
France called him the wisest fool in Christendom ; the King who was
clever at everything except governing his country. Nevertheless, James
was one of Scotland's ablest monarchs. He was taken less seriously in
England, however, because of his Scottish accent, his dishevelled
appearance, and his doting on young male favourites - especially near
the end of his life, when he became senile.
Youth
Young James James (to the right) was born on June 19, 1566. He was
only thirteen months old, when he was crowned King of the Scots. His
father, the immature, vain and stupid Henry Stuart of Lennox (15451567), had been murdered shortly after James birth. His mother, the
unfortunate Mary Queen of Scots (1542-1587), remarried Patrick
Hepburn of Bothwell (1535-1578). Both may have been involved in
Henrys death and, as a result, Mary was forced to abdicate in favour of
her only son on July 24, 1567. She fled to England, where she was
imprisoned. In 1587, Mary was condemned to death on the charge of
supporting a Catholic plot to overthrow the English Queen Elizabeth.
James, who had never known his mother, made only some mild protests,
because he didnt want to jeopardise his succession to the English
throne. Thus, Mary was beheaded. Her last husband had fled to
Denmark, where he had become mad in confinement.
As a child, James was looked after by different families. He seems to
have been a bookish boy, spending long periods alone. George Buchanan
was appointed as James tutor. He was an extremely nasty old man, who
hated Jamess mother, and never missed an opportunity to tell James
about her wickedness. He did, however, give James a very thorough, if
old-fashioned, education. The daily routine started before breakfast with
Greek, and then proceeded via Latin and history to music, mathematics,
geography, astronomy and public speaking. At the age of 8, James was
already schooled in French and Latin and could read a chapter of the
Bible out of Latin into French and out of French into English as well as
few men could have added anything to this translation.

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James was brought up in exclusively male company. Girls were

explicitly excluded from his presence. He grew up lonely and unloved
amid treachery and brutal violence. In those days, Scotland was
dominated by gang warfare between its great nobles. Of the four regents,
that reigned Scotland during James childhood, only one died of natural
causes. When James was 11, in 1578, the last regent, the grim James
Douglas, Earl of Morton, handed over power to James himself, hoping
to attract less criticism, when he controlled the government from behind
the scenes.
Early Love Life
Jamess first male favourite was the sophisticated Esm Stuart1 (15421583, to the right), who had spent most of his life at the French court. He
arrived in Scotland, shortly after Jamess 13th birthday. Esm Stuart
James immediately had a crush on him, appreciating Esms emminent
ornaments of body and minde. To James it seemed that paradise had
come on earth, when this beloved Phoenix, as he called him in one of
his own poems, actually returned his affections. Esm encouraged young
James to hunt and hold wild parties, instead of governing the country.
He first became Gentleman of the Bedchamber, but soon he replaced the
Earl of Morton, who was executed in 15812. Esm was made Duke of
Lennox that same year. His boon companion, James Stewart, was
created Earl of Arran. These two debauchees foully misused Jamess
tender age. Esm exercised enormous political power, and dominated
Scotland for 3 years. Many Scottish nobles resented his influence, and
one of them, William Ruthven, Earl of Gowrie, kidnapped James in
August 1582. Humiliated and lovesick, James met their demands with
tears. After 10 months, he managed to slip away, while on a hunting
expedition, and escape. This episode made James permanently cautious
of strangers, and afraid of assassinations.
Esm had died in France3, but Arran was soon reinstated as a member of
the Kings council. In 1585, he was replaced by a new favourite,
charming Patrick of Gray. He had been send to England to negotiate an
alliance. James was also said to have hung around the neck of Francis,
Earl of Bothwell, whom he frequently embraced tenderly in public, until

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he became tired of his wild pranks, and send him in exile. George
Gordon, Earl of Huntley, and known as The Cock of the North, was
also kissed in public by James. He made him captain of the guard, and
lodged him in his own chamber. Gordon was eventually rewarded with
the title of Marquis. He became involved in several catholic plots and a
murder, until James sent him abroad in 1595. Another favourite was
Alexander Lindsay, whom James called Sandie.
Anne of Denmark After consulting the English Queen Elizabeth, James
proposed to Princess Anne of Denmark (1574-1619, to the right), and
wrote her a stream of love poems. When she was held back by the
weather from sailing to Scotland in 1589, James went to fetch her for
himself, and stayed away six months. When he returned, he was lucky to
find his throne safe. For a while, James imagined himself in love with
his fair, teenage bride. They both enjoyed poetry and she possessed the
social graces and interests he lacked, thus enlivening the court. Annes
masques, however, bored James, and soon she turned out to be an
enormous spendthrift. Over the years, Anne went through 9 pregnancies,
although only 3 children survived infancy: Henry Frederick (15941612), Elizabeth (1596-1662), and Charles (1600-1649). Anne was a
loving mother and James was a family man, too. He doted on his
children, although he never quite managed to gain their confidence or
admiration.
Kingship
Due to the insecurity and loneliness of his childhood, James was easily
influenced by fear and flattery. Slowly, however, he began to develop a
balancing act, playing off one Scottish faction against another, while
keeping friendly with the English Queen Elizabeth, whose heir he was4.
He ruled Scotland as a shrewd and canny monarch, and proved to be
more than a match for the wily Scottish nobles. In August 1600, James
claimed he was attacked in Gowrie House. In the following struggle
James Ruthven, Earl of Gowrie, and his brother, Alexander, were both
killed. They belonged to the family that had kidnapped James in 1582.

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On March 23, 1603, the English Queen Elizabeth died, and within 3
days James received the news. He left Edinburgh on April 5, and had
reached London by May 7. His wife and children followed later. In
August, James and Anne were crowned. In 1604, James concluded peace
with Spain. Afterwards, he managed to maintain peace for a long time.
When he tried to relax the laws against Catholics, however, he was
opposed by Parliament. Some Catholic conspirators dug a tunnel into the
cellars of the Parliament building with the intention of blowing up the
Houses of Parliament during a State opening, when the King was
present. One of them warned his brother, who was an MP, and who
informed the guards. The conspirators of this Gunpowder Plot were
tracked down and executed. Gradually, James came to listen more
closely to his advisers than to Parliament. He left the details of the
administration of his Kingdom to the Privy Councils of both his
countries. His chief minister was Robert Cecil (1563-1612). James
called him Little Beagle5, and made him Earl of Salisbury.
James became one of the most intellectual rulers Britain has ever had.
James published his first book, a treatise on how to write poetry, when
he was nineteen. His publications Trew law of Free Monarchies and
Basilikon Doron contained both philosophical musings and practical
advice about ruling a country. His cleverness, however, was of a
theoretical kind; he had little grasp of reality. A new translation of the
Bible, supervised by King James himself, was published in 1611. The
theatre flourished as James had a taste for satire, low comedy and
burlesque. He patronised Shakespeare, who wrote his most famous plays
and sonnets. Dutch experts, skilled in the reclamation of swampy land,
using dykes and ditches, were invited to turn East Anglia into farmland.
Strange Habits
King James James (to the right) enjoyed cock-fighting and bear-baiting.
He objected to the poore to cutt downe and carey awaye my woodes out
of my parkes and grounds, because he loved riding and hunting. While
at the hunt, James did not dismount to relieve himself, but defecated in
the saddle, so that by the end of the day he was in a filthy state.
Meanwhile, he was completely reckless and enjoyed a bloody kill. As

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soon as a stag was brought down, James eagerly dismounted to cut its
throat. Then he would rip its belly open, put his hands, and sometimes
his feet, inside and smear his companions with blood. Still, his custom
was to have only one bath a year.
James had not been able to walk properly until the age of 5. Invariably,
"he leaned on other mens shoulders, his walk ever circular, his fingers
always fiddling with his codpiece" 6. Like his father and younger son,
James had notably spindly legs. Therefore, Frederick Holmes suggests
that Jamess legs may have been affected by a hereditary neuromuscular
disease.
James conversation was usually a garrulous stream in which longwinded theories mingled with homely endearments and coarse jokes. His
speech was quite unintelligible with a Scottish accent. His protruding
tongue seemed too large for his mouth, and gave the impression that he
ate liquids rather than drank them, slobbering his drink down his chin
and onto his clothing.
James was of medium height and weight, but appeared larger, because
he wore bulky clothing, padded to protect him from the daggers of
possible assassins. As King of England, he bought a new suit every 10
days. He was never corpulent, eating simple meals, fruits and
vegetables. He liked wine, but he was rarely drunk. He rarely drank
water, and, by his own description, his urine was usually quite
concentrated. He had occasional bouts of abdominal pain, when passing
dark or bloody urine. It was sometimes accompanied by fever. He also
had melancholy episodes, particularly at times of stress. Bouts of
diarrhoea and gastrointestinal distress marked periods of stress later in
his life. His physician wrote: He often had turbid urine and red like
Alicant wine. In June 1613, he described bloody urine, with read sand,
soon feculent and with thick sediment. He had the same symptoms in
October 1615. The pain was usually in his left flank and was of varying
severity, sometimes keeping him from attending his duties for several
days at a time. Like some of his descendants, James most likely suffered
from the hereditary disease porphyria, although he may also have had a
chronic kidney infection. He didnt wash his hands; he just wet his
fingertips, rubbing them with his napkin7.

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James also suffered from a chronic chest infection, possibly tuberculosis,

and thoroughly disliked smoking: A custom loathsome to the eye,
hateful to the nose, harmful to the brain, dangerous to the lungs.
Favourites
Robert Carr James had short flings for James Hay, whom he created Earl
of Carlisle, and for Philip Herbert, whom he created Earl of
Montgomery. In the spring of 1607, at the vulnerable age of 40, James
bestowed his affections on Robert Carr (to the right), a young, tall and
handsome Scot8. Carr was thrown off his horse, breaking his leg, and
James insisted that his own physicians take care of him. He visited him
regularly. After his recovery, James began to treat Robert Carr in public
with the same exaggerated, gross affection as in private. He appeared
everywhere with his arm round Roberts neck, constantly kissing and
fondling him, lovingly feeling the texture of the expensive suits he chose
and bought for him, pinching his cheeks and smoothing his hair. They
even kissed lasciviously in public. Soon, Robert Carr was made
Gentleman of the Bedchamber. In 1611, he was created Viscount
Rochester.
In May 1612, Robert Cecil died. In November 1612, Jamess talented
eldest son, Henry Frederick, died, too. His death made James physically
ill. He came to depend even more on his favourite. Robert Carr was
made Lord Treasurer of Scotland in 1613 and received the title Earl of
Somerset. Carr encouraged Jamess extravagance, helped him raising
taxes, and encouraged an alliance with Spain. When he fell in love with
the already married Francis Howard, James helped to arrange her
divorce. By the end of 1613, both James and Anne attended their
wedding. In 1615, Carrs involvement in a murder scandal came out. By
that time James had already reproached him for your long creeping
back and withdrawing yourself from lying in my chamber,
notwithstanding my many hundred times earnestly soliciting you to the
contrary 9. George Villiers
By then, James had already met his last and greatest love, dashing
George Villiers (1592-1628, to the right). By all accounts, George had
great charm and stunning good looks. James was soon hopelessly in love

141

with him. In August 1615, George Villiers confessed that he gave in to

the Kings importunity, also hinting at activity in bed10. At that time,
sodomy was against the law. James himself officially condemned it as
one of the sins that cannot be forgiven11.
Georges rise started in 1615 with his appointment as Gentleman of the
Bedchamber. The next year, he became Viscount Villiers. He was created
Earl, Marquis and finally Duke of Buckingham in the period 1617-1623.
George became Lord High Admiral of the navy in 1619. In 1620, he
married - with Jamess blessing - the rich heiress Katherine Manners, a
daughter of the Earl of Rutland. George also managed to secure a title
and advantageous marriage for his brother, John Villiers, who suffered
from periods of insanity.
Christ had his John, James said, and I have my George. Villiers
wrote flatteringly to James: I naturally so love your person, and adore
all your other parts, which are more than ever one man had. He also
carefully cultivated Prince Charles, securing his favour and affection,
too. By 1624, they had become close companions with Charles, too,
addressing Villiers in his letters as sweetheart.
Last Years
Though old and ailing, James wrote more bad verse, and still dined and
gossiped with his friends, making unseemly jokes. His weak legs started
aching more and more, and the pain seemed to be settling in his joints.
Swelling of both feet was occurring as early as 1616, when it continued
for more than 4 months. Finally, the arthritis extended to his knees,
hands, and shoulders. He was often not able to walk more than very
short distances. Never known for his clean habits, James now washed
only occasionally, and had a somewhat dishevelled appearance. He lost
weight and became thin and wasted; his cadaverous appearance became
more marked over the years. Hiccupping, sneezing and belching, with
sores on his lips and a bad breath, James became ever more repellent.
Queen Anne had long suffered from dropsy. In March 1619, she died
after a long illness. James became quite depressed after her death12, and
lost interest in the affairs of state. He was prematurely becoming senile.
Frederick Holmes suggests that, possibly as a result of his heart rhythm
disturbances, James may have had a series of small strokes, not

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recognised by those who attended him, resulting in dementia. He was

unable to concentrate for long on anything important. He became
irritable and behaved childish. Business became more burdensome,
decisions more difficult, fears more acute, and emotions more
overpowering. He was agitated by constant mistrust of everyone, and a
perpetual fear for his life. He was sometimes swearing, at other times
weeping. In 1623, the Venetian ambassador wrote that James was
reduced to profound lethargy and stupid insensibility.
James doted on his only surviving son, calling him Baby Charles, and
his favourite, whom he called Steenie. George Villiers exploited his
intimate relationship with the demented King. Assisted by Prince
Charles, he managed to keep persons with opposite political views from
Jamess presence. His influence stretched from day-to-day matters of
government to the negotiation of foreign policy. Had James been in full
possession of his faculties, Villiers would never have achieved such
power. Around December 1622, James wrote to George: I am now so
miserable a coward, as I do nothing but weep and mourn, for I protest to
God, I rode this afternoon a great way in the park without speaking to
anybody, and the tears trickling down my cheeks, as now they do, that I
can scarcely see to write. But alas, what shall I do at our parting?
In the autumn his hands became so crippled with arthritis that James
could not sign his name. With Christmas he was ill. Early 1625, when
London was once again infested with bubonic plague, James retired to
Hertfordshire. There, he became seriously ill with recurrent attacks of
fever and diarrhoea. He gave in to melancholy. Soon, he had difficulty
swallowing and speaking. On occasions, he had convulsions. When the
royal physicians gave up hope, George Villiers and his mother tried a
remedy of their own, which let to rumours of poisoning. James grew
worse, and died on March 27.
Copyright 2008-2013 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Esm Stuart's father was a brother of Jamess grandfather. Esm had
a wife and children, who remained in France.

143

2 During his regency the Earl of Morton introduced a primitive

guillotine to Scotland; he was eventually executed by it himself. His
wife, Elisabeth Douglas, became mad.
3 Later, when James had become King of England, Esms son Louis
became James representative in Scotland.
a codpiece4 Both his father and mother descended from Elizabeths
aunt, Margaret Tudor.
5 Beagles were dogs with very short legs.
6 A codpiece (to the right) was a small bag that was attached to the
front of the crotch of men's trousers to provide a covering for the
genitals. As time passed, codpieces were shaped to emphasize the male
genitalia, and eventually became padded and bizarrely shaped.
7 Bingham explains that the sensitiveness of Jamess skin, a possible
symptom of porphyria, made him wiping his fingers in stead of washing
his hands.
8 Robert Anglicised his Scottish name Ker to Carr.
9 James granted Carr a pardon in 1624, but they never saw each other
again.
10 George Villiers wrote: I shall never forgett at Franham where ye
Beds hed could not be found betwene your Master and his Doge.
11 During Jamess reign, however, only 6 men were indicted of
sodomy, and only one convicted.
12 James wrote after Annes death: So did my Queen from hence her
court remove, and left off earth to be enthroned above.
Bibliography
Bingham, C.: James I of England, Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1981
Willson, D.H.: King James VI and I, Jonathan Cape, 1966
Walter, D.: James I, Wayland Kings and Queens, Wayland Publishers,
1975
Bergeron, D.M.: King James & Letters of Homoerotic Desire,
University of Iowa Press, 1999
Holmes, F.: The Sickly Stuarts (The medical downfall of a dynasty),
Sutton Publishing, 2003
Fraser, A.: King James, Book Club Associates, 1974

144

Cawthorne, N.: The Sex Lives of the Kings and Queens of England (An
Irreverent Expos of the Monarchs from Henry VIII to the Present Day),
Prion, 1994
Brewer, C.: The Death of Kings (A medical history of the Kings and
Queens of England), Abson Books London, 2005
Linklater, E.: The Royal House of Scotland, Sphere Books Limited,
1972
Hibbert, Ch.: The Court at Windsor (A Domestic History), Longman,
1964
Ross, S.: Monarchs of Scotland, Lochar Publishing, 1990
Prebble, J.: The Lion in the North (One thousand years of Scotlands
history), Penguin Books, 1973
Swinglehurst, E.: History of the Kings & Queens of England &
Scotland, Armadillo Books, 2002
Ashdown, D.M.: Royal Children, Robert Hale, 1979
Lamont-Brown, R.: Royal Poxes & Potions (Royal Doctors & Their
Secrets), The History Press, 2009
Cecil, D.: The Cecils of Hatfield House (A Portrait of an English Ruling
Family), Cardinal, 1975
Thielde, A.: Erzhlende genealogische Stammtafeln zur europischen
Geschichte, Band IV, Die Britische Peerage, ein Auszug, R.G. Fischer
Verlag, 1996
Recommended Reading:
Rhl, J.C.G., Warren, M., Hunt, D.: Purple Secret (Genes, 'Madness' and
the Royal Houses of Europe), Bantam Press, 1998
Last modified: 05/09/2013 13:24:41. Content: Joan Bos. Info: FAQ,
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145

King George III of Great-Britain (1738-1820) had always been a family

man with strong moral principles, but, during his recurring bouts of
'madness', he developed an embarrassing fancy for a respectable
grandmother of over fifty. His doctors had him strapped into a straitjacket, which worsened his condition. They didn't realise that George
suffered from a rare hereditary disease causing excruciating pains.
Youth
George III was born on June 4, 1738. His mother was Augusta of SaxeGotha (1719-1772) and his father was the Crown-Prince Frederick
(1707-1751), who was known as "Poor Fred", because both his parents
hated him. His father, George II, called Frederick "the greatest villain
that ever was born", his mother, Caroline of Ansbach, called him "the
greatest ass, and the greatest beast in the whole world" and his sister
Caroline (1713-1757) wished that "he may die and that we may all go
about with smiling faces and glad hearts". Nevertheless, Frederick was a
much better father for George than his father had been for him. He loved
music and encouraged his children to appreciate it. He engaged
reasonably competent tutors for his sons and they were taught Latin,
French, German, history, mathematics and religion. The tutors found
George a difficult pupil, not exactly unwilling, but lethargic and
incapable of concentration. At times he was silent and morose and when
he was angry, he became obstinate and sullen. At twenty he still wrote
like a child.
In March 1751 Prince Frederick caught a chill and died soon afterwards.
His widow became a rather possessive mother to the children. Her friend
and adviser was the vain and pompous John Stuart (1713-1792), Earl of
Bute, who was regarded as "extremely handsome". According to Horace
Walpole (1717-1797) "the beauty of his leg was constantly displayed in
the eye of the poor captivated Princess". George implored Bute to help
him and Bute never hesitated to mark his faults or to remind him of the
immense responsibility of his calling. So when George succeeded his
grandfather in 1760, he took Bute's advice on every matter, ignoring
other ministers with decades of political experience.

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Marriage
Like his predecessors, George was a sensual man. He appreciated
feminine beauty, but his high sense of morality would not allow him to
indulge in his fancies. Queen Charlotte In 1759 George fell in love with
15-year old Sarah Lennox (1745-1826), a daughter of the Duke of
Richmond1. He longed to marry her, but Bute said "no" and dutiful
George obeyed, although his infatuation continued for some years. He
told Bute: "It is entirely owing to a daily increasing admiration of the
fair sex which I am attempting with all the philosophy and resolution I
am capable of to keep under...". Persistent rumours maintain that on
April 17, 1759 George had secretly married a quakeress called Hannah
Lightfoot, who is said to have borne him three children. However, if this
were true, his subsequent official marriage would have been bigamous
and it is unthinkable that a decent and dutiful monarch with high morals
like George III would have contracted a bigamous marriage. In 1761
George III settled hastily on ugly Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
(1744-1818, to the right). With her large mouth, flat nose and swarthy
complexion, she had been nicknamed "monkey face". Plain and
undesirable as she was, George III fulfilled his marital duties in the same
conscientious way as he fulfilled his kingship, and they bred 15 children.
The first, later George IV (1762-1830), was born eleven months after the
wedding.
Marriage and fatherhood helped George to overcome his sense of
insecurity. He was interested in music and the technique of agriculture.
He created model farms at Windsor, which earned him the nickname of
"Farmer George". With his collection of books and manuscripts, he laid
the foundation of the future British museum library. In addition, he
collected drawings, coins, medals, watches and model ships. Queen
Charlotte was interested in music too, and could perform on the
clavichord. She was well read in history and had some knowledge of
botany, but she was particularly skilful with her needle. In his concern to
shield his wife from outside influences and intrigues and his
determination that she should be wholly devoted to him alone, George
kept Charlotte as much as possible from making acquaintances in her

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new fatherland. George enjoyed a quiet evening at home and by 10

o'clock the Royal couple would go to sleep. Their court was reputed to
be the dullest in Europe.
In 1762 George was ill from January until July, suffering from fever,
coughing, a rapid pulse, insomnia and loss of weight. In January 1765
George suffered from "a violent cold", insomnia and stitches in his
breast. At times George felt better, was cheerful and good-humoured; but
he was recurrently stricken by new relapses. Early 1766 he had another
relapse, but soon afterwards he made a full recovery. Apart from these
illnesses, George enjoyed excellent health and kept his figure trim by a
spartan diet and plenty of exercise.
Lord Bute lacked both confidence and powerful friends and the power
struggle undermined his health until he at last gave up. George III
changed ministries frequently, but from 1770 onwards he found a
dependable friend in Frederick North (1732-1792), allegedly the worst
prime minister in British history. As George III matured and slowly
learned to rule, his opinions became more rigid. He had always regarded
the burdens of governing as a sacred, but dreadful obligation imposed on
him by the Almighty, and opposition to his policy enraged and
embittered him. In 1775 the American War of Independence broke out.
The American colonists protested against repeated attempts to impose
taxes on them and their anger found outlets in incidents like the "Boston
Tea Party" in 1773. George's American policy was to force the colonists
to absolute obedience, but the colonists proclaimed their independence
on July 4, 1776 and achieved it at the Peace of Versailles in 1783. The
same year arrogant 24-year-old William Pitt the Younger (1759-1806)
entered the political arena and he was to be prime minister with only one
break (1801-4) until his death.
Family
In 1764 George gave his domineering sister Augusta (1737-1813) in
marriage to the coarse and brutal Charles II of Brunswick (1735-1806).
The marriage was unhappy and of their sons the eldest was "passive in

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intellect", the second was "a complete imbecile" and the third was
"nearly blind". Even worse was the marriage of George's youngest sister
Caroline Mathilda (1751-1775) to the insane Christian VII of Denmark
(1749-1808); it ended in disgrace and divorce. In 1765 George's brother
Frederick died at the age of 15. Two years later George's favourite
brother Edward died at the age of 28. His surviving brothers, William of
Gloucester (1753-1805) and Henry of Cumberland (1745-1790), married
ladies considered by George as entirely unsuitable. Then George
introduced the Royal Marriages Act that provided that no Royal under
the age of 25 was allowed to contract matrimony without first obtaining
the consent of the sovereign, while Royals above that age needed
approval from Parliament.
George III was a devoted father, but he lacked imagination. He gave
instructions that discipline should be strict, and punishment severe. He
kept the boys close, while the girls were ruled with an iron hand by
Queen Charlotte. The Princesses were intensely over-protected, secluded
from the world and kept from all contact with eligible males of their own
age. When the King entered a conversation with one of his daughters,
the Princess was expected to stand up and to remain silent unless asked a
question. When he dismissed her, she had to leave the room walking
backwards. Despite the formality, George really did love his children.
When Prince Alfred died in 1782 before the age of 2, George was deeply
distressed, and when Prince Octavius, of whom he had been especially
fond, died the following year at the age of 4, he was heartbroken.
Disease
George III In 1788 George III's 12-year-old daughter Mary (1776-1857)
was ill with "spasms" for months. In August her 15-year-old brother
Augustus (1773-1843) fell ill in Hanover with symptoms like insomnia,
fast pulse, obstinate constipation, headache, giddiness, great exhaustion,
muscular weakness and excruciating pain in the chest. The attacks
waxed and waned for about 8 weeks, during which his doctors feared for
his life. The doctors observed that during his four major attacks his urine
was coloured "reddish-brown" or "deep amber". Each time when the

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attack had subsided, the colour returned to normal. Dr. J.G. von
Zimmerman (1728-1795) reported to George III that Augustus' condition
resembled closely the illness of his brother Frederick in 1783. By
October Augustus was slowly recovering, but he had lost much weight
and was still weak.
In June George III suffered from a violent bilious attack and in the next
two months he took the waters at Cheltenham. Even there the day's
programme was strenuous. George went to take the waters at 6 o'clock in
the morning. Afterwards he went for a walk until 8:30, when he had
breakfast. At 10 o'clock the carriages appeared and the Royal family set
off for a day's sightseeing. Dinner was at 4 o'clock, followed by more
walking from 6 to 7 o'clock and tea until 10 o'clock, when they ate their
supper. At 11 o'clock the Royals retired to their bedrooms for less than 6
hours of sleep. The King was tireless and in high spirits.
On October 17, George III suffered another bilious attack during the
night and asked for opium to ease the pain. In the preceding days he had
had dark coloured urine. His physician, Sir George Baker (1722-1809),
wrote: "He complained of a very acute pain in the pit of the stomach
shooting to the back & sides, and making respiration difficult & uneasy."
George complained of a rash, rheumatism and cramp in the leg muscles.
Fanny Burney (1752-1840), the Queen's Keeper of the Robes, wrote on
October 26, 1788: "he stopped me, and conversed upon his health near
half-an-hour, still with that extreme quickness of speech and manner that
belongs to fever; and he hardly sleeps, he tells me, one minute all night;
indeed, if he recovers not his rest, a most delirious fever seems to
threaten him. He is all agitation, all emotion, yet all benevolence and
goodness, even to a degree that makes it touching to hear him speak."
His limbs were stiff and painful and his incessant talking - for hours on
end - made him hoarse. He complained that both his vision and hearing
were affected.
On November 5, the King became more confused and incoherent, while
still talking incessantly, and at dinner he lost control and had a delirium.
The Queen became hysterical and with difficulty George was persuaded

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to allow his wife to sleep in a separate room that night on the grounds
that she was not well. The doctors thought that His Majesty suffered
from gout, which had first attacked his feet, but "had flown to his brain
and lodged there", so blisters were applied to his head in the hope of
driving it down again. At times George was extremely agitated, uttering
staccato shouts of "What! What! What!", perspirating and complaining
of burning. Sometimes he was foaming with rage. At other times he was
sunken into a deep melancholia. Still he had flashes of good sense.
The Royal family moved from Windsor to Kew on November 30,
because it had a private garden where the King could not be seen by
passers-by. Dr. Francis Willis (1718-1807) was summoned. He was a
clergyman with a reputation for treating the insane at his private asylum.
Whenever the King refused his food, either because he found it difficult
to swallow or because he had no appetite, whenever he became too
restless to lie quietly down on his bed, whenever the terrible pain from
his septic and suppurating blisters was such that he thrashed about and
tore off the badges, whenever he sweated so much that he threw off his
bedclothes2, Willis had him strapped into a strait-jacket with a band
across his chest and his legs tied to a bedpost. When he used foul or
obscene language, he was gagged. Once he tried to sexually assault a
housemaid and he developed a fancy for Elizabeth Spencer, Countess
Pembroke and a respectable grandmother of over fifty. He claimed that
she was his Queen and Charlotte an impostor. On Christmas Day George
called his pillow Prince Octavius, who "was to be new born this day".
He gave orders to people who were long since death and imagined that
London was flooded.
George III suffered from porphyria in its most vicious form, although his
suffering may have been aggravated by the ill treatment of his doctors.
The symptoms of this rare hereditary disease include paralysis, delirium,
hypertension, and acute pain, while sufferers pass urine of a purple
colouring. After treating Prince Augustus in 1783 Dr. Zimmerman noted:
"It has come to our knowledge that several members of the Royal
Family and in particular his Royal Highness the Duke of York and
Prince Edward are subject to the same paroxysms and this arouses our

151

suspicion of a hereditary predisposition." George III's brother William of

Gloucester recurrently fell ill until his painful death in 1803 and his son,
"Silly Billy" (1776-1834), died of a "bilious inflammation", too. In 1827,
George IV was deeply distressed to witness his brother Frederick's
suffering in his last illness, and was obsessed by it as a foreboding of his
own end - as indeed it turned out to be. Edward of Kent (1767-1820),
Queen Victoria's father, enjoyed a robust health, but he, too, suffered
periodically all through his life from sudden "bilious attacks". Princess
Sophia had a bad health all her life and suffered regularly from "cramps
in the chest" and "inflammation". The disease was not diagnosed until
the 1960s3.
In January 1789 the King's condition slowly improved. In spite of
certain eccentric characteristics, George III had made a full recovery in
March. His courageous triumph over the affliction added greatly to his
popularity, but with the approach of middle age George became
increasingly eccentric. He suffered some mild recurrences of his illness,
in particular in 1795.
Domesticities
George IV George III's elder sons were a troublesome bunch, brutal,
dissolute and recklessly extravagant. George was over-protective and
continued to treat his high-spirited eldest son as a child. Young George
wrote to his brother Frederick in 1781: "I am sorry to tell you that the
unkind behaviour of both their Majesties, but in particular of the Queen,
is such that it is hardly bearable." One of their sisters later recalled how
she had seen him and Prince Frederick "held by their tutors to be flogged
like dogs with a long whip". For some years the Prince of Wales pleaded
for a separate establishment and hoped to get his own way by
embarrassing his father through encouraging the opposition. Finally,
when he was 21 years old, George III was forced to grant his eldest son
an income of his own.
Nevertheless, relations between old and young George gradually became
worse. It was as though his parents' dull domestic way of living, and
their constant criticism of his extravagance, incited the Crown Prince to

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further dissipation and expenditure, just as his father's faithfulness to a

physically unappealing wife made it all the harder for the King to bear
the Prince's shamefully licentious behaviour with a succession of
attractive and amusing women2. In 1785 the Crown Prince (to the right)
secretly married the catholic widow Maria Smythe (1756-1837), known
as "Mrs. Herbert". As soon as George III found out, he had the marriage
declared invalid. Nevertheless, Prince Augustus twice married nonRoyal women. Prince William (1765-1837)4 had a long-lasting
relationship with his mistress Dorothea Bland (1761-1816), known as
"Mrs. Jordan", which resulted in 10 illegitimate children. In 1791
Frederick of York married Frederica of Prussia (1767-1820), a relative,
and four years later the Prince of Wales and his cousin Caroline of
Brunswick (1768-1821)5 were united in an unhappy marriage.
Meanwhile, the Princesses passed their lives in almost unimaginable
dullness and they did not even have a prospect of escape, because their
parents did not want to be parted from them and therefore rejected all
offers of marriage. In 1797 the eldest Princess, 30-year-old Charlotte
(1766-1828), in desperation married the extremely corpulent6 King
Frederick of Wrttemberg (1754-1816), whose former wife5 had
disappeared under mysterious circumstances after leaving her husband
for ill treatment. Still, Charlotte was lucky. While the Royal family as
usual was on holiday at Weymouth in 1798 Princess Mary wrote: "This
place is more dull and stupid than I can find words to express". In 1808
38-year-old Princess Elisabeth (1770-1840) wrote: "We go on vegetating
as we have done for the last twenty years of our lives". The Princesses
resented their mother and none of them trusted her. The Princess Royal
described the Queen as a "silly woman", given to "violence and caprice",
Mary commented upon her "lack of warmth, tenderness and affection"
and Elisabeth described her mother as a "spoilt child".
Decline
Meanwhile, the Industrial Revolution and mechanisation had brought
loss of employment and social upheaval. The Wilkes riots in the 1760s
were followed by Keppel and Gordon riots in the 1770s. In 1786 George

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III was clumsily attacked with a knife. In 1794 a bolt passed right
through the King's carriage. In 1800 five shots ware fired during a
review of the Grenadier Guards, but they too missed the King. The same
evening another man fired at George III, when he entered the Royal box
in the theatre. A person near the would-be assassin was able to deflect
his aim so that the bullet missed the King. George remained quite calm
and turned to the Queen and Princesses who were just entering the box,
saying: "Keep back". The audience cheered and sang "God Save the
King!" three times.
At that time in Great-Britain Roman catholics were not permitted to
vote, sit in Parliament or hold a public office of any kind, but when Pitt
the Younger proposed to improve their rights early 1801, George
strongly opposed it, maintaining that any change whatsoever would
violate his coronation oath. In February George said he had become
"bilious and unwell" and on the 25th his urine was dark coloured again.
Poor George did recognise the symptoms and remembered the
treatments, purges, blistering and strait-jackets, which had been applied
to him during his previous illness, and said: "I do feel myself very ill, I
am much weaker than I was, and I have prayed to God all night that I
might die, or that he would spare my reason...". Cramp, constipation,
insomnia, a fast pulse, nausea, colic, muscular pain and weakness, and a
feverish sweating led to acute delirium culminating in coma. Again, his
physicians feared for his life. Again, his condition seemed to change day
by day. The King was detained by force, but luckily George slowly
recovered.
Four years later the rheumatism, fever, swelling and nausea returned.
George himself called it a "rheumatic attack" and within a few days he
became "too lame to walk without a cane". His foot swelled, a fever
followed and for a short while his life was in danger. This time Dr.
Samuel Foart Simmons (1750-1813), physician in a hospital for lunatics,
was summoned. He too had the King tied up in a strait-jacket. By the
middle of October George III had regained his sleep and lost much of his
irritability. During his illness Queen Charlotte had refused to sleep with

154

her husband, but even after his recovery she kept the Princesses
constantly attending upon her and staying with her. So George arranged
to live separately, although they remained friends and appeared together
in public. His remaining complaint of "rheumatic pains" slowly passed
in 1805.
Princess Amelia In 1816 40-year-old Mary was finally allowed to marry
her tyrannical cousin "Silly Billy" of Gloucester. Elisabeth was nearly 48
years old when she married Frederick VI of Hesse-Homburg (17691829) and, although he smelled and bathed infrequently, the marriage
was a happy one. As usual the Queen had fought as hard as she could to
prevent the marriage, but the Prince of Wales had given his consent.
None of the married Princesses had any children of their own, but in
1800 22-year-old Sophia (1777-1848) had given birth to a son after a
concealed pregnancy. The child's most likely father was an equerry,
Thomas Garth (1744-1829), although some rumours mentioned
Sophia's notorious brother Ernest of Cumberland (1771-1851). Princess
Augusta (1768-1840) had romantic feelings for another middle-aged
equerry, Sir Brent Spencer. The youngest daughter, Amelia (1783-1810,
to the right), was almost permanently ill from 1795 onwards. She fell
madly, but hopelessly in love with the dull Sir Charles FitzRoy (17621831)1, but in 1810 she was fatally ill with tuberculosis. She wished to
go to Kew, but the Queen forbade it, and while her sister Mary was
taking care of her, their heartless mother objected that it was "selfish of
Amelia to demand so much attention" from her sister.
Mad King George Around that time George III had another relapse.
"This one," he said, "is occasioned by poor Amelia." He suffered from
failing eyesight and aged rapidly. In 1811, shortly after assuming the
regency, the Prince of Wales was struck down by abdominal pain and
paralysis of the limbs. One of his doctors reported that he suffered "such
agony of pain all over him it produces a degree of irritation on his nerves
nearly approaching to delirium". While the regent recovered, George
III's attacks came and went. He suffered from short-term memory loss
and senile dementia was setting in. "I went down with the Queen," wrote

155

Princess Mary, "and it was shocking to hear the poor, dear King run on
so, and her unfortunate manner makes things worse." After 1812 the
Queen left the duty of visiting her husband to her children. Completely
isolated from the outside world, King George was still subjected to the
well-meant, but barbarous treatment of his doctors.
By 1817, George was going deaf, and the following year, he could no
longer walk. He was looking very old and thin. His only amusements
were eating cherry tart and striking the keys of his harpsichord. One day
he said: "I must have a new suit of clothes and I will have them black in
memory of George III, for he was a good man." He had strange
delusions, was often in tears and sometimes he laughed wildly. But for
the most part, he would pass his days wandering restlessly from room to
room or buttoning and unbuttoning his waistcoat. Queen Charlotte died
in November. George III had another violent outburst with Christmas
1819, when he had no rest and talked continually. Then he began to
refuse his food and grew weaker. He died on January 29, 1820, at the
age of 81.
Copyright 1999, 2000 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 An illegitimate descendant of the Merry King Charles II Stuart
2 Christopher Hibbert
3 In the 1960s Ida Macalpine and Richard Hunter recognised the
symptoms. Recently, John C.G. Rhl, Martin Warren and David Hunt
have provided further evidence.
4 Later King William IV
5 A daughter of George III's sister Augusta
6 Napoleon maintained that God had created the King of Wrttemberg
to demonstrate the utmost extent to which the human skin could be
stretched without bursting.
Bibliography
Hibbert, Ch.: George III (A personal history), Penguin Books, 1999

156

Pain, N.: George III at Home, Eyre Methuen, 1975

Plumb, J.H.: The First Four Georges, Fontana, 1977
MacAlpine I., Hunter, R.: George III and the Mad-Business, Allen Lane,
1969
Rhl, J.C.G., Warren, M., Hunt, D.: Purple Secret (Genes, 'Madness' and
the Royal Houses of Europe, Bantam Press, 1998
Marples, M.: Six Royal Sisters (Daughters of George III), Michael
Joseph, 1969
Redman, A.: The House of Hannover, Alvin Redman London, 1960
Sinclair-Stevenson, Ch.: Blood Royal (The illustrious House of
Hannover), Book Club Associates, 1979
Denderfield, E.R. (ed.): Kings and Queens of England and Great Britain,
David & Charles, 1973
Williamson, D.: Kings & Queens of Britain, The Promotion Reprint
Company, 1991
Fraser, A. (ed.): Lives of the Kings and Queens of England, Macdonald
Futura Publishers, 1980
Fraser, F.: The unruly Queen (The Life of Queen Caroline), MacMillan,
1996
Weir, A.: Britain's royal families (The complete genealogy), Pimlico,
1996
Ragsdale, H.: Tsar Paul and the question of madness (An Essay in
History and Psychology), Greenwood Press, 1988
Recommended Reading:
Kiste, J. van der: Georgian Princesses, Sutton Publishing, 2000
Hibbert, G.: George III (A personal history), Viking, 1998
Pain, N.: George III At Home, Eyre Methuen, 1975
Parissien, S.: George IV (Inspiration of the Regency), St. Martin's Press,
2002
Plumb, J.H.: The First Four Georges, Fontana, 1977
Friedman, D.: Inheritance (A psychological history of the royal family),
Sidgwick & Jackson, 1993
Rhl, J.C.G., Warren, M., Hunt, D.: Purple secret (Genes, 'Madness' and
the Royal Houses of Europe), Bantam Press, 1998

157

Rushton, A.R.: Royal Maladies: Inherited Diseases in the Ruling Houses

of Europe, Trafford Publishing, 2008. New!
Potts, D.M., Potts, W.T.M.: Queen Victoria's Gene (Haemphilia and the
Royal Family), Allan Sutton, 1995
Sack, G.H. jr.: Medical Genetics, McGraw-Hill, 1999
Recommended Videos on British History:
The Madness of King George, 1994.
Anne of the Thousand Days, 1969. Anne Boleyn & Henry VIII
Last modified: 07/06/2012 18:54:17. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ or Mailing List.
Vicious Vikings of Scandinavia
Erik Wasa (1533-1577) was a man of contradictions; he was both
humble and haughty, and urbane and well read, but also barbaric.
As a youth Eric had been a talented young man and a true
Renaissance Prince. He and his half brothers had received a typical
Renaissance education, including geography, history and political
thought1. Eric had aesthetic, cultural and astrological interests,
played the lute and even wrote some compositions of his own. He
was skilled in several languages and military science had his special
interest. Still, he seemed more adept at abstract thought than at
practical politics.
King Gustav I Wasa Eric was born on December 13, 1533, at the
Royal Castle in Stockholm as the eldest son of Gustav I Wasa (14961560, to the right) from his first, unhappy marriage to Catherine of
Saxe-Lauenburg (1513-1535), who died before Eric's second
birthday. His father took as his second wife the Swedish Margaretha
Leijonhufvud (1516-1551). Born as a Swedish noble, Gustav Wasa
had assumed the leadership in the struggle for Swedish
independence. He was crowned King in 1523. Gustav was a man of

158

immense ability and shrewdness, but there were some dark patches
in his personality, suggesting traits of mental instability. If roused,
Gustav's temper was so violent that in his rages he acted like a
madman. Once, when his daughter Cecile (1540-1627) made him
angry, he clutched her hair and tore it out by the roots. A goldsmith,
who had taken a day off without permission, was so mangled by the
King that he died. A terrified secretary, who had annoyed him, was
chased by Gustav, dagger in hand, round and round the castle
courtyard. Near the end of his reign Gustav Wasa became senile.
Despite his temper, occasional unreasonableness and suspicious
nature, Gustav had always acted with a great sense of duty, always
putting his country first. He is still remembered as a great King.
Eric acted as Regent in the period 1555-1556 during Gustav's
Russian campaign. In 1557, Gustav Wasa made his eldest son a duke
and granted him some provinces with Kalmar as residence. Eric
surrounded himself with a group of gifted, well-educated young men
from simple backgrounds. Together they adopted a decadent
lifestyle. Eric liked good food and drink, art and music, and
splendid clothes and display. He was handsome and well-built,
approx. 179 cm. tall. He was also an excellent rider, swimmer and
dancer, but, since his youth, he drank to excess. Gustav Wasa hated
the company his eldest son kept, and once described them as a
"group of toads".
On September 29, 1560, Eric succeeded his father as King of
Sweden. He desperately wanted to be a great King, too, and
developed a grandiose conception of his position. He had the rooms
of the medieval Royal castle decorated with Renaissance stucco,
precious inlaid woods and Flemish tapestries. His coronation was
the most magnificent display hitherto seen in Sweden and he was the
first Swedish King to be styled "Majesty". This extravagance is an
indication of Eric's insecurity. He was very sensitive and probably
suffered from an inferiority complex, rooted both in the greatness of
his father's rule and in the humble origins of his dynasty. As the

159

Wasa's had suddenly risen to greatness, Eric was afraid that another
ambitious Swedish family would overthrow him. He showed signs of
paranoia and suspected every Swedish nobleman of plotting to
replace him.
Eric had sought to enhance his reputation as a King by securing a
grand marriage. For years, he had been competing for the hand of
England's "Virgin Queen" Elizabeth I Tudor (1533-1603). He sent
her love letters in Latin and dispatched his uncouth half-brother
John to her court to press his suit. According to Sitwell, John
"scattered silver like a shower of falling stars in the London streets,
and told the crowds that whereas he scattered silver, his brother
would scatter gold". Elizabeth managed to keep Eric dangling for
years without any real intention of marrying him, but even refusals
could not deter Eric from his wooing. Once Eric became obsessed
with an idea he would not readily give it up. After hearing some
gossip about the Queen's favourite, Robert Dudley, Eric challenged
him to a duel. Luckily, his envoy in London managed to flatter Eric
into dismissing Dudley's rivalry as that of a mere courtier. In 1560
Eric wanted to visit Elizabeth to seduce her personally and set sail
for England, but the elements were against him and his fleet was
scattered. Negotiations for a marriage with Mary Queen of Scots
(1542-1587) came to nothing either. He ruined his chances with
other Princesses2 by his own fickleness.
Karin Mansdotter Meanwhile, Eric and his friends indulged in the
orgies, which were customary at Renaissance courts. He had
fathered Virginia (1559-1633) and Constantia (1560-1649)3 by his
mistress Agda Persdotter, until he fell in love with young and
beautiful Karin Mnsdotter (1550-1612, to the left). Karin was the
daughter of a soldier or jailer. In 1566, she gave birth to a daughter
Sigrid. Eric married Karin secretly on July 13, 1567. After the birth
of their son Gustav, he married her publicly on July 4, 1568, and
had her crowned the next day. The aristocrats were offended that
Eric preferred a commoner to one of their relatives and his

160

insecurity led Eric to suspect that people were laughing at him for
his choice of bride.
Half-brother John Wasa It was Eric's ambition to make Sweden a
dominant power in the Baltic area. During his reign, the "Nordic
Seven Year's War" was fought against both Denmark and Poland,
which resulted in much brutality against the civilian population.
Occasionally, Eric assumed military command, but he spent most of
the war in the company of his private circle of advisers and friends
at one of his castles.
In 1562, his half-brother John (1537-1592, to the right), defied Eric
by marrying the Polish Princess Catherine Jagiellona (1526-1583)
and invading Livonia. John was imprisoned and feared for his life.
Especially, since Eric had always resented his father's appointment
of John as a semi-autonomous Prince. John's loyal servants were
executed, but eventually John was released4 and he and Eric fell at
each other's feet in tears.
Slowly, Eric's mind was becoming unhinged and he showed signs of
schizophrenia in his alternating moods of violent frenzy and abject
repentance. Two guards were sentenced to death for 'annoying the
King'. If someone smiled or whispered in his presence, Eric believed
that he was ridiculed. A sudden movement or an unfortunate gesture
would trigger his latent violence. Like his father, he could suddenly
fly into a violent rage. Whispering, clearing one's throat or coughing
at inappropriate moments were seen as obvious signs of plotting.
With his sword drawn, Eric stalked restlessly through the corridors
of the Royal castle looking for someone to find fault with. Smartly
dressed pages and servants were put to the sword, as they were
"obviously intent on seducing the ladies of court".
Still, there was no immediate attempt to depose Eric, when, in 1567,
Eric ordered the arrest of a number of aristocrats and condemned
them to death. He especially feared the Sture family, because
members of that family had ruled the country as administrators in

161

the period 1470-1520. Nils Sture and his father, Svante Sture, were
therefore imprisoned in Uppsala Castle on the charges of treason.
On May 24, 1567 Eric announced that he was going to seek
reconciliation with the Stures. He visited the castle and went straight
to the cell where Nils Sture was kept and, without saying a word,
stabbed him to death. Eric ran out of the castle, told the guards to
kill all the prisoners, mounted his horse and rode into the woods
nearby, seeking to escape imagined attackers. While the guards were
obeying his orders and killed the other prisoners, Eric's beloved
former tutor followed him into the woods in a vain attempt to calm
him down. Eric suddenly turned on his tutor and stabbed him to
death too. Horseless, Eric wandered alone and in darkness through
the woods. Filled with remorse he hid himself for a couple of days
and in an attempt to make amends he arranged a magnificent
funeral for the Stures. For several months afterwards he suffered
from a mental depression and withdrew to the Castle of Svartsj,
outside Stockholm, neglecting affairs of state.
King Eric XIV Wasa During Eric's illness, a Council of the Realm
took over the government and tried to restore calm. After six
months, Eric (to the right) felt better and resumed power. He
immediately reinstated his favourite Gran Persson. The favourite
was feared and hated and many regared him as an evil influence,
although he often tried to restrain the unstable King. In periods,
when Eric was confused, his reliance on his wife and favourite was
complete, and the nobility resented to be ruled by these "social
upstarts".
In September 1568, his half-brothers, John and Karl, captured
Stockholm and Eric surrendered to them. John was subsequently
proclaimed King John III. Early 1569, Eric was brought to trail for
his misdeeds, but he strongly resisted the suggestion that he had
ruled tyrannically. Nevertheless, he was formally deposed and
imprisoned with his young wife and children. Their other sons,
Henrik and Arnold, were born in captivity, where Eric translated
Johannes Magnus's imaginary history of the Goths into Swedish.

162

Later Eric was separated from his wife and children and moved
from castle to castle, because various plots against the new King
made him fearful of his elder brother. Eric was kept in conditions of
increasing harshness and eventually seemed to have relapsed into
total madness. He was not the only madman in the family; his half
brother Magnus of Ostergotland (1542-1595) had been an insane
schizophrenic since his youth.
After a couple of years, King John received a formal sanction from
the more influential members of the Riksdag to take his elder
brother's life, should he be threatened by further rebellions. On
February 26, 1577, at rbyhus Castle in Uppland, Eric died in
agony, probably poisoned with arsenic mixed in his pea soup5. A
public announcement stated that he had died "after a long illness".
He was buried in Vsters Catherdral. Eric's widow, Karin
Mnsdotter, was granted lands and an income enabling her and her
children to live in comfort. She survived her husband by 35 years.
Their only surviving son, Gustav (1568-1607), inherited his father's
mental defects and died childless.
Copyright 1997-2006 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Eric read Machiavelli's "Il Principe".
2 Other possible brides were Renata of Lorraine and Kristina of
Hesse.
3 Illegitimate children of the Wasa Kings were usually recognized as
members of the family and were often brought up together with any
legitimate children, and married into the nobility. Eric's illigitimate
daughter Constance married Henrik Frankelin. According to
Quilliet, she became insane, too.
4 John and his wife had spent 4 years as prisoners in Gripsholm
Castle.
5 An examination of Eric's remains in 1958 confirmed that the
probable cause of his death was arsenic poisoning.

163

Bibliography
Axelrod, A. & Philips, Ch.: Dictators & tyrants (Absolute rulers and
would-be rulers in world history), FactsOnFile, 1995
Green, V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Duhs, S.: The Monarchs of Sweden (A Short History of the Nation),
Purley Lodge English, 2000
Regan, R.: (The Guinness Book of) Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995
Lagerqvist, L.O. a.o.: Kings and Rulers of Sweden, Vincent Frlag,
2002
Liljegren, B.: Rulers of Sweden, Historiska Media, 2004
Hallendorf, C., Schck, A.: History of Sweden, C.E. Fritze Ltd, 1938
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Strindberg, A., Johnson, W.: The Vasa Trilogy (Master Olof, Gustav
Vasa, Erik XIV), University of Washington Press, 1959
Derry, T.K.: A History of Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden, Denmark,
Finland & Iceland), 1996
Masson, G.: Queen Christina, Cardinal, 1968
Quillet, B.: Christina van Zweden, Hadwijch, 1987
Sitwell, E.: The Queens and the hive, The Reprint Society London,
1963
Williams, N.: Elizabeth I, Fibula - Van Dishoeck, 1972
Swedish Wikipedia
Last modified: 02/26/2012 20:11:20. Content: Joan Bos. Design:
Klaas Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
Previous Monarch
Mad Monarchs Menu
Next Monarch
Even as an adult, Christian VII of Denmark (1749-1808) remained
childish and playful. Diplomats complained that, when he was
discussing affairs of state with them, without warning he would slap

164

them violently round the face. He had hallucinations and his speech was
often incomprehensible. Soon, his physician took care of him, his wife
and his country. But they hadn't reckoned with Christian's evil
stepmother..
Christian as a youth Although he was King of Denmark, Christian had
already shown peculiar symptoms as a child. He had feelings of
insecurity and inadequacy and although he showed some ability in
various directions, at times he became frantic and his education was
completely neglected. His chamberlain, Detlev Reventlow, was a stern
man who believed in 'using a firm hand'. He terrorised the young Prince
with severe beatings. After a beating, Christian could be found on the
floor foaming at the mouth. The influence of his sensible tutor, Elie
Salomon Franois Reverdil, was not sufficient to counterbalance the ill
effects of the thrashings. With a gang of fellow-minded boys, Christian
used to stalk the streets of Copenhagen, armed with a medieval spiked
club, which he used viciously on passers-by. Christian was physically
frail, short and slender, and as a result, he developed an abnormal
concern with physical toughness. In the opinion of his doctors, he
masturbated so obsessively that they feared for his health.
His mother, Louisa of Great Britain and Hannover (1724-1751), died
before Christian reached the age of 3. His father, Frederick V (17231766), hated to be bothered and took very little notice of his son. He
remarried the dominant Juliana of Brunswick-Wolffenbttel (17291796), who bore him a physically disabled son. As the eldest son,
Christian stood in the way of the boy's inheritance and his ambitious
stepmother resented him for it. During this unhappy second marriage
Frederick V became an alcoholic and led an increasingly debauched life,
whilst neglecting affairs of state. He became physically ill and even
mentally disturbed before he died at the age of 42.
Christian VII became King shortly before his 17th birthday. The
populace expected a great deal from him, not knowing that he had
already shown disturbing signs of madness. Within a year, Christian

165

married his 15-year-old cousin, Caroline Mathilda of Great Britain and

Hannover (1751-1775). She was not allowed to take English ladies-inwaiting with her and left England in tears. Poor bewildered Caroline
Mathilda exchanged a safe nursery for the turmoil of a gay and pleasureseeking court full of intrigue. Christian took an immediate dislike to his
grief-stricken young bride and continued his ardent pursuit of whores
and young men. He made it publicly known that he could not love
Caroline Mathilda, as it was "unfashionable to love one's wife".
Christian's masterful and stern stepmother disliked Caroline Mathilda
too, because she might provide Christian with an heir. The Dowager
Queen had all Caroline Mathilda's favourite ladies-in-waiting transferred
to 'other duties' in due time.
Christian VII of Denmark Although he was King of Denmark, Christian
was still a boy, childish and playful. Freed from tutelage, he wanted
most of all to indulge in those things he liked most. Once he threw a
bowl of sugar over his grandmother's head 1 . Another time he stuck pins
in the seat of her throne in order to see her jump. Often he kept dinner
waiting for hours or rose abruptly before it had ended. He liked to play
leapfrog over the backs of visiting dignitaries when they bowed to him.
Diplomats complained that when he was discussing affairs of state with
them, without warning he would slap them violently round the face.
With his male favourite, Conrad Holcke, and his mistress, known as
'Katrine with the boots'2, Christian used to rampage through the streets
of Copenhagen, smashing up shops and ravaging brothels. Frequently he
returned with black eyes, bruises and cuts. He enjoyed public
executions, staged mock executions of his courtiers and built his own
rack. Holcke was ordered to stretch him on it or flog him until his back
was bleeding. To demonstrate his 'manliness', Christian would burn his
flesh and rub salt into his own wounds.
Early 1768 Caroline Mathilda gave birth to a son, Crown Prince
Frederick (1768-1839). Meanwhile Christian made his mistress a
Baroness and showered gifts upon her until public opinion induced him
to send her away. Soon afterwards he undertook a tour to England,

166

France and Germany with Holcke, and left his wife behind. To
everybody's surprise, he acquitted himself quite well. Horace Walpole
described Christian as an "insipid boy" who "took notice of nothing",
"took pleasure in nothing" - except perhaps his own importance. On his
visit to Canterbury, Christian remarked: "The last king of Denmark who
entered Canterbury laid that city in ashes and massacred its inhabitants."
In Denmark Caroline Mathilda was growing fat and took to wearing a
male riding costume. Later it became a common saying that she was "the
better man of the two".
Christian VII of Denmark As Christian's mental and physical state
became gradually worse, his physician, Johann Friedrich Struense,
gained more influence. He got himself appointed to the post of cabinet
secretary to the King and in this capacity all governmental documents
passed through his hands. In October 1769 Caroline Mathilda had an
attack of colic and was so depressed that she "turned her face to the wall
and prayed for death". She was lonely, young and inexperienced and
when she sought solace in the medical and other services of Struense,
she fell hopelessly in love with him. Presumably, Struense had merely
regarded the Queen as a means of acquiring greater power, but before
long he must have fallen in love himself. Thus a passionate love affair
developed between them. The nave and warm-blooded Caroline
Mathilda behaved with incredible foolishness. She boasted openly of her
affair to her chambermaids, demonstrating time and again her ruffled
clothing after each visit Struense paid to her rooms and dancing with
him for whole evenings at the Court balls. Caroline Mathilda's second
child, Louise Augusta (1771-1843), was said to have had an
unmistakable likeness to Struense. Christian was as indifferent to the
government of Denmark as he was to his Queen, so the ambitious
Struense "reigned supreme in the councils of state and in the heart of
the Queen". Once, Christian, who admired the King of Prussia, was
heard to have murmured: "Does the king of Prussia sleep with Mathilda?
Or is it Struense?"3

167

Christian's mental state steadily deteriorated. Often he was found in the

morning sitting in the corner of his room with a distressed expression on
his face. From time to time, he would beat his head against the wall,
sometimes until blood flowed. Occasionally, he attacked his entourage
violently or laughed inappropriately and wildly. His speech was often
incomprehensible and he was disturbed by hallucinations. Waking in the
morning, he would declare that he had killed several people that night.
At times, he questioned his birth, thinking that he was a changeling - or
the son of Catherine the Great. He had delusions of grandeur and was
very suspicious. Often Struense was asked to search the King's
bedroom to ensure that no assassin was hiding there. His mood could
change quickly from a state of wild excitement to one of deep
depression. Sometimes he would run from room to room through the
palace, destroying furniture or throwing it through the windows. To his
former tutor, Revendil, Christian confessed "I am confused" and "There
is a noise in my head".
Struense acquired the position of Minister of the Privy Council by
simply placing the necessary documents before the King and getting him
to sign them. He governed Denmark, Norway and Schleswig-Holstein in
the same fashion as other enlightened ministers of his day. He did the
accepted progressive things, and he did them boldly and impatiently.
Whenever his tempo was slowed down by opposition, he regarded it as
stupidity. He dismissed many superfluous civil servants - always a most
dangerous thing to do - and decreed that henceforth the language of the
government should be German. He really lived for the government of
the country and was accommodated very modestly in a couple of plainly
furnished rooms in a side wing of the palace. Nevertheless, his foolhardy
policy, his arrogance and his violation of the King's marriage provoked
resentment. Ironically, his freedom of the press stimulated the growth of
opposition.
Juliana, the wicked stepmother In January 1772 a group of conspirators,
led by Christian's stepmother, his half-brother and the conservative Ove
Hegh-Guldberg4, decided to interfere. While Caroline Mathilda and

168

Struense were dancing at a masked ball, they broke into Christian's

bedroom, and scared him practically out of his wits. By now Christian
had got over the antipathy he had felt for his wife, but he was almost an
imbecile and physically frail. His wicked stepmother managed to bully
him into signing the orders for the arrest of both Struense and Caroline
Mathilda5. Struense was imprioned under harsh conditions, being
chained to the wall. He confessed his love affair with the Queen, and
was sentenced to a horrible death. First his right hand was chopped off.
Then his body was quartered and broken on the wheel and finally he was
beheaded. From her watchtower Juliana observed these medieval
barbarities with pleasure. She is said to have remarked that "the only
thing that spoilt her pleasure was the fact that she could not see Caroline
Mathilda's corpse thrown into the death-cart as well". Caroline Mathilda
at first denied everything, but later she signed a confession too, in the
vain hope of saving her lover's life. Her sentence included an annulment
of her marriage. Caroline Mathilda was only 20 years old when she was
first incarcerated in the fortress of Kronborg and later exiled to Celle in
Hannover, where she died within three years.
Caroline Mathilda was a sister of England's Mad King George III (17381820), who suffered from the disease porphyria. This is a rare hereditary
disease with symptoms like an acute inflammation of the bowels,
difficulty in articulation, a painful weakness of the limbs and oversensitivity. In more severe attacks porphyria can result in over-activity,
agitation, confusion, delirium and progressive senility. Caroline
Mathilda and George III were known for their "infinite likeness of
countenance" and contemporaries remarked on a peculiar quickness of
speech, which they both showed when excited. Like his wife, Christian
could have inherited porphyria. However, his progressive decline,
incoherent conversation, impulsive violent acts and his alternation
between immobility and wild excitement may be better diagnosed as
schizophrenia.
Denmark was reigned by Christian's stepmother, his half-brother and
Guldberg until 1784, when the 16-year-old Crown Prince placed a

169

document establishing a regency before the King. Christian

unhesitatingly signed it and ceased effectively to rule, although he
officially 'reigned' in Denmark until his death. His public appearances
were rare; he was dragged out only in periods of semi-lucidity when
affairs of state demanded his appearance. He was never confined,
constrained, or subjected to a medical regimen, but his servants were
instructed not to obey his orders. Sometimes he could be seen at a
window making faces at passers-by or pacing up and down his
apartments. In the Napoleonic wars, he was moved to Rendsborg in
Schleswig and he is said to have died due to the shock of seeing Spanish
troops enter the city on March 13, 1808.
Copyright 1998, 2000 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
King, Queen & doctor
King, Queen and doctor

Footnotes
1 Sophie Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach (1700-1770), widow of
Christian VI.
2 Anna Catharine Beuthaken was a red-haired prostitute, who liked to
dress in men's attire.
3 Another version of the story is that Christian remarked that "the King
of Prussia had seduced Caroline Mathilda". "What King of Prussia?" he
was asked. "Struense," he answered unconcerned.
4 Guldberg was the former tutor of Christian's half-brother.
5 The count Enevold Brandt was arrested as a thrid accomplice, and
condemned to death, too.
Bibliography
Green, V.: The Madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Allan Sutton Publishing, 1994

170

Lauring, P.: A History of Denmark, Hst & Sn, 1995

Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988.
Regan, R.: (The Guinness Book of) Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995
Ragsdale, H.: Tsar Paul and the Question of Madness (An Essay in
History and Psychology), Greenwood Press, 1988
MacAlpine, I. & Hunter, R.: George III and the Mad-Business, Allen
Lane The Penguin Press, 1969
Pain, N.: George III At Home, Eyre Methuen, 1975
Herremans, B.: Geheimen achter Europese Kronen, deel 1, Helios N.V.,
1981
Derry, T.K.: A History of Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden, Denmark,
Finland & Iceland), University of Minnesota Press, 1996
Scocozza, R.: Politikens Bog om Danske Monarker (Fra Grom den
Gamle til Margrethe 2), Politikens Forlag, 1998
Kiste, J. v.d.: Northern Crowns (The Kings of Modern Scandinavia),
Sutton Publishing, 1996
Davidson, G.C. & Neale, J.M.: Abnormal Psychology (An experimental
clinical approach), John Wiley & Sons, 1986
Comer, R.J.: Abnormal Psychology, Second Edition, W.H. Freeman and
Company, 1995
Recommended Reading
Lofts, N.: The Lost Queen (Caroline-Mathilda - Captive Queen to a
Royal Madman), Fawcett Crest, 1969
Enquist, P.O.: The Royal Physician's Visit (Johann Friedrich Struensee),
Overlook Press, 2001
Maass, E.: Heerser zonder kroon, Z.H.U.
Kiste, J. van der: Northern Crowns (The Kings of Modern Scandinavia),
Sutton Publishing, 1998
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Peculiar Princes and Princesses of The Low Countries

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Erratic Emperors of Austria

The Emperor Rudolf II of Austria (1552-1612) is sometimes called "The
Mad Alchemist". He was an intelligent man with interests in
mathematics, science and alchemy, but he sufferend from dark moods
and uncontrollable rages that worsened over time. Gradually he became
a recluse. His illegitimate son, however, was far worse..
Maria of Spain Rudolf II was born on the evening of July 18, 1552 as
the eldest son of Maximilian II of Austria (1527-1576) and Maria of
Spain (1526-1603). Both his parents were grandchildren of Juana "The
Mad" of Castile (1479-1555). Like her, Maria of Spain (to the right) had
a tendency to melancholia. She gave birth to 16 children, but her
behaviour towards them was always somewhat distant. All her life,
Maria remained thoroughly Spanish and kept close contact with her
brother, Philip II of Spain (1627-1598). When the Spanish King urged
Maximilian to send his sons to Spain to complete their education there,
Maximilian was reluctant to let them go and postponed their departure
repeatedly. Maria, however, insisted they should go, hoping that any
Protestant notions they may have acquired in Vienna, whould be
effectively erased in the strict Catholic court of Madrid.
In March 1564, Rudolf arrived in Spain, accompanied by his younger
brother Ernest (1553-1595), Wolfgang von Rumpf and Count Adam von
Dietrichstein. By then Rudolf was already a serious boy, inclined to
fantasy and melancholia. In Barcelona he and Ernst were met by the
grave, black-clad Philip II, who immediately took them high up into the
mountains to the gloomy monastery of Montserrat. Afterwards, they
travelled to the summer palace of Aranjuez, where they spend the
summer. Philip was ill with fever, but his young sister and wife rode out
hunting with Rudolf and Ernest. In the evenings Philip invited the boys
to his bedside to dance before him, or to show him their skill at fencing.

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Rudolf also met Philip's unbalanced son, Don Carlos (1545-1568). In

January 1568 Philip had his son locked up, and from then on it was
forbidden to mention Don Carlos in conversation or even in prayers. In
July the Prince died, followed in October by the Queen. The Spanish
Court with its strict etiquette was gloomier than ever, while Rudolf and
Ernst studied, wrote letters in Latin, practised fencing and helped serve
Mass on Sunday. Rudolf was to receive an excellent training in
languages and rhetorics from Spanish tutors.
Young Rudolf
Early 1570, Rudolf (to the right) and Ernst travelled with Philip II
through Southern Spain. Later that year Rudolf's two youngest brothers
accompanied their sister Anna (1549-1580) to Spain, where she was to
become her uncle Philip's 4th wife. The following spring Rudolf and
Ernest were at last permitted to journey home to Vienna. Years later
Rudolf recalled: "I was seized with such joy the following night that I
could not bring sleep into my eyes." The years in Spain had marked
Rudolf deeply for life.
The good-natured Emperor Maximilian II (to the right) found his sons
much changed after their long stay in Spain. He noted the "Spanish
humours" they had acquired, the gravity and cold pride that so
resembled their uncle Philip's. He ordered his sons to "change their
bearing", but it was already too late to change their personalities.
Maximilian was at odds with his fiery wife. Maximilian II of Austria He
tried to avoid religious conflict, a policy Rudolf supported, but Maria
was strongly committed to the Catholic cause. It worried Maximilian,
because he was suffering from heart attacks, excruciating pains of gout
and bouts of "kidney colic", possibly syphilis. He arranged to have
Rudolf crowned King of Hungary and King of Bohemia and called a
Diet to meet in Regensburg to have Rudolf crowned King of the
Romans1, too. In the summer of 1576, Maximilian set out for
Regensburg with his family. On the way he became indisposed and in
Regensburg he fell ill again. At first he seemed to grow a little better,
then Maximilian took a grave turn for the worse. At his bedside, his
wife, Maria of Spain, urged him to see the court priest and his sister

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Anna hurried from Bavaria to join in the pleas to take the Catholic rites.
When the Spanish ambassador boldly said: "I can see from your
condition, Your majesty, that it would be time..", Maximilian cut him
short with "You are right, Mr. Marquis, I have not slept well and would
like to rest a little." Rudolf hurried to his father's deathbed, too. On
October 12 Maximilian died. Two weeks later, the German Electors
named Rudolf the new Emperor. He was crowned on November 1.
Rudolf was an intelligent and gifted man. He could easily speak and
write Spanish, German, French, Latin, Italian and a little Czech. He also
had a taste for art, and was interested in mathematics and science. Since
his return from Spain, however, Rudolf suffered from dark moods that
continued to deepen after his crowning. Those were troubled times.
Germany was divided by Protestant and Catholic factions. A mighty
earthquake took place in Vienna and the plague came and went, as did
the Turks. In 1577, Rudolf suffered his first emotional breakdown,
became severely melancholic and rarely left the castle. He was so ill in
1580 that there were fears for his life. He rapidly lost weight, but slowly
recovered. In 1583, Rudolf decided to move his residence permanently
to Prague in Bohemia to escape the crowds and pressures of Vienna. He
turned to the study of astronomy and magic and started collecting
beautiful and curious objects.
Rudolf gathered astronomers, humanists, physicians, artist, craftsmen
and antiquarians about him. The Danish astronomer, Tycho Brahe (15461601)2, set up his instruments for observing the stars, and wrote down
his measurements of the planetary movements. When Rudolf's cousin,
Archduke Ferdinand of Styria, banished Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
from his province, Rudolf welcomed him at his court. Using Brahe's
computations, known as the "Rudolphine Tables", Kepler developed his
theory of the elliptical movements of the planets. Meanwhile, alchemists
stirred mysterious vats in the kitchens of Hradschin castle,
experimenting with elixirs. Exotic animals strolled through the corridors.
Rudolf's court painters, among them Dirck de Quade van Ravesteyn
(1589-1619), specialised in images of imperial power and mannered

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erotic scenes. In addition, Rudolf collected paintings of, among others,

Breughel and Correggio.
Rudolf was an ugly man with a big Habsburg lip3, pronounced jaw and
short legs. At an early age, he had already lost his teeth. During the
1590s, his melancholic moods with feelings of anxiety and deep gloom,
became more and more frequent. Observers described his sadness,
remoteness and aloofness. He became anxious and agitated, ill tempered
and bad-humoured. His exaggerated fear of family interference in his
affairs gradually developed into a conviction that someone in his family
planned to murder him. His gold was kept locked in chests and as a
results sometimes there was no food in the castle kitchens. Meanwhile,
Rudolf withdrew further from the world. He refused to see foreign
ambassadors and threatened one of his ministers with a dagger. Narrowminded papal nuncios began reporting that Rudolf had become an
inaccessible recluse, but more enlightened Protestant emissaries were
still received by the Emperor.
Matthias of Austria After the death of his brother Ernest in 1595, his
brother Matthias (1557-1619, to the right) became heir to the throne.
Matthias had few talents, but he was ambitious and had been intriguing
against his elder brother for years. Rudolf hated him bitterly and took
every opportunity to humiliate Matthias and allowed him neither money
nor position, or even permission to marry. Rudolf himself had been
betrothed for years to his Spanish cousin Isabel (1566-1633), but he
postponed the marriage year after year4. His mother, who had returned
to Spain as a widow, wrote from Madrid begging him to marry, but
Rudolf found one excuse after another to avoid taking the final step. At
the age of 32, the Infanta Isabel was finally wed to Rudolf's younger
brother Albert, a former-cardinal. When Rudolf found out, he went into a
frenzy.
Rudolf's favourite comrades were Wolfgang von Rumpf, Philip Lang
and Duke Heinrich Julius of Brunwick (1564-1613). It has been
rumoured that Rudolf was attracted to young boys as well as girls. He

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probably was a bisexual. For years, he had a relationship with Katharina

Strada5, the daughter of his court antiquarian. He fathered 6 very strange
children by her, but Rudolf was scarcely interested in his illegitimate
offspring. His son Julius Caesar (1585-1609) once wildly seized a
weapon and so seriously wounded one of his servants that Rudolf
ordered him interned for a time. As lord of Krumau, Julius' subsequent
misconduct was so severe that his frightened servants began to flee his
service. He took a concubine, Maruka, but within a few months Julius
became so angry with her that he attacked her with a knife and threw her
bleeding from his window. She landed in the castle pond. While she was
recovering in her parental home, Julius ordered her to return to him.
When her father refused to let her go, he was thrown in prison and
condemned to death. After five weeks the girl returned. Julius went
berserk, began stabbing her, cutting of her ears, gouging out one eye,
smashing out her teeth and splitting her skull. He flung pieces of her
flesh all around the room. After three hours he recovered from his frenzy
and ordered her wrapped in linen and carried away. He personally nailed
down the lid of her coffin and had her buried with great pomp in a local
cloister. A month later Julius was arrested and taken to prison, where he
was confined for the remaining years of his life.
Over the years, Rudolf's moods swung between animated engagement
with the problems of his day and deep melancholia, paranoia and
uncontrollable rages. During Rudolf's retreat from public affairs,
Wolfgang Rumpf, his chief minister and long-time companion, gradually
attained an almost total control over the central administration of the
Empire. By 1599, Rudolf became convinced that Rumpf was dealing
behind his back against his interest. He forced him to resign, but later he
took him back. Around Easter, Rudolf fired many of his servants and
banished others from court for days. For a couple of months Rudolf's
rages subsided, but in July he fled from Prague in panic after an
outbreak of the plague. For a year he lived in isolation in Pilsen, while
he suffered from a shortness of breath. His attacks of paranoid fears
were often followed by weeks of relative calm. In June 1600, Rudolf
returned to Prague and for a while he went out hunting and attended

176

parties. Soon, however, he started hallucinating and claimed that he had

been poisoned or bewitched. He seems to have attempted suicide
repeatedly. Once he tried to slash his throat with a piece of broken
window pane. Another time he used curtain cords.
In September, Rudolf dismissed Wolfgang von Rumpf for good. From
then onwards, Rudolf abstained from summoning the Privy Council or
delegating his powers to a Prime Minister. As a result, the government
was paralysed. Incapable of making up his mind, Rudolf refused to take
any decision. He appeared hardly at all in public and ordered his
galleries and walkways covered over so that he could move about
completely unobserved. He took his meals alone, every day at exactly
the same times in exactly the same room. Priests or prayers of any sort
irritated him immensely and he lived in fear of the sacraments.
The Imperial Crown In 1611, Rudolf's brother and heir, Matthias, met
with his other brothers and cousins in the Hofburg in Vienna, because
they feared a Protestant take-over of the Empire during Rudolf's
incapacity. They named Matthias Head of the House of Habsburg and
bestowed the regency upon him. At the head of an army Matthias
marched to the gates of Prague and forced Rudolf to sign over Hungary,
Moravia and Bohemia. On November 11, Rudolf put his name to the
deed of abdication and flung the pen to the floor. He was left only with
the Imperial Crown. Matthias gave him a pension and the possession of
Hradschin castle in Prague. There Rudolf lived with his exotic animals.
Soon his favourite lion and two of his eagles died. In the last months of
his life Rudolf took to the bottle and in December he suffered from
dropsy. On January 19, 1612, his condition deteriorated and the next
morning he died. Nonetheless, the people of Prague mourned "der gute
Herr", because his reign was regarded as Prague's golden age.
Copyright 2001, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes

177

Tycho Brahe with his original nose1 "King of the Romans" was the title
of the heir to the Emperor of the "Holy Roman Empire", i.e. Germany.
2 Tycho Brahe (to the right) belonged to a prominent Danish family. He
lost part of his nose in a duel, and had the missing part restored in gold
and silver. Provoking his fellow nobles by marrying a poor peasant
woman, he continued to mistreat the peasants at his estate. After a
quarrel with the Danish King Christian IV, Brahe arrived in Prague in
1597. He died in 1601 after "holding back his waters beyond the
demands of courtesy".
3 The Habsburgs inherited their famous lip from Zymburgis "With the
big lips" (1394-1429), wife of Ernest "The Iron" (1377-1424).
4 Rudolf preferred his concubines and virgins who really liked to be
deprived of their virginity.
5 Rudolf had a relationship with a daughter of Jacopo Strada (1588).
Some scholars have proposed that it wasn't Jacopo's legitimate daughter,
Katharina, who was Rudolf's mistress, but Jacopo's illegitimate daughter,
Anna Maria. The eldest daughter of this relation was Carolina d'Austria.
Bibliography
Gies Mc Guigan, D.: The Habsburgs, W.H. Allen, 1966
Schwarzenfeld, G. von: Rudolf II (Ein deutscher Kaiser am Vorabend
des Dreiigjrigen Krieges), Verlag Georg D.W. Callwey Mnchen,
1979
Midelfort, H.C.E.: Mad Princes of Renaissance Germancy, University
Press of Virginia, 1994
Jaeckel, G.: Die Deutschen Kaiser (Eine illustrierte Geschichte der
Deutschen Herrscher von Karl dem Grossen..), Stalling, 1980
Brenger, J.: A History of the Habsburg Empire 1273-1700, Longman,
1990
Knappich, W.: Die Habsburger Chronik, Das Bergland-Buch, 1959
Demetz, P.: Prague in Black and Gold (Scenes from the Life of a
European City), Hill and Wang, 1997
Musulin, J. von: Die Habsburger, in: Die groen Dynastien, Sdwest
Verlag Mnchen, 1978
Rowse, A.L.: Homosexuelen in de geschiedenis, De Arbeiderspers, 1977

178

Bankl, H.: Die Kranken Habsburger (Befunde und Befindlichkeiten

einer Herrscherdynastie), K&S Bertelsmann, 1998
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The pretty and charming Isabella of Bourbon-Parma (1741-1763) lived a
double live at the Imperial Court in Vienna. She was adored by her
loving husband, the future Emperor Joseph II (1741-1790), but,
unknown to him, she had fallen in love with Joseph's sister. She became
depressed, heard voices and became preoccupied with death.
mother Elisabeth of FranceIsabella Maria Luisa Antonietta Ferdinanda
Giuseppina Saveria Dominica Giovanna was born in Madrid on
December 31, 1741. Her father was the Spanish Prince Philip (17201765)1, who was Duke of Parma in Italy. Her mother was Elisabeth of
France (1727-1759, to the right), the eldest daughter of Louis XV of
France, and the only one who was allowed to marry. Elisabeth's marriage
to Philip was not happy, and for nearly 10 years Isabella remained an
only child. Her two siblings, Ferdinando and Maria Luisa, were both
born in 1751.
As Isabella grew up, young Elisabeth of France became more a sister
than a mother to her daughter. The two lived for a time at the court of
Versailles before joining Duke Philip in Parma. When her mother died
from smallpox in 1759, Isabella was distraught. Henceforth, she was
convinced she would die young, too.
husband Joseph II of Austria
In 1760, when Isabella was 18 years old, a marriage was arranged for
her to Archduke Joseph of Austria, eldest son and heir of the Empress
Maria Theresia. A marriage by proxy took place in the cathedral of
Padua. Afterwards, Isabella took leave of her family. She was escorted

179

with much pomp to Austria by Prince Joseph Wenzel of Liechtenstein

(1696-1772).
Joseph (to the left) was a serious young man with progressive ideas and
a keen interest in French philosophers. Isabella did not read sentimental
novels either; she read Bossuet and John Law. She could solve difficult
mathematical problems, and was a talented violin player. Joseph was shy
with women; he had not much ease of manner or small talk. Thus,
Isabella took infinite pains to charm her awkward husband, and to give
him pleasure in her company. "One must tell him the truth in all things,"
she wrote once, "and always meet him gently and tenderly." Isabella was
a remarkable girl, pretty, intelligent, sensitive, and perfectly trained.
Soon, her personality and charm fascinated the whole court of Vienna.
Although their marriage was a political arrangement, Joseph fell deeply
in love with his young bride. They were married in Vienna on October
16, 1760 and the festivities continued for days.
sister-in-law Marie Christine of Habsburg Joseph's "perfect wife"
preferred the company of one of his sisters, Marie Christine (1742-1798,
to the right), known as "Mizzerl". She was spontaneous, cordial, highly
intelligent, humorous and shrewd. The two Princesses, the dark Bourbon
and the blonde Habsburg, exchanged endless confidences, walked
together in the gardens, sang and made music together2, and painted
portraits of one another. Although they met each day, they exchanged
long, loving, intimate letters. Isabella professed her Lesbian love for her
sister-in-law, when she wrote: "I am writing you again, cruel sister,
though I have only just left you. I cannot bear waiting to know my fate,
and to learn whether you consider me a person worthy of your love, or
whether you would like to throw me into the river.... I can think of
nothing but that I am deeply in love. If I only knew why this is so, for
you are so without mercy that one should not love you, but I cannot help
myself." Isabella emphasized "that I love you madly, and I hope to kiss
you well, also that I will be thrilled to see you, kiss you and be kissed by
you!" Later she wrote: "I am told that the day begins with God. I,
however, begin the day by thinking of the object of my love, for I think
of her incessantly."

180

Both the Spanish and Austrian Courts were old-fashioned, stiff and
formal. Isabella wrote in a letter: "A Princess cannot, like the poorest
woman in a hut, relax in the midst of her family. In the high society in
which she is forced to live, she has neither acquaintances nor friends. It
is for this that she has to leave her family, her home. And why? To
belong to a man whose character she does not know, to enter into a
family where she is received with jealousy." In a feminist "Treatise over
men" Isabella wrote that men are "good-for-nothings", "unnecessary
animals", and "parasites of human company", who hold all power, and
use it to repress women. Isabella also confessed that she was afraid of
sexual intercourse with her husband. She regarded the deed as sinful and
feared the resulting pregnancy. Interestingly, Isabella's mother, too, had
always turned completely cold and rigid in her husband's arms. Joseph,
infatuated and inexperienced, failed to notice his wife's misery.
daughter Theresia
By the end of 1761, Isabella was pregnant. She suffered from terrible
headaches, and was constantly tired. She was bleeded, worsening her
condition. Forced to stay in bed, Isabella occupied herself writing essays
and dissertations, covering a broad range of topics, including education,
the nature of masculinity, the superiority of all things French, and the
failings of Italy.
On March 20, 1762, Isabella had a long, and complicated confinement.
As a good husband, Joseph held her hand and tried to comfort Isabella
during her ordeal. Finally, a daughter (to the right) was born; they called
her Theresia. It took 6 more weeks before Isabella was finally able to
leave her bed.
Like her paternal grandfather, Philip V of Spain (1683-1746), Isabella
became overwhelmed by a deep melancholy. The infatuated Joseph
didn't notice anything unusual, but to friends and to her ladies-in-waiting
Isabella declared that she would die soon, and added that her little
daughter would not long remain behind. Her letters reveal an increasing
preoccupation with death: "Death is good. Never have I thought of it
more than now. Everything arouses in me the desire to die soon. God

181

knows my wish to desert a life that insults Him every day. If it were
permitted to kill one's self, I would have already done it." "I can tell you
that I am impatient to die at your bosom," she wrote to Mizzerl. Later
she wrote: "I can say that death speaks to me in a distinct secret voice.
For three days I have heard this voice."
In 1762, Isabella had 2 miscarriages, which intensified her depression.
The Empress Maria Theresia wanted a male heir and frankly told her son
that, in case of a next pregnancy, he should "restrain his lust" to avoid
additional miscarriages. On December 12, one of Joseph's sisters,
Johanna, died of smallpox at the age of 12 and the whole court mourned.
It increased Isabella's preoccupation with death. Isabella of Parma Early
1763, she wrote to Mizzerl: "I will not survive the new year! I feel that
my vital strength diminishes." and "My ailing body paralyses my mental
health and my mental state undermines my physical condition."
Soon, Isabella (to the right) was pregnant again. The Empress declared
that Isabella needed absolute rest and Joseph kept his promise of
celibacy. After 6 months, however, Isabella sickened with smallpox.
Joseph, who had been immunised by a childhood attack, watched by her
bedside in anguish as she grew worse each day. She gave birth to
daughter on November 22, who died soon afterwards. Feverishly,
Isabella cried out: "My whole body burns, because I have sinned with
my whole body!" She died 5 days after her confinement at the age of 21.
To her father Joseph wrote: "I have lost everything, my adored wife, my
only friend is no more! Grief-stricken and downcast, I hardly know if I
am still alive."
The official court mourning period was not yet over, when the Empress
Maria Theresia proposed a new marriage. Absorbed in his grief, Joseph
at first refused, but later gave in. In January 1765, he married the
Bavarian Princess Josepha (1739-1767). Her face and body were
covered with sores and she had bad teeth. Joseph simply could not bear
her and spent as much time as possible travelling. He remarked: "They
want me to have children. How can we have them? If I could put the tip
of my finger on the tiniest part of her body which was not covered with

182

pimples, I would try to have children." His sister Marie Christine

observed: "I believe that if I were his wife and so mistreated, I would
escape and hang myself on a tree." The unfortunate Josepha was
chronically ailing and soon became melancholy, too. She spent her days
trying cures in the baths of Baden. After 30 months of marriage, she
caught smallpox, too, and died within a few days.
Jeffrey Jones as the Emperor Joseph II Marie Christine refused a
betrothal to a French Prince and held out firmly to a suitor of her own
choice, Prince Albert of Saxony (1738-1822). He was a younger son
with neither fortune nor prospect of a throne. In 1766 she got her way
and their marriage was a very happy one. In 1769 another of Joseph's
sisters married Isabella's brother. Isabella's only child, Theresia, was a
merry and charming little girl. She succumbed to pneumonia on January
23, 1770 at the age of 7. Joseph, now Emperor Joseph II (to the right),
never remarried; he preferred mistresses and "showed by the brevity of
the encounters that it was merely a matter of need".
Copyright 2004-2011 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Footnotes
1 Isabella's father was a son of the mad King Philip V of France (16831746) and Elisabeth Farnese (1692-1766), heiress of Parma in Italy.
2 Joseph was also font of music, but not very gifted. Once, after
hearing a performance of one of Mozart's operas, he said to the
composer: "Beautiful, my dear Mozart, but too many notes."
Bibliography
Gies McGuigan, D.: The Habsburgs, W.H. Allen, 1966
Vacha, B.: Die Habsburger (Eine Europische Familiengeschichte),
Verlag Styria, 1993
Regan, G.: The Guinness Book of Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995

183

Gring, S.M.: Amor im Hause Habsburg (Eine Chronique

Scandaleuse), Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, 1998
Die Habsburger Chronik (Lebensbilder, Charaktere und Geschichte der
habsburger), Das Bergland-Buch, 1959
Mraz, G.: Maria Theresia (Ihr Leben und ihre Zeit in Bildern und
Dokumenten), Sddeutschen Verlag, 1979
Vovk, J.C.: In Destiny's Hands (Five Tragic Rulers, Children of Maria
Theresia), Lulu.com, 2009 Latest addition!
Portrtgalerie zur Geschichte sterreichs vond 1400 bis 1800, Katalog
der Gemldegalerie, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, 1976
Weissensteiner, F.: Liebeshimmel und Ehehllen (Heiraten zwischen
Habsburgern und Wittelsbachern), Verlag Friedrich Pustet & Syria, 1999
Willis, D.: The Descendants of Louis XIII, Clearfield, 1999
Wanger, H.: Die Regierenden Frsten von Liechtenstein, F.P. van Eck
Verlagsanstalt, 1995
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Emperor Ferdinand1 the good-natured of Austria (1793-1875) once said:
"It is easy to govern, but what is difficult is to sign one's name." His
favourite amusement was to wedge himself in a wastepaper basket and
roll over and over like a ball. Ferdinand was sadly retarded with an overlarge head with a flat skull and water on the brain. His face was further
disfigured by the famous drooping Habsburg lip and huge nose. One of
Ferdinand's sisters, Marianna (1804-1858), was a complete imbecile
with a frighteningly disfigured face. She was usually kept locked in a
room.
The parents of these poor children were the Emperor Franz II of Austria
(1768-1835) and his double first cousin, Marie Therese of Naples and
Sicily (1772-1807). Their eldest child was Marie Louise. On April 20,

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1793, Ferdinand was born. In the next fourteen years, ten more children
would follow. Despite the continuous pregnancies and the increasing
threat of Revolutionary France, frivolous Marie Therese always liked to
waltz at Laxenburg Palace and she appeared at every carnival season.
She enjoyed masking so much that she would often change her costume
several times during a single night. The Imperial family also liked to
make music together; Marie Therese played the bass, Franz the violin
and young Marie Louise the harp. In May 1801 Haydn's "Creation" and
"Seasons" were performed at court with Marie Therese singing the
soprano solos. The Empress also liked inventing new diversions, like
Chinese shadow plays and firework displays. In the little lake in the park
at Laxenburg, Franz had a medieval castle built with in the dungeon a
mechanical prisoner, who could be made clattering his chains for the
delighted shrieks of female visitors. In a "house of whims" glass bells
rang unexpectedly, coloured lights flashed on and off and water spurted
out at visitors.
Young Ferdinand Meanwhile, little Ferdinand, "Nandle", did not
improve in body or mind. Lots of tutors had tried to instil sufficient
knowledge in his huge, vacant head. Still, his conversations were
stammered repetitions of things he had said before. His legs and arms
were short and he was unable to keep hold of heavy objects, like a full
cup or a bottle. His epileptic attacks were frequent and dreadful to see
and Ferdinand lived in terror lest someone might be present and witness
such a seizure. Thus, his public appearances had to be carefully stagemanaged. Tears stood in the Emperor Franz' eyes when he watched his
ungainly son shuffle along palace corridors, pushed and pulled by aides,
or when he heard him stammer out a few words. But Franz was a family
man and he was often found riding little Nandle in a wheelbarrow
through Laxenburg Park.
Emperor Franz II of Austria In May 1807, as the Empress Marie Therese
awaited the birth of her 12th child, she sickened and was severely bled.
She gave birth prematurely and died. Franz (to the left) clung weeping to
his wife's body, and had to be dragged away forcibly by his brother Karl.

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Barely 8 months later, Franz married as his 3rd wife2 his cousin Maria
Ludovia of Modena (1787-1816). From then on she took care of
Ferdinand. Due to her care, Nandl changed from an apathetic boy into a
gentle, good-natured youth.
Meanwhile, war with France had broken out and in 1810 the Imperial
family was forced to give the Princess Marie Louise in marriage to the
upstart Napoleon in order to ensure peace. The famous Congress of
Vienna took place in 1814 and all the reigning sovereigns with their
families and servants were put up in the Hofburg. For their entertainment
Franz and Maria Ludovica hosted festivals, fetes, hunts, balls, theatricals
and concerts, day after day, night after night. The Empress was already
mortally ill with consumption, but each day she appeared magnificently
before her guests and she even joined the hunting parties. In 1815, after
Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo, the Emperor Franz took Ferdinand
with him on the army's victorious march into Paris. Ferdinand was most
impressed by the French villages and the Swiss Alps. In the spring of
1816 the Empress' coughing increased. She was bled again and again
until she died. Barely six months later Franz married a 4th time with
Charlotte of Bavaria (1792-1873).
Clemens von Metternich Ferdinand's only surviving brother was Franz
Karl. This friendly grinning, little man was neither epileptic nor
retarded, but he was definitely not very bright. A brain was found for
him in the person of the clever Bavarian Princess Sophie (1805-1872),
younger half-sister of their latest stepmother. Ambitious Sophie had
consented to the marriage, because it was generally assumed that
backward Ferdinand would be passed over in the succession. In 1830,
however, Ferdinand was crowned King of Hungary and thus recognised
as his father's heir.
For years, doctors had claimed that it was impossible for Ferdinand to
beget heirs. Nevertheless, in 1831 a bride was chosen by his father's
advisor, Clemens von Metternich (1773-1859, to the right). The
unfortunate bride was the plain and virtuous Maria Anna of Sardinia
(1803-1884, below right). On the wedding day, sharp-eyed Sophie of
Bavaria noted that the bride was "white as linen". She "trembled

186

perceptibly, her voice shook when she spoke, and whenever her eyes
rested on the bridegroom, they filled with tears". Even Emperor Franz
was heard to murmur at the wedding: "May God have mercy."3 Maria
Anna of Sardinia Afterwards, 37-year-old Ferdinand was informed by
his uncles about what he was supposed to do in his wedding night.
Nevertheless, it is assumed that his marriage remained a marriage in
name only. Maria Anna became more a nurse than a wife to Ferdinand.
In one night in December 1832 Ferdinand suffered 20 epileptic seizures
of such violence that his doctors abandoned all hope for him. But he
miraculously recovered, although for a while he had more trouble with
speaking and gradually he began having trouble with hearing. Often,
Ferdinand could be found standing for hours at his window staring down
at passers-by. Still, he was able to play pianoforte and trumpet, although
he preferred to make concertos with his collection of musical boxes. He
was mainly interested in botany and heraldry. Through the years he
collected approximately 5000 heraldic shields. Once, when an eagle was
shot during the hunt, Ferdinand supposedly remarked that it could not be
an eagle, because it had only one head; the eagle in the Habsburg shield
has two.
In 1835 the Imperial Crown of Austria4 passed to Ferdinand. On his
deathbed the Emperor Franz gave his son the advise: "Reign and don't
change anything." The government of the Donau monarchies remained
in the hands of Metternich, while Ferdinand strolled along the corridors
in a fieldmarshal's uniform with an umbrella under his arm. After a
meeting with the Tsar and his family in 1835, the Tsarina, Alexandra
Feodorovna, wrote in her diary that she had been told about Ferdinand's
thickset figure, his big head and expressionless face, but that the truth
was even worse. Sophie of Bavaria once remarked that Austria had "an
oaf representing the Crown", while Ferdinand himself summarised being
Emperor as: "I am Emperor, I want noodles, so I get them."5
Ferdinand as Emperor On birthdays and name days the whole Habsburg
clan6 used to gather in the Hofburg for the exchanging of gifts. Usually,
Ferdinand's little nephews Francis Joseph (1830-1916) and Maximilian

187

(1832-1867)7 were supposed to perform playlets or recitals. For the

nobility the Biedermeier era were years of carefree happiness, but at the
same time workmen, women and even children had to work 12 to 14
hours a day for only a trifle. A serious economic depression in the 1840s
intensified the social unrest. When in 1848 the people of Austria started
a revolution, Ferdinand asked in surprise: "Are they allowed to do that?"
The hard-liners at court proposed to suppress the rebellion with arms,
but Ferdinand refused, saying: "Am I the Emperor or not?" He declared
that the people's wishes should be met as far as possible. Metternich
resigned and fled the country. Meanwhile, revolts had also broken out in
Hungary, Bohemia and Northern Italy. In May Ferdinand fled to
Innsbruck. Soon the Imperial family was able to return to Vienna, only
to flee again in October to the fortress of Olmtz.
Gentle, feeble Nandle could not cope with the situation, but Sophie of
Bavaria could. She and Maria Anna pressed Ferdinand to abdicate in
favour of Sophie's 18-year-old son, Francis Joseph. In a hesitant voice
Ferdinand read the deed of abdication and gave Francis Joseph the
advice to "Be good"8. With some difficulty the ex-Emperor signed the
document. In his diary he wrote: "The affair ended with the new
Emperor kneeling before his old Emperor and lord, that is to say me, and
asking for a blessing, which I gave him. [..] Then I embraced him and he
kissed my hand. Then my dear wife embraced and kissed our new
master, and then we went to our room. [..] After that I and my dear wife
packed our things."
Ferdinand the Good-Natured From then on, Ferdinand and Maria Anna
lived in castle Hradschin in Prague, where Ferdinand indulged in his
hobbies of botany, heraldry and music. He received the title "Duke of
Reichstadt", that had once belonged to his late nephew, Napoleon's only
son. When in 1854 the new Emperor Francis Joseph married the famous
Sissi of Bavaria (1837-1898), Ferdinand and Maria Anna send them
jewels as a wedding gift. In 1856 Nandle and his wife celebrated their
silver wedding anniversary. In his later years Ferdinand's health
improved and through the years he managed to amass a large fortune.

188

Upon his death at the age of 82, Ferdinand left his possessions to his
nephew Francis Joseph.
Copyright 2001 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Ferdinand is confusingly known as Ferdinand I, because his father had
lost Germany to the Hohenzollern. He should, however, be distinguished
from the more famous 16th century Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I
of Habsburg.
2 Franz' first wive, a Princess of Wrttemberg, had died in childbed.
3 "Da Gott erbarme."
4 Hungary, Bohemia, Northern Italy and the Balkans also belonged to
the Austrian Empire.
5 "Ich bin der Kaiser und ich mchte Kndeln!"
6 In the 1840s five of Ferdinand's uncles were still alive.
7 Maximilian later married Charlotte of Belgium and became the illfated Emperor of Mexico.
8 "Sei nur brav."
Bibliography
Gies McGuigan, D.: The Habsburgs, W.H. Allen, 1966
Knappich, W.: Die Habsburger Chronik, Verlag Das Bergland-Buch,
1959
Praschl-Bichler, G.: Gott gebe, da das Glck andauere
(Liebesgeschichten und Heiratssachen im Hause Habsburg), Wilhelm
Heyne Verlag, 1997
Dickinger, Ch.: Habsburgs schwarze Schafe (ber Wstlinge,
Schwachkpfe, Rebellen und andere Prinzen), Ueberreuter, 2000
Andics, H.: Die Frauen der Habsburger, Verlag Fritz Molden, 1969
Bankl, H.: Die Kranken Habsburger (Befunde und Befindlichkeiten
einer Herrscherdynastie), K&S Bertelsmann, 1998
Vacha, B.: Die Habsburger (Einde Europische Familiengeschichte),
Styria, 1993

189

Weissensteiner, F.: Liebeshimmel und Ehehllen (Heiraten zwischen

Habsburgern und Wittelsbachern), Verlag Friedrich Pustet (Styria), 1999
Vocelka, K., Heller, L.: Die Private Welt der Habsburger (Leben und
Alltag einer Familie), Styria, 1998
Musulin, J. v.: Die Habsburger, in: Die groen Dynastien, Sdwest
Verlag Mnchen, 1978
Vacha, B.: Die Habsburger (Eine Europische Familiengeschichte),
Verlag Styria, 1993
Dickinger, Ch.: Ha-Ha-Habsburg (Ein wirklich wahre
Familiengeschichte), Ueberruter, 2001
Schreiber, G.: Die Hofburg und ihre Bewohner, Ueberreuter, 1993
Jaeckel, G.: Die Deutschen Kaiser (Eine illustrierte Geschichte),
Stalling, 1980
Regan, G.: The Guinness Book of Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995
Last modified: 08/14/2014 16:59:40. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ or RSS Feed.

As wife of the Dutch national hero, William of Orange, Anna of

Saxony's immoderate behaviour and bouts of temper were an
embarrassment. She neglected their children, publicly ridiculed her
husband and squandered their money. Pregnant from a lover, she was
locked up and finally plunged into total insanity.
Anna of Saxony (1544-77) was 9, when her father, Maurice of Saxony
(1521-53), died from battle wounds, and at 11 Anna lost her mother,
Agnes of Hesse (1527-55). Anna grew up as an only surviving child,
much indulged, with a strong sense of her own importance. She was a
difficult adolescent, ugly, lame and hunchbacked, but widely regarded as
the wealthiest catch of all the German Princesses of her day.
Princess Anna of Saxony William of Orange (1533-84), a handsome,
fashionable and charming widower, came to Dresden in 1560 to woe her,
and young Anna fell madly in love with him. She remarked: "Er ist ein
schwarzer Verrter, aber ich habe keine Ader in meinem Leibe, die ihn

190

nicht herzlich lieb htte." She wrote a series of passionate love letters to
William, who left the task of writing replies to his brother Louis. Despite
opposition from Anna's Protestant relatives, they were married in August
1561.
The marriage was troubled from the beginning. Anna was passionate,
haughty and distinctly odd. During her first pregnancy, she had
uncontrollable moods and outburst. While William was in Germany, a
girl was born who died soon afterwards. The next two years another
daughter and a son were born. Anna was uncaring to both her own
children and her two stepchildren, so in 1564 William decided to take his
eldest children from her care. By then, it was common knowledge that
their marriage was a complete failure. Anna was immoderate in
everything. She had violent fits of temper, smashing everything to bits.
At parties she boozed and flirted with the guests. Fits of gaiety alternated
with drunken bouts of melancholy gloom. She began to express thoughts
of suicide and despair, secluding herself for days in a darkened room
illuminated only by candles, receiving no visitors, and refusing food.
In 1566 Anna's little son died. Anna complained she was bored in Breda
and travelled to Spa, where she publicly ridiculed William and openly
mocked his sexual abilities. Thus she became subject to gossip and
disapproval of the whole society, although a modern feminist might see
in her behaviour a passionate struggle against the patriarchal
conventions.
William I the silent of Oranje William of Orange (1533-1584) was a
German Count of Nassau, who had inherited the French principality of
Orange and a number of estates in The Netherlands. He had been
educated at the Catholic court of Emperor Charles V in Brussels. Charles
V had leaned on the arm of William of Orange in the ceremony of
handing over his power to his son, Philip II of Spain. Philip had
immediately appointed Spanish stadholders instead of Dutch ones. His
reforms and religious persecutions resulted in social unrest. When
William was sent to France to assist in arranging the terms of a treaty,

191

the French King thought William was a confident of Philip and talked to
him about Philip's plans to exterminate Dutch Protestantism. William,
who supported freedom of religion, kept quiet and listened carefully,
thus earning his nickname "the silent". In 1567, when Philip sent the
notorious Duke of Alba and his army to the Low Countries, William of
Orange and his family left the country with all their belongings and
moved into his brother Johann's castle at Dillenburg in Germany. In
1568 William's eldest son, Philip William, was abducted to Spain never
to see his father again. The Counts of Egmont and Hornes were
treacherously beheaded by Alba. It started the Eighty Years War between
Spain and the Low Countries. William the Silent and his brothers set
about recruiting troops, selling William's jewels and plate to raise the
necessary money. In the first years of the war William lost most of the
battles and his brothers Adolphus and Louis were killed.
Emilia the Elder as a child While William was busy conducting this
costly guerrilla war in the Low Countries, his relatives in Germany were
forced to live frugally. Anna detested life in Dillenburg. She publicly
cursed and fulminated at her husband. Her arrogance, obstinacy and
rudeness irritated William's relatives, who called her "die Person". In
1567 Anna's famous son Maurits was born. When she found herself
pregnant once more, she moved to Cologne, where she lived in
increasingly grotesque extravagance and soon squandered all her money.
While intoxicated, she mistreated her staff. In 1569, she gave birth to
Emilia (to the right). William the Silent repeatedly asked her to rejoin
him as his wife, but she publicly tore his letters apart. A personal
meeting in Mannheim did not result in reconciliation either. By then,
Anna was already involved in an affair with Johannes Rubens, a Flemish
refugee. Financial difficulties and a pregnancy begotten by Rubens
forced Anna to move to a country house in Siegen. In 1571 Rubens was
arrested. Anna first denied any wrongdoing, despite her unmistakable
pregnancy. When she broke down, Anna asked William to execute them
both, which was the usual thing to do in these circumstances. However,
Rubens was not executed but exiled and in 1577 his wife gave birth to
the famous painter Peter Paul Rubens. Anna of Saxony gave birth to

192

Rubens' daughter, Christina. William of Orange refused to recognise her

as his child and declared his marriage to Anna annulled.
By then Anna of Saxony was showing signs of mental derangement and
in 1572 she was moved to the German castle of Beilstein. Knives were
to be taken away from her after meals. Preachers delivered sermons to
her twice a week in her room. Her last years were filled with violent
outbursts, hallucinations, and filthy talk. She claimed to have killed her
own children. She was held in custody until 1575, when she was sent
home to Dresden. There she was confined in two rooms whose windows
were bricked up. She now talked nonsense while trembling and foaming
at the mouth. A captain reported that Anna had attacked him with knives
and was "raging and foolish as if she were possessed". She died in 1577.
In 1573, William the Silent converted to the Protestant faith. He
remarried twice and was eventually killed by a Catholic fanatic in 1584.
Under the excellent leadership of Anna's son, Maurits of Orange (15671625), the Spaniards were driven out of the Dutch United Provinces by
1600. Their sovereignty was recognised officially in the Treaty of
Westphalia in 1648. William's relatives raised Anna's illegitimate
daughter and arranged her marriage to a German Count.
Anna's mental state could have been hereditary. Her father's cousin,
Frederick of Saxony (1504-1539), was mentally disturbed too, and had
been regarded as an impossible successor. Elisabeth of Denmark (14851555), a second cousin of Anna's father, was allegedly mad from 1535 to
1539, while her daughter of the same name suffered from "hysteria".
Anna's great-grandfather, William II of Hesse (1469-1509), and his elder
brother both showed signs of mental disorder and, in addition, William II
was excessively melancholic. Anna's daughter Emilia of Orange-Nassau
(1569-1629) was in later life arrested as a madwoman, went through
bouts of screaming at her attendants and attempted suicide. Anna, too,
had sudden and inappropriate attitude changes, recurring fits of temper
and suicidal tendencies. She expressed a persistent feeling of boredom.
Her impulsive behaviour often discredited both herself and her husband.

193

These symptoms indicate that Anna could have had a borderline

personality - until she crossed the border and plunged into total insanity.
Copyright 1996, 2000, 2012 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Bibliography
Midelfort, H.C.E.: Mad Princes of Renaissance Germancy, University
Press of Virginia, 1994
Steur, J.: Anna, hertogin van Saksen-Meiszen, in: Moeders uit ons
vorstenhuis, Scheltens & Giltay, 1938
Herenius-Kamstra, A.: Willem van Oranje 1533-1584 (De prins, de
mens, de staatsman), Zomer & Keuning, 1983
Beaufort, H.L.T. de: Willem de zwijger, A.M. Donker, 1950
Tamse, C.A.: Nassau en Oranje (in de Nederlandse geschiedenis), A.W.
Sijthoff, 1979
R.J. Unstead's Book of Kings & Queens, Word Lock Limited, 1978
Greasen, R.: William the Silent, in: Canning, J. (ed.): 100 Great Kings,
Queens and Rulers of the world, Souvenir Press, 1973
Wedgewood, C.V.: Willem de zwijger, English title: William the Silent,
Elsevier, 1941
Kroesen, W.: Duizend jaar Oranje (De geschiedenis van ons
vorstenhuis), Teleboek BV, 1980
Mulder, A.W.J.: Juliana van Stolberg ("Ons aller vrouwe-moeder"), J.M.
Meulenhoff
Blaschke, K.: Der Frstenzug zu Dresden (Denkmal und Geschichte des
Hauses Wettin), Urania-Verlag, 1991
Reber, A.S.: Woordenboek van de psychologie (Termen, theorien en
verschijnselen), English title: The Penguin Dictionary of Psychology,
Bert Bakker, 1994
For more information see
my Genealogy of the royal family of The Netherlands,

194

a biography of William I the Silent of Orange,

or the Princesses of Germany Blog.
Last modified: 08/14/2014 16:48:49. Text & image editing by Joan Bos.
For more info see the FAQ.
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Pretty Countess Anna de Coligny (1624-80) married a younger son in a
minor branch of the House of Wrttemberg. After giving birth to
numerous children, Anna gradually became mad. Sadly, four of her
daughters, Heinrika, Anna, Elisabeth and Hedwig, became mentally
incapacitated, too. Her only surviving son, Leopold Eberhard, although
certainly not mad, was to flaunt all conventions by marrying his
illegitimate children to each other.
Georg II of Wrttemberg-Mmpelgard, Anna's husband Georg (1626-99,
to the left), Duke of Wrttemberg and Count of Mmpelgard
(Montbliard in nowadays France), was born on October 5, 1626, around
noon, as a younger son in a minor branch of the German House of
Wrttemberg. He was only 4 years old when his father, Ludwig
Friedrich (1586-1631), died. It was the era of the devastating 30-YearsWar, and George, his mother and elder half-siblings were forced to flee
Mmpelgard multiple times. As he grew up, Georg gradually became
more stubborn, irritable, suspicious and choleric.
Anna de Coligny Georg spent many years in France. There, in 1648, he
met and fell in love with pretty Countess Anna de Coligny (1624-80, to
the right). When he married her on April 29, 1648, his family regarded
the marriage as a mesalliance, because she wasn't a Princess1. Born on
September 4, 1624, around 15:30, in the castle of Chtillon-sur-Loing,
Anna was the youngest child of Count Gaspard III de Coligny (1584-

195

1646) and his wife Anne de Polignac (1598-1651). In her youth Anna de
Coligny had already exhibited some strange behavior. Once she had
some sort of seizure, and tried to climb like a cat against the tapestries
on the wall.
When she was 21 years old, Annas father died. Shortly afterwards,
Anna seems to have had some sort of secret affair with a Marquis de
Vineuil, and, for a while, her mother feared for a pregnancy. Thus, Anna
was taken to Belfort to live with her sister Henriette (1618-73). It was in
Belfort that Anna met Georg of Wrttemberg.
After their marriage, Georg and Anna lived at castle Horburg. From
1650 onwards Anna gave birth to 5 daughters and 3 sons. The 2 eldest
sons died young. The youngest daughter, Hedwig, was born in 1667 in
Mmpelgard. Finally, in 1670 the long-awaited son and heir, Leopold
Eberhard, was born.
In 1662, after his half-brother had died childless, Georg became reigning
Duke of Mmpelgard as Georg II. Georg was a Lutheran, who read daily
in the bible, while his wife Anna was a fanatic Calvinist. After Georg
had tried to convert his wife to Lutheranism around Christmas 1662, the
marriage soon deteriorated. Around that time Anna's mental health began
deteriorating, too. Gradually, Anna was to become mad.
Eleonora Charlotta, Anna's daughterSylvius Friedrich of WrttembergOels, Anna's son-in-law One of their daughters, Eleonore Charlotte
(1656-1743, to the left), was courted in 1670 by a relative, Duke Silvius
Friedrich of Wrttemberg-Oels (1651-1697, to the right). They
exchanged letters for a while until they were married in 1672, when she
was 15. At first the marriage was happy, although it saddened Eleonore
Charlotte that she remained childless. More and more, however, her
husband suffered from a nervous state. He displayed unpredictable
behavior, and sank into a state of complete dependence on his wife. As a
result, Eleonore Charlotte became the de-facto ruler of Oels.
In 1676 Mmpelgard was occupied and partly destroyed by the French,
and Georg and his family had to flee. In 1679 the Ducal family was able
to return to Mmpelgard. The next year, however, the French occupied it

196

again. From then until 1698, the family stayed mainly in Oels with
George's daughter Eleonore Charlotte, who was to spend too much
money to keep up appearances for herself, her father and her siblings.
Anna de Coligny died mentally incapacitated on January 13, 1680,
around 14:00 in the castle of Reichenweier. Her mad eldest daughter,
Heinrika (1654-1680), became so overwrought that she took to bed and
refused all food. She died 10 days later. Anna was interred in the crypt of
the castle church of St. Maimboeuf on March 8, Heinrika the day after.
Friedrich Ferdinand of Wrttemberg-Weiltingen and Elisabeth, Anna's
daughter After their mothers death, Eleonore Charlotte took care of her
younger sisters, and tried to marry them off. She only managed to do so
with Elisabeth (1665-1726). She was married at the age of 24 to a
relative, Duke Friedrich Ferdinand of Wrttemberg-Weiltingen (16541705, to the right with his wife). She gave birth to 2 daughters and a son,
who died young. In the summer of 1696 Elisabeth, too, became
melancholic first and then incurably mad. She was locked up in an
apartment with walls lined with mattresses.
Another sister, Anna (1660-1733), hoped for a marriage with a Count of
Birkenfeld of the House of Wittelsbach2, but nothing came of it. Later
she became mad, too, and was locked up and cared for in Blamont. Once
she walked with a knife into the church, where she was seized by force
by the clergyman. From 1701 onwards, Anna of Wrttemberg was
allowed to live in Ostheim for more than 20 years. There, she
surrounded herself with dogs, cats and weasels. When one of her dogs
died, she had it interred in a magnificent mausoleum, especially build for
her dogs. Thus, she became known as The Dog Princess. After she had
the clock of the town hall removed, because it made too much noise to
her liking, and refused to return it, Anna had to return to her brother in
Mmpelgard.
The youngest of the sisters, Hedwig (1667-1715), was for a short time
engaged to King Karl XII of Sweden (16821718). Her whole life she
remained convinced they were still engaged. She continued to write him

197

love letters that were never send. Once she walked around in the park
without proper clothing, shouted after by passers by. Hedwig stayed
mainly with her sister Eleonore Charlotte in Oels, where they both
converted to the catholic faith in 1702. Later, the two sisters ended up
penniless in Breslau in Silesia.
Georg II of Wrttemberg-Mmpelgard, Anna's widower
The father of those strange Princesses, Anna de Coligny's widower
Georg II of Wrttemberg (to the left), seems to have been a bit of a nerd.
He usually wore simple clothes. Georg liked to spend time with learned
men, like Descartes. He also read Tacitus. He was said to have read the
whole bible at least 500 times during his life. He could read French,
Hebrew, Greek and Latin. He corresponded with ex-Queen Christina of
Sweden (1626-89), who was intelligent, moody and strange, too.
Georg obstinately refused to recognize the overlordship of France, so in
the period 1684-98 Mmpelgard was administered by his cousin
Friedrich Carl of Wrttemberg-Winnental (1652-98) until the Treaty of
Ryswyck was signed. Then Georg and his only son were finally able to
return to Mmpelgard. Georg survived his mad wife for 19 years and
died, aged 72, on June 1, 1699, between 11 and 12 oclock in the castle
of Mmpelgard. He was interred on the 23th.
The only surviving son of Georg and Anna, Leopold Eberhard (16701723), was called The dissolute and The most shameless libertine.
Being the long-awaited heir, he was thoroughly spoiled as a child.
Around the age of 10, he still couldnt read or write in either German or
French, but his strange father had then decided to hire a teacher in the
Arabic language.
Later, Leopold Eberhard had been placed under guardianship of the
regent, Friedrich Carl of Wrttemberg-Winnental. Like him, Leopold
Eberhard followed a military career in Austria. As an adult Leopold
Eberhard turned out to be very short-tempered and irritable. During his
life he was to behave unconcerned and unscrupulous.
Around 1693 Leopold Eberhard fell in love with a baker's daughter,
Anna Sabina Hedwiger (1676-1735), whom he may have secretly and
morganatically married, as he later claimed. She gave birth to 5 children.

198

Later, Leopold Eberhard befriended Richard Curie, and started having

sex with Curies 4 daughters: Henriette Hedwig (1675-1707), Polyxne
(1708), Sbastienne and Elisabeth Charlotte (1684-1733).
Leopold Eberhard persuaded Anna Sabina to take Henriette Hedwig as
her lady-in-waiting. In 1700, after Anna Sabina had retired to the castle
of Hricourt, Leopold Eberhard lived openly with Henriette Hedwig
until her death. They had 8 children. In 1718 Leopold Eberhard decided
to marry the last remaining sister, Elisabeth Charlotte, with whom he
had 7 children. He repeatedly sent requests to the Emperor to legitimize
his morganatic children, commonly known as The Mmpelgard
Bastards, but the Emperor refused.
In 1719 Leopold Eberhard flaunted conventions even more by
incestuously marrying 2 of his children with Anna Sabina, Georg
Leopold (1697-1749) and Leopoldine Eberhardine (1697-1709), to 2 of
his children with Henriette Hedwig, Eleonora Charlotte (1700-73) and
Carl Leopold (1698-1758).
When Ludwig Eberhard died of a stroke on May 25, 1723, around 20:00,
the Duchy of Mmpelgard was claimed by a distant male relative.
Copyright 2012 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Footnotes
1 Although the Coligny were mere counts, they were distantly related
to the Kings of England and Prussia through a connection with the
Dutch stadtholders.
2 Likely Johann Karl (1638-1704), Count Palatine of BirkenfeldGelnhausen, who married his first wife in 1685. She died in 1695. His
elder brother Christian (a male ancestor of the Kings of Bavaria) and a
distant cousin were both married when Anna was still a small child,
while the next generation was too young.

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Bibliography
Raff, G. Hie gut Wirtemberg allerwege II (sources), BTB mbH, 1993
Raff, G. Hie gut Wirtemberg allerwege III (sources), Hohenheim Verlag,
2002
Lorenz, S., a.o.: Das Haus Wrttemberg (Ein Biographisches Lexxikon),
Kohlhammer, 1997
Vehse, C.E.: Die Hfe zu Wrttemberg, Kiepenheuer, 1992

Elector John George IV of Saxony (1668-1694) fell madly in love with

13-year-old "Billchen", the daughter of his father's notorious mistress.
After his accession, his passion for her became so strong that his
marriage detoriated to a degree that he took to violence, attacking and
raping his wife, who feared for her life...
John George IV was born on October 18, 1668 as the eldest son of John
George III of Saxony (1647-1691) and Anna Sophie of Denmark (16471717)1. Anna Sophie was an educated woman, familiar with German,
Danish, Latin, French, Spanish and Italian. John George III was short
and stout, taciturn by nature and quarrelsome by temperament. His main
pastimes were drinking, hunting, warfare and mistresses. He was known
as the Saxon Mars.
When John George IV was 1 year old, his brother Friedrich August
was born. A tutor was acquired for the Princes in November 1672. Every
lesson was to begin and end in prayer, because the Saxon Princely
Family was devoutly Lutheran. The boys were closely watched day and
night to ensure that they were never spiritually endangered by Papists
or Calvinists. John George was taught to read, spell and speak clearly.
Early 1676, the young Princes were given their personal household and
their own chamberlain and pages. Although both Princes had inherited
their mothers intelligence, John George clearly was the scholar, while
August just liked to enjoy himself. Once, the boys accompanied their

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father to the Leipzig Fair. To his fathers delight, August purchased a

carbine. John George, however, selected mathematical instruments and
tomes from the stalls.
mother Anna Sophie of Denmark When in 1680 the plague arrived in
Dresden, Anna Sophie (to the right) and her 2 sons left for Lichtenberg.
The old Elector, John George II, died from the dreaded disease, and John
George III became the new Elector. In April 1681, John George IV and
his brother climbed into the saddle for the first time. Eighteen months
later they joined the hunt on horseback and became hooked on it. The
Princes also learned to dance and fence. Their education included civil
and military engineering, mathematics, languages and drawing. John
George IV learned French, Latin and Italian and pursued his own
interests in history, genealogy and politics.
In November 1685, 17-year-old John George embarked upon his Grand
Tour. At the radiant court of Louis XIV The Sun King, he made a
good impression, studying French, Italian, dancing and riding. In his free
hours John George gambled and watched comedies. In June 1686, he
arrived in Londen. In July, he sailed to The Netherlands. In Gottorp he
met his Danish relations. In November, John George was back in
Dresden. The next year, August left on his Grand Tour.
From the age of 16 onwards, John George IV had increasingly been
involved in state affairs. He was the heir, although August was his
fathers favourite. The 2 dissimilar brothers felt a mutual jealousy and
antagonism towards each other and often quarrelled. John George often
had bouts of rage, which may have resulted from inflamed kidneys and
gallstones. Like his grandfather, he suffered from stomach pains, and
sediment was found in his urine. Given these medical problems, John
George didnt have the constitution to consume huge quantities of
alcoholic drinks. In 1690, August described his brother as delicate and
sickly, weak-natured and weak-limbed, sombre, melancholy, reflective,
scholarly and extremely hot-tempered.

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father John George III, The Saxon Mars Elector John George III (to the
right) had fought against the Ottoman Turks in the famous Battle of
Vienna in 1683. The following years, the Saxon troops continued the
fight. Beside his military pursuits, the Saxon Mars had many affairs
with women. One of his lovers was Ursula Margaretha von Haugwitz
(1651-1713), wife of Rudolf von Neitschtz. Ursulas eldest daughter,
Magdalena Sibylle, was known as Billchen. She was born on February
8, 1675, and grew up as a gay and beautiful girl. Prince Augusts
military counsellor, Christian August von Haxthausen (1696), fell for
her and claimed that he had bedded the child, when she was 12. Not
long afterwards, John George IV made Sibylle hs mistress. August also
slept with the girl; the 2 brothers allegedly crossed swords for Billchens
favour.
The Elector could hardly have disapproved of his elder son having a
mistress as such. In this case, however, he took steps to keep both of his
sons away from young Sibylle. His behaviour may suggest a fear of
incest; it is quite possible that Sibylle was the fruit of the affair between
him and Ursula, but we do not know for sure2. Young John George was
spied upon, but still managed to meet clandestinely with Billchen. When
their secret meetings were discovered, Ursula and Sibylle were banished
from court. During the 1689 campaign, John George met Sibylle again,
when she and her mother visited her lawful father, who was a lieutenantgeneral. The Elector was furious; the visit cost Von Neitschtz his
command. Early 1690, young John George was sent away on a tour
through Italy.
In September 1691, while campaigning, John George III was violently
attacked by an apoplexy and died. John George IV returned to Dresden
and immediately installed 16-year-old Sibylle as his favourite. She was
given the apartments one of his fathers mistresses3 had occupied.
Sibylle's father was reinstated into the army and promoted. Her brotherin-law became an adviser to John George, while taking good care of
the Neitschtz family. All petitioners documents, that Sibylle received
from her mother, were signed by the new Elector. Thus, Ursula received

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a lot of money as mediator. The besotted John George even tolerated

Sibylle's many infidelities.
wife Eleonore of Saxe-Eisenach Sibylle was not of equal blood to
John George, who, for the purpose of producing an heir, could not marry
a woman of lesser rank than a Princess. Anna Sophie wanted her son to
marry a Danish cousin, but John George preferred an alliance with
Brandenburg. Early 1692, he went to Berlin to negotiate a marriage with
Eleonore Erdmuthe of Saxe-Eisenach (1662-1696, to the right), widow
of Johann Friedrich of Brandenburg-Ansbach (1654-1686) and mother
of 2 children4. While Sibylle was 6 years younger than John George,
Eleonore was 6 years older than her proposed husband. Eleonore is
described as handsome, well-shaped, a Princess of great virtue and
piety, of a mild nature and prudent. At that time, John George is
described as of middle stature, round-shouldered, of a sullen look, of a
saturnine temper and talks little. He could be very obstinate, too. The
couple married on April 17, 1692. That same night John George bedded
his bride in her own apartments, before returning to his quarters at 5
a.m. the next morning. During the following festivities, Sibylle was
eating at the same table as the newly-weds. In August, Eleonore
miscarried and John George fell from a horse. Stories followed that John
Georges fall had unhinged his mind, but John George had had violent
tantrums since his youth.
John George IV of Saxony In the autumn of 1692, Sibylle was pregnant,
and it was probably John Georges child. The Elector bought from the
Emperor the hereditary title of Countess of Rochlitz for his mistress.
Early 1693, the couple signed and sealed a morganatic marriage
contract, which was predated to a date before John Georges marriage to
Eleanore. He recognized both the bigamous marriage and its issue as
legitimate, although the latter would have no rights of succession. In
February, the Electress Eleonore miscarried again, shattering her hopes
of cementing her position by producing an heir.
In the summer, John George (to the right) took part in the Rhine
campaign against France. He was accompanied by his mistress, who was

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big with child. On June 25, Sibylle gave birth to a daughter, Wilhelmina
Maria Friederika. In the authumn, Eleonore was indisposed and both she
and the doctors assumed that she was pregnant. In December, it became
clear that the Electress was not with child. Passionate John George
nearly hit the doctors, who had made the wrong diagnose. Poor Eleonore
was inconsolable.
Billchen announced a new pregnancy at the end of 1693. This time, she
wanted to become the Electress. She may even have offered the Emperor
to convert the Elector to Catholisism in return for the title of Princess.
She continually worked upon John Georges distaste for his wife and
made him desire to divorce Eleonore. brother August the Strong The
Electress stood alone, because her mother-in-law had retreated to castle
Lichtenburg in Prettin.
Early February, Sibylles pregnancy turned out to be a phantom
pregnancy, too. On the 24th, John George had an outrageous and
dangerous confrontation with his wife, when she protested about John
Georges gift of the valuable Pillnitz estate to Sibylle. The quarrel grew
so fiery, that the incensed John George wounded several persons and
would have stabbed Eleonore, had he not been disarmed by his strong
brother. August (to the right) tore three blades, one after another, from
his brothers hand, while cutting all his fingers. It wasnt the first
time that August had pacified his tempestuous brother. Soon afterwards,
John George pressed Eleonore to receive a formal visit of his mistress.
Eleonore obeyed, but did it weeping. Later, John George forcefully
bedded her twice.
After eating some pastry, Sibylle became sick; her body swelled and she
claimed to have been poisoned by Eleonore. Hot-tempered John George
immediately believed her, but the doctors didnt agree and suggested that
Sibylles lifestyle might have something to do with it. Eleonore was now
constantly exposed to hard usuage and even feared for her life. On
April 2, she departed with her children for her dowry-seat at Pretsch.
By then, Sibylle had been diagnosed with smallpox and lay sick for 9
days. Initially, the doctors had high hopes of a speedy recovery, and of

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her escaping without being much marked. Suddenly, she had strong
convulsions and, on the morning of April 3, she was taken
speechless. All the time, John George remained at the bedside of his
beloved mistress. Five doctors were consulted. They used Spanish flies
and syringes, but to no avail. Sybille died around 7 a.m. on April 4,
1694. She was only 19 years old.
John George was in shock. He visited Sibylles corpse frequently, after it
was laid out, and once was bending to kiss it, before being pulled
away5. He had never contracted smallpox and was thus not immune to
the disease. Yet, he could not be kept from pressing her hand. He
changed his apartments for others more remote and succumbed to
melancholy. He recounted that around 3 a.m. on the day of her death, he
was seized with a violent trembling at the heart and his fingers
contracted as if he had been in a convulsion. He spoke of the singular
love and esteem he had for Billchen, emphasizing that, had it been lust
alone, he could have found other women to make the loss less
sensible. Sibylles funeral took place on April 12. She was buried
alongside 3 Princes of the Electoral House in a vault of Dresdens
Sophienkirche. By then, Sibylles face had turned blue, and her breasts
green, and Ursula made John George believe that Sibylle had been
poisoned.
Around April 16, a black melancholy and distraction were visible in his
looks and behaviour, due to John Georges immoderate grief. He made
several walks in the dreadful April weather and drank a lot of strong
wine. He became ill. He was seized with shiverings and pains in his
back. In the night of April 19, little spots appeared on his body. He had
caught smallpox, too. His mother visited him on April 21, and Eleonore
the next day. He seemed indifferent if he lived or died. On April 27, John
George IV grew light-headed, mistook Eleonore for the physician and
continued raving mad, until he expired at 5 p.m. that same evening at
the age of 25.

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John George IV was succeeded by his brother, August the Strong, who
converted to Catholicism and became King of Poland. His greatest
achievement was the fathering of approximately 354 illegitimate
children. Sibylles scheming mother was imprisoned and tortured. Upon
her release, Ursula von Haugwitz retreated to a family residence,
wearing gloves to cover the marks left by the torture. The Dowager
Electress, Eleonore, died on September 9, 1696, at the age of 32. In
1705, her daughter of her first marriage, Caroline (1683-1737), became
the famous consort of the British King George II (1683-1760) .
Copyright 2007 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Anna Sophie was a daughter of King Frederick III of Denmark (16091670).
2 Rudolf von Neitschtz was with his troops at the time of Sibylle's
conception in 1674, but this only establishes that he was not her father.
3 Susanne von Zinzendorff.
4 Eleonore had a daughter, Caroline (1683-1737), and a son, Wilhelm
Friedrich (1685-1723), who succeeded his elder half brother as Count of
Brandenburg-Ansbach in 1703.
5 Several accounts assert that John George did plant one or more kisses
upon Sibylles deseased lips.
Bibliography
Sharp, T.: Pleasure and Ambition (The Life, Loves and Wars of Augustus
the Strong), I.B. Tauris, 2001
Blaschke, K.: Der Frstenzug zu Dresden, Urania Verlag, 1991
Schreiber, H.: August der Starke (Kurfrst von Sachsen Knig von
Polen), Heyne Verlag, 1981
Czok, K.: Am Hofe Augusts des Starken, Edition Leipzig, 1989
Fellmann, W.: Prinzessinnen (Glanz, Einsamkeit un Skandale am
schsischen Hof), LKG, 1996
Kroll, F.-L.: Die Herrscher Sachsens (Markgrafen, Kurfrsten, Knige
1089-1918), Verlag C.H. Beck, 2004
Ashdown, D.M.: Princess of Wales, John Murray, 1979

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Schuhmann, G.: Die Markgrafen von Brandenburg-Ansbach,

Selbstverlag des Historischen Vereins fr Mittelfranken, 1980
Last modified: 08/26/2012 21:57:59. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
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Frederick William I of Prussia (1688-1740) is known as "The Soldier
King". He gave Prussia its famous, disciplined army. He had a special
regiment of Potsdam Giants, consisting of especially tall men, whom he
never risked in battle. When he was ill or depressed, Frederick William
would have a few hundred of them marching through his bedroom to
cheer him up.
Frederick William was born on August 14, 1688, a few months after the
death of his grandfather, the Great Elector, after whom he was named.
While he was still a small child, his 1st governess, Marthe de Montbail,
was frightened out of her wits by his strange behaviour. Once,
obstinately refusing to spit out a silver shoe buckle in his mouth, 4-yearold Frederick William swallowed it, either accidentally, or for spite; a
physician finally got it out of him. On another occasion, the young
Prince threatened to let himself fall 3 stories out of the window unless
his governess let him have his way. Ordered to put on a gold brocade
dressing gown one morning, little Frederick William threw it into the
fire. He was just as obstinate when it came to his studies. The only
things he liked as a boy were drilling soldiers and economics. He saved
his pocket money to form a company of cadets whom he drilled himself.
Despite his headstrong and rebellious nature, his frivolous mother,
Sophia Charlotte of Hannover (1668-1705), did nothing but indulge; she
spoiled him outrageously. She even wrote instructions to his governor,

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Count Alexander zu Dohna-Schlobitten (1661-1728), not to oppose his

charge.
Frederick William's father, Frederick I (1657-1713), was the first King
of Prussia. Although he was the newest and the least important of all
European Kings, he modelled himself upon the most important, Louis
XIV "The Sun King" of France. Frederick copied him slavishly, and although he loved Frederick William's mother dearly - he took a mistress
because he thought it the correct thing for a monarch to do. Loving all
forms of pomp and the outward display of riches, his finances were
always in a disastrous state.
Young Frederick William, however, was very different. In 1711, he
presented his father with evidence of financial mismanagement and the
Prime Minister was sacked. When Frederick I died two years later,
Frederick William gave him a magnificent funeral and then started to
reduce the Royal expenses drastically. Like everyone else, Frederick
William paid the consumer taxt he himself had imposed, and no candles
were left burning at court. He lived frugally and worked hard and
tirelessly for the welfare of his people. He encouraged farming,
reclaimed marshes, stored grain in good times and sold it in bad times.
He dictated a manual of Regulations for State Officials, containing 35
chapters and 297 paragraphs in which every public servant in Prussia
could find his duties precisely set out. A minister or councillor failing to
attend a committee meeting would lose six months' pay. If he absented
himself a second time, he would be discharged from the Royal service.
No inspections were to take place during the ploughing season or the
harvest, when the farmers would have no time to spare. The manual was
supplemented by further instructions drawn up in person by Frederick
William, prescribing methods of ploughing, erecting earthworks as a
protection against flooding, and hunting wolves. Market women should
not sit idle at their stalls but were to busy themselves knitting stockings.
Any parson preaching for over one hour would be fined. Frederick
William tore what he considered "extravagant finery" off the clothes of
females in the street and he used to discipline idle building workers in
person. It is said that he once gave chase in the street to an escaping

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pickpocket. Having caught him, the King asked why he had tried to run
away. When the man replied that he was afraid of him, Frederick
William hit him with his stick and roared: "Miserable wretch! You shall
love me!"
Leopold the Old Dessauer, his crony Frederick William had a passion for
all things military. He gave Prussia an enormous army; one in every nine
men in Prussia was a soldier and another 40000 men were foreign
mercenaries. Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Dessau (1676-1747, to the right),
a remarkable soldier and strategist, helped to turn the army into a firstclass fighting machine. He attached bayonets to the outside of the
muskets and replaced the wooden ramrod with one made of iron, which
was more reliable enabling faster loading of muskets and faster charging
after firing. In addition, the "Old Dessauer" invented the marching step;
marching in formation made an uncanny impression on foreigners used
to the uncoordinated movements of their own troops. The discipline in
Prussia's army was high due to the quality of the officers. Frederick
William did not sell commissions to the highest bidder, as was custom,
but gave them to members of the aristocracy strictly according to merit.
In addition, the King believed in harsh discipline with flogging and
executions as punishments for misbehaviour.
Frederick William had a special preference for tall men and would go to
any length to obtain one for his regiment of Potsdam Giants. He sent
recruiting agents throughout Europe in search of tall men to add to his
regiment, giving bonuses to parents who surrendered their tallest sons
and landowners who sent him their tallest farm workers. When he could
not get them voluntarily, he even resorted to kidnapping giants. Once a
preacher was carried off in mid-sermon together with four others. Many
giants attempted desertion or suicide, despite high wages. When other
rulers started protesting against the violation of their territorial
boundaries by his kidnapping attempts, Frederick William introduced a
breeding program. The mating of very tall men with similar women,
however, did not guarantee giant children and the method was a slow
one. Frederick William so doted on his giants that he never risked them

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in battle. He liked to paint their portraits, man for man, from memory
and was much pleased with the result. When he was ill or depressed, he
would have a few hundred of them marching through his bedroom to
cheer him up.
Sophia Dorothea of Hannover, his wife
Frederick William had always hated his Hannoverian cousin, George II
of Great-Britain (1683-1760), and the hatred was mutual. As a child
Frederick William had hit his nearly 5 years elder cousin causing a
bloody nose. Later, Frederick William's first love had been Caroline of
Brandenburg-Ansbach (1683-1737). She was more than 5 years his
senior and had treated him as a boy. When she married George in 1705,
Frederick William's hatred for George increased and he used to call him
"my brother, the red cabbage". Nevertheless, the next year their
domineering grandmother, Sophia (1630-1714), Electress of Hannover,
had arranged Frederick William's marriage with George's sister, Sophia
Dorothea of Great Britain (1687-1757, to the left). Frederick I had
happily provided an extravagant wedding feast for the couple with a
meal comprising 640 calves, 100 fat oxen, 1102 turkeys, 650 ducks and
1000 doves. The newlyweds apparently indulged enthusiastically in their
'marital duties'; a few weeks after the wedding Old Sophia wrote to
Frederick I that she hoped "God would soon make him a grandfather"
and added: "... to which end, as I hear, they are working night and day in
Berlin". Frederick I read the letter aloud at the dinner table and the
ensuing laughter so embarrassed the young bride that she left the room.
However, within a few months of their wedding Frederick William was
threatening with divorce and proposed a toast to the downfall of
England.
Sophia Dorothea had the arrogance of the Guelphs and the rashness of
the Stuarts. She was a gossip, a bore and a snob and spent money like
water, gambling for high stakes and running up huge debts, while
Frederick William lived parsimoniously. After his accession to the
throne, Frederick William I sacked so many servants in his effort to
economise, that Royal meals became modest bourgeois affairs with the
Royal Family helping themselves to meat, cheese and beer. Afterwards,

210

the Queen and the Princesses had to do the washing-up themselves. The
kitchen accounts were checked and Frederick William used to complain
if a few more eggs were used than he had allowed for. At times,
however, Frederick William did feel some tenderness towards his wife.
A year after their wedding an heir to the throne was born, and although
the boy died when only a few months old, the Queen would give birth to
13 other children. She was one of the few people that Frederick William
never hit and he was faithful to her his whole life. He used to say that
there were "no such things as mistresses", only "harlots and whores". In
the autumn of 1723, the Queen did not feel well. On November 8, she
was seized by aches and flatulence and the next day, to everybody's and especially her own - surprise, she gave birth to her twelfth child. Not
having recognised the symptoms after eleven pregnancies, she was a
laughing-stock for a while.
Their eldest surviving son was Fritz (1712-1786). Frederick William
wanted him to become a fine soldier. So, as a little child Fritz was
woken each morning by the firing of a cannon. At the age of 6 he was
given his own regiment of children to drill as cadets and a year later he
was given a miniature arsenal. Fritz was beaten for being thrown off a
bolting horse and for wearing gloves in cold weather. Frederick William
wrote down precise instructions for his eldest son's teachers: "On
Sunday he is to rise at seven. As soon as he has his slippers on he shall
kneel at the bed and say a short prayer to God loud enough for all
present to hear [..]. After which, the Lord's Prayer. Then speedily and
with all despatch he shall dress and wash himself, be queued and
powdered; and getting dressed as well as breakfast - tea, which is to be
taken while the valet is making his queue and powdering him - shall be
finished and done in a quarter of an hour, that is, by a quarter past
seven." And so on.
At dinner one day with his minister, Friedrich von Grumbkov, Frederick
William suddenly started lecturing 12-year-old Fritz. There had been
nothing in the boy's attitude to provoke his father - Fritz listened and
answered dutifully - but for the very reason, perhaps, that he lacked all

211

pretexts, Frederick William grew more and more angry. He started by

tapping and pinching his son's cheek; soon he was boxing his ears,
hitting him, pulling his hair until he was suddenly seized with a kind of
fit and jumped up and started throwing plates at the wall. Feigning
drunk, his minister tactfully did the same, while Fritz stood by,
trembling, and pale.
Fritz was clearly unloved and any childlike spontaneity, enthusiasm or
trust had been destroyed in his struggle with his bullying father. The rift
between father and son would deepen with the years. Frederick William
greatly preferred his younger son August William (1722-1758).
Excessive in everything, he sometimes kissed the 4-year-old boy for a
quarter of an hour at a time. Silly, heartless Sophia Dorothea made
things worse by continually complaining about Frederick William, and
even encouraging the children to displease their father. She had an
arrangement of screens behind which the children could hide, when they
had pestered their father into a frenzy.
Many of Frederick William's Hohenzollern ancestors suffered from gout
and the disease can be traced back as far as Albert III Achilles of
Brandenburg (1414-1486). However, from an early age, Frederick
William was not only afflicted by gout, but also by migraines and
stomach cramps and the attacks were usually very violent. During the
attacks of 1734 and 1739-1740 his doctors recorded that the King's urine
was "very red". This was because Frederick William suffered from
another hereditary disease, porphyria, which he had inherited from his
mother, Sophia Charlotte of Hannover, who descended from Mary,
Queen of Scots*. Several of his children's medical histories suggest that
they suffered from this family disorder, too. Porphyria has symptoms
like migraine, acute inflammation of the bowels, difficulty in articulation
and swallowing, a painful weakness of the limbs, over-sensitivity and
sometimes loss of the power of feeling. In more severe attacks,
porphyria can result in over-activity, agitation, visual and auditory
disturbances, persistent sleeplessness, confusion, delirium and
progressive senility.

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King Frederick William I of Prussia Frederick William (to the right)

suffered his first attack at the age of 19 with a sudden increase of
temperature, colic, a skin rash and fainting fits. He was depressed and
had outbreaks of rage. In 1718 he had already been feeling unwell for
several months, when he suddenly got a fever, his heartbeat increased,
his hands became lame and he had abscesses on the skin of his legs.
From the age of 39 onwards, Frederick William was becoming more
irascible daily. He would get into blind rages and strike at all within
reach, breaking teeth and noses. The effects of provoking him were out
of all proportions to their cause. Haunted by insomnia, he would spend
whole nights wandering aimlessly, while by day, when some explosion
had drained his vitality, he would sit silently weeping for hours on end.
At times, he was acutely mentally disturbed and his temper became
completely uncontrollable. The most frequent victim of his outbursts
was his son Fritz. Whenever they happened to meet, in private or in
public, Frederick William would suddenly seize him by the throat and
throw him to the ground, force him to kiss his boots and beg forgiveness.
Then he would say: "If my father had treated me like this, I would have
put an end to my life long ago. But you have no courage." Fritz
complained to his sister Wilhelmine: "Every day here we go through the
most unutterable scenes. I am so tired of it all. I would rather beg my
bread than go on living like this."
In 1727 Frederick William had a nervous breakdown. Two years later a
very serious attack followed with sleeplessness, his usual unpredictable
bad temper and fits of gout. For some time afterwards he was unable to
walk and had to be wheeled about the palace. In his misery, he took to
drink. Every evening he used to smoke and drink heavily with Von
Grumbkov, the Old Dessauer, and other soldiers. Frederick William was
very fond of coarse practical jokes and when he and his companions all
got drunk, the grossest scenes would occur. Despising non-military
people and things - particularly Frenchmen, musicians, scientists and
intellectuals - Frederick William would never tire of teasing and even
physically torturing the president of the Academy of Science, Jakob Paul
Gundling, whose duty it was to read the news papers to them. When

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Frederick William and his companions had exaggerated, for example by

setting him on fire, Gundling would ask permission to leave court, but
Frederick William always managed to get him back by hugging him,
raising his wages and even making him a Baron. When Gundling died as
a result of excessive drinking, Frederick William had him buried in a
barrel.
August II the strong of Poland For years the Queen had wanted Fritz to
marry a Princess of the House of Hannover, like his father and
grandfather had done before him, but Frederick William was opposed to
it and in 1730 he finally sent the English ambassador packing. Fritz
despaired; without a wife he was not allowed an establishment of his
own and thus his father's humiliations would continue. Then King
August II the Strong of Poland (to the right) invited Frederick William
and his son for an immense military parade in Saxony. Amid the
jousting, Frederick William seized his 18-year-old son in public. He was
kicked, beaten, dragged along the ground by his hair and sent off,
bleeding and dishevelled, to make an official appearance. Then Fritz
decided to prepare for the only possible alternative: flight. The scheme
failed and Fritz was imprisoned in Kstrin on charge of 'desertion'. A
young girl, Dorothea Ritter, was publicly flogged and imprisoned, only
because she had once or twice played duets with Fritz. Later, Fritz was
forced to watch the execution of his lieutenant, friend and accomplice,
the 25-year-old Hans Hermann von Katte. Frederick William first
contemplated to execute his son, too, and he bluntly told his pregnant
wife that their son was already death. Later he wanted to disinherit Fritz
in favour of August William, but in the end Fritz was pardoned and
released. In 1731 he was married to Elisabeth Christine of BrunswickBevern (1715-1797), who was plump, dull and embarrassingly slow of
speech. Elisabeth Christine did her best to gain Fritz' affection, but Fritz
despised her and all her efforts were in vain.
Self-portrait of Frederick William I Prussia supported Austria in a
military campaign in 1734 and Frederick William, although troubled by
gout, visited the men in the field. He had always taken pride in living

214

with them as an ordinary officer, but the chaos prevailing in the Austrian
army made him nearly sick with rage. As a result of the emotional stress
he got heart trouble and acute attacks of dropsy and gout. His face took
on a bluish-red colour, he had trouble breathing and speaking and was
feverish. He could not walk or sleep; his legs were painful and hideously
swollen up. He had spasms in the stomach, pains in the chest and a
burning sensation in his abdomen. The doctors despaired and Frederick
William prepared Fritz to take over the reigns of government, but within
a few weeks he recovered sufficiently to be able to ride a horse, beat his
servants and fulminate against his son. Still, he had been permanently
weakened by his illness.
Near the end of his life, Frederick William (see his self-portrait to the
left) had become extremely fat with a weight of 123 kg. He was a short
man with a big head on a short neck and his belly had increased to a
width of 225 cm. Dropsy made his body swell even more and he was
forced to use a wheel chair. As a diversion he liked to paint and he used
to sign his paintings with "In tormentis pinxit" (painted in pain). During
his final illness, Fritz suggested summoning an eminent doctor, but
Frederick William retorted that his own physician could kill him without
assistance. He was constantly tortured by horrible pains, dropsy and
gout. In March 1740 he suffered from a "constant burning sensation and
cruel pains in the intestines". In May he gave precise instructions for his
funeral. Early in the morning of May 31, Frederick William had himself
wheeled into the Queen's apartments and said to her: "Get up! I am
going to die today." Then he was wheeled back to his own room and
ordered the horses to be brought out of the Royal stables in front of his
window. Hours passed while Frederick William gradually got worse and
died. He was succeeded by his son, Fritz, who became known as
Frederick the Great.
Copyright 1999, 2000, 2012 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

215

Footnote
* The best known sufferer from the hereditary disease porphyria is
George III of Great-Britain.
Bibliography
Nelson, W.H.: Die Hohenzollern (Reichsgrnder und Soldatenknige),
Diederichs, 1998,
English title: The Soldier Kings (The House of Hohenzollern), J.M. Dent
& Sons Ltd, 1970
Reiners, L.: Frederick the Great, New English Library, 1975
Mitford, N.: Frederick the Great, Hamish Hamilton, 1970
Volcke, R.: Frederik de Grote (Tussen Verlichting en absolutisme),
Elsevier, 1979
Neumann, H.J.: Erbkrankheiten in europischen Frstenhuser
(Habsburg, Hohenzollern, Romanow, Welfen, Wettiner, Bourbonen),
edition q, 1993
Oppenheim, W.: Habsburgs and Hohenzollerns 1713-1786, Hodder &
Staughton, 1993
Mast, P.: Die Hohenzollern (in Lebensbildern), Sytria, 1988
MacAlpine, I. & Hunter, R.: George III and the mad-business, Penguin,
1969
Rhl, J.C.G., Warren, M., Hunt, D.: Purple secret (Genes, 'Madness' and
the Royal Houses of Europe), Bantam Press, 1998
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Randall, D.: Royal Follies (A chronicle of misbehavior), Sterling
Publishing Co., 1988
Regan, R.: (The Guinness Book of) Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995
Klussmann, R.: Gicht - Gier - Grsse - Macht (Herrscher im
Spannungsfeld von Lust und Leid), Psychosozial-Verlag, 1998
Weir, A.: Britain's Royal families (The complete genealogy), Pimlico,
1996

216

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King Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845-1886) is remembered for his fairy-tale
castles and his patronage of the composer Richard Wagner. Like many of
his forefathers, Ludwig had a wildly eccentric temperament, was
artistically talented and at times overwhelmed by a melancholia that
gradually turned him into a recluse. As a result of his neglecting the
affairs of state, he was declared insane in a plot to depose him. Soon
afterwards he and his warden were found death in circumstances that
remain a mystery to this day.
Youth
Ludwig II "the Swan King" of Bavaria was the eldest son of King
Maximilian II of Bavaria (1811-1864) and his wife, Marie of Prussia
(1825-1889). After a miscarriage in 1843, Marie was pregnant again in
1845. Possibly as a result of her very small pelvis, she went through
approximately 20 hours of labour before Ludwig was born on August
25, 1845 at 12.30 a.m. at castle Nymphenburg. For the first few days, the
boy was called Otto; then his grandfather, King Ludwig I (1786-1868),
asked for a change of name, because the boy was born on his birthday.
After 8 months, Ludwig's wet-nurse died of typhoid fever. Ludwig had
to be suddenly weaned and became ill, causing great anxiety about his
life.
At the age of 3, Ludwig became Crown Prince of Bavaria, when his
grandfather was forced to abdicate as a result of his liaison with the
scandalous Lola Montez. From then on Ludwig was manoeuvred into a
position of prominence, restriction, extreme isolation and loneliness.
Servants now had to bow in reverence for Ludwig and he was styled
"Royal Highness". The child had a touchy pride in his high position; he
had to come first, whether it was in games with his younger brother Otto

217

(1848-1916) or the order of precedence when entering a room in

company. Once he stole a purse from a shop and when he was
reprimanded by his governess, Sibylle Mailhaus, Ludwig maintained
that, as a future King of Bavaria, "everything in Bavaria belonged to
him". Later, Ludwig's pet tortoise was taken from him because it was
thought that he was becoming too attached to it. At the age of 6, Ludwig
already loved building with toy bricks, while his brother Otto drilled his
tin soldiers. Ludwig never let Otto forget he was the Crown Prince and
on one occasion Ludwig tied his younger brother up and threatened to
behead him, a fate from which Otto was saved by the timely arrival of a
court official.
Otto and Ludwig Usually, when Ludwig was reported by one of his
tutors, his father gave him a beating. Otto, who was a merry and witty
boy, was his parents' favourite. King Maximilian had a taste for
intellectual pursuits and could understand neither Ludwig's melancholy
gloom nor his romantic dreams. Ludwig's mother had no great intellect
or force of character and hardly any interest in politics. Once she said: "I
never open a book; I simply can't understand how people can spend all
their time reading." King Maximilian and Queen Marie felt hopelessly
awkward in their children's presence*: they knew nothing of their
children's interests and could never make more than the most shallow
conversation with them. In turn, Ludwig and Otto were both shy and
responded with acute discomfort. Neither side knew how to overcome
the embarrassing silence that usually followed any attempt to
communicate.
The only person who Ludwig did not fear was probably his governess,
Sybille Meilhaus. She was replaced by Theodor Basselet de la Rose,
when Ludwig was 9 years old, but Ludwig always kept in touch with his
former governess until her death in 1881. De La Rose was a strict, oldfashioned, narrowly conventional and militaristic man. He tried to break
his pupil's will. Ludwig's moodiness, pride and sensitivity were
ruthlessly suppressed. This way Ludwig learned that secrecy and deceit
were the only effective weapons he possessed with which to preserve his
inner life. In the summer the Royal family lived at Nymphenburg, but

218

they often went to castle Hohenschwangau, which was being renovated

by King Maximilian and decorated with the legends of the Grail and the
mythological Swan Knight Lohengrin. Here Ludwig acquired his love
for the German legends and the solitude of the Alps. He turned to
daydreaming as a flight from depressing reality.
Ludwig was said to have been quite good in French language, history
and mathematics. His German teacher was Michael Klass, who
influenced his pupil with his absolutist view of society as a kind of
divinely organised hierarchy with the King as God's regent. Ludwig read
all great German classics such as the Nibelungenlied, Tristan and
Parsival. Later Schiller became his favourite German dramatist. Early
1855 a military instructor, Baron Emil von Wlffen, was appointed.
From 1856 Ludwig and Otto studied separately. On a climbing
expedition with their mother, Ludwig and Otto witnessed how the
epileptic Baron Wlffen, who had pleaded in vain to be left behind, was
forced to climb a steep rock in order to pick some edelweiss for the
Queen causing him to fall, seriously injuring himself. Soon after this
accident 14-year-old Ludwig suffered from mild hallucinations; he heard
imaginary voices addressing him. Otto too, had felt "compulsive urges"
almost from infancy on.
Young Ludwig At 18 Ludwig officially came of age and he was given a
personal adjutant and two aides-de-camp. He wrote: "Before leaving
Munich I went for a walk in the town, for the first time quite alone, as I
am now of age." Ludwig had grown to be very handsome and
impressively tall and he knew how to make an imposing appearance in
public. In 1863 Prince Kraft of Hohenlohe was much taken with Ludwig
and observed "his brilliance, his physical skill and courage", his elegant
manner on horseback and his knowledge of the arts. Ludwig had come
into very little contact with the outside world and he had practically no
opportunity to gain an insight into the political happenings at the court
of his father. In addition, he had not completed a college study. Then, on
March 10, 1864, Maximilian II died and Ludwig became King of
Bavaria. Because of his youth and lack of experience, many Bavarian

219

politicians expected Ludwig to be pliable and easily impressed. Instead,

the proud Ludwig soon proved determined to have his own way in all
matters. Ludwig dutifully began his days quite early, met with the
cabinet secretary and attended the usual round of ceremonies, but he
used to speak in such a pompous manner that he frequently left his
listeners confused as to his real meaning. The Minister of Justice,
Eduard von Bomhard, wrote in his memoirs: "He was mentally gifted in
the highest degree, but the contents of his mind were stored in a totally
disordered fashion" and " I was struck by the way in which every now
and then, just when his expression and whole demeanour seemed to
show contentment, he would suddenly straighten up and - looking
around him with a serious, even stern, expression - would reveal
something dark in himself that was in complete contrast to the youthful
charm of a moment ago." In July 1865 Ludwig wrote from castle
Hohenswangau to his mother: "More than anything I like to be alone,
occupy myself, and think of you, and of father whom I imagine I see
everywhere here. I am glad about this because every tree reminds me of
him."
Copyright 1998-2000 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
To be continued.
Footnote
* Greg King describes beautifully how awkward the relation between
Ludwig and his parents was.
Bibliography
Chapman-Huston, D.: Ludwig II (The Mad King of Bavaria), Dorset
Press, 1990
King, G.: The Mad King (Ludwig II of Bavaria), Aurum Press, 1997
McIntosh, Ch.: Ludwig II of Bavaria (The Swan King), I.B. Tauris
Publishers, 1997

220

Blunt, W.: The Dream King (Ludwig II of Bavaria), Penguin Books,

1970
Bertram, W.: A Royal Recluse (Memories of Ludwig II of Bavaria),
Martin Herpich & Son
Green, V.: The Madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Allan Sutton Publishing, 1994
Regan, R.: (The Guinness Book of) Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995
Ralph Lewis, B.: Ludwig and his fatal Bavarian fantasy, in: Royalty,
Volume 10, No. 9, June 1991
Desing, J.: King Ludwig II (His life - His end), Verlag Kienberger, 1976
Desing, J.: (Royal Castle) Neuschwanstein, Wilhelm Kienberger GmbH,
1992
Braasem, W.A.: Lodewijk II en zijn "Knigsschlsser", Uitgave De
Courant Het Vaderland N.V.
Rall, H. & M.: Die Wittelsbacher in Lebensbildern, Verlag Styria, 1986
Reiser, R.: Die Wittelsbacher 1180-1918 (Ihre Geschichte in Bildern),
Bruckmann, 1995
Bayern, Prinz A. von: Die Wittelsbacher (Geschichte unserer Familie),
Prestel-Verlag, 1979
Nhbauer, H.F.: Die Wittelsbacher, in: Die groe Dynastien, Sdwest
Verlag Mnchen, 1978
Recommended Books
King, G.: The Mad King (Ludwig II of Bavaria), Aurum Press, 1997
Mller, W.: Ein ewig Rtsel bleiben will ich... Wittelsbacher Schicksale:
Ludwig II., Otto I. und Sisi , Koehler u. Amelang, 1999
Das geheime Tagebuch Knig Ludwigs II. von Bayern. ,
Nymphenburger, 2000
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221

Anna Charlotte Amalie of Orange-Nassau (1710-1777), a sister of the

Dutch stadtholder William IV, showed signs of mental confusion during
her second pregnancy. She had religious delusions, and was often
aggressive. Her moments of lucidity became sparse, while her father-inlaw, Charles William of Baden-Durlach, amused himself with tulips and
garden girls.
Marie Louise of Hesse-Kassel Amalie was a daughter of Johan Willem
Friso of Orange-Nassau (1687-1711), stadtholder of Frisia, and Marie
Louise of Hesse-Kassel (1688-1765, to the right), popularly known as
Marijke Meu (Auntie Mary). Amalie was born in October 1710, one
and a half year after her parents' marriage. Soon Marie Louise was
pregnant again. In June 1711, her mother died of a stroke. The next
month, her husband drowned near Strijen-Sas. Six weeks afterwards,
Marie Louise gave birth to their only son, William IV (1711-1751).
Marie Louise had always had an inclination to dreariness and, as a result
of these deaths and her confinement, she became ill and melancholic.
After a few months, however, she recovered her senses and assumed the
regency.
Her mother's timidity and inclination to melancholy were more
emphasised in Amalie's character. Her brother William had none of
Amalie's introspection. At first, he was a healty, happy child. From the
age of 6 onwards, however, he developed a curved spine, hunched
shoulder and pigeon chest, affecting the circulation of blood to his lungs
and heart, and thus deteriorating his health. Still, sheer determination
and courage gave him as good a seat on a horse as any Prince could
wish.
In Frisia the family usually stayed in the Prinsenhof in the centre of
Leeuwarden, or at the manor of Oranjewoud. In the summer they spend
time in the palace of Soestdijk in Utrecht. In its gardens, the children
could enjoy some freedom.
Charles William of Baden-Durlach At the age of 16, Amalie was married
to Frederick of Baden-Durlach (1703-1732), the popular, talented and

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conscientious heir of Charles William (1679-1738, to the right), Count

of Baden-Durlach, who was known as Der Tolle Markgraf (The
Foolish Count). He was a pleasure-loving man, font of women, except
his own wife, Madalene Wilhelmine of Wrttemberg (1677-1742); they
lived separately. Charles William was also font of gardening with a
preference for tulips. Regularly, he travelled to Holland to study the
cultivation of tulips. He kept at least 60 Gartenmgdlein (Garden
Girls) for his pleasure1. They were dressed in hussar uniforms, and
lived in the Bleiturme tower of his castle in the new city of Karlsruhe.
When they made a mistake during their exercises, the Count liked to
punish them personally. Eight of them formed his personal bodyguards, and waited on him during his meals. Others played instruments
or danced for him. Every evening, cards were drawn to decide who was
to spend the night with the Count2.
In September, 1727, Amalie arrived with her husband in Karlsruhe.
Their marriage was reasonably happy, but Amalie suffered terribly from
homesickness. She often remained awake at night, and was obstinate
with a bad temper and fits of rage. Within a few months after her
wedding, her mother wrote her admonishingly: ber alles und gegen
alle geratet Ihr in Wut, ber mich ebenso wie ber jeden, der sich Euch
nhert; ohne jede Ordnung wollt Ihr leben, macht die Nacht zum Tage,
steigert Eure Launen ins Grenzenlose.
Her eldest son, Charles Frederick (1728-1811), was born when Amalie
was 18. Her labour pains started in the afternoon of November 21. She
suffered for hours, obstinately refusing the help of a male physician.
Finally, the next day, her monther-in-law ordered the psysician to assist
the Princess in her labour. Afterwards, Amalie covered her baby with
caresses, and became even more obstinate and full of caprices.
Frederick of Baden-Durlach It was during her second pregnancy, that
Amalie showed the first signs of mental confusion. In another hourslong labour, she gave birth to her second son on Januar 14, 1732.
Soon afterwards, her husband, Frederick (to the right), became seriously
ill and delirious, and 22-year-old Amalie collapsed. Often she was
excited and aggressive, boxing her ladies-in-waiting on the ear. At other

223

times she could be completely lethargic, or cry for hours. She shocked
everybody with her cursing, and had religious delusions. The physicians
tried in vain to cure her with mineral water. Her moments of lucidity
became sparse.
When the Count and his estranged wife visited the Princess, Amalie
shouted abuses at them. In March, Charles William wrote her family
about her fits of temper, and that they had tried everything to snatch her
from her state of confusion, but without any success.
On March 26, 1732, Frederick died of an affection of the lungs. When
her ladies-in-waiting tried to inform Amalie of the death of her husband,
she didn't react. They took her where he laid in state, but Amalie said she
didnt know the man. She had clearly descended into a state of mental
derangement.
Amalie probably inherited her mental condition from her Hessian
ancestors. Amalie's grandfather, Charles of Hesse-Kassel (1654-1730),
was very suspicious, stubborn and hot-tempered. Near the end of his life
he became deranged, too.
Amalie and her mother were both widowed at a very young age. Marie
Louise was still pregnant and Amalie had just given birth to her second
child. Marie Louise recovered from her melancholia, but Amalie
remained mentally deranged for the rest of her life. The news of
Amalie's deteriorated mental condition again triggered Marie Louise's
melancholia. She secluded herself for days on end, and refused to
receive visitors. Again she recovered, but from then on she became
overly anxious for her only son's welfare.
Amalie was moved to the old castle of Durlach. William IV paid his
sister a visit around 1735, when Amalie lay drinking coffee in a
darkened room. She did recognise her brother, but remained totally
apathetic. Surrounded by books of sermons and hymns, she asked him
what religion he and his mother were, and, when he replied protestant,
she screamed so much the worse for you and became violent. To her
doctors, William suggested that she should be bled. He also visited his

224

nephews. Little Charles Frederick told him: I want mama to look after
me, but she is not well.
In 1736, Amalie was dangerously ill, but she pulled through and lived
for another 41 years. If nobody crossed her, she was usually tranquil,
spending her time scribbling little letters which say nothing, fastening
them carefully together with pins.
Meanwhile, Amalie's mother-in-law, Madalene Wilhelmine, took care of
Amalie's two little sons. The eldest, Charles Frederick, inherited BadenDurlach in 1738 and Baden-Baden in 1770. He became Elector of Baden
in 1803 and his reign was the longest in modern history. After his
mother's death on September 18, 1777, he donated 2 silver cups from her
dowry to the church of Karlsruhe in the memory of unseren
Hochseligen Frau Mutter Gnaden.
Copyright 1996-2001, 2008-2009 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Like Frederick William I of Prussia (1688-1740) and Ludwig IX of
Hesse-Darmstadt (1719-1790) and their Lange Garde regiments of
giants, Charles William of Baden-Durlach loved his female regiment of
Gartenmgdlein. Sources vary on the number of Gartenmgdlein,
either 60 or 160.
2 So trug der Frst hchstpersnlich zur Peuplierung seines Landes
bei.
Bibliography
Herenius-Kamstra, A.: De stadhouders en hun familie, in:
Oranje (Ons vorstenhuis door de eeuwen heen), Lekturama, 1991
Baker-Smith, V.P.M.: A Life of Anne of Hanover, Princess Royal, E.J.
Brill, 1995
Vehse, C.E.: Die Hfe zu Baden, Kiepenheuer, 1992
Oster, U.A.: Die Groherzge von Baden 1806-1918, Verlag Friedrich
Pustet, 2007

225

Borchardt-Wenzel, A.: Karl Friedrich von Baden (Mensch und

Legende), Casimir Katz Verlag, 2006
Lauts, J.: Karoline Luise von Baden (Ein Lebensbild aus der Zeit der
Aufklrung), Verlag C.F. Mller Karlsruhe, 1980
Schutte, G.J.: Marijke Meu (Marie Louise van Hessen-Kassel), in:
Tamse, C.A. (ed): Vrouwen in het landsbestuur, Staatsuitgeverij, 1982
Beusekom, E. van: Maria Louise, prinses van Hessen-Kassel, in:
Moeders uit ons vorstenhuis, Scheltens & Giltay, 1938
Winsemius, D.: Marijke Meu, G.F. Callenbach
Jagtenberg, dr. F.J.A.: Marijke Meu (1688-1765), De Bataafse Leeuw,
1994
Kohnle, A.: Kleine Geschichte der Markgrafschaft Baden, G. Braun
Buchverlag, 2007
Elgklou, L.: Koninklijke minnaars en minnaressen, Standaard Uitgeverij,
1984
Vehse, C.E.: Die Hfe zu Hessen, Kiepenheuer, 1991
Ditzhuyzen, drs. R.E.: Oranje-Nassau, een biografisch woordenboek,
H.J.W. Becht, 1992
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The marriage of the Dutch Crown Prince Willem Alexander with
Mxima Zorreguieta has resulted in a hype in The Netherlands. Hardly
anyone, however, remembers the previous Dutch Crown Prince. His
name was Alexander and he lived in the 19th century. He had
progressive ideas and scientific and cultural interests, but he was also his
mother's darling. After his mother's death he became extremely
melancholic. He locked himself up in his residence, leaving only to visit
his mother's vault.

226

Crown Prince Willem Alexander Karel Hendrik Frederik of The

Netherlands (1851-1884) was the youngest son of King Willem III of
The Netherlands (1817-1890) and his first cousin Sophie of
Wrttemberg (1818-1877) 1. Around his birth on August 25, 1851, his
parents were already fighting like cat and dog. King Willem did not
hesitate to whip his wife with his riding whip. Queen Sophie often had
trouble hiding the scratches and bruises inflicted by her husband. Sophie
was an intellectual, progressive in thoughts, but melodramatic in
behaviour. Willem could be jovial, but he was also hot-tempered, coarse
and capricious2. Both were pig-headed and Sophie's snobbery brought
out the worst in Willem.
Alexander as a child In the first four years of their marriage, the Princes
Willem (1840-1879), nicknamed "Wiwill", and Maurits (1843-1850)
were born. When Prince Maurits suffered from meningitis, Sophie
wanted to consult another physician for a second opinion, but Willem
refused. After Maurits' subsequent death, Sophie left her husband and
returned to Wrttemberg, but she was persuaded to return. In the short
period of reconsiliation Prince Alexander was conceived. The couple set
up separate households in 1855. From then on Sophie and her youngest
son usually resided in the Palace known as "Huis ten Bosch".
Queen Sophie took it upon herself to provide for Alexander's education.
Sometimes she invited children of the court officials to come and study
or play with the little Prince. Alexander (to the right) was a shy, timid
and hypersensitive boy with a weak constitution. He became his
mother's darling. In domestic quarrels, Alexander usually chose his
mother's side. Lord Stanley described Queen Sophie as "very talkative,
very clever, very odd; easily excited [..] not the least formal, not causing
stiffness, as royal people always do".
King Willem III Both the King and the Crown Prince could often be
found in the luxurious brothels of Paris, where they both shared the
favours of the famous Cora Pearl. In 1860, 20-year-old Crown Prince
Wiwill was the cause of a scandal, when he became acquinted with the

227

courtesan Elisabeth Cookson in France. Arriving in The Netherlands, she

soon became the mistress of King Willem III (to the right). After a
couple of months, the father was forced by public opinion to send her
back to France, where she continued her relation with the son.
King Willem appointed 10-year-old Alexander as luitenant of a regiment
of grenadeers in August 1861. Meanwhile, his mother tried to instill
progressive ideas and cultural interests in her youngest son. In April
1866 the royal family attended a performance of the musician Franz
Liszt. Later that year Alexander travelled with his mother to Switserland
to improve his health. The next year his physical condition detoriated
further. His spine had become somewhat crooked and his left shoulder
was higher than his right one. Because of his weak spine, he was forced
to wear an iron corset from 1867 onwards. It resulted in a liver injury.
Queen Sophie Alexander and his mother travelled to the spa of St. Seine
l'Abbaye near Dijon in France in May 1868. Back in The Hague, Queen
Sophie (to the left) invited sons of noble families for a discussion group
to enable 17-year-old Alexander to meet other young men. After his 18th
birthday in August 1869, Alexander was allowed to travel in the
Mediterranean. Subsequently, he studied history and constitutional law
at the University of Leiden for 4 years. His mother visited him once a
week in Leiden. In 1874 Alexander established himself at the
Kneuterdijk in The Hague. As private secretary he hired Willem
Johannes Dominicus van Dijck (1850-1909), whose father was an
illegitimate half-brother of King Willem III. In 1874 Alexander travelled
through Norway, Russia and Germany. In the following winter he
suffered from health problems and travelled to Algiers for a change of
climate. His other interests, beside travelling, were his collections of old
letters, manuscripts, butterflies, carriages, wine, miniatures and
paintings.
Queen Sophie became seriously ill in May 1877. Her death on the 3th of
June was a great blow for 25-year-old Alexander. During the funeral
cermony he fell upon the coffin in tears, even kissing it. The King,

228

however, was mainly irritated by all words of prise for his hated wife.
From then on, Alexander started collecting all things that remembered
him of his mother. When King Willem III proposed to sell Queen
Sophie's juwels, Alexander bought them for 75 000 guilders.
After the funeral, Wiwill returned to Paris immediately. Alexander had
no one to fill the gab his mother had left behind. Crown Prince "Wiwill"
Over the years Queen Sophie had tried to find suitable wives for both
her sons, but all her efforts had come to nothing. Around 1874 Wiwill (to
the right) himself had proposed a marriage with countess Mattie of
Limburg-Stirum (1854-1932). Although the government had consented
to the marriage, King Willem III had refused his permission3. Early
1878, Alexander made some inquiries for a possible marriage with
Princess Friederike of Hannover (1848-1926), but she preferred a
German baron4. In September that year King Willem III announced his
marriage to the 41-year-younger Princess Emma of Waldeck and
Pyrmont (1858-1934). Wiwill was furious because he was still not
allowed to marry Mattie, while Alexander was furious because his father
had found a replacement for his beloved mother5. Once, when
Alexander was to have a meeting with his father in Noordeinde Palace,
he accidentally met his young stepmother. He bowed formally and gave
her a hand-kissing. Immediately afterwards, he angrily left the palace.
From then on he refused to speak with his father.
Since his mother's death, Alexander's melancholy had increased. He
wrote: "If happiness on earth exits, it is not meant for me."6 The next
year Wiwill became ill and Alexander travelled to Paris to visit him.
After Wiwill's death on June 11, 1879, Alexander's depression deepened
further. The new Crown Prince withdrew into his residence at the
Kneuterdijk. With his friends7 Alexander kept contact through
correspondence. His letters could be ironic, but usually they were mainly
tedious. He had inherited his father's assertiveness, but from his mother
he inherited a tendency to dramatise. When people started to critise him,
because he rarely appeared in public, he send a letter to a Newspaper to
defend himself. Although few people read his tedious epistle, the fact
that a Prince had written a newspaper piece made all headlines.

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In the summer of 1880 Alexander travelled through France and

Switserland, when he received tidings that his halfsister Wilhelmina had
been born. He would never meet her. In 1881 he wanted to succeed his
great uncle as grand master of the Dutch Freemasons. After much strife,
the next year he was chosen as the new grand master. On his mother's
birthday, however, he refused to preside a Freemason meeting. Soon
rumours of an abdication started, because Alexander was seriously
annoyed by all criticism.
Crown Prince Alexander In 1883 Alexander (to the right) visited as usual
the royal vault in Delft on the dying days of his mother and brother in
June. From then on he refused to leave his residence and kept the
curtains closed. He filled his days with reading and tending his
collections. His health deteriorated. In the spring of 1884, he received
General Weitzel2 in his dressing-gown with a blanket around his
shoulders. His skin was pale, he had scanty hair and his body had
become stout. By the end of May Alexander suffered from typhoid fever
and diarrhoea. He died on June 21, 1884. At that time, King Willem III
was in the spa of Karsbad in Germany. He announced 4 weeks of
mourning, but remained abroad. It wasn't until July 17, that Crown
Prince Alexander was finally buried with his beloved death in the royal
vault in Delft.
Copyright 2001 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Both King Willem III and his wife Queen Sophie were grandchildren
of the murdered Russian Tsar Paul (1754-1801).
2 General August Wilhelm Philip Weitzel (1896), the Minister of War,
described the King as "partially mad". He wrote in his diary: "Er
heerscht gewis verwarring en gebrek aan evenwicht in zijne
geestvermogens. [..] Hij handelt naar invallen, naar luimen. [..] De
koning heeft het Russische Czaren-bloed in zijne aderen en even als zijn

230

overgrootvader Peter III, zijn grootvader Paul I en vele hunner

afstammelingen lijdt hij aan partiele krankzinnigheid."
3 In the 1850s Mattie's mother had been King Willem III's mistress and
Mattie may thus have been Wiwill's halfsister.
4 It is generally assumed that Alexander was a homosexual, but he was
always very discreet, so it is unknown if he ever had a lover.
5 Shortly after Queen Sophie's death, King Willem III had already
wanted to marry the actress Eleonore d'Ambre, but was persuaded by his
ministers to find a more suitable wife.
6 "Indien het geluk hier op aarde bestaat, zoo is het niet voor mij
weggelegd."
7 His best friends were Donald Jacob Mackay and Cornelis Beelaerts
van Blockland.
Bibliography
Lammers, F.J.: Alexander (De vergeten kroonprins), Bosch & Keuning,
1998
Kikkert, J.G.: Willem III 1817-1890 Biografie, Het Spectrum, 1990
Bouman, J.J.: Op en om Oranje's troon (Ons vorstenhuis in de 19de en
20ste eeuw), Europese Bibliotheek, 1963
Orden, L. v.: De broers en de moeder van Koningin Wilhelmina, N.V.
Drukkerij Spaarnestad, 196?
Tamse, C.A.: Nassau en Oranje in de Nederlandse geschiedenis, A.W.
Sijthoff, 1979
Wrttemberg, S. v.: L' Histoire de ma vie (Jeugdherinneringen),
Uitgeverij Scheffers, 1996
Weitzel, A.W.P.: Maar Majesteit! Geheime dagboeken van min. A.W.P.
Weitzel over koning Willem III, Wetenschappelijke Uitgeverij B.V.,
1980
Stein, I.: Liefdesleven en -leed van de Oranjes, Ad. Donker, 1996
Stein, I.: Intieme geschiedenissen (Liefde en lust onder de Europese
vorsten en vorstinnen in de negentiende eeuw), Ad. Donker, 1997
Wallace, I., A. & S., Wallechinsky, D.: The Secret Sex Lives of Famous
People, Chancellor Press, 1993
Iongh, H. de: Oranjebastaarden (Een vademecum), Uitgeverij Aspekt,
2001

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Ambitious and beautiful Charlotte of Belgium (1840-1927) married
Maximilian of Austria (1832-1867) and became Empress of Mexico.
After her return to Europe, friends commented on her strange behaviour.
She laughed, wept, held monologues and talked incoherently. In her
hotel room Charlotte had living chicken tied to the table legs. Strangely
though, she never damaged possessions that reminded her of
Maximilian..
On November 3, 1817, Crown Princess Charlotte of Great Britain took
to bed for fifty hours of painful labour until she gave birth to a stillborn
son. Then she was put to rest with a sleeping draught. Early next
morning dreadful cries were heard, when the Crown Princess awoke
with agonising stomach pains as a result of a haemorrhage. She died
within a few hours. Her loving husband, the German Prince Leopold of
Saxe-Coburg (1790-1865), was inconsolable. Fourteen years later,
Leopold was chosen as first King of Belgium. For political and dynastic
reasons, Leopold married Louise Marie of Orlans (1812-1850), a
daughter of the French King. Louise Marie admired and loved her elder
husband, but Leopold never forgot his first wife. In fact, in 1828 he had
had an affair with a young actress who looked exactly like Crown
Princess Charlotte. Nevertheless, Leopold "did his duty" and Louise
Marie gave birth to three sons and a daughter. She gave her daughter the
name "Charlotte" in honour of her husband's first wife.
Charlotte of Belgium, born on June 7, 1840, was only 10 years old,
when her mother died, and it marked the end of her childhood. She was
a charming, attractive and beautiful girl with her black hair, dark-brown
eyes and slender figure. She was also intelligent, serious, dutiful and

232

energetic and her behaviour was always dignified. At the age of 13, she
already read Plutarch. In 1853 her brother Leopold (1835-1909) married
the Habsburg Princess Marie Henritte (1836-1902), and Charlotte took
an immediate dislike to her boyish sister-in-law, who preferred horses to
books. In the summer of 1856 the 24-year-old Habsburg Archduke
Maximilian, a brother of the Austrian Emperor Francis Joseph, visited
Brussels. He was charming, handsome, slender, witty, gay and lively.
Charlotte fell hopelessly in love with him. Maximilian asked Leopold I
for the hand of his daughter and, although Leopold I preferred Pedro V
of Portugal1 as a son-in-law, he allowed 16-year-old Charlotte to make
her own choice. On his second visit to Brussels, Maximilian talked with
Charlotte about his liberal, idealistic and Byronic ideas. He showed her
the drawings for the villa Miramar, being built in medieval style near
Trist, and fascinated her with the stories of his travels to exotic places.
The negotiations about the dowry dragged on for some time, but on July
27th of 1857 the then 17-year-old Charlotte married Maximilian.
Afterwards they travelled via Vienna to Italy, because Maximilian had
been appointed Viceroy of Lombardy and Venice. They were coolly
received in Milan, but Charlotte was enchanted when she saw Venice
and she wrote enthusiastic letters to Brussels. By then she had already
found out that her fairy-tale Prince had no intention of changing his
habits now that he was married. Often he left for Vienna for "diplomatic
negotiations": wild parties and visits to brothels. In 1859 the Italian
Freedom War broke out and Maximilian and Charlotte were forced to
flee. Later that year Maximilian left for Brazil and rumours of his
excesses in Rio preceded his return. Still, Charlotte proudly tried to keep
up the pretence of a happy marriage until Maximilian infected her with a
venereal disease. From then on she refused any intercourse and they
slept in different bedrooms. Even then they managed to appear as a
doting couple to the outside world. Residing in the villa Miramar,
Charlotte read books, wrote, painted, swam and sailed, but she was
bored and longed to be useful.

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In 1863, Napoleon III of France offered the Crown of Mexico to

Maximilian. He hesitated. Charlotte, however, longed for a vocation and
pushed him to accept the proposal. A group of wealthy, conservative
Mexicans convinced them that the people of Mexico wanted Maximilian
as their Emperor. After Napoleon III had promised that he would "never
let the new Empire down", Maximilian signed the agreement. Hereupon
Charlotte's French grandmother, Marie Amlie (1782-1866), shrieked:
"They will be killed! They will be killed!". In contrast, all Charlotte's
Coburg relatives seemed to have been blinded by the glitter of the
Imperial Crown. When the Austrian Emperor Francis Joseph declared
that Maximilian had to give up his rights to the Austrian throne on
accepting the Mexican Crown, Maximilian hesitated again. Charlotte
tried to negotiate with Francis Joseph, but he did not give in. So
Charlotte convinced Maximilian to renounce his rights to the Austrian
throne. Then she changed her name to 'Carlota' and started organising
their departure.
They had left Austrian soil on April 14, 1864 and arrived in Mexico on
May 24, where they were received with little enthusiasm. In Mexico
City the ramshackle Palacio National resembled barracks, so they moved
to the filthy and neglected castle of Chapultepec. The first night the lice
kept Charlotte awake. Mexico was nearly bankrupt and their position
was precarious. The Mexican conservatives supported Maximilian, who
had liberal ideas, while the liberals preferred the elected president,
Benito Jurez (1806-1872), whose followers were conducting a guerrilla
war against the French troops. When Maximilian decreed a guarantee on
the freedom of religion, he antagonised the papal nuncio, too. As a result
the pope withdrew his support in the spring of 1865. That year the
American Civil War ended. The United States opposed the French troops
in Mexico by supporting Jurez. To make things worse, Maximilian
could not get along with the French supreme commander in Mexico. He
travelled the country desperately trying to win over the Mexican people.
Charlotte ruled in his absence and even when he was present, she often
drew up official documents for him. Despite their professional cooperation, the couple continued to sleep in separate bedrooms.

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Maximilian often shared his with other women. One of them was the 17year-old Concepcin Sedano y Leguizano, who gave birth to a son.
Since Maximilian did not have any prospect of begetting a legitimate
heir, he decided to adopt a grandson of the former Mexican Emperor
Agustin de Itrbide (1783-1824). The boy's mother soon regretted the
arrangement and started proclaiming loudly throughout France that
Maximilian "had stolen her son from her".
Charlotte of Belgium Early 1866, Napoleon III refused to give
Maximilian any further financial support, despite his earlier promise. As
a result of American pressure and his fear of Prussian aggression,
Napoleon also announced the withdrawal of his troops from Mexico.
Earlier Charlotte had received the news of her father's death and now she
became nervous and depressed. When Maximilian contemplated his
abdication however, Charlotte refused to give up. Despite the raining
season, she decided to travel to Europe to reason with Napoleon III. She
arrived in France on August 8, 1866 and received a telegram from
Napoleon III informing her of his "illness". Charlotte nevertheless
travelled to Paris and moved into the Grand Htel. The next day the
Empress Eugnie, Napoleon's Spanish wife, visited her and through
Eugnie's mediation, Charlotte was later received by Napoleon III. She
described her plan for saving the Mexican Empire, but Napoleon and his
councillors were immovable. During their second meeting, Charlotte
became terribly upset and began crying hysterically. In their third and
final conversation Napoleon told her the withdrawal of the French troops
was final.
In her letter to Maximilian, Charlotte wrote that Napoleon III
represented "the evil on earth" and that he was "possessed by the devil".
Friends commented on her strange behaviour. While travelling from
Paris to Trist, she told her lady-in-waiting that she had identified a
farmer in the field as an assassin. She ordered the coachman to increase
speed and covered her face with a handkerchief for the remainder of the
ride. Back at the villa Miramar a courier arrived from Mexico with bad
news and a request from Maximilian to ask the pope for help. Charlotte

235

left for Rome and had two meetings with the pope. One morning, she
burst into the pope's apartments, kneeled before him screaming her staff
tried to poison her: "All food they give me contains poison and I am
starving". Then she stuck her finger into the pope's cup of chocolate
milk and licked it. She insisted on spending the night in the Vatican and
the astonished pope had a bed prepared in the library. Officially, it was
the only time ever for a woman to have stayed a night in the Vatican.
The next day, the mother superior of a nearby convent persuaded
Charlotte to visit an orphanage. With her handkerchief over her face
Charlotte travelled in her coach to the convent, where she delivered a
charming speech. Afterwards, while touring the grounds, she snatched a
piece of meat from a hot pan in the kitchen. She burned her hand, fainted
from the pain and was hurried off to her hotel. In her room Charlotte had
living chicken tied to the table legs. Her servants had to slaughter and
prepare them in her presence. When she was thirsty, she took the pope's
glass and filled it at a public fountain. Her relatives were informed of her
condition and soon her brother Philip arrived and escorted her to Trist.
From then on Charlotte was confined to Miramar by Maximilian's
relatives and no one was allowed to visit her. As a result of the quiet and
the good food, her physical health improved. She appeared beautiful as
ever, but her behaviour remained strange. She was not invited for the
marriage of her brother Philip in May. Charlotte occupied herself with
reading books and writing letters. As a result of her long seclusion at
Miramar, rumours started that she had been pregnant when she left
Mexico, and had given birth at Miramar early 1867. Some even tried to
identify the child as Maxime Weygand, although other rumours said that
this man was a son of Charlotte's brother Leopold II. It seems highly
unlikely however that the proud, dutiful and unapproachable Empress
Charlotte would have taken a lover. Moreover, the diaries of the doctor
who served at Miramar show that Charlotte never missed a period.
Maximilian of Habsburg Early 1867, the French troops were withdrawn
from Mexico and Maximilian cabled his family in Vienna that he would
return home soon. His family underestimated the seriousness of the

236

situation in Mexico and his mother, Sophie of Bavaria2, wrote firmly: "I
must still wish that you hold out in Mexico as long as you can with
honour do so." So when the supporters of Jurez advanced on Mexico
City, Maximilian retreated to Quertaro. With only a small army of
supporters, he met Jurez in battle. He was quickly defeated, captured
and sentenced to death. Many distinguished European liberals, like
Victor Hugo and Giuseppe Garibaldi, took pity on the well-meaning but
naive Emperor and petitioned Jurez to spare his life. On the morning of
June 19, 1867 however, Maximilian was led out on the hill near
Quertaro. He presented each man on the firing squad with a gold piece,
asking them to aim carefully at his heart. Nevertheless, the first salvo did
not kill him and one of the bullets pierced his face. The second salvo
was deadly.
Marie Henritte, the sister-in-law Charlotte had always loathed, travelled
to Miramar in the summer of 1867 to escort Charlotte to Belgium. In the
Palace of Laken the ex-Empress lived happily amongst her relatives
until the summer of 1868, when she was suddenly overcome by fits of
frenzy and confined to castle Tervuren. During the winter she was back
in Laken, but in the spring of 1869 her condition worsened and from
then on Charlotte was to remain in castle Tervuren. She laughed, wept,
held monologues and talked incoherently. Still, there were many lucid
periods during which she behaved dignified and gave perfectly normal
answers to questions, read books, painted or played the piano. She was
always concerned about her appearance and she was still a beauty.
In March 1879, fire broke out in the castle. Charlotte was tied to her
carriage with a shawl and brought to Laken. After a few weeks she was
moved to castle Bouchout. There her condition worsened and in attacks
of frenzy she smashed the furniture, breaking vases, tearing up books
and cutting up paintings. Strangely though, she never damaged
possessions that reminded her of Maximilian. King Leopold II never
visited his sister at Bouchout, but Queen Marie Henritte and her
daughters did. Princess Stephanie writes in her memoirs that even as a
child she was never afraid of her aunt Charlotte. During World War I the
German Emperor decreed that castle Bouchout was not to be disturbed,

237

because Charlotte was the sister-in-law of his ally, the Austrian Emperor.
It was not until January 19, 1927, that Charlotte died of pneumonia at
the age of 86.
Copyright 1998, 2000, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Pedro V of Portugal was a Saxe-Coburg relative.
2 Sophie of Bavaria is better known as Sissi's stern mother-in-law.
Bibliography
Kerckvoorde, M.: Charlotte (Van Laken tot Mexico: biografie van een
keizerin), Lannoo, 1991
Aronson, Th.: De Coburgs van Belgi (Geschiedenis van een
vorstenhuis), English Title: The Coburgs of Belgium, H.J.W. Becht's
Gies McGuigan, D.: The Habsburgs, W.H. Allen, 1966
Berghe, J. van den: Het intieme dagboek van een Koningshuis, Helios,
1980
Berghe, J. van den: De Habsburgs en de Coburgs (Liefde en tragiek van
twee dynastien), Helios, 1994
Smith, G.: Charlotte en Maximiliaan, in: Margriet, November 1979
Axelrod, A. & Philips, Ch.: Dictators & Tyrants (Absolute rulers and
would-be rulers in world history), FactsOnFile, 1995
Fraser, F.: The unruly Queen (The life of Queen Caroline), MacMillan,
1996
Novels
Gavin, C.: De cactus en de kroon, English title: The cactus and the
crown, De Boekerij N.V.
Corti, E.C. Conte: Het tragische leven van keizer Maximiliaan, German
title: Die Tragdie eines Kaisers, Elsevier, 1960
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:23:46. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
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238

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Erik Wasa (1533-1577) was a man of contradictions; he was both
humble and haughty, and urbane and well read, but also barbaric. As a
youth Eric had been a talented young man and a true Renaissance
Prince. He and his half brothers had received a typical Renaissance
education, including geography, history and political thought1. Eric had
aesthetic, cultural and astrological interests, played the lute and even
wrote some compositions of his own. He was skilled in several
languages and military science had his special interest. Still, he seemed
more adept at abstract thought than at practical politics.
King Gustav I Wasa Eric was born on December 13, 1533, at the Royal
Castle in Stockholm as the eldest son of Gustav I Wasa (1496-1560, to
the right) from his first, unhappy marriage to Catherine of SaxeLauenburg (1513-1535), who died before Eric's second birthday. His
father took as his second wife the Swedish Margaretha Leijonhufvud
(1516-1551). Born as a Swedish noble, Gustav Wasa had assumed the
leadership in the struggle for Swedish independence. He was crowned
King in 1523. Gustav was a man of immense ability and shrewdness, but
there were some dark patches in his personality, suggesting traits of
mental instability. If roused, Gustav's temper was so violent that in his
rages he acted like a madman. Once, when his daughter Cecile (15401627) made him angry, he clutched her hair and tore it out by the roots.
A goldsmith, who had taken a day off without permission, was so
mangled by the King that he died. A terrified secretary, who had
annoyed him, was chased by Gustav, dagger in hand, round and round
the castle courtyard. Near the end of his reign Gustav Wasa became
senile. Despite his temper, occasional unreasonableness and suspicious
nature, Gustav had always acted with a great sense of duty, always
putting his country first. He is still remembered as a great King.

239

Eric acted as Regent in the period 1555-1556 during Gustav's Russian

campaign. In 1557, Gustav Wasa made his eldest son a duke and granted
him some provinces with Kalmar as residence. Eric surrounded himself
with a group of gifted, well-educated young men from simple
backgrounds. Together they adopted a decadent lifestyle. Eric liked good
food and drink, art and music, and splendid clothes and display. He was
handsome and well-built, approx. 179 cm. tall. He was also an excellent
rider, swimmer and dancer, but, since his youth, he drank to excess.
Gustav Wasa hated the company his eldest son kept, and once described
them as a "group of toads".
On September 29, 1560, Eric succeeded his father as King of Sweden.
He desperately wanted to be a great King, too, and developed a
grandiose conception of his position. He had the rooms of the medieval
Royal castle decorated with Renaissance stucco, precious inlaid woods
and Flemish tapestries. His coronation was the most magnificent display
hitherto seen in Sweden and he was the first Swedish King to be styled
"Majesty". This extravagance is an indication of Eric's insecurity. He
was very sensitive and probably suffered from an inferiority complex,
rooted both in the greatness of his father's rule and in the humble origins
of his dynasty. As the Wasa's had suddenly risen to greatness, Eric was
afraid that another ambitious Swedish family would overthrow him. He
showed signs of paranoia and suspected every Swedish nobleman of
plotting to replace him.
Eric had sought to enhance his reputation as a King by securing a grand
marriage. For years, he had been competing for the hand of England's
"Virgin Queen" Elizabeth I Tudor (1533-1603). He sent her love letters
in Latin and dispatched his uncouth half-brother John to her court to
press his suit. According to Sitwell, John "scattered silver like a shower
of falling stars in the London streets, and told the crowds that whereas
he scattered silver, his brother would scatter gold". Elizabeth managed to
keep Eric dangling for years without any real intention of marrying him,
but even refusals could not deter Eric from his wooing. Once Eric
became obsessed with an idea he would not readily give it up. After

240

hearing some gossip about the Queen's favourite, Robert Dudley, Eric
challenged him to a duel. Luckily, his envoy in London managed to
flatter Eric into dismissing Dudley's rivalry as that of a mere courtier. In
1560 Eric wanted to visit Elizabeth to seduce her personally and set sail
for England, but the elements were against him and his fleet was
scattered. Negotiations for a marriage with Mary Queen of Scots (15421587) came to nothing either. He ruined his chances with other
Princesses2 by his own fickleness.
Karin Mansdotter Meanwhile, Eric and his friends indulged in the
orgies, which were customary at Renaissance courts. He had fathered
Virginia (1559-1633) and Constantia (1560-1649)3 by his mistress Agda
Persdotter, until he fell in love with young and beautiful Karin
Mnsdotter (1550-1612, to the left). Karin was the daughter of a soldier
or jailer. In 1566, she gave birth to a daughter Sigrid. Eric married Karin
secretly on July 13, 1567. After the birth of their son Gustav, he married
her publicly on July 4, 1568, and had her crowned the next day. The
aristocrats were offended that Eric preferred a commoner to one of their
relatives and his insecurity led Eric to suspect that people were laughing
at him for his choice of bride.
Half-brother John Wasa It was Eric's ambition to make Sweden a
dominant power in the Baltic area. During his reign, the "Nordic Seven
Year's War" was fought against both Denmark and Poland, which
resulted in much brutality against the civilian population. Occasionally,
Eric assumed military command, but he spent most of the war in the
company of his private circle of advisers and friends at one of his
castles.
In 1562, his half-brother John (1537-1592, to the right), defied Eric by
marrying the Polish Princess Catherine Jagiellona (1526-1583) and
invading Livonia. John was imprisoned and feared for his life.
Especially, since Eric had always resented his father's appointment of
John as a semi-autonomous Prince. John's loyal servants were executed,
but eventually John was released4 and he and Eric fell at each other's
feet in tears.

241

Slowly, Eric's mind was becoming unhinged and he showed signs of

schizophrenia in his alternating moods of violent frenzy and abject
repentance. Two guards were sentenced to death for 'annoying the King'.
If someone smiled or whispered in his presence, Eric believed that he
was ridiculed. A sudden movement or an unfortunate gesture would
trigger his latent violence. Like his father, he could suddenly fly into a
violent rage. Whispering, clearing one's throat or coughing at
inappropriate moments were seen as obvious signs of plotting. With his
sword drawn, Eric stalked restlessly through the corridors of the Royal
castle looking for someone to find fault with. Smartly dressed pages and
servants were put to the sword, as they were "obviously intent on
seducing the ladies of court".
Still, there was no immediate attempt to depose Eric, when, in 1567,
Eric ordered the arrest of a number of aristocrats and condemned them
to death. He especially feared the Sture family, because members of that
family had ruled the country as administrators in the period 1470-1520.
Nils Sture and his father, Svante Sture, were therefore imprisoned in
Uppsala Castle on the charges of treason. On May 24, 1567 Eric
announced that he was going to seek reconciliation with the Stures. He
visited the castle and went straight to the cell where Nils Sture was kept
and, without saying a word, stabbed him to death. Eric ran out of the
castle, told the guards to kill all the prisoners, mounted his horse and
rode into the woods nearby, seeking to escape imagined attackers. While
the guards were obeying his orders and killed the other prisoners, Eric's
beloved former tutor followed him into the woods in a vain attempt to
calm him down. Eric suddenly turned on his tutor and stabbed him to
death too. Horseless, Eric wandered alone and in darkness through the
woods. Filled with remorse he hid himself for a couple of days and in an
attempt to make amends he arranged a magnificent funeral for the
Stures. For several months afterwards he suffered from a mental
depression and withdrew to the Castle of Svartsj, outside Stockholm,
neglecting affairs of state.

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King Eric XIV Wasa During Eric's illness, a Council of the Realm took
over the government and tried to restore calm. After six months, Eric (to
the right) felt better and resumed power. He immediately reinstated his
favourite Gran Persson. The favourite was feared and hated and many
regared him as an evil influence, although he often tried to restrain the
unstable King. In periods, when Eric was confused, his reliance on his
wife and favourite was complete, and the nobility resented to be ruled by
these "social upstarts".
In September 1568, his half-brothers, John and Karl, captured
Stockholm and Eric surrendered to them. John was subsequently
proclaimed King John III. Early 1569, Eric was brought to trail for his
misdeeds, but he strongly resisted the suggestion that he had ruled
tyrannically. Nevertheless, he was formally deposed and imprisoned
with his young wife and children. Their other sons, Henrik and Arnold,
were born in captivity, where Eric translated Johannes Magnus's
imaginary history of the Goths into Swedish. Later Eric was separated
from his wife and children and moved from castle to castle, because
various plots against the new King made him fearful of his elder brother.
Eric was kept in conditions of increasing harshness and eventually
seemed to have relapsed into total madness. He was not the only
madman in the family; his half brother Magnus of Ostergotland (15421595) had been an insane schizophrenic since his youth.
After a couple of years, King John received a formal sanction from the
more influential members of the Riksdag to take his elder brother's life,
should he be threatened by further rebellions. On February 26, 1577, at
rbyhus Castle in Uppland, Eric died in agony, probably poisoned with
arsenic mixed in his pea soup5. A public announcement stated that he
had died "after a long illness". He was buried in Vsters Catherdral.
Eric's widow, Karin Mnsdotter, was granted lands and an income
enabling her and her children to live in comfort. She survived her
husband by 35 years. Their only surviving son, Gustav (1568-1607),
inherited his father's mental defects and died childless.
Copyright 1997-2006 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

243

Footnotes
1 Eric read Machiavelli's "Il Principe".
2 Other possible brides were Renata of Lorraine and Kristina of Hesse.
3 Illegitimate children of the Wasa Kings were usually recognized as
members of the family and were often brought up together with any
legitimate children, and married into the nobility. Eric's illigitimate
daughter Constance married Henrik Frankelin. According to Quilliet, she
became insane, too.
4 John and his wife had spent 4 years as prisoners in Gripsholm Castle.
5 An examination of Eric's remains in 1958 confirmed that the probable
cause of his death was arsenic poisoning.
Bibliography
Axelrod, A. & Philips, Ch.: Dictators & tyrants (Absolute rulers and
would-be rulers in world history), FactsOnFile, 1995
Green, V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Duhs, S.: The Monarchs of Sweden (A Short History of the Nation),
Purley Lodge English, 2000
Regan, R.: (The Guinness Book of) Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995
Lagerqvist, L.O. a.o.: Kings and Rulers of Sweden, Vincent Frlag, 2002
Liljegren, B.: Rulers of Sweden, Historiska Media, 2004
Hallendorf, C., Schck, A.: History of Sweden, C.E. Fritze Ltd, 1938
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Strindberg, A., Johnson, W.: The Vasa Trilogy (Master Olof, Gustav
Vasa, Erik XIV), University of Washington Press, 1959
Derry, T.K.: A History of Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden, Denmark,
Finland & Iceland), 1996
Masson, G.: Queen Christina, Cardinal, 1968
Quillet, B.: Christina van Zweden, Hadwijch, 1987
Sitwell, E.: The Queens and the hive, The Reprint Society London, 1963
Williams, N.: Elizabeth I, Fibula - Van Dishoeck, 1972
Swedish Wikipedia

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Maria Eleonore of Brandenburg (1599-1655) was born into the
Hohenzollern family on November 11, 1599. Her father was Elector
Johann Sigismund of Brandenburg (1572-1619), and her mother was
Anna (1576-1625), heiress of Prussia. Maria Eleonore's maternal
grandfather was the last mad Duke of Prussia and her maternal
grandmother was a sister of the last mad Duke of Cleves. Maria
Eleonore's brother, George Wilhelm (1595-1640), suffered from
melancholy and repeatedly lost his consciousness. As Elector, his main
object was to avoid all responsibility, and he had a very hard time
reaching any conclusion at all. Maria Eleonore herself is described as
"hysteric", because she couldn't cope with her husband's long absences.
After his death, she reopened his coffin regularly. It was her daughter
whom she strongly disliked, screaming: "Take her from me, I will not
have such a monster!"
Maria Eleonore's father, Johann Sigismund of Brandenburg, was an
indolent glutton and drunk. Due to his corpulence he was often short of
breath, and his action radius was further reduced by gout. Still, his reign
was a fairly happy one. In 1614, he issued an Edict of Tolerance to
uphold religious freedom. He converted from Lutheranism to Calvinism,
but allowed his wife and children to remain Lutherans. Near the end of
his life, he suffered several strokes that left him increasingly debilitated.
Maria Eleonore's mother, Anna of Prussia, was as dominant and
energetic, as her husband was indolent. When the Hohenzollern couple
had a row, plate was often broken. The Elector Johann Georg I of
Saxony (1585-1656), who had married Anna's sister, once wrote to
Johann Sigismund that, if his wife would vex him as Johann Sigismund's
did off and on, he would surely hit her.

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In 1616, 22-year-old King Gustav II Adolph of Sweden (1594-1632)1

started looking around for a Protestant bride. He received reports with
the most flattering descriptions of the physical and mental qualities of
17-year-old Maria Eleonore. Elector Johann Sigismund was well
inclined towards the Swedish King, but he had become very infirm. His
determined Prussian wife showed a strong dislike for this Swedish
suitor, because Prussia was a Polish fief and the Polish King still
resented that he had lost Sweden to Gustav Adolph's father.
Maria Eleonore had additional suitors in young William of Orange,
Wladislaw Wasa of Poland, Adolph Friedrich of Mecklenburg and even
the Prince of Wales2. Maria Eleonore's brother, George Wilhelm, was
flattered by the offer of the British Crown Prince and proposed their
younger sister Katharina (1602-1644) as a more suitable wife for the
Swedish King. Maria Eleonore, however, seems to have had a
preference for handsome Gustav Adolph (to the right). young Gustav II
Adolph For him, it was a matter of honour to acquire the hand of Maria
Eleonore and none other. He had the rooms of his castle in Stockholm
redecorated and started making preparations to leave for Berlin to press
his suite in person, when a letter arrived from Maria Eleonore's mother
to his mother. The Electress demanded in no uncertain terms that the
Queen Dowager should prevent her son's journey, as "being prejudicial
to Brandenburg's interests in view of the state of war existing between
Sweden and Poland". Her husband, she wrote, was "so enfeebled in will
by illness that he could be persuaded to agree to anything, even if it
tended to the destruction of the country". It was a rebuff that verged on
an insult.
father Johann Sigismund Maria Eleonore's father (to the left) died on
December 23, 1619, and with him the prospect of a Swedish marriage
seemed gone. In the spring of 1620, however, stubborn Gustav Adolph
arrived in Berlin. The Electress Dowager maintained an attitude of
reserve and even refused to grant the Swedish King a personal meeting
with Maria Eleonore. All those who were present, however, noticed the
Princess's unconcealed interest in the young King. Afterwards, Gustav

246

Adolph made a round of other Protestant German courts with the

professed intention of inspecting a few matrimonial alternatives3. On his
return to Berlin, however, the Electress Dowager seems to have become
completely captivated by the charming Swedish King. After plighting
his troth to Maria Eleonore, Gustav Adolph hurried back to Sweden to
make arrangements for the reception of his bride.
The new Elector, George Wilhelm, who resided in Prussia, was appalled
when he heard of his mother's independent action. He wrote to Gustav
Adolph that for the present, until Sweden and Poland had settled their
differences, he refused his consent. It was the Electress Dowager,
however, who, in accordance with Hohenzollern Family custom, had the
final word in bestowing her daughter's hand in marriage. She send Maria
Eleonore to Brunswick territory4, out of George Wilhelm's reach, and
subsequently concluded the marriage negotiations herself.
Anna of Prussia provided herself with a selection of objects of value
from the exchequer, before she joined Maria Eleonore in Brunswick. A
detachment of the Swedish fleet took the women over to Kalmar, where
Gustav Adolph was impatiently awaiting them. The wedding took place
in Stockholm on November 25, 1620. Three days later 21-year-old
Maria Eleonore was crowned Queen in the Great Church. A comedy was
performed based on the history of Olof Sktkonung. Gustav Adolph - in
his own words - finally "had a Brandenburg lady in his marriage-bed" 5.
Gustav Adolph shared Maria Eleonore's interest in architecture and her
love of music. She was pretty and her manner was lively, giving an
impression of girlish gaiety. She had immediately fallen in love with her
husband, and often lamented that she never had her hero for herself.
young Maria Eleonore Foreign ambassadors found her gracious and
beautiful and she had good taste, although her character showed some
extravagant traits. Maria Eleonore (to the right) had a definite liking for
entertainment, and soon she succumbed to the then fashionable craze for
buffoons and dwarfs.
Within six months of their marriage, Gustav Adolph left to command the
siege of Riga, leaving Maria Eleonore in the early stages of her first

247

pregnancy. She lived exclusively in the company of her German ladiesin-waiting and had difficulty in adapting herself to the Swedish people,
countryside and climate6. She disliked the bad roads, sombre forests and
wooded houses, roofed with turf. She also pined for her husband. A year
after their wedding, she had a miscarriage and became seriously ill. She
was tempestuous, excessive, neurotic and jealous. She was often given
to language of unthinking violence, and she did not spare her husband,
even if there were strangers present. Her emotional life lacked balance,
and everything Maria Eleonore undertook on her own initiative needed
careful watching. Soon Gustav Adolph's intimi knew that his married
life was a source of grief and anxiety.
In the autumn of 1623, Maria Eleonore gave birth to a daughter, but the
baby died the next year. Maria Eleonore passed a sad winter, while her
beloved husband was too often preoccupied and too often away. In
February and April her younger brother and mother died. Maria
Eleonore, pregnant again, was deeply affected, and for some weeks lay
sorrowing and ill, mourning her beloved.
Gustav Adolph's younger brother had been killed in battle in Poland, so
the only surviving male Wasa heirs were the hated King of Poland and
his sons. With Gustav Adolph risking his life in battles, an heir to the
throne was anxiously awaited. In May 1625, Maria Eleonore insisted on
accompanying her husband on the royal yacht to review the fleet. There
seemed to be no danger, as the warships were moored off just opposite
the castle, but a sudden storm nearly capsized the yacht. The Queen was
hurried back to the castle, but when she got there she was heard to
exclaim: "Jesus, I cannot feel my child!" Shortly afterwards the longedfor heir was born dead.
Maria Eleonore's behaviour now became increasingly eccentric. She
indulged in sweet foods, and spend lavish gifts on her favorites that the
treasure could not affort. She spoke French, the court language of the
age, but never bothered to learn to write Swedish correctly, and even
became incapable of speaking her native German correctly. She
confused syllables and made up strang concoctions of words. This
unusual difficulty with language suggests a possible neurologial

248

problem. During one of her confinements, she may have suffered some
kind of stroke7. Whatever the reason, her muddled speech no doubt
added to Maria Eleonore's growing sense of desperation.
With the renewal of the war with Poland, again Gustav Adolph had to
leave his wife. It is likely that she gave way to hysterical grief, as she did
in 1627. The King let the Queen join him in Livonia after the Poles had
been defeated in January 1626. By April, Maria Eleonore found she was
again pregnant. No risks were taken this time and the astrologers
predicted the birth of a son and heir. During a lull in the warfare, Gustav
Adolph hurried back to Stockholm to await the arrival of the baby. The
birth was a difficult one. On December 7th, a baby was born with a
fleece, which enveloped it from its head to its knees, leaving only its
face, arms and lower part of its legs free. Moreover, it had a large nose
and was covered with hair. The King was told he had a son.
It is likely that the experienced midwives were confronted with some
kind of genital malformation. Although the baby had been born before
midnight, the midwives waited until the morning to make their final altered - decision that it was a girl. It was left to Gustav Adolph's halfsister, Katharina (1584-1638), to inform him about the mistake. She
"carried the baby in her arms to the King in a condition for him to see
and to know and realise for himself what she dared not tell him". Gustav
Adolph remarked: "She is going to be clever, for she has taken us all in"
8. His disappointment didn't last long and he decided that she would be
called Christina after his mother. He gave orders for the birth to be
announced with all the solemnity usually accorded to the arrival of a
male heir. This seems to indicate that Gustav Adolph, at the age of 33,
had little hope of having other children. Maria Eleonore's state of health
seems to be the most likely explanation for this9. Her later portraits and
actions, however, do not indicate that she was physically fragile.
Shortly after the birth, Maria Eleonore was in no condition to be told the
truth about the baby's gender, and the King and court waited several
days before breaking the news to her. She screamed: "Instead of a son, I
am given a daughter, dark and ugly, with a great nose and black eyes.

249

Take her from me, I will not have such a monster!" She may have
suffered from a post-natal depression, because in her madness the Queen
even tried to hurt her own child. In her early childhood Christina
repeatedly met with accidents. Once a beam fell mysteriously upon the
cradle. Another time, she "accidentally" fell off the stairs. On another
occasion the nursemaid was blamed for dropping the baby onto a stone
floor, injuring a shoulder that ever afterwards remained a little crooked.
Gustav II Adolph In the year after Christina's birth, Maria Eleonore is
described as being in a state of hysteria owing to her husband's absence.
In 1632, Gustav Adolph described his wife as being "a very sick
woman". There was some excuse for her; she had lost three babies and
still felt herself an isolated foreigner in a hostile land, even more so after
1627 when her brother joined Sweden's enemies. Meanwhile, her
husband's life was constantly in danger, when he was on campaign. In
1627, Gustav Adolph had been both ill and wounded. Two years later, he
had a hairbreadth escape at Stuhm. Maria Eleonore wrote: "When I
know that my most beloved lord is coming, then all my sickness and
panic fall away".
Gustav Adolph was devoted to his daughter and tried to rear Christina as
a boy. At the age of two, she clapped her hands and laughed with joy
when the great cannons of Kalmar Castle boomed out the royal salute.
Afterwards, Gustav Adolph often took his little daughter with him to
military reviews. Maria Eleonore showed little affection for her daughter
and was not allowed any influence in Christina's upbringing. The
Princess was placed in the care of Gustav Adolph's half-sister, Katharina,
and the Chancellor, Axel Oxenstierna.
In 1630 Gustav Adolph believed that Habsburg designs for Baltic
supremacy threatened Sweden's very existence and also its religious
freedom. Before he left to join the Thirty Years War, he discussed a
possible regency with members of the government and admitted to them
that his wife was "a miserable woman". Even so, Gustav Adolph could
not bring himself to nominate a regency council in which her name did

250

not appear. To Axel Oxenstierna, he confessed: "If anything happens to

me, my family will merit your pity [..], the mother lacking in common
sense, the daughter a minor - hopeless, if they rule, and dangerous, if
others come to rule over them."
During the next two years Gustav Adolph marched across a devastated
Germany, conquering Pomerania and Mecklenburg. Early November he
went to Erfurt to say goodbye to Maria Eleonore, who had been in
Germany since the previous winter. In the battle of Ltzen 39-year-old
Gustav II Adolph was shot in the back. He fell and was dragged for
some distance by his horse. He managed to free himself from the stirrup,
but while lying on the ground "The Lion of the North" was killed by
another shot through his head. By nightfall both armies were exhausted,
but Bernard of Saxe-Weimar (1604-1639) and the Swedes had captured
all the Imperial artillery and were in possession of the key position. The
King's body was found, lying face downwards in the mud, plundered of
everything but his shirt.
Maria Eleonore weeps after her husband's death The King's body was
embalmed and taken to Wolgast. Passage across to Sweden was
impossible, because the Baltic Sea was frozen6. Seeing his lifeless form,
Maria Eleonore (to the right) gave way to enormous grief. She clung,
often literally, to her husband's remains, and her attendants began to fear
for her reason. She wrote: "Since We, God pity Us, were so rarely
granted the pleasure of enjoying the living presence of His Majesty, Our
adored, dearest master and spouse, of blessed memory, it should at least
be granted to Us to stay near his royal corpse and so draw comfort in
Our miserable existence". Gustav Adolph's heart had already been taken
out to be seperately preserved; Maria Eleonore kept it with her
constantly. At night, it hung above her bed, while she continued weeping
for months.
It wasn't until August 1633 that the King's body finally returned to
Sweden. In Nykping 7-year-old Queen Christina came in solemn
procession to the ship to receive her mother. Later she wrote: "I
embraced the Queen my mother, she drowned me with her tears and

251

practically smothered me in her arms." Maria Eleonore had her

husband's coffin placed in her own bedroom. It remained unsealed, and
it seems that it was regularly opened. For more than a year, Maria
Eleonore condemned her active, spirited little daughter to an appalling
mourning seclusion in rooms draped with black and lit by candles day
and night, from which every ray of light was excluded. She made her
daughter sleep with her in a bed over which her father's heart was hung
in a golden casket. Sermons and pious orations continued endlessly.
Things were made worse by Maria Eleonore's continual weeping. She
smothered her once rejected daughter with affection, and scarcely let her
out of her sight. Christina, who was herself somewhat malformed with
one shoulder higher than the other, also detested her mother's dwarfs,
buffoons and hunchbacks. The little Queen became seriously ill; an ulcer
appeared on her left breast, causing her terrible pain and a high fever until it burst.
In the summer of 1634, after many delays and constant opposition by
Maria Eleonore, the great King's body was finally interred in the
Riddarholm Church in Stockholm. Within a day of the interment, Maria
Eleonora pleaded for the coffin to be opened again. Maria Eleonore had
plunged into a prolonged crisis of hysteria and reveled in her grief. She
found it more difficult than ever to conceal her dislike of Swedish "rocks
and mountains, the freezing air, and all the rest of it". During the rest of
her life she pathetically preserved the memory of her hero husband. She
used to weep for hours and even days on an end. When the regency
council tried to separate Christina from her mother, Maria Eleonore wept
and protested so bitterly that nothing was done. Queen Christina later
wrote about her mother: "She carried out her role of mourning to
perfection". The long and dreary ceremonies and all the sad people were
"far worse for me than the King's death itself," she added.
young Queen Christina Finally, in the summer of 1636, Maria Eleonore
officially lost her parental right to her daughter, because at times she was
completely out of her mind. She was taken to Gripsholm castle, a
fortress perched on an island in a lake. Nearing 40, she remained pretty
with a "truly royal figure". In 1639 a letter written by her and intended

252

for Sweden's archenemy, the King of Denmark, was intercepted. After a

summons, Maria Eleonore appeared at her daughter's court in a flood of
tears in the summer of 1640. Queen Christina (to the right), 13 years old,
reasoned with her mother and dissuaded her from taking up residence at
Nykping near Denmark. Afterwards, Maria Eleonore returned to
Gripsholm. To undertake one of her periodic fasts, she retired to the
seclusion of her own apartment, accompanied by only one of her ladies.
At night the two ladies let themselves down from a window and were
rowed in a boat to the other side of the nearby lake, where a carriage was
waiting for them. They drove to Nykping, where they boarded a Danish
ship.
In Denmark Maria Eleonore became the guest of King Christian IV. The
Elector George Wilhelm refused to receive his sister in Brandenburg, so
Maria Eleonore had to wait until his death in December that year before
her nephew gave her permission to visit Brandenburg. Still, the new
Elector insisted that Sweden should provide for his aunt's upkeep. She
received a small pension of 30,000 cus a year. After a while Maria
Eleonore, surprisingly, started to long for Sweden. In 1648 she returned.
Queen Christina went to meet her mother's ship. It was delayed by a
storm and the young Queen slept in the open for two nights and
contracted a fever, which kept her in bed for some days. In October 1650
Maria Eleonore proudly attended her daughter's postponed coronation
ceremony.
Maria Eleonore Early 1654 Christina shocked everyone with her
decision to convert to the Catholic faith and abdicate in favour of her
cousin, Charles Gustav (1622-1660)10. Maria Eleonore (to the right)
couldn't understand her daughter's action and had grave doubts about its
possible effect upon her own finances. She was miserable about the
whole situation, when the cousins visited her in her residence at
Nykping in April. Christina and Charles Gustav promised the Queen
Dowager that she would be provided for. Thus, Maria Eleonore
witnessed her daughters' abdication, and passed her last months in bleak
half-mourning, lamenting her daughter's decision. She died the

253

following year. At that time, ex-Queen Christina was touring across

Europe, wearing a man's suit.
Copyright 2002, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Gustav II Adolph was a nephew of Mad King Eric XIV of Sweden
(1533-1577). His sister Maria Elisabeth (1596-1618) was also described
as "mad".
2 Charles Stuart, born in 1600, became King Charles I and was
beheaded in 1649.
3 The alternatives were the "well-developed" but snobbish Catherine of
the Palatine and the "amiable and beautiful" Sibylle Magdalene of
Baden.
4 Her elder sister, Anna Sophia (1598-1659), had married a Duke of
Brunswick.
5 The capture of Maria Eleonore has been called Gustav Adolph's "first
victory on German soil".
6 It was the period known as the "Little Ice Age" with ice-thickened
rivers and frozen seas.
7 In 1629, Maria Eleonore had a serious illness of the eyes, which may
also have been a stroke symptom. Maria Eleonore's speech problems
would be consistent with a stroke, or possibly a brain tumor. A condition
of this kind could have improved with time.
8 As Queen Christina later phrased in her autobiography.
9 Before his marriage, Gustav Adolph had had an illegitimate son,
Gustav Gustavsson (1616-1653), Count of Wasaborg, and his existence
was no secret. His mother was Margareta (1669), a daughter of the
Dutch merchant Abraham Cabiljau.
10 Charles Gustav was the son of Katharina of Sweden and belonged to
the Wittelsbach family.
Bibliography
Ahnlund, N.: Gustavus Adolphus the Great, Warrior Kings, History
Book Club, 1999

254

Masson, G.: Queen Christina, Cardinal, 1974

Buckley, V.: Christina, Queen of Sweden (The Restless life of a
European Eccentric), Harper Perennial, 2004
Neumann, H.J.: Erbkrankheiten in europischen Frstenhuser
(Habsburg, Hohenzollern, Romanow, Welfen, Wettiner, Bourbonen),
edition q, 1993
Quillet, B.: Christina van Zweden (Een uitzonderlijk vorst), Hadewijch,
1987
R.J. Unstead's Book of Kings & Queens, Word Lock Limited, 1978
Mast, P.: Die Hohenzollern (in Lebensbildern), Sytria, 1988
Roberts, M.: Gustavus Adolphus and the Rise of Sweden, The English
University Press, 1973
Maria Eleonore of Hohenzollern-Brandenburg, in: A bit of Swedish (and
scandinavic) history..., Lule University,
http://www.luth.se/luth/present/sweden/history/queens/mariaEleonore/
Hallendorff, C., Schck, A.: History of Sweden, Delaware Edition, 1938
Opfell, O.S.: Queens, Empresses, Grand Duchesses and Regents
(Women Rulers of Europe AD 1328-1989), McFarland & Company,
1989
Brandenburgs Kurfrsten, Preussens Knige, Das Taschenlexikon,
Edition Rieger, 1998
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:24:37. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
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Even as an adult, Christian VII of Denmark (1749-1808) remained
childish and playful. Diplomats complained that, when he was
discussing affairs of state with them, without warning he would slap
them violently round the face. He had hallucinations and his speech was
often incomprehensible. Soon, his physician took care of him, his wife

255

and his country. But they hadn't reckoned with Christian's evil
stepmother..
Although he was King of Denmark, Christian had already shown
peculiar symptoms as a child. He had feelings of insecurity and
inadequacy and although he showed some ability in various directions,
at times he became frantic and his education was completely neglected.
His chamberlain, Detlev Reventlow, was a stern man who believed in
'using a firm hand'. He terrorised the young Prince with severe beatings.
After a beating, Christian could be found on the floor foaming at the
mouth. The influence of his sensible tutor, Elie Salomon Franois
Reverdil, was not sufficient to counterbalance the ill effects of the
thrashings. With a gang of fellow-minded boys, Christian used to stalk
the streets of Copenhagen, armed with a medieval spiked club, which he
used viciously on passers-by. Christian was physically frail, short and
slender, and as a result, he developed an abnormal concern with physical
toughness. In the opinion of his doctors, he masturbated so obsessively
that they feared for his health.
His mother, Louisa of Great Britain and Hannover (1724-1751), died
before Christian reached the age of 3. His father, Frederick V (17231766), hated to be bothered and took very little notice of his son. He
remarried the dominant Juliana of Brunswick-Wolffenbttel (17291796), who bore him a physically disabled son. As the eldest son,
Christian stood in the way of the boy's inheritance and his ambitious
stepmother resented him for it. During this unhappy second marriage
Frederick V became an alcoholic and led an increasingly debauched life,
whilst neglecting affairs of state. He became physically ill and even
mentally disturbed before he died at the age of 42.
Christian VII became King shortly before his 17th birthday. The
populace expected a great deal from him, not knowing that he had
already shown disturbing signs of madness. Within a year, Christian
married his 15-year-old cousin, Caroline Mathilda of Great Britain and
Hannover (1751-1775). She was not allowed to take English ladies-in-

256

waiting with her and left England in tears. Poor bewildered Caroline
Mathilda exchanged a safe nursery for the turmoil of a gay and pleasureseeking court full of intrigue. Christian took an immediate dislike to his
grief-stricken young bride and continued his ardent pursuit of whores
and young men. He made it publicly known that he could not love
Caroline Mathilda, as it was"unfashionable to love one's wife".
Christian's masterful and stern stepmother disliked Caroline Mathilda
too, because she might provide Christian with an heir. The Dowager
Queen had all Caroline Mathilda's favourite ladies-in-waiting transferred
to 'other duties' in due time.
Although he was King of Denmark, Christian was still a boy, childish
and playful. Freed from tutelage, he wanted most of all to indulge in
those things he liked most. Once he threw a bowl of sugar over his
grandmother's head 1 . Another time he stuck pins in the seat of her
throne in order to see her jump. Often he kept dinner waiting for hours
or rose abruptly before it had ended. He liked to play leapfrog over the
backs of visiting dignitaries when they bowed to him. Diplomats
complained that when he was discussing affairs of state with them,
without warning he would slap them violently round the face. With his
male favourite, Conrad Holcke, and his mistress, known as 'Katrine with
the boots'2, Christian used to rampage through the streets of
Copenhagen, smashing up shops and ravaging brothels. Frequently he
returned with black eyes, bruises and cuts. He enjoyed public
executions, staged mock executions of his courtiers and built his own
rack. Holcke was ordered to stretch him on it or flog him until his back
was bleeding. To demonstrate his 'manliness', Christian would burn his
flesh and rub salt into his own wounds.
Early 1768 Caroline Mathilda gave birth to a son, Crown Prince
Frederick (1768-1839). Meanwhile Christian made his mistress a
Baroness and showered gifts upon her until public opinion induced him
to send her away. Soon afterwards he undertook a tour to England,
France and Germany with Holcke, and left his wife behind. To
everybody's surprise, he acquitted himself quite well. Horace Walpole

257

described Christian as an "insipid boy" who "took notice of nothing",

"took pleasure in nothing" - except perhaps his own importance. On his
visit to Canterbury, Christian remarked: "The last king of Denmark who
entered Canterbury laid that city in ashes and massacred its inhabitants."
In Denmark Caroline Mathilda was growing fat and took to wearing a
male riding costume. Later it became a common saying that she was "the
better man of the two".
As Christian's mental and physical state became gradually worse, his
physician, Johann Friedrich Struense, gained more influence. He got
himself appointed to the post of cabinet secretary to the King and in this
capacity all governmental documents passed through his hands. In
October 1769 Caroline Mathilda had an attack of colic and was so
depressed that she "turned her face to the wall and prayed for death".
She was lonely, young and inexperienced and when she sought solace in
the medical and other services of Struense, she fell hopelessly in love
with him. Presumably, Struense had merely regarded the Queen as a
means of acquiring greater power, but before long he must have fallen in
love himself. Thus a passionate love affair developed between them. The
nave and warm-blooded Caroline Mathilda behaved with incredible
foolishness. She boasted openly of her affair to her chambermaids,
demonstrating time and again her ruffled clothing after each visit
Struense paid to her rooms and dancing with him for whole evenings at
the Court balls. Caroline Mathilda's second child, Louise Augusta (17711843), was said to have had an unmistakable likeness to Struense.
Christian was as indifferent to the government of Denmark as he was to
his Queen, so the ambitious Struense "reigned supreme in the councils
of state and in the heart of the Queen". Once, Christian, who admired the
King of Prussia, was heard to have murmured: "Does the king of Prussia
sleep with Mathilda? Or is it Struense?"3
Christian's mental state steadily deteriorated. Often he was found in the
morning sitting in the corner of his room with a distressed expression on
his face. From time to time, he would beat his head against the wall,
sometimes until blood flowed. Occasionally, he attacked his entourage

258

violently or laughed inappropriately and wildly. His speech was often

incomprehensible and he was disturbed by hallucinations. Waking in the
morning, he would declare that he had killed several people that night.
At times, he questioned his birth, thinking that he was a changeling - or
the son of Catherine the Great. He had delusions of grandeur and was
very suspicious. Often Struense was asked to search the King's
bedroom to ensure that no assassin was hiding there. His mood could
change quickly from a state of wild excitement to one of deep
depression. Sometimes he would run from room to room through the
palace, destroying furniture or throwing it through the windows. To his
former tutor, Revendil, Christian confessed "I am confused" and "There
is a noise in my head".
Struense acquired the position of Minister of the Privy Council by
simply placing the necessary documents before the King and getting him
to sign them. He governed Denmark, Norway and Schleswig-Holstein in
the same fashion as other enlightened ministers of his day. He did the
accepted progressive things, and he did them boldly and impatiently.
Whenever his tempo was slowed down by opposition, he regarded it as
stupidity. He dismissed many superfluous civil servants - always a most
dangerous thing to do - and decreed that henceforth the language of the
government should be German. He really lived for the government of
the country and was accommodated very modestly in a couple of plainly
furnished rooms in a side wing of the palace. Nevertheless, his foolhardy
policy, his arrogance and his violation of the King's marriage provoked
resentment. Ironically, his freedom of the press stimulated the growth of
opposition.
In January 1772 a group of conspirators, led by Christian's stepmother,
his half-brother and the conservative Ove Hegh-Guldberg4, decided to
interfere. While Caroline Mathilda and Struense were dancing at a
masked ball, they broke into Christian's bedroom, and scared him
practically out of his wits. By now Christian had got over the antipathy
he had felt for his wife, but he was almost an imbecile and physically
frail. His wicked stepmother managed to bully him into signing the

259

orders for the arrest of both Struense and Caroline Mathilda5. Struense
was imprioned under harsh conditions, being chained to the wall. He
confessed his love affair with the Queen, and was sentenced to a horrible
death. First his right hand was chopped off. Then his body was quartered
and broken on the wheel and finally he was beheaded. From her
watchtower Juliana observed these medieval barbarities with pleasure.
She is said to have remarked that "the only thing that spoilt her pleasure
was the fact that she could not see Caroline Mathilda's corpse thrown
into the death-cart as well". Caroline Mathilda at first denied everything,
but later she signed a confession too, in the vain hope of saving her
lover's life. Her sentence included an annulment of her marriage.
Caroline Mathilda was only 20 years old when she was first incarcerated
in the fortress of Kronborg and later exiled to Celle in Hannover, where
she died within three years.
Caroline Mathilda was a sister of England's Mad King George III (17381820), who suffered from the disease porphyria. This is a rare hereditary
disease with symptoms like an acute inflammation of the bowels,
difficulty in articulation, a painful weakness of the limbs and oversensitivity. In more severe attacks porphyria can result in over-activity,
agitation, confusion, delirium and progressive senility. Caroline
Mathilda and George III were known for their "infinite likeness of
countenance"and contemporaries remarked on a peculiar quickness of
speech, which they both showed when excited. Like his wife, Christian
could have inherited porphyria. However, his progressive decline,
incoherent conversation, impulsive violent acts and his alternation
between immobility and wild excitement may be better diagnosed as
schizophrenia.
Denmark was reigned by Christian's stepmother, his half-brother and
Guldberg until 1784, when the 16-year-old Crown Prince placed a
document establishing a regency before the King. Christian
unhesitatingly signed it and ceased effectively to rule, although he
officially 'reigned' in Denmark until his death. His public appearances
were rare; he was dragged out only in periods of semi-lucidity when

260

affairs of state demanded his appearance. He was never confined,

constrained, or subjected to a medical regimen, but his servants were
instructed not to obey his orders. Sometimes he could be seen at a
window making faces at passers-by or pacing up and down his
apartments. In the Napoleonic wars, he was moved to Rendsborg in
Schleswig and he is said to have died due to the shock of seeing Spanish
troops enter the city on March 13, 1808.
Copyright 1998, 2000 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Footnotes
1 Sophie Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach (1700-1770), widow of
Christian VI.
2 Anna Catharine Beuthaken was a red-haired prostitute, who liked to
dress in men's attire.
3 Another version of the story is that Christian remarked that "the King
of Prussia had seduced Caroline Mathilda". "What King of Prussia?" he
was asked. "Struense," he answered unconcerned.
4 Guldberg was the former tutor of Christian's half-brother.
5 The count Enevold Brandt was arrested as a thrid accomplice, and
condemned to death, too.
Bibliography

Green, V.: The Madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Allan Sutton Publishing, 1994

Lauring, P.: A History of Denmark, Hst & Sn, 1995

Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower,

1988.

Regan, R.: (The Guinness Book of) Royal Blunders, Guinness,

1995

Ragsdale, H.: Tsar Paul and the Question of Madness (An Essay in
History and Psychology), Greenwood Press, 1988

MacAlpine, I. & Hunter, R.: George III and the Mad-Business,

Allen Lane The Penguin Press, 1969

Pain, N.: George III At Home, Eyre Methuen, 1975

261

Herremans, B.: Geheimen achter Europese Kronen, deel 1, Helios

N.V., 1981

Derry, T.K.: A History of Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden, Denmark,

Finland & Iceland), University of Minnesota Press, 1996

Scocozza, R.: Politikens Bog om Danske Monarker (Fra Grom den

Gamle til Margrethe 2), Politikens Forlag, 1998

Kiste, J. v.d.: Northern Crowns (The Kings of Modern

Scandinavia), Sutton Publishing, 1996

Davidson, G.C. & Neale, J.M.: Abnormal Psychology (An

experimental clinical approach), John Wiley & Sons, 1986

Comer, R.J.: Abnormal Psychology, Second Edition, W.H.

Freeman and Company, 1995
Recommended Reading

Lofts, N.: The Lost Queen (Caroline-Mathilda - Captive Queen to

a Royal Madman), Fawcett Crest, 1969

Enquist, P.O.: The Royal Physician's Visit (Johann Friedrich

Struensee), Overlook Press, 2001

Maass, E.: Heerser zonder kroon, Z.H.U.

Kiste, J. van der: Northern Crowns (The Kings of Modern

Scandinavia), Sutton Publishing, 1998
Last modified: 03/13/2015 22:50:33. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
Previous Monarch
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The sickly King Charles IX of France (1550-1574) was a mentally
unstable sadist with mad rages. As he grew up, he became so violent that
courtiers genuinely feared for their lives. Once, he savagely attacked his
sister with his fists. During the festivities of her marriage Charles gave
the order to murder thousands of protestants in the Saint Bartholomews
Day Massacre. Still, Charles was a mothers boy, who even after

262

attaining his majority, continued to refer major decisions to his dominant

mother.
Childhood
Charles IX (to the right) was born on June 27, 1550 as Charles
Maximilien, Charles IX as a child a younger son of Henry II of France
(1519-1559) and Catherine de Medici (1519-1589). Immediately after
Charles birth, his father rushed back to his elder mistress, Diane de
Poitiers (1499-1566)1, who lived at Anet. Charles and his siblings often
travelled by barge from Saint-Germain to Anet. The castle's grounds
contained a little zoo with wolves, wild boar, lion cubs, a bear and
animals from Africa. There were also horses, dogs and caged birds to
play with. In addition, passing troupes of travelling actors and acrobats
were hired to entertain the children. Catherine regularly ordered pictures
of her children to be painted. May-be because Henry II and Catherine
had both been neglected as children2, they overindulged and spoiled
their own.
The younger children were brought up with companions of their own
age at the castle of Amboise with its walled garden. They were usually
moved away from any chance of infection during the summer months,
when outbreaks of plague were common. In May 1551 the milk of
Charles' wet-nurse was supposedly not good, because "the milk made
the baby emotional". Another wet-nurse was sought.
Anne de Montmorency (1493-1567) was, as Grand Master of the
Household, officially responsible for the royal children. Cardinal Charles
of Lorraine (1524-1574) supervised the childrens bible studies.
Catherine herself was also involved with the children's education,
upbringing and health, and had them tought to paint, sketch, write verse
and carve wood. Charles seems to have had a genuine artistic talent. He
was also thought Italian, Latin, Greek and history. He took no pleasure
in studying, but did it to please his mother.
On June 22, 1559, Charles lovely elder sister, Elisabeth (1546-1568),
was married by proxy to the austere and pedantic King Philip II of Spain
(1527-1598)3. In the following festivities, a tournament was held on
Friday June 30. King Henry II, always proud of his physical prowess,

263

jousted in his armour of black and silver, the colours of his mistress. His
opponents lance broke and hit the Kings face, driving splinters into his
temple and eye. Afterwards, Henrys body became swollen with
infection, impairing his sight and speech. He died on July 10, 1559. His
widow was prostrate with grief. For the first 2 days, Catherine remained
on the floor of the death-chamber, sobbing uncontrollably. Gradually,
she mastered herself. She was to wear mourning for the rest of her life,
and Friday was to remain a day to be dreaded.
The new King was Charles brother, Francis II (1544-1560), who had
recently been married to Mary Queen of Scots (1542-1587)4. Two of
Marys maternal uncles5, the Cardinal of Lorraine and Duke Francis
Scar Face of Guise (1519-1563)6, became the actual rulers of the
country.
At that time Paris and the northeast of France were staunchly Catholic,
but in the south the protestants, called huguenots, wanted freedom of
worship. The Guise regents, however, encouraged their persecution,
introducing the death penalty for heresy in November 1559. Fearing
death, some Protestant nobles wanted to kidnap Francis II to remove him
from the Guises influence, but the plot was discovered. On March 15,
1560, 9-year-old Charles and his mother, elder brother and sister-in-law
witnessed the executions of 57 conspirators. Each time a condemned
man mounted the steps to the scaffold, his remaining comrades sang a
Psalm, and so it continued throughout the day. Some bodies were hung
from the balconies of the castle of Amboise and for several days
afterwards, bodies floated down the river Loire.
Francis II had been suffering from tuberculosis for years. On November
17, he became seriously ill. An abscess in his ear was giving more
trouble than usual and his headaches became excruciating, when a lump
formed behind his ear. At midnight of December 6, Francis II died. He
was not quite 17 years old.
Adolescence
Charles became the new King at the age of 10. He was crowned as
Charles IX in Reims on May 15, 1561. His mother, Catherine de'
Medici, obtained the regency. She presided over the council, initiated

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and controlled state business, directed domestic and foreign policy, and
made appointments to offices. She was the first to receive and open
dispatches before the King signed them. Catherine insisted on sleeping
in her sons room. She surrounded Charles with servants and tutors she
could rely on to make their reports to her. She even went hunting with
her son, riding hard and with courage.
As a child Charles is described as having "a narrow, rat-like little face
and a sly expression". Charles had a disfiguring birthmark between his
nose and upper lip, giving him the nickname The Snotty King. Later,
he grew a moustache to cover it. The Venetian ambassador wrote that
Charles had "fine eyes like his fathers". Despite a weak constitution,
Charles loved physical exercise, like a game of royal tennis. After the
least exertion, however, he had to rest for a long time. Charles was
essentially a kind and generous boy, who wrote charming poetry, but he
also had a curious, unstable nature. Occasionally, he fell prey to
ungovernable outbursts of temper. He became excited by the sight of
blood during a hunt. His frenetic dedication to hunting was obsessive,
even by the standards of his time. Like his brothers, Francis II and Henry
of Anjou (1551-1589)7, Charles was prone to septic sores, infections,
and, as they grew older, fits of dementia8. In 1563 Ambroise Par
(1510-90) was appointed as the King's official surgeon after he had
successfully cured Charles' forearm from blood-letting injuries.
In the southwest of France monks were being killed and churches
pillaged in the autumn of 1561. In March 1562, Francis Scar Face of
Guise stumbled on some protestants worshipping in a barn and began
shooting. The protestants took this massacre as a declaration of war and
one of their leaders, admiral Gaspard de Coligny (1519-1572), managed
to acquire English troops and subsidies. Francis Scar Face and Anne
de Montmorency9 responded to this Protestant threat by taking the King
and Queen-mother prisoner, declaring that "if the King thought of
changing his religion, they would not hesitate to change their King".
Charles, sobbing bitterly, was lifted into a litter, while Catherine, trying
to maintain her composure, was put into another. They were taken to
Paris.

265

In Feburary 1563, Francis Scar Face was killed by a shot in the back
as he laid siege to Orlans. From then onwards, Catherine de Medici
tried to settle the civil war by compromise, but again and again new
hostilities broke out between the rivalling parties. This continuing
turmoil, pillage and economic instability was ruining France.
Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de Medici (to the right) had Charles, at the age of 13,
declare his majority before the Parliament of Rouen on August 17, 1563.
The next day, to show that he was Gods anointed, he touched for
Kings Evil and supposedly healed many sick persons. Henceforth,
Charles IX assumed official responsibility for his mothers acts,
continuing to refer all decisions to her. The Queen Mother, knowing how
entirely she possessed her son, did not care for his opinions, certain as
she was that she could change them in an instant.
One day, while Catherine was giving an audience to the papal nuncio,
Charles and a group of friends, dressed up as Cardinals, bishops and
abbots, and burst into the Queen Mothers chamber, riding a donkey.
Catherine had a good laugh, but the dismayed nuncio reported
everything back to Rome.
The Journey
The Queen Mother decided to go on a two-years progress through the
country with the King and the Court. The tour started with a magnificent
festival at Fontainebleau, where Charles staged a masked tournament
followed by jousts. The royal progress set off in March 1564. After a
few days, Charles came across a pig with a litter of newborn piglets.
When he picked one up to caress it, the pig attacked him. Charles,
enfuriated, brutally killed the pig. During their stay at Troyes, Charles,
as annointed King, touched the feet of some scrofulous. In Bar-le-Duc
he stood godfather at the baptism of the son of his sister Claude (15471575)10 and her husband, Duke Charles of Lorraine (1543-1608). The
royal party left Lyons in haste after a sudden outbreak of plague. At
Marseille, the young King and his courtiers took part in a mock naval
battle. The following winter was intensely cold, and at Carcassonne
Charles had a lot of fun in a snow fight.

266

In the summer of 1565, near the Spanish border, they met with
Catherines favourite daughter, Elisabeth, third wife of Philip II of
Spain11. Catherine inspired fear in all her children and even Elisabeth
once confessed that, whenever she got a letter from her mother, she
trembled before opening it. Catherine also had some interviews with the
hardliner Duke of Alba, Fernando Alvarez de Toledo. The meeting was
seen by the huguenots as a ploy to acquire Spanish troops to destroy
them12. In May 1567, Alba marched with an army from Genoa through
Savoy and then along the eastern frontier of France. Again, the
huguenots feared a Spanish invasion to destroy them, and soon decided
on some pre-emptive strikes, resulting in a battle against an army led by
Montmorency, who was fatally wounded13. Meanwhile, Alba had
arrived in The Netherlands and tried to stamp out Protestantism there,
starting the Eighty Years War.
Rivalry
The Venetian ambassador described Catherine de Medici at the age of
51: "No step, however unimportant, is taken without her. Scarcely has
she time to eat or drink or sleep, so great are her harassing cares. She
runs here and there between the armies, doing a mans work, without a
thought of sparing herself. Yet, she is loved by no one in the land."
As her sons were growing up, Catherines difficulties in managing them
increased. To the Spanish ambassador she confessed: "I no longer have
the same authority as I did. My sons are men now and I do not have the
controlling hand in affairs, which I once had." She had Charles younger
brother, Henry of Anjou, appointed as lieutenant general of the Realm
after Montmorencys death. Hitherto petted by his mother, Anjou got a
change to prove himself, when, in 1569, German mercenaries defiled
catholic churches, burning the bones of the Saintly King Louis IX and
the heart of King Francis I. At the Battle of Montconcour on October 3,
18-year-old Anjou defeated the Huguenot forces. The King was jealous
of his younger brothers brilliant success at the battlefield. Anjou had
always been Catherines favourite son14 and Catherine tried to bring
Charles to reason by constantly playing on his jealousy and fear of his
intelligent brother, whom he knew to be waiting impatiently to succeed
him.

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Anjou supported the Catholic cause, but as the Huguenot admiral

Coligny returned to Court, Charles gradually turned more and more to
him as his guide and friend, and even started calling him father.
Coligny was soon dominating the Royal Council and urging for war on
Spain to give aid to the Dutch protestants, because he knew Charles was
longing to outshine his brothers military glory. Charles insisted on
joining the army, and the court settled for a while near the front line,
until a new treaty was negotiated in August 1570.
Charles IX as an adult As he grew up, Charles IX (to the right) became
tall and physically strong, but his physical and mental problems
increased with his age. His body was supported by over-long, spindly
legs, and he could not walk altogether straight. His muscular arms hung
from bowed shoulders. His body grew weaker with each debilitating
crisis. Charles was far more emotional than reasonable and he was
mentally unbalanced to the point of insanity; he was prone to insane,
murderous anger. At any moment Charles could burst into sudden fits of
such maniacal rage that even the Queen Mother feared him. Only
Margot (1553-1616), his youngest sister, knew how to calm Charles
tantrums.
Charles excessive passion for the chase was, in part, an attempt to
exorcise murderous fantasies. He preferred to use the knife, because he
liked blood, and insisted on seeing the spurting blood of the stag.
However, mere hunting and field-sports did not satisfy his blood lust.
Charles had murderous bouts in which he amused himself by torturing
and dismembering domestic animals. He also liked lashing people till
they bled. When hunting was impossible, he would turn blacksmith and
would beat out weapons for his armoury until he was prostrate with
exhaustion.
Like his elder brother Francis, Charles became tubercular. In the summer
of 1568, he was fever-racked and grew progressively waker. He was
reaching the later stages of tuberculosis. By mid-august Charles had
made a slow recovery, although still looking frail and thin. Soon,
Charles fell ill again, suffering from high fevers. He was routinely bled,

268

causing an infection in his arm, whereupon a huge abcess developed.

Again, he recovered sufficiently to resume his tasks.
mistress Marie Touchet Early 1569, Charles IX fell in love with warm,
simple and honest Marie Touchet (to the right). His mother encouraged
the affair, because Marie was the one person at Court who cared for
Charles for himself. Marie provided the neurotic King with some peace
and understanding. When he stole away from the Louvre to her little
house, Charles went, so he said, "from Purgatory to Paradise".
On November 26, 1570, Charles married Elizabeth of Austria (15541592)15, a small, pretty, gentle and pious girl of 16. After the
consummation of his marriage, Charles boasted it resembled a "German
corset bloodied by a pistol shot". Soon, Charles loved both his wife and
his mistress. His mistress was also kind to his wife, respecting her piety
and approving of her habit to spend most of the night in prayer.
Elizabeth gave birth to a daughter, Marie-Elisabeth (1572-1578), who
died young. Marie gave Charles an illegitimate son, Charles de Valois
(1573-1650)16.
Margot's Wedding
Around 1570, Charles sister Margot was in love with Henry de Guise
(1550-1588) and they exchanged notes and letters through a lady-inwaiting. One night, the couple was discovered in an unused bedroom in
a far corridor of the Louvre. Guise escaped by the window, but the
encounter was reported to the King, who, hearing of it, rolled on the
floor, tearing his hair, screaming blasphemies and vowing to kill Guise
for his presumption. When his fit had spent itself, Charles burst into his
mothers room at 5 oclock in the morning, still wearing only his
nightgown. He demanded that his sister be sent for immediately. When
Margot entered the room, Charles savagely attacked her with his fists
and the poor Princess fell to the floor and fainted. His rage exhausted,
Charles flung out off the room, leaving his mother to repair the damage
he had done. For an hour, Catherine dressed Margots wounds, restored
her dress and rearranged her hair. Guise was soon married off to a rich
widow.

269

sister Margot The tension between Margot (to the right) and her mother
and brother increased when she was told she had to marry her relative
Henry of Bourbon (1553-1610), King of Navarre. Margot and Henry had
known each other during their growing-up and they didnt get along.
Margot took at least one bath a day, while Henry had even an aversion to
one bath a year, and always stank of garlic. For hours Margot lay crying,
stretched on a wooded coffer, while her mother alternately stormed and
coaxed. Margot remained silent for days.
Navarre was a protestant and the marriage was intended to unite the
protestant and catholic factions. To attend the wedding huguenots and
catholics invaded the capital, itself a hotbed of catholic fanatics. The
marriage took place on August 18, 1572, a stifling hot day, and was
performed in the open air. Margot was elaborately dressed, but, when the
Cardinal put her the question of her consent to have Navarre for her
husband, she did not reply. Spectators saw Guise gaze at her intently. As
she returned his look and still said nothing, her brother the King stepped
forward, and angrily pushed her head down in token of consent.
Henry of Anjou claimed that, in the days after the wedding, Charles IX
was "strangely moody and impatient, harsh in his manner and more so in
his replies". Catherine and Anjou became convinced that Coligny had set
up the King against them and they decided to get rid of him17. They
confided in the widow of the murdered Francis Scar Face, who
blamed Coligny for her husbands death, and a gunman was hired18. On
August 22, Coligny was shot, but as he accidentally bent down, he was
only wounded in the arm. Charles sent his own surgeon to the admiral.
Later, he went to Colignys bedside and embraced him with genuine
emotion, still calling hem mon pre. Soon, armed bands of huguenots
were parading through the city, demanding justice.
The next day, Catherine and Anjou spent 2 hours urging their case on 22year-old Charles, trying to convince him of a Huguenot plot with his
life and throne at stake. At last Catherine succeeded in averting
Charles vengeance on her by turning his wrath to the huguenots. As a
result of the emotional strain of Catherines insistence, Charles got a fit
of maniacal rage. His voice broke into a hysterical scream and a thin
foam of blood appeared on his lips as he gave his authorisation: "Kill the

270

admiral if you wish; but you must kill all the huguenots, so that not one
is left alive to reproach me. Kill the lot! Kill the lot! Kill the lot!"
With this licence to kill, the catholics slaughtered more than 7000
huguenots on August 24, 1572, St. Bartholomews Day. As the killings
were taking place, Charles joined in, taking shots at his fleeing
Huguenot subjects from one of the Palace windows. Coligny was
stabbed to death and his body was tossed out onto the street. Henry of
Navarre owned his life to his temporary conversion to the Catholic
faith19. In the following weeks, the massacres spread to the southern
provinces.
Death
Gradually, Charles IX became maddened by his infirmities both in body
and mind. His rages became so violent that courtiers genuinely feared
for their lives. Eventually, attacks of complete dementia would seize the
King. By the end of 1573, his health was failing rapidly, although he
lingered on for months. He was in extreme pain, but remained clear and
coherent to the end. In his last days, he produced a constant bloody
sweat. He was in great physical and mental agony. According to
Huguenot propaganda, Charles fancied in his delirium that he was
surrounded by the blood of the huguenots he had ordered to be slain. In
his dying confession, however, Charles IX showed remorse for all his
sins, but made no mention of St. Bartholomews Day. He finally
succumbed to tuberculosis on May 30, 1574, dying quietly in his sleep.
He was not quite 24 years old.
Copyright 2008-2012 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Footnotes
1 When Henry II was 12 years old, his father had entrusted his
education to the widowed Diane de Poitiers. Although she was 20 years
his senior, she later became Henrys mistress and was to remain in his
affection until his death.
2 In his youth Henry II had been a hostage in Spain, while Catherine
had been an orphan.

271

3 From his first marriage with his cousin, Maria Manuela of Portugal
(1527-1545), Philip II of Spain had a mad son, Don Carlos (1545-1568).
4 As a widow, Mary Queen of Scots married her cousin, Henry Stuart
of Lennox (1545-1567) and gave birth to James I & VI of England and
Scotland (1566-1625).
5 Mary Queen of Scots was a daughter of Mary of Guise (1515-1560)
and James V of Scotland. The Guises were a younger branch of the
family of the Dukes of Lorraine.
6 In battle a lance had pierced Francis cheek. His son Henry (15501588) later acquired a similar scar and nickname in the battle of
Dormans.
7 Charles brother Henry of Anjou, later Henry III of France, was
originally known as Edouard-Alexandre, but later he changed his name
to Henry.
8 The sores, infections, and, fits of dementia may have been caused by
congenital syphilis, although thats not likely in this case.
9 To complicate things, Coligny was a nephew of Montmorency.
10 Claude was as misshapen as her namesake grandmother.
11 By order of Philip II protestants were excluded from the meeting.
12 News arrived from Florida in January 1566 of French protestants
being massacred there by Spanish troops.
13 In March 1569, the protestant Duke Louis of Cond, a little
hunchback with considerable military skill, who belonged to a distant
branche of the French royal family, was taken prisoner and savagely
murdered.
14 Haldane suggests that Catherines obsessive love for her son Henry
was a result of her own sexual frustrations; in every other respect her
coolly calculating mind successfully controlled her feelings, but that
Catherine was secretly dominated by this passion.
15 Elizabeth of Austria was a sister of Maria Anna (1549-1580), the 4th
wife and niece of Philip II of Spain. His 4th marriage gave Philip II his
son Philip III, the grandfather of the inbred King Carlos II (1661-1700).
16 Charles de Valois was married in 1591 to Charlotte de
Montmorency (1636). Their granddaughter, Marie Franziska, married
Louis de Guise 1622-1654), and had a son Louis Joseph (1650-1671),

272

who married Elisabeth of France (1646-1696), a granddaughter of King

Henry IV.
17 In May 1569 Coligny had already been poisoned, but he recovered.
His younger brother, however, died of it.
18 Erlanger suggests that Catherine de Medici wanted the Guises to
murder Coligny and then Colignys adherents to murder De Guise thus
eliminating the leaders of both parties.
19 In 1589, after the death of Henry of Anjou, Henry of Navarra was to
become King Henry IV of France, again converting to the catholic faith.
His marriage with Margot remained childless and Henry divorced her to
marry Marie de' Medici.
Bibliography
Williamson, H.R.: Catherine de' Medici, The Viking Press, New York,
1973
Knecht, R.J.: The Valois, Kings of France 1328-1569, Hambledon and
London
Frieda, L.: Catherine de' Medici (A Biography), Weidenfeld & Nicolson,
2003
Castries, Duc de: (The lives of) The Kings and Queens of France, Alfred
A. Knopf, 1979
Kent-Reibnitz, M.Ch. of: The Serpent and the Moon (Two rivals for the
love of a Renaissance King), A Touchstone Book, 2004
Haldane, Ch.: Queen of Hearts (Marguerite of Valois), Constable
London, 1968
Erlanger, Ph.: De Bartholomeusnacht (24 augustus 1572), Hollandia
N.V., 1963
Law, J.: Fleur de Lys, The Kings & Queens of France, McGraw-Hill
Book Company, 1976
Roeder, R.: Catherine de Medici and the lost revolution, Second
Abridged Edition, Vintage Books, 1964
Williamson, D.: Kings and Queens of Europe, Webb & Bower, 1988
Cleugh, J.: The Medici (A tale of fifteen generations), Dorset Press,
1990

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Strathern, P.: The Medici (Godfathers of the Renaissance), Jonathan

Cape, 2003
Fraser, A.: Mary Queen of Scots, Panther, 1971
Carroll, S.: Martyrs and Murderers (The Guise Family and the Making
of Europe), Oxford University Press, 2009
Dijk, R.C. van, Cramer, M.J.M.: Van barbier-chirurgijn tot koninklijk
chirurg Amboise Par (1519-1590) en vier Franse koningen, in: Op het
lijf geschreven (Bekendheden en hun lijfarts), Boom|Belvdre, 1995
Melchior-Bonnet, S.: Chteaux of the Loire, Librairie Larousse, 1987
Thiele, A.: Erzhlende genealogische Stammtafeln zur europischen
Geschichte, Band II, Teilband 1, Europische Kaiser-, Knigs- und
Frstenhuser I, Westeuropa, R.G. Fischer Verlag, 2001
Wikipedia: The Guise Family
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Marie Louise of Orlans (1695-1719) has often been described as The
French Messalina. She was an ill-mannered teenager who indulged in
all sorts of pleasures offered at the glittering court of the French Sun
King. Behind that faade, however, one can find an unhappy young
girl. Completely ignored by her mother from birth, Marie Louise was
forced to grow up fast. Married at the age of 14, she became 5 times
pregnant, but none of her children survived more than a few weeks.
The story of Marie Louise starts in 1692, when her illustrious
grandfather, Louis XIV The Sun King of France (1638-1715), shocked
society by giving his illegitimate daughter, Franoise Marie, in marriage
to his legitimate nephew, Prince Philip II of Orlans.
Marie Louises mother, Franoise Marie (1677-1749)1, was proud, lazy
and egoistic. She spoke slowly with an abominable pronunciation. Her

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head shook continually and one of her shoulders was higher than the
other, giving her a slight limp. Philip II of Orlans Between 1693 and
1716, she gave birth to 7 daughters and 1 son, but she made no effort at
all to discipline them properly. She didn't care about her children and
found it too fatiguing to have them around. Once, when the Sun King
reproached Franoise Marie for the behaviour of her eldest daughter, she
answered him: I do not know her any better than your Majesty does, for
I have never taken any part in my children's education.
Marie Louises father, Philip II of Orlans (1674-1723), was witty,
intelligent and talented, but the jealous Sun King had made sure that he
had few opportunities to use his talents. Frustrated and self-indulgent,
Philip filled his days with debauchery. His mother, Liselotte of The Palts
(1652-1722), wrote: He is quite crazy about women. Provided they are
good-tempered, indelicate, great eaters and drinkers, he troubles little
about their looks. He liked to shock; he refused to hide his womanising
and was a confessed atheist. In addition, he was so foul-mouthed that his
wife was ashamed to invite people to diner. Still, he was a loving father
to his elder children.
The couple's eldest daughter died as a baby in October 1694. On August
20, 1695, Marie Louise Elisabeth2 was born. At the age of 6, Marie
Louise became so ill that the physicians gave up on her. Eventually they
even thought that she was dead. In despair, her father threw out the
quacks and personally nursed his little girl back to health. From then on
he spoiled her tremendously. She was too indisciplined ever to learn to
dance, but she could sing and had a talent for mimicry. Marie Louise
came out hunting with the King for the first time in November 1704.
At the age of 14, she had her own little court of ladies at the PalaisRoyal. At the same time, her ambitious mother was already scheming to
arrange a marriage for her with the 23-year-old Prince Charles (16861714), Duke of Berry. The Sun King, their grandfather3, first objected to
the marriage, fearing that chubby Marie Louise would not be able to
conceive. For a whole year, Marie Louise laced herself very tightly,
scarcely ate and did exercises. As a result, her waist diminished and the
marriage was decided upon. It took place in July 1710 in the brand new

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Chapel at Versailles. On Marie Louise's wedding day, her heartless

mother quarrelled with her, because her father had given her diamond
earrings for her wedding that her mother had wanted to wear.
The bridegroom was a gay young man, but he was not very bright. His
main interests were riding, shooting, playing cards and eating well.
Liselotte of The Palts wrote: He would not be so silly if he had not been
brought up in such ignorance; but he knows nothing whatever. Proud
Marie Louise detested him and was sure to let him know it. At court she
was always squabbling about etiquette and rank. She was several times
reprimand for it by the Sun King. In 1711, at the age of 15, Marie Louise
experienced her first troublesome pregnancy. Custom demanded she
remained lying down the whole day and as a result Marie Louise became
very irritable. Her husband did his best to appease her, but he was not
very successful and had to endure terrible scenes. Philip of Orlans
would call on her every day and then spend several hours with her. It
was around that time that the - never proven - rumours about an
incestuous love affair between father and daughter started. In July, the
Court left Marly for Fontainebleau and, despite the advice of the Court
physician, the Sun King demanded that pregnant Marie Louise travelled
with the court to Fontainebleau. During the journey, she became very ill,
but was forced to continue her journey. Then her boat ran into the
foundations of a bridge and broke in two. Marie Louise was badly
shaken. The baby girl she bore died within a few hours.
Marie Louise of Orlans If she wished, Marie Louise could be agreeable
and amiable, but she had a violent temperament and her pride was
immense. After the death of her brother-in-law in 1712, Marie Louise
and her husband became first in rank after the King4. Subsequently, her
moods improved. Again pregnant, her waters broke after 7 months. In an
exhausting 3-day confinement, Marie Louise gave birth to a son and
heir, who died 2 weeks later. The King now treated her affectionately
and even lent her the Crown Jewels for the festivities of the betrothals of
the Princes of Cond and Conti. Marie Louise's clothes were of the
richest fabrics, covered with emeralds, rubies and diamonds. She was an

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excellent musician and sang with talent. The chase was her principal
diversion, but she was also very fond of feasting, gambling and eating.
Around that time Marie Louise is described by her grandmother,
Liselotte of The Palts, as: Berry is madder and more impertinent than
ever.
At first, the weak Prince Charles was not much troubled by Marie
Louise's violent temper, extravagant caprices and free ways. He tried to
love his wife, but he could hardly ever see her. She hunted in the
mornings and afterwards busied with her toilette. Whenever she had a
few spare moments, she gave them to her father. Often, she spent hours
with him alone. Philip II of Orlans was a talented painter and once
painted his daughter in the nude. Over the years the rumours of incest
increased and could not be silenced5. A pamphleteer6 even accused
Marie Louise of being pregnant of her fathers child. Liselotte of The
Palts wrote: My son and his daughter are so much attached to each
other, that unfortunately it makes people say vile things about them.
Obstinate and passionate, Marie Louise often behaved brutally and
haughty towards her father and sometimes treated him worse than a
servant, but he continued to tolerate every whim of his eldest daughter.
Charles became furiously jealous of the father-daughter relationship.
The Duke of Saint-Simon7 wrote about Marie Louise: Her arrogance
bordered on folly, and she was capable of the lewdest indecencies. [..]
She did all she could to make M. the Duke of Berry, who was genuinely
pious and completely honest, give up religion. [..] She lost no time in
having affairs, which were conducted so indiscreetly, that he soon found
out about them. Her daily and interminable sessions with M. the Duke of
Orlans, where it was clear that he [Berry] was not wanted, put him in a
rage. [..] At each of the many informal meals she took, she became dead
drunk, and threw up whatever she had eaten.
In November, 1713, Charles of Berry had become fed-up with his wife's
tantrums, and began an affair with her chambermaid8. In reaction, Marie
Louise took as her lover one of her husband's equerries, La Haye, known
at Court as Monsieur Tout-Prt. He was well built and a good

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horseman, but, according to contemporaries, he was more body than

brain. His wife's indiscretions made Berry so angry that he once kicked
her, and threatened to have her confined in a convent. Continually, the
couple had public battles and shamefaced interviews with the Sun King.
Then, on April 26, 1714, Charles fell from his horse, while he was out
hunting. He was purged by the doctors, and vomited a good deal of
blood and "black matter", before he expired on May 4. Marie Louise had
become a widow at the age of 18. She didn't regret the loss of her
husband, but raged at falling from the position of first lady in France to
that of an unwanted widow. Marie Louise remained in bed, ordering her
whole apartment to be decorated in black, and all the windows to remain
closed. Again pregnant, she was ill in April and May. A girl was born
prematurely in July. She lived for only 12 hours.
Luxembourg Palace Upon the death of the Sun King in 1715, the Duke
of Orlans became regent of France. From then onwards, Marie Louise
lost her last inhibitions and devoted her life to excess. She asked her
father to give her the Luxembourg Palace as a residence. He granted the
request and at once Marie Louise ordered her mother and grandmother
to leave the palace. She appointed her current lover, the Marquis of
Roye9, as captain of her newly formed guards.
Childless and undisciplined, Marie Louise became her fathers
companion in vice. She gambled recklessly and once lost 180.000 livres
in one game. She adored drunkenness and became an alcohol addict with
a preference for geneva. Her father came to dine with her lovers at the
Luxembourg Palace, while she went to the Palais-Royal to sup with his
mistresses. She also took part in his infamous suppers. They were
attended only be his intimate friends, who cooked and served
themselves. During the evening the conversation sparkled like the wine
in their glasses. An evening could also feature nude dancers from the
Opera, who staged orgies of the classical past. All intimates had
nicknames for each other and Marie Louise was called Princess
Chubby. She ate enormously and was extremely fat10 at the age of 20.
As soon as she awoke in the morning all sorts of things were brought to

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her to eat. She would rise at 12 o'clock and eat until three, then return to
her apartment, where she rested, lying on a couch. At 4 o'clock fruit,
cream and salads were served to her. She never went to bed before 2
o'clock. She disliked exercise except hunting, and, like her mother, she
was extremely lazy.
Marie Louise was first at all the court festivities. She had her apartments
and carriage decorated in white and silver. Later she changed everything
to gold. In 1718, she gave a famous ball at the Luxembourg Palace in
honour of her aunt Elisabeth Charlotte, the Duchess of Lorraine. Its
splendour surpassed anything of the kind previously seen. She served
132 hors-d'oeuvrs, 32 soups, 60 entres, 130 hot entremets, 60 cold
entremets, 72 plats ronds, 82 pigeons, 370 partridges and pheasants and
126 sweetbreads. The dessert consisted of 100 baskets of fresh fruit, 94
baskets of dried fruit, 50 dishes of fruits glaces and 106 compotes. One
night Marie Louise and 2 other young women enacted for her guests the
"Judgement of Paris", all three stark naked. Her confessor attended her
suppers regulary, because, Marie Louise said, she found it less
embarrassing to exhibit her sins than to confess them.
Marie Louise's may have suffered from the eating disorder bulimia
nervosa. It probably started during her adolescence after the period of
intense dieting which enabled her to marry Charles of Berry. The
supposed association between corpulence and infertility and the deaths
of all Marie Louise's children shortly after birth may have increased an
obsession with her chubby body. She clearly had periods of
gormandising or "binge eating" and became extremely fat. Like many
girls with bulimia, Marie Louise preferred food with a soft texture, like
fruit, cream and salads. Binges usually begin with feelings of unbearable
tension and irritability. Afterwards, bulimics usually suffer from feelings
of self-reproach and depression. The Duke of Saint-Simon described
how, at informal meals, Marie Louise threw up whatever she had eaten.
From 1716 onwards, Marie Louise's behaviour gradually changed. She
had fallen desperately in love with a Gascon lieutenant, Armand dAydie

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(1692-1741), Count of Riom11. He was short and fat, had a yellowish

face with pimples12 and was neither clever, nor amusing, but he seems
to have been hugely endowed13. In July 1716, Marie Louise bought the
post of Colonel of the Soissonais regiment for him. She supposedly
married Armand d'Aydie secretly in the autumn14. He bullied her
around, but his behaviour merely added fuel to Marie Louise's passion.
Gradually, the haughty Princess became the Count's slave. Every
morning, she would send messages to him asking what he would like her
to wear, and, when she obediently dressed according to his orders, he
would make her change everything again. He made her constantly suffer
his caprices, and even deprived her of her freedom. She became
neurotic, was afraid of dying and often wept. In public, she behaved
sweet and humble, regularly visited church and seemed devoted to God.
In June 1717, her grandmother wrote: She gives me all possible marks
of friendship, and often shows me such politeness that I am moved by
it. Marie Louise's life had begun alternating between unconstrained
excesses and religious mania. When she was troubled by remorse, as in
December 1716, she used to retread to a Carmelite convent, where she
fasted rigidly, prayed, flogged herself, and rose during the night to recite
with the nuns. After a while, however, she would put her rosaries aside
and return to the Court and its pleasures.
Her father, the regent, forbade the couple to mention the scandalous
marriage to anybody. When Liselotte of The Palts, having heard some
rumours, asked Marie Louise about it, she replied: Can you believe me
capable of such a stupid move, I, who am accused of such intense
pride?". Soon, Marie Louise became pregnant by her lover. Her father
was furious, because Marie Louise hadn't properly concealed her
pregnancy. Princess Chubby continued to eat and drink unlimited
quantities. Early 1719, she became seriously ill. The religious authorities
refused to administer the last sacraments, as long as the Count of Riom
was in the palace, but to give in would seem like a confession and thus
result in a scandal. Marie Louise, in agony, refused to comply. After a
few days, her father, the regent, found a way out of the impasse by
commanding Armand d'Aydie to join his regiment in Spain. After the

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birth of a daughter15 on March 28, Marie Louise slowly recovered, but

her health had been fatally undermined.
The regent's visits to his daughter were now rare, short and stormy.
Trying to make amends, Marie Louise organised a supper on the terrace
at Meudon in her father's honour, but she caught a chill from the night
air. Afterwards, she remained ill with fevers. Throughout May her ilness
increased. Liselotte of The Palts wrote: She had such an atrocious pain
in the soles and toes of both feet that she cried. By July, she was again
at the point of death. She lost consciousness, recovering it but slightly, at
long intervals, and only for a few moments. She died at midnight on July
20, 1719, shortly after her 24th birthday. Post-mortem indicated a fifth
pregnancy, a diseased liver, and a supposedly deranged brain. Her
fathers grief was unendurable16. The Duke of Saint-Simon wrote: He
[..] wept so much that I feared he would suffocate. When his great
explosion of grief had subsided a little, he began to talk about the
misfortunes of this world, and of the short duration of what is most
agreeable. He died 4 years later.
Copyright 2001, 2007, 2009 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Franoise Marie's mother and Marie Louise's grandmother was
Franoise-Athnas (1641-1707), Marquise de Montespan, the notorious
mistress of the Sun King.
2 Her full name was Marie Louise Elisabeth. She is best known as La
Duchesse de Berry and Mademoiselle de Chartres. She is also
described as both Marie Louise" and Louise Elisabeth. To distinguish
her from her younger sister Louise Elisabeth (1709-1742), I call her
Marie Louise.
3 Marie Louise and Charles of Berry were closely related. Charles'
father, the Grand Dauphin, was a halfbrother of Marie Louise's mother
and a cousin of Marie Louise's father. In addition, Charles' mother and

281

Marie Louise's paternal grandmother belonged to different branches of

the Wittelsbach family.
4 Another brother had become King Philip V of Spain.
5 Marie Louise's sister Adlade (1698-1743) was also rumoured to be
her father's mistress. She became an abbes, but her abbey was described
as a palace of delight.
6 The pamphleteer was the young Franois Marie Arouet, who later
became known as "Voltaire".
7 Louis de Rouvroy (1675-1755), Duke of Saint-Simon, was a friend of
Philip II of Orlans, while his wife was Marie Louise's lady-in-waiting.
8 After Berry's death the chambermaid bore a posthumous chaild, and
Marie Louise was to maintain both mother and child until the end of her
own life.
9 Louis de la Rochefoucault (1672-1751) was known as the Marquis
de Roye.
10 Bulimia Nervosa usually begins in adolescence between 15 and 19
years of age after a period of intense dieting. Although many girls with
bulimia have a normal weight, other bulimic individuals become
overweight as a result of their binge eating.
11 Antoine Nompar de Puyguilhem (1632-1723), Duke of Lauzun, had
spent 10 years in a fortress for wanting to marry the Sun King's cousin.
His nephews, Armand and Blaise-Marie d'Aydie, both became the
Duchess of Berry's lovers.
12 Armand's face was so covered with pimples that it looked like an
abscess.
13 According to Liselotte of The Palts, Armand soll wie ein Esel
geschaffen sein.
14 The Sun King and the Grand Dauphin had also contracted secret
marriages.
15 The daughter by Riom either died shortly after birth, or became a
non at Pontoise. The sources disagree.
16 Her mother hadn't even bothered to visit Marie Louise during her
final illness.
Bibliography

282

Soissons, Cnt de: Six Great Princesses, Holden & Hardingham

Pevitt, Ch.: The man who would be King (The Life of Philippe
d'Orlans, Regent of France), Quill, 1997
Mitford, N.: The Sun King, Book Club Associates, 1969
Shennan, J.H.: Philip Duke of Orlans (Regent of France 1715-1723),
Thames and Hudson, 1979
Lewis, W.H.: The Scandalous Regent (A Life of Philippe, Duc d'Orlans
1674-1723 and his family), Andre Deutsch, 1961
Lebigre, A.: Liselotte van de Palts, original title: La Princesse Palatine,
Hadewijch, 1990
Mangan, J.J.: The King's Favour (Three eighteenth-century monarchs
and the favourites who ruled them), Part II: The Fishes' Daughter, Alan
Sutton, 1991
Burke's Royal Families of the World, Burke, 1980
Willis, D.: The Descendants of Louis XIII (Genealogy), Clearfield, 1999
Cromer, R.J.: Abnormal Psychology, W.H. Freeman and Company, 1995
Herold, J.Ch.: Love in five temperaments, Hamish Hamilton, 1961
Last modified: 08/20/2013 16:13:26. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
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Through the centuries many popes displayed distinct unchristian
behaviour. Only one of them, however, showed such erratic behaviour
that he became generally known as "The Mad Pope". His papal name
was Urban VI, but he was born in Naples as Bartolomeo Prignano
(1318-1389). He was a quarrelsome man, who had his own cardinals
tortured and brutally murdered. His election had ended the Papal Exile
(1306-1376), but his capricious ways resulted in the Great Schism
(1378-1417).

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In the 14th century, French popes ruled from Avignon in France. Pope
Gregory XI (1329-1378), however, was pressed by mystic Catherina of
Siena to return to Rome, and finally entered the city on January 17,
1377. One of the bureaucrats in his following was Bartolomeo Prignanao
(1318-1389), archbishop of Bari. He was the assistant of the vicechancellor of the curia. In those days, the church had devised a fiscal
apparatus for a continent-wide extraction of gold. All related documents
passed at some stage through Prignano's hands. At 58, he had reached
the highest bureaucratic level available for a man without connections.
In February, a papal representative, Roberto Visconti of Geneva (1394),
ordered a massacre in Cesena, murdering 4000 citizens. The consequent
fury against the pope in Rome was so great that Gregory XI fled to
Anagni, where he died on March 27, 1378. In Rome a conclave met to
elect a new pope. Most of the cardinals were French, but there were
fervid demonstrations in the streets of Rome, demanding the election of
an Italian pope. When a mob broke into the Vatican, an elderly Roman
cardinal, Francisco Tebaldeschi (1298-1378), was dressed in the
pontifical robes and presented to the crowds. The old man became
hysterical, raved of devils, and cursed everyone. Meanwhile, the
rivalling fractions of the curia opted for a compromise candidate and
elected Bartolomeo Prignano as pope. They all knew him as an effective
regent of the papal chancery. On the morning of April 9, Prignano was
formally proclaimed pope with the name "Urban VI".
Bartolomeo Prignano was a short, plump man with heavy features, who
spoke with a thick Neapolitan accent. He had a genuine piety; he
periodically hungered and used to wear a penitential garment. Born a
pauper in the back alleys of Naples, his unexpected election may have
unhinged his mind. At his coronation feast, Urban drank much more than
any of his cardinals and he had to be restrained from physically
assaulting one of them. Soon he emerged as an arrogant, cantankerous
and violent man. His personal assistant and only trustee was Dietrich
von Niem, an earnest and solid man, who had already been with him in
the Avignon days.

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Urban's first official meeting with his cardinals was disastrous. His
primary goal was to put an end to the luxurious lives of the "Princes of
the Church". Each cardinal was singled out for an attack in foul
language with taunting remarks on his behaviour. Urban called the
aforementioned Roberto Visconti a "bandit", and yelled at another
cardinal to shut up. Pope Clement VII, The Butcher of Cesena His
charges were justified, but it was his manner of saying it, that offended
everyone. While trying to achieve his goals, Urban was unbelievable
tactless, unreasonable and inflexible. He even delivered abusive tirades
against important diplomatic representatives. Sometimes, he appeared
almost gentle, but at other times, the least opposition would result into
violent outbursts of rage.
The heat of early May afforded the dissatisfied cardinals a pretext for
leaving Rome for Anagni. In the next months, Urban refused all
reconciliation attempts. In a single day, he raised 29 new cardinals to the
purple, four of whom refused to accept the honour. In August, the old
cardinals issued a statement that Urban's election "had been made under
threat of external force and was thus invalid". On September 20, they
proceeded to elect another pope, the "Butcher of Cesena", Roberto
Visconti (to the right). He was a notoriously brutal soldier, but also a
relative of both the Duke of Savoy and the King of France. Roberto took
the name "Clement VII". In april 1379 Urban's troops won the Battle of
Merino and secured Rome. Clement retreated to Avignon, where he lived
in luxury, surrounded by beautiful mistresses and page boys. He was
recognised by France, Scotland, Burgundy and Savoy, while Urban was
backed by England, Scandinavia and most of Germany and Italy. The
pope and antipope were effectively at war with their armies, rival
colleges of cardinals, and bulls of excommunication, directed against
each other. The situation became known as the "Great Schism" with,
from 1409 onwards, even 3 rival popes, including a former pirate.
Queen Giovanna I of Naples The Neapolitan Urban had initially
received support from the notorious, but charming Queen Giovanna I of
Naples (1327-1382, to the right). When he grossly insulted her husband,
the Queen decided to favour the anti-pope. Urban declared her deposed.

285

He financially supported the claim of her second cousin, Charles of

Durazzo (1345-1386). In Avignon, anti-pope Clement supported a rival
claimant of Napels, the French Prince Louis (1339-1384), Duke of
Anjou, whom Queen Giovanna adopted as heir. While Louis was still
engaged in France, Charles besieged Naples. The generous Giovanna
gave shelter to all who desired it, resulting in a shortage of food. She
surrendered to Charles; but, while she knelt in prayer, he had her
strangled. Pope Urban soon fell out with the new King Charles, too,
because he did not fulfil his promises towards Urban's nephew,
Francesco Prignano, a fat man of gross pleasures.
Although the Romans were still quarrelsome, Urban VI decided to leave
Rome and go to Naples in person, taking the entire curia with him. On
arrival in the city, he was imprisoned for a few days and thereafter
ignored by the King. During the spring and summer, relations between
Urban and Charles grew steadily worse. The Neapolitans became even
hostile, when Urban's nephew abducted a noblewoman from a nunnery
and abused her under the protection of papal swords. Francesco was
already in his 40th year, but Urban forgivingly remarked "he is but a
youth". To escape both the political and actual heat, the pope took his
entourage to the small town of Nocera near the sea.
Urban placed Naples under an interdict and announced his intention to
make his nephew its King. In reaction, King Charles sent an army to
besiege them at Nocera. Three or four times a day, the pope used to
appear at one of the windows to rave curses at the army below,
excommunicating every man in it, while miraculously escaping the
shower of arrows that greeted every appearance. By then, Urban's
mental liability was such that 6 of his cardinals sought to place him
under a council of regency. Urban found out, and had them arrested. The
cardinals were confined, brutally mistreated and tortured, while the
pope's nephew stood by, smiling.
After nearly 5 months, the castle of Nocera was finally relieved by
Urbanists. The pope and his entourage managed to escape, taking the
captive cardinals with them. One of them was put to death at the roadside. The Urbanists struggled across the entire width of Italy to a port on

286

the Adriatic, where hired galleys brought them to Genoa. There they
remained for 18 months. The doge soon bitterly regretted that he had
ever offered asylum to the pope, while the Genoese were appalled by
Urban's treatment of his cardinals. On December 15, 1386, Urban
ordered the death of the captive cardinals - either buried alive or stuffed
into sacks and thrown into the sea. Only one of them, Adam Easton, was
kept alive, because his cause was championed by the English King.
The morning after the murders, Urban sailed to Lucca. In August, he
proclaimed a "crusade" against Naples, which had fallen into the hands
of the Clementines after the murder of King Charles in February 1386.
In September, the pope set out for Perugia, where he remained till
August, 1388. He tried to recruit soldiers for a new campaign to conquer
his native country. When the soldiers didn't receive their pay, they
deserted him. Urban raged in vain. For the first time, doubts and fears
beset the usually courageous pope. He had hallucinations in which the
apostle Peter appeared to him and sternly pointed the way to Rome. Sick
in body and spirit, Urban VI returned in a litter to the Vatican.
Back in Rome, Urban crushed a revolt against his authority. In the midst
of seething discontent, he ruled for another year. Daily, he became more
estranged from the older members of the curia. He fixed the interval
between the jubilees at thirty-three years (the length of Jesus' life), the
first of which was to be celebrated the next year, 1390. But Urban did
not live to open it. His death on October 15, 1389, came as a general
relief. Many believed that Urban VI had been poisoned by angry
Romans.
Copyright 2004 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Pope Urban VI
Bibliography
Chamberlin, E.R.: The Bad Popes, Barnes & Noble, 1993

287

Maxwell-Stuart, P.G.: Chronicle of the Popes (The Reign-by-Reign

Record of the Papacy from St. Peter to the Present), Thames and
Hudson, 1997.
Walsh, M.J. (ed.): Lives of the popes (Illustrated Biographies of Every
Pope from St. Peter to the present), Salamander Books Ltd, 1998
Williams, G.L.: Papal Genealogy (The Families and Descendants of the
Popes), McFarland, 1998.
McBrien, R.P.: De Pausen (Van Petrus tot Johannes Paulus II),
English title: Lives of the Popes (The Pontiffs from St. Peter to John
Paul II), Gottmer, 1997
Cawthorne, N.: Sex Lives of the Popes, Prion, 1997
Nuyens, J.F.: Geschiedenis der Pausen, De Pelgrim, 1949
Hollis, Ch. (ed.): De geschiedenis der Pausen (Van Petrus tot Paulus VI),
Elsevier, 1964
Bernhart, J.: De Drievoudige Kroon (Het Vaticaan in de
Wereldgeschiedenis), De Fontein,
Pope Urban VI, in: The Catholic Encyclopedia,
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15216a.htm, 2003
Louda, J., MacLagan, M.: Lines of Succession (Heraldry of the Royal
Families of Europe), Orbis Publishing, 1981
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Within the notorious Visconti family, the brothers Giovanni Maria
(1388-1412) and Filippo Maria Visconti (1392-1447) stood out for their
cruelty. Giovanni Maria didnt interfere in state affairs, as long as he
could let his ferocious dogs take care of criminals. His fits of temper
often resulted in mass executions. Filippo Maria, on the other hand,
screamed with terror at the sight of a bare sword. He was pathologically
suspicious. mother Caterina Visconti

288

Filippo Maria was born in Milan on September 23, 1392 as the youngest
son of Gian Galeazzo Visconti (1351-1402) and Caterina Visconti
(1360-1404, to the right). His parents were first cousins; Caterina was a
daughter of Gian Galeazzos uncle Barnabo Visconti (1323-1385). The
marriage had united the Visconti lands.
Filippo was 10 year old, when his father died of the plague, and his elder
brother, Giovanni Maria, became Duke of Milan. The regency was
headed by their mother, Caterina1. One of the members of the regency
council, Francesco Barbavara of Novara, became Caterinas lover, but
the other members of the council didnt appreciate their relationship. In
1404, a revolt broke out and the two brothers were seized. Their mother
was imprisoned and poisoned. Afterwards, the condottieri Facino Cane
(1350-1412) became regent. He used to keep his troops loyal by
allowing them pillage and rapine.
brother Giovanni Maria Visconti As long as Giovanni Maria (to the
right) kept his nose out of state affairs, he could do what he liked with
prisoners of the state. Like his maternal grandfather, Giovanni Maria
loved dogs and the chase. One of his delights was to throw state
criminals - even children - to dogs, that were especially trained to tear
them into bits and eat their flesh. The accused was given a few minutes
head-start, and a promise of freedom should he escape, but nobody ever
escaped. It was even rumoured that Giovanni Maria took out a few dogs
in the dark of night to hunt down stray wanderers in the streets of Milan.
Giovanni Maria was very impatient and, during in his reign, executions
became hurried affairs. His fits of temper often resulted in mass
executions. Once, when the people of Milan were outside the palace
yelling peace, peace, he sent out his mercenaries to slaughter a couple
of hundred of them. Subsequently, the words war and peace2 were
forbidden. Giovanni Maria even changed the church service from give
us peace to give us tranquillity.
As a younger son, Filippo Maria was send to the castle of Padua. As he
grew up, he became a nervous and superstitious young man. His

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youthful pastimes were football and volleyball, dice, chess and the
Homeric game of knucklebones. Cards were his great love.
wife Beatrice di Tenda In the spring of 1412, the regent, Facino Cane,
was struck with a fatal illness. On May 16, Giovanni Maria was stabbed
to death at the door of a church. Francesco Carmagnola Bussone
(1385-1432), a condottieri, secured the duchy of Milan for 19-year-old
Filippo Maria. One of Filippo Maria's first acts as Duke was to have his
brothers murderers tortured and executed. To acquire Facino Canes
fortune, Filippo Maria married his widow, Beatrice Balbo Lascaris of
Tenda (1372-1418, to the right), who was more than 10 years his senior.
Soon, however, Filippo tired of his elder wife. When a page was said to
have been sitting near his wifes bed, the Duke had both the page and his
wife tortured. The page, Michele Orombello, confessed, but Beatrice
protested her innocence to the end. Nevertheless, Filippo declared her
guilty and had her and her maids executed. In 1425, Filippos mistress,
Agnese del Maino, gave birth to a daughter, Bianca Maria. Two years
later, Filippo married Maria of Savoy (1469). When a dog howled
during their wedding night, Filippo had Maria imprisoned.
Filippo Maria lived in seclusion in the red fortress of Porta Giovia in
Milan, refusing to receive visitors. He even refused to see the Emperor
Sigismond on his visit to Milan. Dreading death, Filippo screamed with
terror at the sight of a bare sword. Like his father, Filippo was terrified
of thunderstorms and used to hide from them under bedclothes. He used
to change rooms several times a night and always slept sideways across
the bed. Filippo was cruel, treacherous, cowardly, shy and superstitious.
He is described as repulsively ugly and grossly fat with a receding
chin, snub nose, a bull neck and deformed feet and legs. He had to lean
on a staff or page to rise from his seat. Despite his protruding eyes,
Filippo Maria was nearly blind.
Filippo Maria reigned successfully for 30 years. He once said: I care
less for my body than my soul, but I put my government before body or
soul. He employed the best generals and waged many successful wars,

290

without ever seeing a battle. Carmagnola defeated the Swiss in 1422.

Subsequently, the harbour of Genoa was conquered. In 1435, the
Genoese fleet captured King Alfonso of Aragon and Sicily (1394-1458)
and his brother. Filippo received them courteously in Milan. He arranged
that their captivity was a pleasant one and saw much of them. Soon,
Alfonso managed to convince him that they could better be allies.
Filippo Maria released his prisoner and returned his ships to him.
Daughter Bianca Maria Visconti
Francisco Sforza (1401-1466), one of the greatest condottieri of his time,
fought for Milan in the Romagna. In the period 1428-30, he had been
imprisoned by Filippo, but in 1433 they reconciled and Francisco3 was
engaged to Filippos 8-year-old daughter, Bianca Maria. Filippo
postponed the marriage, because he feared Sforzas ambition. Although
Sforza was more than 20 years her senior, Bianca Maria (to the right)
refused 2 other offers of marriage, because she preferred Francisco. His
charm was great, and his eloquence and powers of persuasion were
proverbial. They were finally married in October 14414. Two years later,
Bianca Maria gave birth to a son, called Galeazzo Maria (1444-1476)5
on Filippo Marias request.
On August 13, 1447, Filippo died of a combination of malaria and
dysentery in his castle of Zobbia. So seldom was Filippo Maria seen by
the people of Milan, that when his body was brought to the city for the
funeral, the crowds gathered to see what the tyrant had looked like. He
hadnt arranged the succession and left no will, but his son-in-law,
Francesco Sforza, conquered the Duchy of Milan in 1450.
Copyright 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 The regency included Caterina Visconti, Francesco Gonzaga of
Mantua, Pandolfo Malatesta and others.
2 In Italian: pace and querra.

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3 Sforzas first wife, Polissena Ruffo (1420), had died after 2 years of
marriage.
4 Both Bianca Maria and Francisco Sforza were born out of wedlock.
5 Galeazzo Maria Sforza (1444-1476) enjoyed torturing and mutilating
with his own hands. Once, he had one of his favourites nailed up inside a
chest and sat down listening to the dying mans moans.
Bibliography
Johnson, D.M. & Turner, R.T.: The bedside book of bastards, Barnes &
Noble, 1994
Bertelli, S.: The Courts of the Italian Renaissance, Facts on File, 1985
Prescott, O.: Princes of The Renaissance (A chronicle of the private lives
and public careers of the kings, dukes, popes and despots who ruled Italy
in the 15th century), George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1969
Trease, G.: De Huurlingen (Avontuur en hartstocht van de Condottieri),
English title: The condottieri (Soldiers of Fortune), Fibula-Van
Dishoeck, 1974
Hale, R.J. (ed.): A Concise Encyclopedia of the Italian Renaissance,
Thames and Hudson, 1981
Hibbert, Ch.: Opkomst en ondergang van de Medici,
English title: The Rise and Fall of the House of Medici, Contact, 1987
Marek, M.: Genealogy.EU
(http://genealogy.euweb.cz/italy/scalla2.html), 2004
Last modified: 12/30/2011 22:49:41. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
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Effimate Gian Gastone de' Medici (1671-1737) had always been
somewhat melancholy, but when he was pressed to beget an heir with a
plump and masculine wife he detested, he became severely depressed.

292

Soon, he let a life filled with alcohol, gambling, witticisms and orgies.
After spraining his anckle, his smelly bed became the center of his
existence..
Gian Gastone's parents are an interesting example of marital
incompatibility. His fater, Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici of Tuscany
(1642-1723), was an austere and gloomy man. Like some of his Della
Rovere ancestors, Cosimo had an inclination towards melancholy.
Contemporaries claimed that he never laughed. mother Margurite
Louise In contrast, Cosimo's wife, Margurite Louise of France (16451721, to the right), was beautiful, fun-loving, extremely lively, witty and
refined, but also stubborn and selfish.
Before their marriage, 16-year-old Margurite Louise had fallen in love
with her cousin Charles of Lorraine (1643-1690) and possibly took him
as her lover1. Cosimo III, however, was averse to physical contact and
feared that "sexual activity would undermine his health". Sophia of
Hanover reported: "He sleeps with his wife but once a week, and then
under supervision of a doctor." Margurite Louise repeatedly refused to
share her bed with her grave husband for months. Around 1665, she was
temporarily exiled from court. During her pregnancies, she
unsuccessfully tried to induce a miscarriage; while she was pregnant of
her third child, Gian Gastone, Margurite Louise even tried to starve
herself. Still, the child was born on May 24, 1671, and named after its
maternal grandfather, Gaston d'Orlans. The next year the Princess
unsuccessfully tried to convince everybody that she was about to die.
Four years after Gian Gastone's birth, his mother left for France, never to
return. There she lived on a pension supplied by her husband. Regularly,
Margurite Louise would write him for more money, adding phrases
like: "There is not an hour or a day when I do not wish someone would
hang you."
As a child, Gian Gastone was neglected by both his parents, while his
elder siblings ignored him, too. He grew up as a studious and solitary
youth. For months, he could be dreary and listless, alternated by short
periods of cheerfulness and ironic witticisms. Contemporaries noted that

293

he often seemed taciturn and sad, weeping alone in his chamber. Some
wondered whether he was wholly sane, but Gian Gastone was actually
quite smart. He received the same education as his elder brother,
Ferdinando (1663-1713), and appeared to be good at languages and
literature in particular. He was also interested in botany and
experimented with rare spacies of herbs. A small buidling in the Boboli
Gardens was built for his retreat. His pleasure-loving uncle, Francesco
Maria (1660-1711), frequently invited Gian Gastone to Lappeggi,
hoping to distract him from his introspective hypochondria.
In 1686 a marriage proposal between Gain Gastone and Isabel of
Portugal (1669-1690) came to nothing, because Cosimo III would not
give his son a sufficient allowance. Two years later, his brother
Ferdinando was married by proxy to little Violante of Bavaria (16731731), and Gian Gastone travelled to Bologna to meet her. Ferdinando
didn't like his bride, but in time Violante and Gian Gastone became
friends. His sister Anna Maria Luisa (1667-1743) was married by proxy
to the widowed Elector Palatine in 1691. She left for Dusseldorf on May
6, accompanied by Gian Gastone.
wife Anna Maria Franziska It was his sister who finally proposed a bride
for Gian Gastone: Anna Maria Franziska of Saxe-Lauenburg (16721741, to the right), a wealthy widow2 with a daughter. She is described
as "appalling and immensely fat" with "ungainly massive limbs". Her
main interests were hunting and horses and she was easily moved to
paroxysms of rage and tears. The Princess had no particular wish to
remarry and had no intention of leaving her Bohemian estates. The
homosexual Gian Gastone meekly obeyed his fathers wishes and they
were married on July 2, 1697. Soon his reaction to married life was one
of horror. He took an immediate dislike to Bohemia, to the smell of
horses and to possible intercourse with his wife. Like his mother had
found his father unbearable, Gian Gastone found his wife unbearable
and complained about her "capriciousness, peevish faces and sharp
words". Anna Maria Franzinska probably looked upon Gian Gastone as
an effeminate weakling. She ordered him about and claimed that he was

294

impotent. Nevertheless, she tried to loose some weight to improve the

chance of conception.
For comfort, Gian Gastone turned not only to liquor and gambling, but
also to his lackey, Guiliano Dami, a man of humble birth. He would
exert great influence over Gian Gastone for the remainder of his life.
After ten months of marriage, Gian Gastone could bear his wife no
longer and hired a residence in Prague. He travelled to France to see his
mother, who received him coldly, and visited his sister3. Back in Prague,
Guiliano Dami introduced him to pretty young students, lackeys and
footmen. Gian Gastone wandered the streets at night and visited taverns,
drinking fiery liquor and rossolis. Through such frivolities, he could
temporarily put out of his mind his repellent wife and his austere father.
Alcoholism, gambling and sex were doubtful cures for his depression.
From time to time Gian Gastone returned to his wife, pressed by his
father to beget an heir. His wife busied herself rebuilding Ploskovice
Castle, adding artificial grottos with baroque fountains.
By 1704, Gian Gastone seemed utterly depressed, inert and withdrawn,
spending most of his time simply gazing out of the window. He would
not even sign his letters, already written by his secretary, because of a
peculiar dislike of his writing-table. After visiting Vienna and Innsbruck,
in 1705 Gian Gastone was finally back in Florence. He returned to
Reichstadt in 1707 to induce his wife to come with him to Florence, but,
despite a letter from the Pope to recall her to her duties as a wife, she
refused to leave. The next year, Gian Gastone returned to Italy alone.
There no longer seemed any possibility of a Medici heir being born to
him.
In 1709, 48-year-old Francesco Maria, brother of Cosimo III, was
pressed to resign his religious offices and marry 23-year-old Eleanor
Gonzaga (1686-1742) to beget heirs. The bridegroom consisted of rolls
of flesh and had a puffy face with a blotched and pock-marked skin. He
suffered from gout and "a variety of questionable diseases". When the
bride refused to submit to his embraces, priests were called in to
persuade her and she told them of her "dread of contracting shameful

295

diseases". Finally, she submitted to the consummation, but nothing came

of it. Within two years of matrimony, Francesco Maria expired of
dropsy. The health of Gian Gastone's popular elder brother, Ferdinando,
had been declining, too. He suffered from epilepsy and dementia before
he died lame and insane as a result of syphilis in 1713.
Even in Florence, Gian Gastone was seldom seen in public during the
daylight hours. After dinner he was usually intoxicated. He often fell
from his horse, when he was drunk. Whole nights he spent alone gazing
at the moon. Occasionally, he did things that made people believe him to
be mad. One day, for example, he bought the entire stock of a peasant
selling brooms and ordered them to be delivered to the municipal offices
"for future use". The eccentric, but witty Gian Gastone probably thought
that it would be a good thing to clean-up the corrupt city administration.
father Cosimo III
As the years went by, Grand Duke Cosimo III (to the right) became even
more narrow-minded; all naked statues were removed from the streets
and galleries - even Michelangelo's David - on the ground that they were
"an incitement to fornication". His egocentric ex-wife died in 1721,
leaving all her property to a distant relative instead of to her children.
When the gloomy Cosimo III died two years later, Gian Gastone
succeeded him as Grand Duke of Tuscany. He had little interest in
governmental matters, but he chose his ministers well and soon Florence
flourished again.
The new Grand Duke's levee was at noon, when those who had business
with him were summoned to his bedchamber. He lunched in bed around
five o'clock in the evening, and supped in it at two in the morning. He
always ate alone, and generally in bed. In summer he lived on the
ground-floor. Every winter, he was carried in a sedan-chair to an
apartment above.
As a result of his curious and unusual lifestyle, Gian Gastone was a
prematurely aged, fat drunkard, who looked at the world through a more
or less permanent haze of intoxication. Once, he went to a reception
given by his brother's widow, Violante, and became so drunk that he
uttered all kinds of obscenities and was pushed vomiting into his coach,

296

wiping his mouth with his wig. In contrast to his father's religious
fanatism, Gian Gastone's contempt for the Church became notorious.
Guiliano Dami was well bribed by anyone who wished to approach the
royal recluse. He also acted as a pimp for Gian Gastone's orgies, seeking
out young men and boys. They were called the 'ruspanti', because they
were paid a fee from one to five ruspi for their services. In the last years
of his life, Gian Gastone had around 370 ruspanti, some well born, some
women. To endure the dubious embraces of their master they had to be
pretty, young, strongly sexed, sufficiently immune to good taste and
blessed with a limited sense of smell. It was Gian Gastone's habit to
invite the chosen youth to his bed-chamber, examine his teeth, provide
him with drink and examine and touch his private parts to see if they
were well shaped and likely to blossom rapidly. Then the boy was
initiated. If he did not seem to penetrate sufficiently, Gian Gastone used
to shout: "Press in, boy, press in." Thereafter he would call him 'you',
and finally descend to the familiarity of 'thou', while hugging and kissing
him. Somethimes he would order his ruspanti to adopt pompous attitudes
and call them by the well-known names of grave counsellors and revered
matrons. Then he would exclaim to one of them: "Well, my Lord
Marquess, how does the Marchioness yonder appeal to you? You admire
her, do you not? To business! Tumble her!" The addressed youths
merrily yielded to his wishes and Gian Gastone, between roars of
laughter, liked to encourage them loudly with the cries of a huntsman.
Gian Gastone
Gian Gastone's last appearance in public was in 1729 at the festival of St
John the Baptist. He had drunk heavily to fortify himself for the
occasion. As he was driven in gala through the streets of Florence, he
turned now and again to vomit out of the chariot window. On arrival, he
was helped on to the terrace, where he kept raising his voice, hiccupping deplorable remarks. Then he fell into a dozing torpor and his
servants carried him back to the Pitti Palace.
In 1730, Gian Gastone (to the right) sprained his ankle and remained in
his bed. From then on he left it only on some very rare occasions. It
became the centre of his existence. The dogs slept with him in bed and it

297

stank of tobacco, drink, vomit and excrement. From time to time his
brother's widow organised the cleaning of his bed until she died in 1731.
A few times Gian Gastone let himself be seen from a balcony. In the
evening of July 5, 1735, he was transferred to the villa of Poggio
Imperiale in a litter by way of the Boboli Gardens, wearing a dressinggown and a straw hat. When people approached him with torches, he
began to shout: "Away with lights!".
In his later years, Gian Gastone became nearly blind and could hardly
walk anymore. He let his fingernails, toenails and beard grow. Gradually
he became senile. In June 1737, he became seriously ill, suffering from a
large stone in the bladder. His sister, who had returned to Florence as a
widow, organised to have him moved to a cleaner bed. When little
strength was left in him, a priest was summoned and Gian Gastone told
him: "You see, we all must die." He died around July 94.
Copyright 1997-2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 The couple went out riding daily and passed blissful hours together
undisturbed. After her wedding Margurite Louise still send Charles of
Lorraine passionate letters, and he replied with amusing and affectionate
verses.
2 Anna Maria Franziska's first husband, the Count Palatine Philip of
Neuburg (1668-1693), had drunk himself to death. He was a younger
brother of Anna Maria Luisa's husband, John William (1658-1716).
Their sister Maria Ana (1667-1740) had married Mad King Carlos II of
Spain (1661-1700).
3 Anna Maria Luisa was taking the waters, because her husband had
infected her with syphilis.
4 Gian Gastone was the last Grand Duke in the De' Medici family. His
sister donated the family's art collection to the city of Florence, but
referred in her testament to Pier Pablo de' Medici, who belonged to a
distant branche of the family. Giuseppe de' Medici, Prince of Ottajano,
was also still alive.

298

Bibliography
Green, V.: The madness of Kings (Personal trauma and the fate of
nations), Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1994
Hibbert, Ch.: Opkomst en ondergang van de Medici, English title: The
Rise and Fall of the House of Medici, Contact, 1987
Acton, H: The Last Medici, M, 1980
Brasseur-Peeters, dr. E.: De Medici (Opkomst, bloei en ondergang van
een Florentijnse familie in Europa), Europese Bibliotheek, 1966
Cleugh, J.: The Medici (A tale of fifteen generations), Dorset Press,
1990
Brion, M.: The Medici (A great Florentine family), Ferndale Editions,
1969
Strathern, P.: The Medici (Godfathers of the Renaissance), Jonathan
Cape, 2003
Micheletti, E.: The Medici of Florence (Family Portrait), Becocci
Editore, 1980
De' Medici, L.: De Medici (De geschiedenis van mijn familie),
Omnibook, 2008
Bhmischer Kultur Klub: Castle Ploskovice,
http://www.kulturklub.cz/ploskovice-E.htm, 2003
Last modified: 09/13/2011 00:16:03. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
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Bram Stoker found inspiration for his book about Count Dracula in the
life of Vlad III the Impaler of Walachia (1431-1476). Contemporaries
wrote about the "untold abuses, sad murders and mutilations by the cruel
tyrant Dracula" 1. He had people skinned alive up to their entrails, or
roasted upon red-hot coals, but this psychopath's favourite method of
torture was impalement. Once, when Vlad walked along the twitching
bodies dying on their stakes, he is supposed to have exclaimed: "How

299

beautiful they look!" Thus, Vlad Dracula became known as "Vlad

Tepes" - "Vlad the Impaler". Vlad II, Dracula's father
Vlad's Family Background
Vlad III Dracula was a son of Vlad II Dracul (to the right), voivode of
Wallachia in present-day Romania. The nickname "Dracul" means either
"devil" or "dragon". His devilish nickname could also have been earned
by his clever political manoeuvring; early 1431, Vlad II was invested
with the Order of the Dragon by the Holy Roman Emperor. In the
Romanian language the "-ulea" ending of a word is used for "the son of",
so "Draculea" means either "son of the devil" or "son of the dragon" 2.
Vlad II Dracul may have married a daughter of Alexandru the Good of
Moldavia around 1425. She may have been the mother of his eldest son,
Mircea (1428-1447). When Vlad Dracul was in exile in Sighisoara in
Transylvania, his son Vlad was born "under the sign of the scorpion",
probably in 1431. Young Vlad's mother was probably one of Vlad II's
many mistresses. Another brother, Radu cel Frumos (1471), was born
in 1435. A boyar's daughter with the name Caltuna was the mother of yet
another brother, Vlad Calugarul the Monk (1496). In medieval
Wallachia the status of women was low and illegitimate sons were
allowed to inherit.
Wallachia was ruled by voivodes and they were usually members of the
Basarab family. In the absence of progeniture in Slavic law, the Draculi
line of the Basarabs fought a bloody feud with their cousins of the
Danesti line. Officially, they were vassals of the King of Hungary, but
they were also forced to pay tribute to the Ottoman sultans.
Vlad's Youth
In 1436, Vlad II succeeded in regaining the throne of Wallachia after the
death of his half-brother, Alexandru Aldea, and reigned for six years,
until he had to flee his country again. With help of the Ottomans, Vlad II
was back on the throne in 1443. Radu, Dracula's younger brother He was
obliged to send his two younger sons, Vlad Dracula and Radu, to the
Sultan as hostages. The boys were taken to the fortress of Egrigz in the

300

forests of Anatolia. Although they were not actually confined to a cell,

they had a lot to fear. Three years earlier, the sons of George Brankovic
of Serbia had had red-hot irons jabbed into their eyeballs, because they
were suspected of plotting an escape 3. Later, Vlad and Radu were taken
to Edirne, the Ottoman capital, where they were thought logic, the
Ottoman language and the Koran. They practised with swords, shortbows and Arab horses. Vlad was a rather ungainly youth with boots of
temper. He was often punished in order to cow him into obedience.
Radu's beauty, however, captivated the Ottoman heir, Mehmed Celebi,
who had homosexual tendencies. At first resisting4, Radu the Handsome
(to the right) eventually fell for the seductions of the Ottoman Court and
became one of Mehmed's minions. He would not leave the Ottoman
clutches until 1462.
To spare his younger sons, Vlad II did not take part in the following
campaigns against the Ottoman Turks, but let his eldest son, Mircea,
lead the Wallachian armies. In 1445, Mircea recaptured the fortress at
Giurgiu and had the prisoners hacked to death. Later, when Vlad II
signed a new treaty with the Sultan, he had to abandon the fortress of
Girugiu to keep Wallachia independent and his younger sons safe. In
November 1447, the Hungarian Jnos Hunyadi launched an attack on
Wallachia with the intention to replace Vlad II with Vladislav of the
Danesti Line. While Hunyadi attacked, the boyars of Tirgoviste revolted
and captured Mircea, who was tortured, blinded with red-hot irons and
buried alive. Vlad II managed to escape, galloping east. Somewhere in
the marches near present-day Bucharest, however, the rebels caught up
with him. He was decapitated with an axe.
Vlad III Dracula was still a prisoner of the Ottoman Sultan, when news
of his father's and brother's deaths reached him by the end of 1447. He
was officially freed from his position as hostage and given a rank in the
Ottoman army 5. In September 1448, Hunyadi and Vladislav Danesti
were captured by the Ottomans near Kosovo. With an Ottoman army,
Vlad Dracula, although still a teenager, invaded Wallachia and took
Tirgoviste unopposed. Vladislav Danesti escaped, but when he returned

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with an army, Vlad Dracula's forces were outnumbered and he was

forced to flee, wandering the wilderness. From December 1449 until
October 1451, Vlad lived in Suceava at the court of Bogdan of Moldavia
6. He completed his education together with Bogdan's son, Stephan cel
Mare. In October 1451, Bodgan was murdered by his own brother, Petru
Aaron. Vlad and Stephan escaped through the Borgo Pass.
John Hunyadi of Hungary Mehmed, the new Ottoman sultan, finally
conquered Constantinople in 1453, and the Eastern Roman Empire
ceased to exist. When Vladislav Danesti befriended the new Sultan, a
reconciliation took place between Jnos Hunyadi (to the right) and Vlad
Dracula. In Buda, Vlad attended the coronation of Ladislas V of
Habsburg as King of Hungary, and was invested as defender of
Transylvania with headquarters at Sibiu. In 1456, Hunyadi invaded
Serbia, while Dracula simultaneously invaded Wallachia. He led his
army through the Carpatians in June, when the Comet of Halley
appeared in the sky7. By the end of July, Vladislav Danesti had died in
battle. According to legend, he was hacked to death in a hand-to-hand
combat with Vlad Dracula. On August 22, 1456, Vlad was ruler in
Tirgoviste.
Vlad's Reign of Terror
Soon, Vlad Dracula tried to strengthen and modernise the central
government at the expense of the nobility, because they had repeatedly
undermined the power of the voivodes. Early in his reign, he gave a feast
for his boyars and their families to celebrate Easter. Since many of them
had taken part in the conspiracy that led to the deaths of his father and
elder brother, Vlad asked them how many voivodes had ruled during
their life times. All of the nobles said they had outlived several voivodes.
The older boyars and their families were impaled on the spot, while the
younger and healthier boyars were enslaved and forced to labour for
months building Castle Dracula. Very few of them survived the ordeal.
One boyar, Albu cel Mare, was over-mighty and arrogant. He took the
villages of Glodul and Hintea by force, and devastated the monastery of
Govora. Vlad had him and his allies and relations, including small

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children, impaled. Of the 13 names of the boyars of the council of April

16, 1457, only 2 remained in February 10, 1461. Vlad Dracula's reign of
terror had begun.
Castle Dracula was built on a mountain peak to the north of the city of
Curtea-de-Arges, using materials from the ruins of an earlier castle. In
1459, near a series of connected villages, Vlad Dracula founded the
fortress of Bucharest, the present-day capital of Romania. He also built
small mountain fortresses at various strategic frontier points. Vlad was
the first to name a native clergyman as metropolitan of the Wallachian
Orthodox Church. In 1461, he had a church completed at Tirgsor 8 and a
monastery founded at Comana. He greatly extended the monastery at
Snagov.
Vlad Tepes was not very tall, but stocky and strong, with a bull's neck,
broad shoulders, a reddish face, an aquiline nose, large, deep-set, green
eyes, long eyelashes and bushy black eyebrows, which gave him a
threatening appearance. His chin was shaven, but he had a large
moustache. His personality was cruel, haughty and authoritarian, and he
was rash and reckless and lacked empathy or remorse. Once, Ottoman
envoys refused to honour him by taking their turbans off, because they
were forbidden by their religion to remove them. Vlad is said to have
ordered their turbans to be fixed with nails to their heads, so that they
could never take them off.
German merchants and craftsmen from Saxony had colonised
Transylvania in the 12th and 13th century. Their skills had given a
significant impulse to economic life in the region and, as a result, the
Saxons had a great measure of autonomy. Early in his reign, Vlad
Dracula tried to maintain a cordial relationship with the Saxon towns,
while they provided soldiers for the wars against the Turks. In the
summer of 1457, however, citizens of Bistrita revolted over alleged
abuse of funds. Mihail Szilgyi, a relative of Hunyadi, sacked the town
and burned the houses of the ringleaders. Other Saxon cities started
plotting with Vlad's rivals of the Danesti line and Vlad's half-brother,

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Vlad Cugarul. In the spring of 1458, Vlad Dracula undertook a

devastating raid on the merchants. The villages of Satul Nou, Hosman
and Casolts were burned to the ground, while the people of Talmes were,
'like cabbage', hacked to pieces in the town square. Later that year,
Szilgyi negotiated a peace between Vlad and the Saxons. In exchange
for the surrender of the pretender, Dan III9, and his boyar followers,
Vlad promised to restore the merchants' trading rights.
When Dan Danesti and his boyars were not forthcoming, Vlad, attacking
at night, hit the suburbs of Brasov 10 like a whirlwind. Its inhabitants
were impaled in large numbers, while "The Impaler" sat eating at a table
in the open air, overlooking his victims. When he noticed that one of his
boyars was holding his nose in an effort to alleviate the terrible smell,
Vlad had the sensitive noblemen impaled on a stake higher than all the
rest "so that he might be above the stench". Vlad also looted and burned
the churches of St. Jacob and St. Bartholomew, carrying away its holy
relics. At first, Dan had fled. Soon, he launched a counter-offensive, but
lost the battle. Dan was captured and forced to dig his own grave. It was
said that Vlad hacked off his rival's head himself. Finally, Brasov
concluded a treaty with Vlad Tepes on October 1, 1460.
Vlad Dracula used all kind of methods of torture and execution, like
nails in heads, scalping, cutting off of limbs, noses, ears and breasts,
blinding, strangulation and skinning, burning, roasting and boiling alive,
exposure to wild animals or mutilation of sexual organs. Impalement,
however, was Vlad's preferred method. Death by impalement was slow
and painful. Victims sometimes endured for hours or days. Usually an
horse was attached to each of the victim's legs and a sharpened stake was
gradually forced into the body. The end of the stake was usually oiled
and care was taken that the stake was not too sharp; so that the entrails
of the victims should not be pierced by a wound too immediately fatal.
'Normally', the stake was inserted into the body through the anus or
vagina and the stake was then hoisted upright. Thus, the victim was
slowly impaled by the force of his own weight. Often, victims were
impaled through other bodily orifices or through the abdomen or chest.

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Sometimes the victim was impaled upside down. The height of the stake
indicated the rank of the victim. Vlad Dracula often arranged the stakes
in various geometric patterns. The most common pattern was a ring of
concentric circles in the outskirts of the city that was his target. The
decaying corpses were often left up for months. Vlad's victims included
women and children, peasants and great lords and even ambassadors
from foreign powers. Often hundreds were impaled at a single time.
Vlad Dracula tried to enforce his own moral code upon his country and
was particularly concerned with female chastity. Maidens, who had lost
their virginity, adulterous wives and unchaste widows often had their
sexual organs cut out or were impaled through the vagina on red-hot
stakes. He also ordered the breasts of women to be cut off and he forced
their men to eat them. He would roast little children and force their own
mothers to eat them. It was reported that Vlad once ripped open the body
of one of his mistresses to disprove her pregnancy.
Vlad was also 'concerned' with the numerous poor, vagabonds, beggars
and cripples in his land, explaining: "These men live off the sweat of
others; it is a form of thievery." He invited them to come to Tirgoviste
for a fabulous feast and when they had ate and drank late into the night,
he had the doors locked and the hall set on fire - and none escaped the
flames. Thus Dracula 'eradicated poverty'.
According to legend, Vlad had a big, copper cauldron, with a wooden lid
with holes in it, filled with water. People were put in the cauldron with
their heads in the holes, and a fire was kindled under it. The people cried
and screamed until they were burned or cooked to death. On another
occasion, a condemned gypsy leader protested that death by impalement
or fire was contrary to the law of his tribe. Vlad ordered him to be boiled
alive in the cauldron, and compelled the members of this tribe to eat his
flesh.
Stephen the Great of Moldavia Early in his reign, Vlad Dracula had send
emissaries to the Ottoman Sultan and paid tribute to keep him at arm's
length. The annual tribute consisted of 10000 ducats and 500 boys. In

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1461, Vlad explained in a letter that he had no more resources and could
not leave Wallachia at that precarious time. Next, Vlad attacked and
burned an Ottoman stronghold and 2 crossing points of the Danube.
Nearly 24000 heads of Turks and Bulgarians were presented to the
officials. Vlad send emissaries to Hungary 11 and the Crimea for
support, but he was abandoned by his allies. Even Stephan cel Mare of
Moldavia (to the right), who had acquired his throne in 1457 with help
from Vlad, took the side of the Ottomans. Vlad had always been
impulsive and reckless, but his attack on the Ottomans was foolhardy in
the extreme.
Vlad's Exile
In the spring of 1462, a large Ottoman army marched towards Wallachia.
Ditches were dug with sharpened stakes in their bases to catch the
Ottoman horsemen. Vlad carried out a scorched-earth campaign, burning
villages and crops, thrusting animal corpses into wells, leaving nothing
but destruction for the Turks to find. With the largest part of his army,
Vlad hit in the forest. They harrassed the Ottomans with a hit-and-run
tactic. In the night of June 17, Vlad rode with a cavalry force through the
Ottoman camp, using Ottoman arrows torn from death bodies. The
Wallachians massacred horses, camels and Ottomans. Before they could
reach the Sultan's tent, the Janissaries repelled them and killed many
Wallachians, as they fought their way out against enormous odds. When
the Ottoman army finally approached Tirgoviste, they came across a
field full of stakes "with impaled bodies of Romanian men, women and
children. [..] There were babies clinging to their mothers on the stakes
and the birds had made nests in their breasts" 12.
Until then, Vlad's younger brother, 26-year-old Radu, had been living at
the Ottoman Court. When Sultan Mehmed returned to Edirne in July, he
left handsome Radu on the Wallachian throne. Still, some of the boyars
remained loyal to Vlad, who retreated to a mountain stronghold on the
Arges River. He continued his guerrilla raids against his brother in
August and September.

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For a long time, Vlad had had a relation with a noble woman. She is said
to have committed suicide by leaping from the towers of the castle into
the waters of the Arges River, rather than surrender to the Turks. Vlad
escaped across the mountains into Transylvania and appealed for aid to
Hunyadi's son, Matthias Corvinus, who had become King of Hungary
after the sudden death of Ladislas V. The new King, however, had Vlad
the Impaler arrested on false charges. He was imprisoned in a tower near
Buda. In captivity, Vlad supposedly satisfied his bloodlust by mutilating
and impaling mice and birds on tiny spears, arranged in rows. Vlad III
the Impaler of Walachia
Vlad Dracula (to the right) was able to win his way back into Corvinus'
graces around 1475. He renounced the Orthodox faith and adopted
Catholicism in order to marry Corvinus' cousin, Ilona Szilgyi 13. They
were given a house at Pest and Ilona bore Vlad 2 sons: Vlad Tepelus (
1500) and Mircea (1486). From a previous relationship, Vlad already
had a son, Mihnea the Bad (1462-1510). Mihnea was to rule during the
period 1508-9, taking boyars captive, cutting of the noses and lips of
some, and raping their wives in their presence. Eventually, he was
assassinated. Dracula had another illegitimate son, Radu (1508). Three
of his sons left descendants, including the extremely cruel Alexandru II,
who ruled during the period 1574-7.
Vlad's Last Stand
In a war with Hungary, Stephen of Moldavia attacked Tirgoviste and
captured the wife and daughter of Radu the Handsome. By January
1475, Radu only held the fortress at Giurgiu, where he died, allegedly
from syphilis. The learned Basarab Laiota of the Danesti Branch
ascended the vacant throne. When the Ottomans attacked the Crimea,
Matthias Corvinus gave Vlad Dracula the command of an army and send
him to Bosnia. He conquered Srebrenica, tore of the limbs of his
prisoners and had their private parts displayed for all to see. He had the
skin peeled from the feet of Turkish prisoners, covered their wounds
with salt and then brought goats in to lick their salted soles.

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In the spring of 1476, Vlad returned north and, with the aid of Stephen
Bathory of Transylvania14 and Stephan of Moldavia, he managed to
reconquer Wallachia. Basarab Laiota fled to the Ottoman court to
acquire support. Vlad Dracula was killed in battle with the Turks15; his
body was decapitated and his head was send to Constantinople, where
the Sultan had it displayed on a stake as proof that the notorious Impaler
was dead16. The German stories about Vlad's alledged cruelties would
become the first best-seller in Europe and have made him by far the
best-known ruler of Medieval Romania.
Copyright 2005-2007 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 In Germany Vlad Dracula has been described as an inhuman tyrant
who sadistically butchered innocents, but in Communist Eastern Europe
Vlad was regarded as a brave Prince, who defended Christendom against
the Ottoman onslaught, and imposed strong leadership and harsh justice
toward the greater good of the Romanian people.
2 All of Vlad II's sons were known by the nickname "Dracula".
3 Stephan and Gregor Brankovic were brutally blinded, despite the fact
that their beautiful sister Mara was one of the Sultan's wives.
4 When Mehmed first tried to seduce Radu, the boy cut Mehmed with
his sword and then, in fear for his life, ran and climbed up a tree.
Mehmed only talked him into coming down by promising not to kill
him.
5 Vlad may have become a member of the Jannissary Corps, which was
made up of foreigners.
6 Bogdan was a son of Alexandru the Good of Moldavia; his sister may
have been married to Vlad II.
7 For more than 7 weeks the comet could be seen in central and eastern
Europe: "as long as half the sky with two tails, one pointing west and the
other east, colored gold and looking like an undulating flame in the
distant horizon".
8 This may have been in celebration of his nearby victoriy over
Vladislav Danesti.
9 Dan III was a brother of Vladislav Danesti.

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10 The city of Brasov was also known as Kronstadt.

11 He send the Hungarian King 2 bags full of Turkish heads.
12 Vlad stuck stakes in both the mothers breasts and thrust their babies
unto them.
13 Matthias Corvinus' mother was a sister of Michael Szilgy and Ilona
was Michael's daughter.
14 Stephan Bathory (1533-1585) was an uncle of the notorious Erzsbet
Bathory (1561-1614).
15 Some reports indicate that Vlad Dracula was slain by a hired assassin
or even one of his own men.
16 Within the short span of his 6-year rule, the estimated number of
Vlad's victims ranges from 40,000 to an unlikely 100,000 people.
Bibliography
Treptow, K.W.: Vlad III Dracula (The life and times of the Historical
Dracula), Center for Romanian Studies, 2000
Trow, M.J.: Vlad the Impaler (In Search of the Real Dracula), Sutton
Publishing, 2003
Florescu, R.R., McNally, R.T.: Dracula, Prince of Many Faces (His Life
and Times), Little, Brown and Company, 1989
Treptow, K.W.: A History of Romania, Center for Romanian Studies,
1996
Blandford, N. & Jones, B.: (The world's most) Evil Men, Hamlyn, 1996
Schott, I.: (World Famous) Dictators, Magpie London, 1992
Hurwood, B.J.: Vampires, Quick Fox, 1981
Cawthorne, N.: Tyrants (History's 100 Most Evil Despots & Dictators),
Arcturus Publishing Inc, 2004
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:24. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ or Mailing List.
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309

According to legend, Erzsbet Bathory (1561-1614) was one of the

most notorious female sadists ever, who supposedly bathed in the blood
of virgins to remain young and beautiful. The reality, however, was
already bad enough...
the Bathory seal Around 1561 Erzsbet Bathory was born into one of the
noblest families of Hungary. Her father was Gyrgy Bathory of Ecsed.
Her mother was Anna Bathory, a sister of Stephan Bathory (1533-1585),
King of Poland and Prince of Transylvania. Erzsbet's cousins Andreas
and Zsigmond were Princes of Transylvania, too, and Zsigmond made in
1595 a grand marriage with Princess Maria Christina of Habsburg1.
As a girl, Erzsbet lived with her family in Nagy-Ecsed near the
Romanian border. She had a cruel elder brother and two surviving
sisters2. In 1566 the German Emperor made a temporary truce with the
Ottoman Turks, so Erzsbet must have grown up in a relatively peaceful
environment. She learned to read and write in Hungarian, Greek, Latin
and German. In 1570 she was officially engaged to the wealthy Count
Ferencz Nadasdy de Nadasd of Fogarasfold (1555-1604), who later
became known as the "Black Bey". She was sent to castle Srvr to live
with her mother-in-law, who died the next year. Erzsbet was already a
voluptuous, ravishing beauty with long hair and an exquisite
complexion. Rumours said that Erzsbet became pregnant in 1574 and
gave birth to an illegitimate daughter. The baby is supposed to have been
smuggled away.
On May 8, 1575, Erzsbet was married to Ferenc Nadasdy (below right)
and the wedding celebrations continued for weeks. The Count was
probably born around 1550 and had been trained at the Imperial Court in
Vienna. He was usually away on various military campaigns against the
Turks, leaving Erzsbet mistress of the gloomy castle of Csejthe atop a
barren mountain in the Carpathians. In his absence Erzsbet amused
herself with fashionable sex toys imported from Italy and she bleached
her hair in the Venetian fashion. She also started experimenting with
herbal brews, potions, powders and drugs.

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Ferenc Nadasdy, Erzsbet's husband Erzsbet had an inflammable

temper. Servants were severely punished and beaten mercilessly upon
making the slightest mistake. Sometimes they were whipped until they
bled and then trashed with stinging nettles. Erzsbet used branding irons,
razors, pincers and torches. She sewed the mouth closed of a girl that
chattered too much. One day, when Ferenc returned home, he found a
naked girl, smeared with honey, bound to a tree. When Erzsbet
suspected a servant of stealing money, she would make her undress and
burn her body with heated coins. Three trusted female servants and a
retarded manservant helped Erzsbet punishing the other servants. One
of them, Darvulia3, taught the Countess some new cruelties. Erzsbet
may also have been inspired by her aunt Klara4, a sadomasochistic
bisexual, who liked flagellation. Ferenc Nadasdy will probably have
learned Erzsbet some tricks, too, because mutilations were
commonplace in the skirmishes with the Turks.
For more than 10 years the Nadasdy couple remained childless, but
around 1585 Erzsbet gave birth to Anna. Orsolya, Katalin and two sons,
Andrs and Pal, followed. Orsolya and Andrs both died young.
Sometimes Erzsbet accompanied her husband to Bratislava or Vienna.
In March 1601 Ferenc Nadasdy suffered from excruciating pains in his
legs, but he recovered. He was ill again by the end of 1603. When he
died at castle Srvr on January 4, 1604, Erzsbet took over the
management of their estates. Her brother, who had lived for years in
seclusion, died the next year. That same year Erzsbet married her eldest
daughter to Count Mikls Zrinyi, a cousin of Count Gyrgy Thurz
(1565-1616), one of the mightiest men in Hungary.
Castle Csejthe Although Erzsbet was now in a vulnerable position as a
rich widow with a son under age, she still had powerful friends. Count
Thurz, for example, invited her for a wedding in 1607. In 1608
Erzsbet's second cousin, Anna Bathory, who had been raised by
Erzsbet's brother at Ecsed, married. That same year Anna's brother, the
capricious womaniser Gbor Bathory (1589-1613), became ruling Prince

311

of Transylvania. He received financial support from Erzsbet. Doing so,

she played a dangerous game, because Gbor was soon at war with the
German Emperor5.
Her 40th birthday must have been annoying to a beautiful and vain
woman like Erzsbet. According to folklore, Erzsbet became obsessed
with the idea to remain young and beautiful forever. One day, in an
outburst of temper, Erzsbet was said to have struck a servant girl across
the face with such a powerful blow that her nose bled. Some blood spat
on Erzsbet's skin and she thought that it made her skin look younger
and fresher. Thus she supposedly got the idea to bath in the blood of
virgins. When Erzsbet wanted to take a bath, a girl was fetched and
held upside down over the tub, while her throat was slashed. After some
years Erzsbet apparently concluded that the blood of peasant virgins
was not good enough and that she thus needed the blue blood of noble
virgins. This part of the story, however, is pure speculation.
Whatever Erzsbet's motives may have been, from 1600 onwards the
death rate among her servants increased. She acquired the help of her
trusted servants to recruit new girls. For small sums of money povertystricken fathers of young peasant girls were persuaded to send their
daughters off to "a life of security in the service of the mighty House of
Bathory". Often they were bound and beaten until they bled. Other times
their bodies were pierced with needles and cut with razors. For fun the
sadistic Countess burned their genitals with candle flames or an hot iron
poker. In her house in Vienna Erzsbet had a special device installed. A
girl was placed in a cylindrical iron cage suspended from the ceiling. As
it was raised, a series of spiked hoops contracted mechanically, thereby
piercing the girl inside. Dead girls were silently buried and their bodies
showed bruises, cuts and burns. The marks on the bodies were not
necessarily the cause of their death, but it was clear that Countess
Bathory mistreated her staff horribly.
In 1609 Erzsbet started taking in aristocratic girls "to teach them social
graces", but some of them died, too, and rumours about atrocities at

312

castle Csejthe became stronger. In October 1610 Erzsbet took her

daughter Anna, Countess Zrinyi, to Piestny for a bath in the warm mud.
Afterwards she travelled to castle Srvr, where her young son was
living with his tutor. She took her jewels and other values with her, when
she returned to Csejthe. Meanwhile, a priest of a nearby village notified
the already alarmed authorities of his suspicions. On December 10,
Erzsbet and her accomplices were arrested by Count Thurz. The trial
started in January 1611 and, because of Erzsbet's rank, it was held in
secret and the Countess never attended it. Around that time in the
Balkans servants were serfs and thus Erzsbet had the right to do with
them whatever she fancied. That's why the emphasis of the trial lay on
what she had done to girls of noble birth.
Erzsbet Bathory While Erzsbet's accomplices were tortured, they
described 36 to 50 deaths as a result of mistreatment. Then additional
witnesses were heard. One mentioned 80 death girls, another 175 and
later the figure raised to 200. Some witness accounts were purely based
on hearsay. The Countess was said to have kept notes in a diary, listing
650 girls she had tortured and slain, but the list was never shown in
court. Witnesses mentioned that Erzsbet sometimes bit chunks of flesh
from a girl's body, but no one mentioned that she took baths of blood. In
fact, the story of the bathing in blood wasn't introduced until the 18th
century.
All of the accused were found guilty as charged. The notorious Darvulia
had become blind and died before the start of the trial, but the two other
female accomplishes had their fingers torn from their hands by red-hot
pincers before they were burned at the stake as witches. Erzsbet was
walled up alive in a small tower room. Slits were left for air and the
passage of food and water. After three and a half year in confinement the
Blood Countess was found dead on August 21, 1614.
Some years after Erzsbet's trial, the widowed Anna Bathory, Erzsbet's
second cousin, was brought to trial by the new Prince of Transylvania,
Gbor Bethlen, on the accusation of "witchcraft" and "incest with her

313

late brother Gbor". She was stripped of part of her inheritance. In 1618
a new trial followed in which Anna was tortured. She was accused of
murdering her own son from a second marriage, although he was still
alive. She had to give up most of her possessions to buy her freedom. A
third trial in 1621 left 27-year-old Anna penniless. With her younger half
brother she fled to Poland. She returned after Bethlen's death, but was
once more brought to trial in 1640.
Rich widows were an easy prey for powerful men. Therefore, a theory
has been put forward that Erzsbet may have been brought to trial to
avoid a far worse trial for treason, because of her involvement with her
second cousin, Gbor Bathory. It could have resulted in a confiscation of
her properties by the Emperor, while her son, her uncle-in-law and
Count Thurz preferred to share Erzsbet's rich inheritance among
themselves. With evidence that is partly based on hearsay and partly
extracted from accomplishes under torture, it is impossible to determine
if Erzsbet intentionally murdered hundreds of girls or that accidentally
some of her servants died as a result of her brutal punishments. There is,
however, no doubt that Erzsbet Bathory cruelly mistreated her servants.
Copyright 2001-2002 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Zsigmond declared that his Imperial wife was so repulsive to him, that
he couldn't help screaming at night when he found himself at her side,
surrounded by phantoms his wife could not see.
2 Erzsbet also had two elder half-brothers, Jnos and Gyrgy Dragfy.
3 In the sources "Darvulia" is also called "Delbora" and "Anna".
4 In her younger years Klara Bathory of Ecsed managed to postpone
marriage, but she made up for it by marrying four times and was accused
of murdering her second husband. The story goes that she was later
captured by a pasha, raped by his whole garrison, and killed.
5 Erzsbet's grandson, another Ferenc Nadasdy, was executed in 1671
after opposing the German Emperor.

314

Bibliography
Thorne, T.: De Bloedgravin, English title: Countess Dracula, Luitingh
Sijthoff B.V., 1998
Hurwood, B.J.: Vampires, Quick Fox, 1981
Mervin, S., Prunhuber, C.: Women (Around the World and Through the
Ages), Atomium Books, 1990
Penrose, V.: The Bloody Countess (Atrocities of Erzsebet Bathory),
Creation Books, 2000
Schwennicke, D., Isenburg, W.K. zu: Europische Stammtafeln.
Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der Europischen Staaten. Neue Folge.
Band III. Teilband 3. Andere grosse Europische Familien, illegitime
nachkommen Spanischer und Portugiesischer Knigshuser, Tafels
599a-600. Verlag von J.A. Stargardt, 1985
Price, V., Price, V.B.: Monsters, Grosset & Dunlap, 1981
Dickson, A.: Countess Elizabeth Bathory Nadasdy,
http://physics.unr.edu/grad/hakel/personal/bathory.htm, 1998
Last modified: 05/09/2013 11:58:22. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
Sadistic Sultans of Turkey
The Ottoman Sultan Mustafa (1592-1639) may have been retarded
from birth, but the years he spent in the "Cage", a large building without
windows, worsened his mental condition. While giggling like an
imbecile, he was declared Sultan twice. He ran through the palace
corridors, crying out to his murdered nephew to relieve him from the
burden of sovereignty.
When Sultan Ahmed I (1590-1617) came to the throne in 1603, he left
his 11-year-old brother Mustafa in the "Cage", and he had a wall built to
block the entrance. Mustafa was possibly already mentally retarded
before he was incarcerated and the psychosocial depravation he
experienced in the "Cage" can only have worsened his mental condition.

315

He is described as a "paranoid", because he was overwhelmed by fear

that he would be deposed or murdered - in itself no strange behaviour
considering his circumstances.
Sultan Ahmed I used to take a different woman to his bed each night,
although he subsequently favoured two women: Hadice and Ksem
(1589-1651). Hadice was the mother of Osman II (1604-1622) and
Ksem gave birth to Murad IV (1612-1640), Bayezid and Mad Ibrahim
(1615-1648). When Ahmed died of typhus in November 1617, at the age
of 28, his most powerful concubine, Ksem, opposed the succession of
his eldest son, Osman, because she was afraid that Osman would execute
her sons. It was due to her influence that the completely insane Mustafa
was released from the "Cage" and declared Sultan. It was said that he
had visions and some saw in him a holy man. However, it soon became
clear that Mustafa was incapable of governing. He appointed two
favourite young pages as governors of Cairo and Damascus and replaced
one of his high officers by a farmer who had offered him something to
drink when he was out hunting. After only three months, Mustafa was
dethroned by the eunuch corps and again imprisoned in the "Cage"
accompanied by two female slaves *.
Young Osman II of Turkey Mustafa I was succeeded by Ahmed I's eldest
son, 13-year-old Osman II (to the right). Young Osman was very fond of
archery - especially with living targets, like prisoners-of-war or his own
pages. Before setting out on a military campaign in Poland, Osman
ordered the execution of his brother Mehmed in January 1621. Despite
his youth, Osman soon managed to increase his power, replacing Vezirs
and banishing Mustafa's supporters. He forbade the consumption of wine
and tobacco and had drunken soldiers sent to the galleys as slaves. Also,
he attempted to reform the Janissaries, the Sultan's special elite corps.
He tried to curb their power, because in his opinion they had performed
badly in the Polish campaign. In 1622 Osman announced his intention to
leave the city for a pilgrimage to Mecca. The Janissaries suspected he
had another destination in mind, because he seemed to prepare for taking
his jewels and treasures with him. Enraged they stormed the palace and

316

captured Osman. They made him ride on a cripple horse amidst the
insults of the crowds before he was locked up in the prison of the Seven
Towers. When they tried to kill him, Osman fought with the strength of a
madman and killed six of his attackers before he was overpowered.
Young Osman was put to death by a combination of strangulation and
compression of his testicles. His ear was cut off and presented to his
mother, Hadice, as an affront. Although fratricide was common in the
Ottoman Empire, this was the first act of regicide.
This time Mustafa refused to leave the "Cage" or even to open its door.
So the Janissaries made a hole in the "Cage"'s roof. They saw Mustafa
sitting with the two women and they claimed that he was "giggling like
an imbecile". He was severely weakened, because no one had cared to
serve him any food or drink for tree days. After bringing him water, they
had the frightened Sultan hoisted up with curtain cords through the hole
in the roof. Mustafa was placed back on the Ottoman throne, although he
was still unable to rule effectively. He executed all those who had
overthrown his nephew. But later mad Mustafa had forgotten that Osman
was dead and ran in search of him through the palace, knocking on doors
and crying out to his nephew to relieve him from the burden of
sovereignty. Grand Vezirs followed one another in rapid succession and
a donkey driver was appointed as muezzin for the Aya Sofya mosque.
Throughout the realm governors refused to obey orders issued in the
Sultan's name or send taxes to Istanbul. Soon the Janissaries, who could
not be paid, began rebelling. In August 1623, the eunuch corps
intervened, when Mustafa ordered the execution of his late brother
Ahmed's other sons. The Grand Mufti stated that nobody who was
mentally unbalanced could ever execute the duties of Sultan. Mustafa
renounced his throne in favour of his nephew, Murad IV. This time
Mustafa remained in the "Cage" until he died at the age of 47.
Copyright 1997-2000, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Topkapi Palace Topkapi Palace
the Topkapi Palace

317

Footnotes
* It was said that Mustafa despised women.
Bibliography
Coco, C.: Secrets of the harem, Philip Wilson, 1997
Barber, N.: De Sultans, English title: Lords of the Golden Horn, FibulaVan Dishoeck, 1975
Dedeoglu, A.: The Ottomans, Osmanli Yayinevi, 1982
Freely, J.: Istanbul (The Imperial City), Viking, 1996
Lytle Croutier, A.: Harem (The world behind the veil), Abbeville Press,
1989
Kinross, L.: The Ottoman Centuries (The Rise and Fall of the Turkish
Empire), Morrow Quill Paperbacks, 1977
Inalcik, H.: The Ottoman Empire (The classical age 1300-1600),
Phoenix, 1988
Mansel, Ph.: Constantinople (City of the World's Desire, 1453-1924),
John Murray, 1996
Penzer, N.M.: The Harem (an account of the institution as it existed in
the Palace of the Turkish Sultans...), Spring Books, 1967
Blandford, N. & Jones, B.: (The world's most) Evil men, Hamlyn, 1996
Aksit, I.: Topkapi Palace, Aksit Kltr Turizm, 1997
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:24. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
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Murad IV of Turkey (1612-1640) was both strong-willed and physically
strong. His dominant mother had tried to make him abhor women, and

318

all his life they induced both lust and hate in Murad. His cruelty became
legendary, and, in his later years, he killed people, especially females,
just because off ill humour or a whim.
Murad, born on July 27, 1612, was 5 years old, when his father, Sultan
Ahmed I (1590-1617), died. Six years later, he ascended the throne after
the second dethronement of his insane uncle, Mad Mustafa I (15911639). Over the next years his mother, Sultana Ksem, ruled with ability
from the harem, but much power was also held by the civil aristocracy
and the military, who where mainly interested in their own advancement.
In 1623, the Persians invaded Iraq. Revolts broke out in Anatolia, and in
November 1631 the Janissaries, the Sultan's standing infantry corps,
rioted and broke into the Palace, killing the Grand Vezir, the Grand
Mufti, Murad's favourite page and 13 other high officials. Fearing the
fate of his half-brother Osman II, Young Murad was forced to appoint a
Grand Vezir of their choice, but within half a year he took command of
the government, and had the unwanted Grand Vezir executed. He took
revenge on the military that had humiliated him by ordering the
strangulation of more than 500 of their leaders. He had spies scouring
Istanbul, tracking down the leaders of the revolt and other traitors,
executing them on the spot. In Anatolia Murad had 20.000 men
executed. In 1635 Murad intended to execute the Armanian immigrants
of Constantinople too, but his Grand Vezir managed to talk this idea out
of his mind.
Murad was an uncultivated, strong-willed, dark-eyed giant and he was
immensely cruel. Boastful of his muscular strength, he excelled in
wrestling and javelin throwing. His popular brother Bayezid was highly
skilled in jousting and in 1635 he threw Murad off in a joust. Shortly
thereafter, Bayezid was killed by Murad's order. Murad had another
brother killed in 1638. Ksem prevented him from murdering his only
surviving brother, Mad Ibrahim (1615-1648), by arguing that Ibrahim
was too mad to be a threat.
Murad attempted to re-establish Royal authority and is known as one of
the more able Sultans of Turkey. He showed ability as a military

319

commander in the Caucasus and Mesopotamia and gained respect by

sharing the hardships with his men. Nevertheless, after the siege of
Bagdad in 1638 he slaughtered some 30,000 soldiers and another 30,000
civilians. After this conquest he proceeded in triumph through Istanbul,
followed by captive Persian chiefs in chains.
Murad IV conquered Bagdad Sometimes Murad disguised himself and,
accompanied by his executioner, he wandered the streets incognito,
personally carrying out inspections. When he came across some
"troublemaker", Murad would turn to the executioner and select the tool
he thought most suited to the job. Thus Murad had many people
mercilessly executed and corpses hung at every street corner. In the early
years of his reign, his executions had been justified by unquestionable
guilt, but later he was killing out off ill humour or a whim. Once, he
forced one of his doctors to swallow an overdose of his own opium. He
impaled a courier for informing him mistakenly that he had become
father of a boy, whereas in fact it was a daughter. Murad's cruelty
became legendary and his approach created a terrified silence
everywhere. He cut off the head of every man who came under the
slightest suspicion; in 5 years time he executed some 25,000 subjects.
His musician, for example, was beheaded for playing a Persian melody.
In 1633, coffee houses, wine shops and taverns were closed, because
they were meeting places where people could spend their time criticising
the government. Murad passed a law prohibiting smoking and the
consumption of alcohol or coffee throughout the Ottoman Empire on
pain of death. When he caught anyone with a pipe or a cup of coffee,
Murad had the offender executed on the spot, although he himself
indulged in both habits - often in the company of some favoured
Persians.
Knowing the strife among the harem women, Sultana Ksem had tried
to encourage her son to homosexual love, showing him only beautiful
boys and keeping him away from girls. During the rest of his life Murad
was to show both feelings of lust and hate for women. Once Murad
encountered a group of women singing in a meadow and ordered all of

320

them to be drowned for disturbing his peace. When a boat with ladies
came too close to the harem walls, Murad ordered his gunners to open
fire, sinking the boat and drowning them all. At other times, he forced
his harem women to jump naked into a pool. He liked to fire harmless
pellets at their bodies or fill the pool with so much water that they had to
jump up and down to take a breath. Murad was also intensely jealous. A
man who added a room to the top of his house was hanged, because
Murad thought he had done it to peer over the palace walls into his
harem.
During the last years of his life Murad became addicted to alcohol. It
turned him into a homicidal maniac. Dimitrie Cantemir of Moldavia
(1678-1723) wrote: "Very often at midnight he stole out of the women's
quarters through the private gate of the palace with his drawn sword, and
running through the streets barefooted with only a loose gown around
him, like a madman, killed whoever came his way." He took particular
pleasure in beheading men with fat necks. Murad practised his powers
with the arquebus from the palace walls on passers by - in case they
were intending to look into the harem. While riding out, armed with his
bow, he used to practise his aim on any passing woman.
On February 9, 1640, this Sultan, who had prohibited drinking, died
from cirrhosis of the liver at the age of 27. Since Murad's sons had all
died young, his insane brother Ibrahim became the new Sultan.
Copyright 1997-2000, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Bibliography
Coco, C.: Secrets of the harem, Philip Wilson, 1997
Barber, N.: De Sultans, English title: Lords of the Golden Horn, FibulaVan Dishoeck, 1975
Dedeoglu, A.: The Ottomans, Osmanli Yayinevi, 1982
Freely, J.: Istanbul (The Imperial City), Viking, 1996

321

Lytle Croutier, A.: Harem (The world behind the veil), Abbeville Press,
1989
Kinross, L.: The Ottoman Centuries (The Rise and Fall of the Turkish
Empire), Morrow Quill Paperbacks, 1977
Inalcik, H.: The Ottoman Empire (The classical age 1300-1600),
Phoenix, 1988
Mansel, Ph.: Constantinople (City of the World's Desire, 1453-1924),
John Murray, 1996
McCarthy, J.: The Ottoman Turks (An introductory history to 1923),
Longman, 1997
Palmer, A.: The decline and fall of the Ottoman Empire, John Murray,
1993
Penzer, N.M.: The Harem (an account of the institution as it existed in
the Palace of the Turkish Sultans...), Spring Books, 1967
Regan, R.: (The Guinness Book of) Royal Blunders, Guinness, 1995
Axelrod, A. & Philips, CH.: Dictators & tyrants (Absolute rulers and
would-be rulers in world history), FactsOnFile, 1995
Blandford, N. & Jones, B.: (The world's most) Evil men, Hamlyn, 1996
Aksit, I.: Topkapi Palace, Aksit Kltr Turizm, 1997
Last modified: 02/10/2012 01:17:38. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
Previous Monarch
Mad Monarchs Menu
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From his early youth, the Ottoman Sultan Ibrahim I "The Mad"
(1616-1648) had been locked up in the "Cage", a large building without
windows. When he was finally proclaimed Sultan, he sought
compensation for his lost years, indulging in debauchery with an endless
supply of fresh virgins. One day, however, he had his entire harem of
280 women thrown into the Bosporus, tied up in weighted sacks. He
became known as "The Crazy One".

322

Ibrahim was born on November 5 or 6 in 1615 or 1616, as a younger son

of Sultan Ahmed I (1590-1617). As an infant he had been locked up in
the "Cage", and ever since he had been living in fear of death. The
Sultans Osman II (1604-1622) and Murad IV (1612-1640) had executed
all their brothers - except Ibrahim. In 1640, Murad actually ordered
Ibrahim's death on his deathbed, because he thought it better for the
dynasty to end rather than continue with 'insane seed'. But their mother,
Sultana Ksem, intervened. Nevertheless, when a crowd tried to enter
the "Cage" to proclaim him Sultan, Ibrahim was so terrified that he
barred the door. He was convinced that his cruel brother was playing a
trick to torment him and refused to come out until his brother's corpse
had been brought before him. Even then his mother had to "coax him out
as if cajoling a frightened kitten with food". When he had finally left the
"Cage", Ibrahim began dancing through the harem, while screaming:
"The butcher of the Empire is dead!".
Seeking compensation for his lost years, 23-year-old Ibrahim indulged in
an urge for debauchery. Sultana Ksem was happy to reign in her son's
place, so she took care of an endless supply of virgins and fat women for
his pleasure. Ibrahim was frequently impotent so his mother supplied
him with aphrodisiacs, too. Ibrahim preferred women he could not have
and found it difficult to make love to slave-girls, who were not in a
position to refuse him anything. Dimitri Cantemir of Moldavia wrote:
"In the palace gardens he frequently assembled all the virgins, made
them strip themselves naked, and neighing like a stallion ran amongst
them and as it were ravished one or the other, kicking or struggling by
his order". When Ibrahim met the beautiful daughter of the Grand Mufti,
Turkey's highest religious leader, he asked him for her hand in marriage.
The Mufti, aware of the debaucheries in the harem, advised his daughter
to refuse the proposal. Ibrahim was enraged and had the girl followed
and kidnapped. He ravaged her for a couple of days and then sent her
back to her father. Another time Ibrahim treatened to stuff his Grand
Vezir with straw unless he recovered presents given by previous Sultans
to the shrine at Medina.

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Ibrahim the Mad In 1641, one of Ibrahim's concubines, Turhan Hadice

(1627-1682), gave birth to his first son, Prince Mehmed (1642-1687).
Shortly before the birth, Ibrahim (to the right) acquired a slave girl, who
accidentally happened to be pregnant. After the birth she was employed
as a wet nurse for the little Prince and so she moved into the Royal
harem with her own son. The Sultan was so taken with the healthy and
robust little boy - a contrast with his own fragile and sickly son - that he
spent a lot of time with him. When Turhan Hadice complained, Ibrahim
had one of his rages; he tore his son from his mother's arms and threw
him into the pool. Luckily, Mehmed survived. Three months after
Mehmed's birth another concubine gave birth to Ibrahim's second son,
Sleyman (1642-1691). More sons soon followed. In 1645, Ibrahim
betrothed his 3-year old daughter Fatima to Kapudan Yusuf Pasha*, but
he had him executed within a year.
The shops of jewellers and European merchants were pillaged to satisfy
Ibrahim's whims and tastes of the moment. Ibrahim used to drench his
beard, clothes and room hangings with perfumes, especially the exotic
ambergris. He had a fetish for furs: his clothes, curtains and walls were
all decorated with fur. His pillows were stuffed with it and he had a
preference for making love on sable skins. Ibrahim collected books
expressing the various ways of coition and he was said to have invented
some new and previously unknown positions himself. Once, Ibrahim
happened to see the private parts of a wild young cow and according to
Cantemir, "he sent the shape of them in gold all over the Empire with
orders to make enquiries whether a woman made in just that manner
could be found for his lust". A woman fitting the description was found
in Armenia and she was received into the harem. Her name was Sechir
Para ("Sugar Cube") and she weighed around 150 kilograms. Ibrahim
became madly infatuated with her.
One day Sechir Para told Ibrahim about a rumour that one of his
concubines was "compromised by an outsider", but she didn't know any
details, like the girl's name. Ibrahim promptly raged for three days.

324

When his son Mehmed made a joke that Ibrahim didn't like, he took his
dagger and thrust it in his little son's face. Mehmed was to carry the
resulting scar on his forehead until the end of his life. The chief black
eunuch, the most powerful man after the Grand Vezir, tried to find the
identity of the concubine by torturing some of the harem girls, but he
was not provided with a name. Then Ibrahim decided to have his entire
harem of 280 women thrown into the Bosporus, tied up in weighted
sacks. Sechir Para and Turhan Hadice were spared. Only one other girl
survived, because her sack had not been sufficiently tied up. She was
dragged out of the water by the crew of a French ship. Eventually
Sultana Ksem became jealous of Sechir Para's influence and one day
she invited the woman to dinner and had her strangled. She told the
inconsolable Ibrahim that the woman "had died suddenly of a powerful
illness".
In the provinces the custodians of public property turned into feudal
lords. Offices were sold to the highest bidder or given to favourites,
taxes were increased and every resource possible was drained to supply
the demands of the Sultan's excesses. Ibrahim was indifferent to the
chaotic situation in his country and his insane behaviour alienated all
political fractions. But the birth of his sons had made Ibrahim
replaceable. In 1648, the Janissaries revolted because they were paid
poorly or not at all. They cut up the body of the Grand Vezir and sold it
in the street. Then the Grand Mufti decided to take revenge for the
deflowering of his daughter by sanctioning a coup. When Ibrahim asked
him: "Did I not appoint you to this high office?", he replied: "No, God
appointed me." Thus Ibrahim was deposed and put back in the "Cage".
Confined once again, he became a raving lunatic. Despite the thick
walls, his cries could be heard day and night. A week after losing his
throne, on August 18, the executioners entered the "Cage". With the
Koran in his hand, Ibrahim cried out: "Behold! God's book! By what
writ shall you murder me?" and "Is there no one among those who have
eaten my bread who will take pity on me and protect me? These cruel
men have come to kill me. Mercy! Mercy!" Nevertheless, he was

325

strangled with a bowstring and buried in the Haghia Sophia Mosque

beside Mad Mustafa.

Abdlkadir Dedeoglu claims that Ibrahim was by no means out of his

mind and that the rumours about his insanity were spread by his
assassins in an attempt to justify their deeds. Still, Ibrahim was an
eccentric and his liability to sudden bouts of intense violence and his
boundless indulgence in debauchery indicate that he suffered from some
kind of personality disorder. He spent his childhood and adolescent life
in solitary confinement in the Cage, while his brothers Osman II,
Mehmed, Sleyman and Bayezid met violent deaths. Growing up in fear
of death will surely have marked his personality. In addition, Ibrahim
suffered from chronic headaches all his life.
Copyright 1997-2000, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
* The husbands of Ottoman Princesses, the leading pashas of the day,
were considered the slaves of their wives. On the wedding night the
husband, when or if admitted to his wife's bedroom, dared to approach
her only from the bottom of her bed. To remove potential rivals to the
Sultan, after 1607 Princesses' children were generally killed at birth.
Bibliography
Coco, C.: Secrets of the harem, Philip Wilson, 1997
Barber, N.: De Sultans, English title: Lords of the Golden Horn, FibulaVan Dishoeck, 1975
Dedeoglu, A.: The Ottomans, Osmanli Yayinevi, 1982
Freely, J.: Istanbul (The Imperial City), Viking, 1996
Lytle Croutier, A.: Harem (The world behind the veil), Abbeville Press,
1989

326

Kinross, L.: The Ottoman Centuries (The Rise and Fall of the Turkish
Empire), Morrow Quill Paperbacks, 1977
Inalcik, H.: The Ottoman Empire (The classical age 1300-1600),
Phoenix, 1988
Mansel, Ph.: Constantinople (City of the World's Desire, 1453-1924),
John Murray, 1996
Palmer, A.: The decline and fall of the Ottoman Empire, John Murray,
1993
Penzer, N.M.: The Harem (an account of the institution as it existed in
the Palace of the Turkish Sultans...), Spring Books, 1967
Randall, D.: Royal Follies (A chronicle of royal misbehavior), Sterling
Publishing, 1988
Blandford, N. & Jones, B.: (The world's most) Evil men, Hamlyn, 1996
Zacks, R.: History laid bare (Love, sex, and perversity from the ancient
Etruscans to Warren G. Harding), Harper Collins, 1994
Aksit, I.: Topkapi Palace, Aksit Kltr Turizm, 1997
Treptow, K.W. (ed.): A history of Romania, East European Monographs,
Columbia University Press, 1996
Burke's Royal Families of the World (Europe and Latin America)
Last modified: 05/26/2012 14:44:23. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
Farouk (1920-1965), the last King of Egypt, was undeniably a very
charming man, but he was also capricious and irresponsible. He was
immensely rich and loved to gamble, but Farouk was also a miser and a
cleptomaniac. If he wanted something, he took it. He not only stole from
his subjects, but also from Winston Churchill and the Shah of Persias
coffin. Even with women, he seemed to prefer other mens fiances or
wives, and he didnt take no for an answer. If there were seven deadly
sins, it was said, Farouk would find an eight.
Farouk was born on February 11, 1920, as a son of Fouad of Egypt
(1868-1936) and his second wife, Nasli Sabri (1894-1978). Fouad

327

wasnt an easy man to live with. Everybody had to put up with his
suspicions and mysophobia1. He had both his wives locked in his harem,
and he used to look for dust and dirt, that servants might have missed,
smothering any imagined odour by spraying with cologne. After a
fortune-teller had told him that F was his lucky letter, Fouad named his
subsequent children Fawkia, Farouk, Fawzia, Faiza, Faika and Fathia. In
1898, his brother-in-law shot Fouad in the leg, chest and throat. The last
bullet couldnt be removed, and resulted in the King making occasional
and uncontrollable dog-like barks. The protocol was to ignore them.
Farouk grew up sheltered. His only playmates were his sisters. He was
usually woken at 6 oclock in the morning, and forced to do gymnastics,
followed by lessons. He had some talent for languages, but Farouk
wasnt interested in mathematics or history. The most important people
in Farouks early life were his mother Nasli, who spoiled him, and his
English governess, Ina Naylor. His stern father frightened Farouk. Fouad
gave Farouk his first car, an Austin 7, when he was 11 years old. At 15,
Farouk got a racing Morris. Farouk cried inconsolably, when a hawk
killed his pet rabbit. On another occasion, however, he grabbed a cat by
its tail and killed it by smashing its head repeatedly against a wall.
In September 1935, Farouk attended the Royal Military Academy in
Woolwich in Great Britain2, where he was known as Prince Freddy.
On May 6, 1936, 16-year-old Farouk was back in Egypt, because his
father had died. He was assisted by a regency council, until he became
officially King of Egypt in July 1937. Farouks chamberlain, Ahmed
Mohammed Hassanein (1889-1946)3, became a confident of Queenmother Nasli. He also became Farouks main adviser and remained so
until his death. Hassanein and Nasli most likely secretly married4.
By bluffing, Farouk tried to hide his inexperience. Feelings of inferiority
and imperfection were the most likely reasons for Farouk to avoid his
advisers, as he had always tried to avoid his father. He remained a
naughty boy making mischief. In restaurants, Farouk made balls from
bread and threw them at people. He also liked to throw pellets at

328

dignitaries, and once slipped a piece of ice down the bra of a curtsying
guest to help her cool off. Farouk also liked to burp to annoy people.
King Farouk
In 1937, Farouk (to the right) and his family went on a tour to UpperEgypt, followed by a European tour. The daughter of a lady-in-waiting
of his mother, Safinaz Zulficar (1921-1988), joined his sisters. During
the tour, it became clear that 17-year-old Farouk had fallen in love with
the girl. He proposed in August 1937, and they were married on January
12, 1938. She was renamed Farida. During the first months of their
marriage, Farouk took her everywhere, and gave her a present every
morning. Soon, however, he started to neglect his wife. Still, when
Farouk got chicken-pocks, Farida nursed him. You dont really
appreciate your wife until you are ill, he said. She gave birth to 3
daughters: Ferial in 1938, Fawzia (1940-2005) and Fadia (1943-2002).
Not having a son was perceived by Farouk as an undermining of his
masculinity. Soon husband and wife had violent domestic rows.
Freed from tutelage, Farouk used to go to nightclubs, and then sleep the
whole morning. He had caviar for breakfast, eating it directly from a
can. Large quantities of boiled eggs, toast, lobster, steak, lamb, chicken,
and pigeon usually followed. He liked fizzy drinks and drank at least 30
bottles a day. After having a series of nightmares about lions, Farouk
went to Cairo Zoo, and shot its lions in their cage. The nightmares,
however, continued.
Farouk owned several villas, yachts and airplanes, and more than 100
cars5. He had all his cars sprayed red and forbade his subjects to own a
red vehicle. That way he could drive recklessly without being stopped by
the police. When Farouk raced by in one of his red cars, people ran for
their lives. When another car tried to pass him, Farouk shot at its tires.
Supposedly, an ambulance followed him to pick up casualties.
sister Fawzia
When Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi of Persia (1919-1980) made a
visit to Egypt, he proposed to 17-year-old Fawzia (to the right), Farouks
favourite sister and a stunning beauty. They married on March 15, 1939.
Soon afterwards hostilities broke out in Europe and, as an ally of Great

329

Britain, Farouk had Germans arrested and their properties confiscated. In

February 1942, his British allies threatened to depose Farouk, unless he
accepted a prime minister of their choice. He never forgave the insult.
Early 1943, Nazi-general Rommel drove the British out of Libya, and
advanced into Egypt, until he was stopped near El Alamein.
In 1941, 21-year-old Irene Guinle had become Farouks first official
mistress. For 2 years, they went together to nightclubs, slept nude
together, played in the palace pool, and gossiped. He was charming,
like a naughty child you couldnt help liking, Irene explained. When
her brother had pneumonia, and there was no penicillin, Irene didnt get
any from Farouk, until she threatened to let it be known that Farouk
could have saved a life and didnt.
Farouks next mistress was witty novelist Barbara Skelton, who looked
like Katharine Hepburn. For 7 months they had an affair, which they
continued for a while in 1950. Barbara described Farouk as a good
kisser, but a bad lover. After spanking her, Farouk would lie on his back
like a beached whale, and, when she got on top of him, it was usually
quickly over. His penis was tiny, and he adored having it sucked, she
added, He was the King. He expected service.
Farouk probably suffered from a hormonal deviation, probably a low
level of testosteron6. Although he had flair, Farouk also suffered from
mood changes. He was effeminate and his corpulence increased that
impression. He was always surrounded by rumours about his prowess,
virility and the size of his penis. Stories about his recurring impotence
started early 1943. Farouk consulted hormone specialists, and tried love
potions and aphrodisiacs, like hashish mixed with honey and even
powdered rhinoceros horn. He also possessed a large collection of
pornography and sex aides. Many of his mistresses described him as a
gentlemen, who wasnt really that interested in sex. For Farouk, food
may have been a replacement for his disappointing sex-life.
Although he was immensely rich, Farouk was a cleptomaniac. He stole
everything he fancied. He had even taken pickpocket lessons from a

330

professional thief. At official receptions and parties, Farouk pickpocketed watches, wallets and cigarette lighters. He even stole Winston
Churchills pocket watch7. When, in 1944, the Shah of Persia had died,
and his coffin landed in Cairo, Farouk stole the ceremonial sword, belt
and medals from the corpse, thus straining the relations between Egypt
and Persia. After Farouks deposition, they were finally returned to
Persia. When Farouk visited people, they put away their precious items,
because the next morning a truck would come from the palace to collect
the things Farouk fancied. He was especially font of weapons, coins and
stamps.
In November 1943, 23-year-old Farouk crashed his red Cadillac against
a lorry, and into a tree. The stretcher, on which the King was placed,
collapsed under his already considerable weight. With 2 fractured ribs
and a cracked pelvis bone, Farouk was nursed in a British military field
hospital, where he enjoyed himself so much, that he was reluctant to
leave. Back in Cairo, his gluttony and card-playing mania increased.
Farouk continually surrounded himself with women, who usually
described him as charming and funny, but also as a miser. A refusal of
his affections could result in sanctions, like a withdrawal of immigration
papers.
On his 24th birthday, Farouk toured through Upper-Egypt, donating
money to the malaria-stricken region. By then, his marriage had
completely disintegrated, and Farouk and Farida lived separately. Farouk
used to boast about his female conquests in his wifes presence. In 1943,
he had fallen hopelessly in love with Fatima Chirine (1923-1990), the
young and reserved wife of Prince Hassan Toussoun (1901-1946). He
wanted a divorce and wanted Fatima to divorce her husband, too, but
nothing came of it. After her husbands death, Farouk seemed no longer
interested. When she became engaged to Prince Joo of Orleans and
Braganza8, however, Farouk again tried to persuade her to marry him
instead, even using threads, but Fatima preferred the Prince.
By 1946, Farouk had finally got rid of both the pro-British prime
minister and the hated British ambassador. The next year, the British

331

withdrew from the major part of Egypt, but stayed in Suez and Sudan.
With them went their Pounds, which resulted in an increase in
unemployment. A cholera epidemic struck Egypt in 1947, when 35,000
people died within 6 months. In May 1948, the state of Israel was
declared, and the Arab countries declared war. Farouk dressed in his
desert field marshal uniform, inspected his troops on a stallion, and
awarded military rank to his sisters. Meanwhile, the Arab troops were
defeated, and Israel established itself as a nation. As a result, Farouks
popularity decreased significantly.
Farouk had finally divorced his popular wife, Farida, in November
19489. For some years, young Liliane Cohen beguiled Farouk with
Yiddish love songs and folk dances. Although she was a very poor girl,
Farouk gave her hardly anything, and often wouldnt pay for her dresses
either. In 1950, she died in an airplane crash at the age of 20. Farouk
also dated belly dancer Samia Gamal (1924-1994), 20-year-old singer
Annie Berrier10, and Patricia Wilder (1918-1995), known as
Honeychile. She described his good manners and great sense of
humour. He took her to palace balls and duck shoots, until Honeychile
married Prince Alexander von Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingsfurst
(1918-1984).
In 1950, Farouks jeweller set up a meeting between Farouk and 16year-old Narriman Sadek (1933-2005). She was somewhat chubby,
barely 5 feet tall, and of common descend, but Farouk was immediately
smitten. The fact that she was already engaged, might have made her
extra desirable for Farouk. Her engagement was cancelled, and
Narriman was send to Rome to prepare for her future role as Queen. She
studied general deportment, court etiquette, history, music, and the
languages English, French, Italian and German. Narriman also had to
bring her weight down to 50 kg. Meanwhile, 30-year-old Farouk made a
tour through Southern Europe, surrounded by women. Narriman and
son He lost fortunes at the gambling tables.
In February 1951, Farouk officially announced his engagement to
Narriman. They were married on May 6. Subsequently, the pair

332

embarked on a costly 3-month honeymoon of gluttony and gambling,

just as the sacred month of Ramadan was beginning. Narriman was
photographed in a bathing suit, and Farouk lost $150,000 at a casino in
Cannes in a 70-hour baccarat marathon. Still, Farouk eschewed
nightclubs on their honeymoon, and wasnt dating other women. On
January 16, 1952, Narriman (to the right) gave birth to Farouks only
son, Ahmad Fouad.
Farouk banished his mother and youngest sister from Egypt, after Fathia
had married Riad Ghali, a Coptic Christian, who had been Naslis lover
after Hassaneins death in 1946. Farouk deprived the women of their
rank, privileges and property. The trio lived in Los Angeles until 1976,
when Ghali left the women, because all their jewels had been sold and
they ran out of money. By the end of that year, Ghali had murdered
Fathia.
Despite occasional and highly publicised gestures of charity, Farouk had
now become very unpopular. Bodyguards always surrounded him, and
he always kept a gun nearby. In 1952, Nassar let a successful coup, and
Farouk was forced to abdicate. He was seen as a hypocrite, when he took
numerous crates of Champagne and Scotch with him, although, as a
Muslim, he wasnt supposed to drink alcohol. The crates, however, were
packed with gold bars and represented the bulk of the fortune Farouk
was able to smuggle out of Egypt with him. He left behind a large
collection of coins, medals and stamps, many works of art in gold and
silver, valuable clocks and watches, rare books, and ancient Egyptian
artefacts. Farouk had also collected trivial objects like matchboxes,
razorblades and toothpaste tubes. Farouk in excile
Farouk settled in Italy with his wife and children. A typical evening for
Farouk (to the right) would begin with an exclusive dinner, followed by
high-staked card games. Afterwards, he would watch a floor show in a
nightclub. In time, Narriman began staying home, preferring daylight
shopping trips. In March 1953, she left Rome and Farouk. Next
February, she signed a divorce agreement without any alimony or

333

custody of their son10. While Farouk was alive, Narriman was allowed
to see her son only twice.
On a dwindling fortune11, overweight Farouk tried to keep up his pose
of a playboy. He dated a succession of pretty young girls, like Joan
Rhodes, a professional strongwoman who bent steel bars with her teeth.
He also took up a friendship with exiled underworld leader Lucky
Luciano (1897-1962), who was to protect the ex-Kings life on several
occasions. Through him, Farouk met 18-year-old Brigitta Stenberg, and
made her his mistress. According to Brigitta, Farouk was neither
impotent with her, nor unconcerned with her pleasure. They rarely left
his bedroom.
Farouks last official mistress was reddish-blond Irma Capece Minutolo.
They met when he was 32, fat12 and bald, while she was probably only 16. The girth became him, Irma said, it was part of his royalty.
She also liked his hypnotic, sphinx-like eyes. She learned to walk
properly and to curtsy, and was instructed in music, literature and riding.
Her innocence was what Farouk seemed to cherish about her; Irma
insisted that nothing happened sexually with Farouk for the longest time.
Farouk never talked to her about other women, but Irma knew there
were many, just from reading the papers. Farouk would also go to Paris
to visit its famous bordellos.
On March 17, 1965, Farouk took 22-year-old Annamaria Gatti to a
restaurant. He ate oysters, lobster with sauce, lamb, and beans. After
dinner, he lit up his giant Havanna, collapsed at the table. He was taken
to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead just after midnight.
Officially, his cause of death was a cerebral haemorrhage. However, a
mistress of Salah Nasir, director of Nassers General Intelligence
Bureau, claims Nasir expected and received a call about Farouks death
that evening. They had supposedly poisoned the lobster.
Copyright 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Mysophobia is a fear of contamination.
2 Farouk had failed the Eton entrance exams.

334

3 Hassanein was a famous scholar and explorer, a kind of "Indiana

Jones".
4 Farouk is said to have ordered the marriage to be kept secret and to
have destroyed all evidence of it after Hassaneins death.
5 Hitler send Farouk a custum-made Mercedes as a wedding-gift, when
Farouk married his first wife.
6 An imbalance of cortisone and androgens, like testosteron, is
popularly known as the "Andropause". Symptomps are a diminished
libido, impotence, increased body fat, loss of hair on the head, and
irritablility. It's more common in elder men.
7 Churchills pocket watch was an heirloom, that had been given by
Queen Anne to his ancestor, the Duke of Marlborough.
8 Joo was a descendant of both the Kings of France and the Emperors
of Brazil.
9 To minimize the scandal, Farouk pressed the Shah of Persia to
divorce his sister Fawzia at the same time. Fawzia was not allowed to
return to Persia. Both she and the Shah remarried.
10 He had "Chanson du Nil" composed for Annie Berrier, but it wasnt
the success they had hoped for.
11 Narriman remarried in 1954, but that marriage also ended in
divorce.
12 Farouk was forced to sell his yachts and exclusive cars.
13 Near the end of his life, Farouk weighted nearly 150 kg.
Biographical Sources
McLeave, H.: De Laatste Farao (Het ruige leven van Faroek), English
title: The last Pharaoh (Farouk of Egypt), Forum Boekerij, Ad. M.C.
Stok
Stadiem, W.: Too Rich (The High Life and Tragic Death of King
Farouk), Carroll & Graf Publishers Inc., 1991
Cawthorne, N.: Sex Lives of the Great Dictators (An Irreverent Expose
of Despots), Prion, 1996
Wallace, I., a.o.: The Secret Sex Lives of Famous People, Chancellor
Press, 1981
Randall, D.: Royal Follies (A Chronicle of Royal Misbehavior), Sterling
Publishing Co., 1988

335

Elgklou, L.: Vorstelijke Merkwaardigheden, Luitingh, 1983

Opzeeland, W. van: De Vorstenhuizen (Dynastien die bleven en die
verdwenen), Het Aanzien, Amsterdam Book
Shaw, K.: The Mammonth Book of Oddballs and Eccentrics, Carroll &
Graf Publishers Inc., 2000
Genealogical Sources
Burkes Royal Families of the World (Africa and the Middle East),
Burkes Peerage, 1980
Theroff, P.: Paul Theroffs Royal Genealogy Site, An Online Gotha,
http://pages.prodigy.net/ptheroff/gotha/hohenlohe.html, 2008
Willis, D.: The Descendants of Louis XIII, Clearfield, 1999
Recommended Sites
Muhammad Ali, founder of the dynasty
Farouk's family photo's
Women in Farouk's life: Irma Capece Minutolo, opera singer, Barbara
Skelton, novelist, Samia Gamal, belly dancer (in action), and Joan
Rhodes, strongwoman (in action).
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:23:55. Content: Joan Bos. Info: FAQ,
Mailing List or RSS Feed.
Previous Monarch
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Shah Safi I of Persia (1610-1642) had most of his male family
members ruthlessly killed off, and spend most of his time under the
influence of alcohol and opium. Not interested in the government of his
Empire, he lost Irak and Quandahar to the conquering Ottomans and
Mughals.
Shah Abbas the Great of Persia Shah Safi of Persia was born around
1610, and was given the name Sam Mirza. His mother was Princess DilAram Khanum (1647), 2nd daughter of the mad Persian Shah Ismail

336

II (1537-1577). His father was Muhammad Baqir (1587-1615), eldest

son of the famous Persian Shah Abbas the Great (1571-1628, to the
right). The couragious Abbas may have been a great ruler, but he wasnt
a great father. When his sons grew up, he became jealous of their
popularity. On January 25, 1615, while returning from his bath,
Muhammad Baqir was stabbed to death by a slave on his fathers orders.
Abbas rewarded the assassin by promoting him to high office. Sam
Mirza was approximately 5 years old at the time, and was to grow up
with his mother in the confines of the harem.
Talmasp I +----- Ismail II ------------------------------ Dil-Aram
Khanum
1514-1576 | 1533-1577
1647
x -----+
x ---------- Safi I
Kadamali +- Muhammad Khudabanda -- Abbas I the Great --Muhammad Baqir 1610-1642
1516-1593
1532-1595
1571-1629
1587-1615
Both Safi's grandfather's were Shah of Persia
When Abbas was gravely ill in 1621, his 2nd surviving son, Muhammad
Khudabanda (1591-1632), began celebrating his anticipated succession,
but Abbas recovered, and had his son blinded. In 1627, the old Shah had
his youngest son, Imam Quli (1602-1632), blinded, too, on suspicion of
plotting against him. By this act Abbas cut off the last of his sons from
the throne. Thus, when Abbas finally died on January 19, 1629, he was
succeeded by his grandson Sam Mirza, who was crowned on January 28,
and took the name Shah Safi.
Safi I came to the throne without any experience of government, trained
only in indolence and self-gratification. In the first 5 years after his
accession, he used his autocratic powers to arbitrary execute any who
aroused his suspision or dislike. Safi's aunt, Zubaidah Begum1 (15861632), and her supporters seem to have refused to accept Safi's
succession, and she is alleged to have attempted to poison Safi. This
harem-based opposition to his rule seems to have prompted Safi to kill
of all his family members, including his aunt and her husband. His only
brother Sulaiman and his blinded uncles Khudabanda and Imam Quli

337

were put to death in 1632. In addition, Imam Qulis young son, Najaf
Quli, and 40 women of the harem were killed. A similar fate overtook
many of the senior officials and high-ranking generals that Safi had
inherited from the previous reign.
Around 1635 Safi made a prestigious marriage to Princess Tinatin of
Kartli (Central Georgia), a daughter of King Taimuraz I by his 2nd wife,
Queen Khoreshan-Darejan, daughter of King Giorgi X of Kartli, but
later Safi had her strangled. Safi also married a Circassian, Ana Khanum
(1647). His other women were concubines and they all lived in the
royal harem.
The buildings of the royal harem were within an inner enclosure, where
they were surrounded by a spacious garden. The women in the harem
were looked after by black euneuchs and slave maidservants. The palace
complex in Isfahan had been laid out by Abbas the Great, but Safi had
the stables moved to make way for a grand new reception hall.
Among Safi's 6 sons and 2 daughters were his able successor, Abbas II
(1633-1666), a son of Ana Khanum, and an able daughter, Mariam
Begum. She was to develop an alcohol addition, too, but still was to play
a role in the reign of Safis great-grandson, Husayn (1668-1726).
At the time Persia was an empire much larger than modern-day Iran, but
Quandahar in the east of the Empire was lost to the Mughals in 1638.
The next year, the Ottoman Sultan Murad IV (1612-1640) captured
Bagdad2, reconquering all of Irak and its Shi'i shrines. Safi appeared at
Kasr-i-Shirin with 12000 men, but his force was too weak to effect
anything of importance. Humiliating though the loss of this territory
with the shrines was, the resulting peace treaty with the Ottomans gave a
boost to trade, and central revenues reached unprecedented levels due to
the excellent administration of Safis chief miniter, Mirza Muhammad
Taqi, known as Saru Taqi. He was quite competent, integer and
incorruptible, and he managed to remain in office well into the next
reign.

338

Safis upbringing in the harem was evident in his lack in interests in

affairs of state, or apparently in much else, apart from drink and drugs.
Christians, who were dependent on his favour, described Safi as
generous, charming and pleasant to deal with, but others regarded him
as ruthless and cruel. Safi I proved to be the most murderous ruler
after his maternal grandfather, Shah Ismail II. Killing off his relatives,
even his blinded uncles and an aunt, hint at a paranoid or psychopathic
tendency, aggravated by substance abuse.
Safi drank large amounts of alcohol to counter his opium addiction, and,
while still in his early 30s, he died of his excesses at Kashan on May 12,
1642. In the name of his more competent son and successor, Abbas II, all
Safis younger sons were blinded, too.
Copyright 2011-2015 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
" Tis certain there has not been in Persia a more cruel and bloody reign
than his. "
F. Krusinski

Footnotes
1 Zubaidas daughter, Jahan Banu, married King Simeon II of Kartli
(Central Georgia), and had a grandson, who married Shahbanu, a
daughter of Shah Safi II (Safi I's grandson, who was also known as
Sulaiman).
2 After the capture of Bagdad, the Ottoman Sultan Murad IV (16121640) had all but 300 of the garrison of 30000 slaughtered, and an
additional 30000 innocent citizens, mostly women and children.
Bibliography
Robinson, F.: The Mughal Emperors (and the Islamic Dynasties of India,
Iran and Central Asia, 1206-1925), Thames & Hudson, 2007
Blow, D.: Shah Abbas (The Ruthless King who became an Iranian
Legend), I.B. Tauris, 2009

339

Humphreys, E.: The Royal Road (A popular history of Iran), Scorpion

Publishing Ltd, 1991
Morgan, D.: Medieval Persia (1040-1797), A history of the Near East,
Longman, 1994
Sykes, P.M.: A History of Persia, Vol. II, MacMillan and Co. London,
1915
Newman, A.J.: Safavid Iran (Rebirth of a Persian Empire), I.B. Tauris,
2006
Rayfield, D.: Edge of Empires (A history of Georgia), pages 197-199,
Reaktion Books, 2012
Wikipedia
The Royal Ark - Persia - The Safawi Dynasty
Last modified: 04/08/2015 20:58:33. Content: Joan Bos. Info: FAQ.
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NADIR
In the history of Persia different dynasties rivalled for supreme power,
killing off their opponents. After the violent deaths of his father and
elder brother, 12-year-old Ismail assembled an army, defeated the Khan
of the Aq Qoyunlu and became Shah Ismail I of Persia (1487-1524).
Near the end of his life, Ismail I became a melancholic alcoholic and lost
interest in affairs of state. His son, Tamasp I (1513-1576), is described as
"a mean, treacherous and melancholy man". Gradually, he turned into a
recluse and no longer left his palace. His son, Ismail II (1533-1577), had
been imprisoned for the last 20 years of his father's reign. This Shah
mercilessly killed off possible rivals to the throne, including many of his
own brothers, until he died of an opium overdose. Shah Safi II (16471694), a drunkard and recluse, was said to have shut himself up for 7
years in the harem without emerging once. Shah Husayn (1668-1726)
was known for his uxoriousness and married many wives before he was
deposed, imprisoned and beheaded. In 1736, Nadir Shah ascended the

340

Persian throne. He was a great conqueror, who invaded India, but he was
also a supsicious tyrant with an increasing lust for blood.
Nadir (1688-1747) was the son of a poor peasant, who lived in Khurasan
and died while Nadir was still a child. Nadir and his mother were carried
off as slaves by the zbegs, but Nadir managed to escape and became a
soldier. Soon he attracted the attention of a chieftain of the Afshar1, in
whose service Nadir rapidly advanced. Eventually, the ambitious Nadir
fell out of favour. He became a rebel and gathered a substantial army.
In 1719 the Afghans had invaded Persia. They deposed the reigning
Shah of the Safavid dynasty in 1722. Their ruler, Mahmud Ghilzai
(1699-1725), murdered a large number of Safavid Princes, hacking
many of them to death by his own hand. After he had invited the leading
citizens of Isfahan to a feast and massacred them there, his own
supporters assassinated Mahmud in 1725. His cousin, Ashraf (17001730), took over and married a Safavid princess.
At first, Nadir fought with the Afghans against the zbegs until they
withheld him further payment. In 1727 Nadir offered his services to
Tamasp II (1704-1740), heir to the Safavid dynasty. Nadir started the
reconquest of Persia and drove the Afghans out of Khurasan. The
Afghans suffered heavy losses, but before they fled Ashraf massacred an
additional 3000 citizens of Isfahan. Most of the fleeing Afghans were
soon overtaken and killed by Nadir's men, while others died in the
desert. Ashraf himself was hunted down and murdered.
Nadir Shah
By 1729, Nadir (to the right) had freed Persia from the Afghans. Tamasp
II was crowned Shah, although he was little more than a figurehead.
While Nadir was putting down a revolt in Khurasan, Tamasp moved
against the Turks, losing Georgia and Armenia. Enraged, Nadir deposed
Tamasp in 1732 and installed Tamasp's infant son, Abbas III (17321740), on the throne, naming himself regent. Within two years Nadir
recaptured the lost territory and extended the Empire at the expense of
the Turks and the Russians.

341

In 1736, Nadir evidently felt that his own position had been established
so firmly that he no longer needed to hide behind a nominal Safavid
Shah and ascended the throne himself. In 1738 he invaded Qandahar,
captured Kabul and marched on to India. He seized and sacked Delhi
and, after some disturbances, he killed 30000 of its citizens. He
plundered the Indian treasures of the Mughal Emperors, taking with him
the famous jewel-encrusted Peacock Throne and the Koh-i Noor
diamond2. In 1740 Nadir had Tamasp II and his two infant sons put to
death. Then he invaded Transoxania. He resumed war with Turkey in
1743. In addition, he built a navy and conquered Oman.
Gradually Nadir's greedy and intolerant nature became more
pronounced. The financial burden of his standing armies was more than
the Persians could bear and Nadir imposed the death penalty on those
who failed to pay his taxes. He stored most of his loot for his own use
and showed little if any concern for the general welfare of the country.
Nadir concentrated all power in his own hands. He was a brilliant soldier
and the founder of the Persian navy, but he was entirely lacking any
interest in art and literature. Once, when Nadir was told that there was
no war in paradise, he was reported to have asked: "How can there be
any delights there?". He moved the capital to Mashhad in Khurasan,
close to his favourite mountain fortress. He tried to reconcile Sunnism
with Shi'itism, because he needed people of both faiths in his army, but
the reconciliation failed.
In the evening Nadir would retire to his private apartment, where he
usually supped with three or four favourites. He drank wine with
moderation, but was very fond of women. In his later days, Nadir had 33
women in his harem. Nadir preferred to speak in Turki (Eastern
Turkish), but he could converse in Persian, too. His contemporaries
mentioned his remarkably loud voice, which enabled him to make his
commands easily heard. From 1739 onwards, Nadir used to dye his
beard and moustache black, thus keeping a youthful appearance. Duting
the 1740s he lost several of his front teeth.

342

In his later years, revolts began to break out against Nadir's oppressive
rule and his increasing lust for blood and money. He suffered from
dropsy, and as a result he was troubled at times by severe melancholia
and outbursts of rage. In 1743 Nadir was treated for a liver complaint. In
the summer of 1745 he was seriously ill and had to be carried in a litter.
He suffered from constipation and had frequent attacks of vomiting.
Nadir Shah Following an assination attempt, Nadir (to the right) began
exhibited signs of mental derangement. He suspected his own son, Reza
Quli Mirza (1719-1747), of plotting against him and had him blinded.
Soon he started executing the nobles who had witnessed his son's
blinding. Gradually Nadir's attacks of frenzy became periods of actual
insanity which recurred with increasing frequency. In January 1747 he
left Isfahan for Kirman. Wherever he halted, Nadir had many people
tortured and put to death. He had towers of their heads erected. In March
he crossed the terrible Dasht-i-Lut desert, where many of his men
perished of hunger and thirst. By then, even his own tribesmen felt that
he was too dangerous a man to be near. A group of Afshar and Qajar
chiefs decided "to breakfast off him ere he should sup off them". His
own commanders surprised him in his sleep, but Nadir managed to kill
two of them before the assassins cut off his head.
Nadir was Persia's most gifted military genius and is known as "The
Second Alexander" and "The Napoleon of Persia". He raised his country
from the lowest depths of degradation to the proud position of the
foremost military power in Asia. Unfortunately, his triumphs were at the
expense of incalculable suffering and terrible loss of life. His
grandiosity, his insatiable desire for more conquests and his egocentric
behaviour suggest a narcissistic personality disorder and in his last years
he seems to have developed some paranoid tendencies. Nadir was
married four times and had 5 sons and 15 grandsons. Their deaths were
ordered by Nadir's successor.
Copyright 1997-2002, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Special thanks to Enver Kitorasange.

343

Footnotes
1 The Afshar were a Turcoman tribe.
2 The Koh-i Noor diamond is now in the possession of the British Royal
Family.
Bibliography
Morgan, D.: Medieval Persia (1040-1797), A history of the Near East,
Longman, 1994
Humphreys, E.: The Royal Road (A popular history of Iran), Scorpion
Publishing Ltd, 1991
Axelrod, A. & Philips, Ch.: Dictators & tyrants (Absolute rulers and
would-be rulers in world history), FactsOnFile, 1995
Hoek, K.A. van den (ed.): De Groten der Aarde, Universum, Lekturama,
1979
Burke's Royal Families of the World
Lockhart, L.: Nadir Shah (A critical study based mainly upon
contemporary sources), Al-Irfan, Historical Reprints, 1976
Diba, L.S. (ed.): Royal Persian Paintings (The Quajar Epoch 17851925), I.B. Tauris Publishers, 1998
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:24:44. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.

Farouk (1920-1965), the last King of Egypt, was undeniably a

very charming man, but he was also capricious and irresponsible. He
was immensely rich and loved to gamble, but Farouk was also a miser
and a cleptomaniac. If he wanted something, he took it. He not only
stole from his subjects, but also from Winston Churchill and the Shah of
Persias coffin. Even with women, he seemed to prefer other mens
fiances or wives, and he didnt take no for an answer. If there were
seven deadly sins, it was said, Farouk would find an eight.
Farouk was born on February 11, 1920, as a son of Fouad of Egypt
(1868-1936) and his second wife, Nasli Sabri (1894-1978). Fouad

344

wasnt an easy man to live with. Everybody had to put up with his
suspicions and mysophobia1. He had both his wives locked in his harem,
and he used to look for dust and dirt, that servants might have missed,
smothering any imagined odour by spraying with cologne. After a
fortune-teller had told him that F was his lucky letter, Fouad named his
subsequent children Fawkia, Farouk, Fawzia, Faiza, Faika and Fathia. In
1898, his brother-in-law shot Fouad in the leg, chest and throat. The last
bullet couldnt be removed, and resulted in the King making occasional
and uncontrollable dog-like barks. The protocol was to ignore them.
Farouk grew up sheltered. His only playmates were his sisters. He was
usually woken at 6 oclock in the morning, and forced to do gymnastics,
followed by lessons. He had some talent for languages, but Farouk
wasnt interested in mathematics or history. The most important people
in Farouks early life were his mother Nasli, who spoiled him, and his
English governess, Ina Naylor. His stern father frightened Farouk. Fouad
gave Farouk his first car, an Austin 7, when he was 11 years old. At 15,
Farouk got a racing Morris. Farouk cried inconsolably, when a hawk
killed his pet rabbit. On another occasion, however, he grabbed a cat by
its tail and killed it by smashing its head repeatedly against a wall.
In September 1935, Farouk attended the Royal Military Academy in
Woolwich in Great Britain2, where he was known as Prince Freddy.
On May 6, 1936, 16-year-old Farouk was back in Egypt, because his
father had died. He was assisted by a regency council, until he became
officially King of Egypt in July 1937. Farouks chamberlain, Ahmed
Mohammed Hassanein (1889-1946)3, became a confident of Queenmother Nasli. He also became Farouks main adviser and remained so
until his death. Hassanein and Nasli most likely secretly married4.
By bluffing, Farouk tried to hide his inexperience. Feelings of inferiority
and imperfection were the most likely reasons for Farouk to avoid his
advisers, as he had always tried to avoid his father. He remained a
naughty boy making mischief. In restaurants, Farouk made balls from
bread and threw them at people. He also liked to throw pellets at

345

dignitaries, and once slipped a piece of ice down the bra of a curtsying
guest to help her cool off. Farouk also liked to burp to annoy people.
King Farouk
In 1937, Farouk (to the right) and his family went on a tour to UpperEgypt, followed by a European tour. The daughter of a lady-in-waiting
of his mother, Safinaz Zulficar (1921-1988), joined his sisters. During
the tour, it became clear that 17-year-old Farouk had fallen in love with
the girl. He proposed in August 1937, and they were married on January
12, 1938. She was renamed Farida. During the first months of their
marriage, Farouk took her everywhere, and gave her a present every
morning. Soon, however, he started to neglect his wife. Still, when
Farouk got chicken-pocks, Farida nursed him. You dont really
appreciate your wife until you are ill, he said. She gave birth to 3
daughters: Ferial in 1938, Fawzia (1940-2005) and Fadia (1943-2002).
Not having a son was perceived by Farouk as an undermining of his
masculinity. Soon husband and wife had violent domestic rows.
Freed from tutelage, Farouk used to go to nightclubs, and then sleep the
whole morning. He had caviar for breakfast, eating it directly from a
can. Large quantities of boiled eggs, toast, lobster, steak, lamb, chicken,
and pigeon usually followed. He liked fizzy drinks and drank at least 30
bottles a day. After having a series of nightmares about lions, Farouk
went to Cairo Zoo, and shot its lions in their cage. The nightmares,
however, continued.
Farouk owned several villas, yachts and airplanes, and more than 100
cars5. He had all his cars sprayed red and forbade his subjects to own a
red vehicle. That way he could drive recklessly without being stopped by
the police. When Farouk raced by in one of his red cars, people ran for
their lives. When another car tried to pass him, Farouk shot at its tires.
Supposedly, an ambulance followed him to pick up casualties.
sister Fawzia
When Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi of Persia (1919-1980) made a
visit to Egypt, he proposed to 17-year-old Fawzia (to the right), Farouks
favourite sister and a stunning beauty. They married on March 15, 1939.
Soon afterwards hostilities broke out in Europe and, as an ally of Great

346

Britain, Farouk had Germans arrested and their properties confiscated. In

February 1942, his British allies threatened to depose Farouk, unless he
accepted a prime minister of their choice. He never forgave the insult.
Early 1943, Nazi-general Rommel drove the British out of Libya, and
advanced into Egypt, until he was stopped near El Alamein.
In 1941, 21-year-old Irene Guinle had become Farouks first official
mistress. For 2 years, they went together to nightclubs, slept nude
together, played in the palace pool, and gossiped. He was charming,
like a naughty child you couldnt help liking, Irene explained. When
her brother had pneumonia, and there was no penicillin, Irene didnt get
any from Farouk, until she threatened to let it be known that Farouk
could have saved a life and didnt.
Farouks next mistress was witty novelist Barbara Skelton, who looked
like Katharine Hepburn. For 7 months they had an affair, which they
continued for a while in 1950. Barbara described Farouk as a good
kisser, but a bad lover. After spanking her, Farouk would lie on his back
like a beached whale, and, when she got on top of him, it was usually
quickly over. His penis was tiny, and he adored having it sucked, she
added, He was the King. He expected service.
Farouk probably suffered from a hormonal deviation, probably a low
level of testosteron6. Although he had flair, Farouk also suffered from
mood changes. He was effeminate and his corpulence increased that
impression. He was always surrounded by rumours about his prowess,
virility and the size of his penis. Stories about his recurring impotence
started early 1943. Farouk consulted hormone specialists, and tried love
potions and aphrodisiacs, like hashish mixed with honey and even
powdered rhinoceros horn. He also possessed a large collection of
pornography and sex aides. Many of his mistresses described him as a
gentlemen, who wasnt really that interested in sex. For Farouk, food
may have been a replacement for his disappointing sex-life.
Although he was immensely rich, Farouk was a cleptomaniac. He stole
everything he fancied. He had even taken pickpocket lessons from a

347

professional thief. At official receptions and parties, Farouk pickpocketed watches, wallets and cigarette lighters. He even stole Winston
Churchills pocket watch7. When, in 1944, the Shah of Persia had died,
and his coffin landed in Cairo, Farouk stole the ceremonial sword, belt
and medals from the corpse, thus straining the relations between Egypt
and Persia. After Farouks deposition, they were finally returned to
Persia. When Farouk visited people, they put away their precious items,
because the next morning a truck would come from the palace to collect
the things Farouk fancied. He was especially font of weapons, coins and
stamps.
In November 1943, 23-year-old Farouk crashed his red Cadillac against
a lorry, and into a tree. The stretcher, on which the King was placed,
collapsed under his already considerable weight. With 2 fractured ribs
and a cracked pelvis bone, Farouk was nursed in a British military field
hospital, where he enjoyed himself so much, that he was reluctant to
leave. Back in Cairo, his gluttony and card-playing mania increased.
Farouk continually surrounded himself with women, who usually
described him as charming and funny, but also as a miser. A refusal of
his affections could result in sanctions, like a withdrawal of immigration
papers.
On his 24th birthday, Farouk toured through Upper-Egypt, donating
money to the malaria-stricken region. By then, his marriage had
completely disintegrated, and Farouk and Farida lived separately. Farouk
used to boast about his female conquests in his wifes presence. In 1943,
he had fallen hopelessly in love with Fatima Chirine (1923-1990), the
young and reserved wife of Prince Hassan Toussoun (1901-1946). He
wanted a divorce and wanted Fatima to divorce her husband, too, but
nothing came of it. After her husbands death, Farouk seemed no longer
interested. When she became engaged to Prince Joo of Orleans and
Braganza8, however, Farouk again tried to persuade her to marry him
instead, even using threads, but Fatima preferred the Prince.
By 1946, Farouk had finally got rid of both the pro-British prime
minister and the hated British ambassador. The next year, the British

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withdrew from the major part of Egypt, but stayed in Suez and Sudan.
With them went their Pounds, which resulted in an increase in
unemployment. A cholera epidemic struck Egypt in 1947, when 35,000
people died within 6 months. In May 1948, the state of Israel was
declared, and the Arab countries declared war. Farouk dressed in his
desert field marshal uniform, inspected his troops on a stallion, and
awarded military rank to his sisters. Meanwhile, the Arab troops were
defeated, and Israel established itself as a nation. As a result, Farouks
popularity decreased significantly.
Farouk had finally divorced his popular wife, Farida, in November
19489. For some years, young Liliane Cohen beguiled Farouk with
Yiddish love songs and folk dances. Although she was a very poor girl,
Farouk gave her hardly anything, and often wouldnt pay for her dresses
either. In 1950, she died in an airplane crash at the age of 20. Farouk
also dated belly dancer Samia Gamal (1924-1994), 20-year-old singer
Annie Berrier10, and Patricia Wilder (1918-1995), known as
Honeychile. She described his good manners and great sense of
humour. He took her to palace balls and duck shoots, until Honeychile
married Prince Alexander von Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingsfurst
(1918-1984).
In 1950, Farouks jeweller set up a meeting between Farouk and 16year-old Narriman Sadek (1933-2005). She was somewhat chubby,
barely 5 feet tall, and of common descend, but Farouk was immediately
smitten. The fact that she was already engaged, might have made her
extra desirable for Farouk. Her engagement was cancelled, and
Narriman was send to Rome to prepare for her future role as Queen. She
studied general deportment, court etiquette, history, music, and the
languages English, French, Italian and German. Narriman also had to
bring her weight down to 50 kg. Meanwhile, 30-year-old Farouk made a
tour through Southern Europe, surrounded by women. Narriman and
son He lost fortunes at the gambling tables.
In February 1951, Farouk officially announced his engagement to
Narriman. They were married on May 6. Subsequently, the pair

349

embarked on a costly 3-month honeymoon of gluttony and gambling,

just as the sacred month of Ramadan was beginning. Narriman was
photographed in a bathing suit, and Farouk lost $150,000 at a casino in
Cannes in a 70-hour baccarat marathon. Still, Farouk eschewed
nightclubs on their honeymoon, and wasnt dating other women. On
January 16, 1952, Narriman (to the right) gave birth to Farouks only
son, Ahmad Fouad.
Farouk banished his mother and youngest sister from Egypt, after Fathia
had married Riad Ghali, a Coptic Christian, who had been Naslis lover
after Hassaneins death in 1946. Farouk deprived the women of their
rank, privileges and property. The trio lived in Los Angeles until 1976,
when Ghali left the women, because all their jewels had been sold and
they ran out of money. By the end of that year, Ghali had murdered
Fathia.
Despite occasional and highly publicised gestures of charity, Farouk had
now become very unpopular. Bodyguards always surrounded him, and
he always kept a gun nearby. In 1952, Nassar let a successful coup, and
Farouk was forced to abdicate. He was seen as a hypocrite, when he took
numerous crates of Champagne and Scotch with him, although, as a
Muslim, he wasnt supposed to drink alcohol. The crates, however, were
packed with gold bars and represented the bulk of the fortune Farouk
was able to smuggle out of Egypt with him. He left behind a large
collection of coins, medals and stamps, many works of art in gold and
silver, valuable clocks and watches, rare books, and ancient Egyptian
artefacts. Farouk had also collected trivial objects like matchboxes,
razorblades and toothpaste tubes. Farouk in excile
Farouk settled in Italy with his wife and children. A typical evening for
Farouk (to the right) would begin with an exclusive dinner, followed by
high-staked card games. Afterwards, he would watch a floor show in a
nightclub. In time, Narriman began staying home, preferring daylight
shopping trips. In March 1953, she left Rome and Farouk. Next
February, she signed a divorce agreement without any alimony or

350

custody of their son10. While Farouk was alive, Narriman was allowed
to see her son only twice.
On a dwindling fortune11, overweight Farouk tried to keep up his pose
of a playboy. He dated a succession of pretty young girls, like Joan
Rhodes, a professional strongwoman who bent steel bars with her teeth.
He also took up a friendship with exiled underworld leader Lucky
Luciano (1897-1962), who was to protect the ex-Kings life on several
occasions. Through him, Farouk met 18-year-old Brigitta Stenberg, and
made her his mistress. According to Brigitta, Farouk was neither
impotent with her, nor unconcerned with her pleasure. They rarely left
his bedroom.
Farouks last official mistress was reddish-blond Irma Capece Minutolo.
They met when he was 32, fat12 and bald, while she was probably only 16. The girth became him, Irma said, it was part of his royalty.
She also liked his hypnotic, sphinx-like eyes. She learned to walk
properly and to curtsy, and was instructed in music, literature and riding.
Her innocence was what Farouk seemed to cherish about her; Irma
insisted that nothing happened sexually with Farouk for the longest time.
Farouk never talked to her about other women, but Irma knew there
were many, just from reading the papers. Farouk would also go to Paris
to visit its famous bordellos.
On March 17, 1965, Farouk took 22-year-old Annamaria Gatti to a
restaurant. He ate oysters, lobster with sauce, lamb, and beans. After
dinner, he lit up his giant Havanna, collapsed at the table. He was taken
to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead just after midnight.
Officially, his cause of death was a cerebral haemorrhage. However, a
mistress of Salah Nasir, director of Nassers General Intelligence
Bureau, claims Nasir expected and received a call about Farouks death
that evening. They had supposedly poisoned the lobster.
Copyright 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Footnotes
1 Mysophobia is a fear of contamination.
2 Farouk had failed the Eton entrance exams.

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3 Hassanein was a famous scholar and explorer, a kind of "Indiana

Jones".
4 Farouk is said to have ordered the marriage to be kept secret and to
have destroyed all evidence of it after Hassaneins death.
5 Hitler send Farouk a custum-made Mercedes as a wedding-gift, when
Farouk married his first wife.
6 An imbalance of cortisone and androgens, like testosteron, is
popularly known as the "Andropause". Symptomps are a diminished
libido, impotence, increased body fat, loss of hair on the head, and
irritablility. It's more common in elder men.
7 Churchills pocket watch was an heirloom, that had been given by
Queen Anne to his ancestor, the Duke of Marlborough.
8 Joo was a descendant of both the Kings of France and the Emperors
of Brazil.
9 To minimize the scandal, Farouk pressed the Shah of Persia to
divorce his sister Fawzia at the same time. Fawzia was not allowed to
return to Persia. Both she and the Shah remarried.
10 He had "Chanson du Nil" composed for Annie Berrier, but it wasnt
the success they had hoped for.
11 Narriman remarried in 1954, but that marriage also ended in
divorce.
12 Farouk was forced to sell his yachts and exclusive cars.
13 Near the end of his life, Farouk weighted nearly 150 kg.
Biographical Sources
McLeave, H.: De Laatste Farao (Het ruige leven van Faroek), English
title: The last Pharaoh (Farouk of Egypt), Forum Boekerij, Ad. M.C.
Stok
Stadiem, W.: Too Rich (The High Life and Tragic Death of King
Farouk), Carroll & Graf Publishers Inc., 1991
Cawthorne, N.: Sex Lives of the Great Dictators (An Irreverent Expose
of Despots), Prion, 1996
Wallace, I., a.o.: The Secret Sex Lives of Famous People, Chancellor
Press, 1981
Randall, D.: Royal Follies (A Chronicle of Royal Misbehavior), Sterling
Publishing Co., 1988

352

Elgklou, L.: Vorstelijke Merkwaardigheden, Luitingh, 1983

Opzeeland, W. van: De Vorstenhuizen (Dynastien die bleven en die
verdwenen), Het Aanzien, Amsterdam Book
Shaw, K.: The Mammonth Book of Oddballs and Eccentrics, Carroll &
Graf Publishers Inc., 2000
Genealogical Sources
Burkes Royal Families of the World (Africa and the Middle East),
Burkes Peerage, 1980
Theroff, P.: Paul Theroffs Royal Genealogy Site, An Online Gotha,
http://pages.prodigy.net/ptheroff/gotha/hohenlohe.html, 2008
Willis, D.: The Descendants of Louis XIII, Clearfield, 1999
Recommended Sites
Muhammad Ali, founder of the dynasty
Farouk's family photo's
Women in Farouk's life: Irma Capece Minutolo, opera singer, Barbara
Skelton, novelist, Samia Gamal, belly dancer (in action), and Joan
Rhodes, strongwoman (in action).
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:23:55. Content: Joan Bos. Info: FAQ,
Mailing List or RSS Feed.
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SADO
Unloved by his father, Crown Prince Sado of Korea (1735-1762) grew
up as a sadly disturbed man. His superstitious nature and an obsession
with clothes induced him to burn whole sets of new silken clothes. When
he felt agitated or depressed, murdering servants brought him relieve.
Daily, several dead bodies were carried out of the palace. Raping court
ladies was another of his pastimes, and, after murdering his concubine,
Sado started harassing his own sister, too. Finally, the King decided
upon a very drastic measure, involving a rice box... King Yongjo

353

Korea had been for several years without an heir after the death of the
beloved son of King Yongjo (1694-1776, to the right). The Queen, So
Chngsng (1692-1767), was childless, while the King's favourite
concubine, Lady Snhui (1696-1764), had given birth to a series of
daughters. Then, in February 1735, Lady Snhui gave birth to Prince
Sado, and everybody rejoiced. After 100 days, Sado was established
with a governess, eunuchs and maids in the "Palace of the Crown
Prince". With his parents far away, the little Prince grew up, doing just
as he pleased.
King Yongjo could easily be angered by the most trivial incidents and
his little son regularly managed to arouse his father's anger. As a result,
Sado became afraid of his father and always behaved with great caution
in his presence. When asked a question, he could never find an
immediate answer, which irritated his father even more. Whenever they
met, King Yongjo's resentment against his son usually predominated
over his affection for him. He never sat down together with him, and
often scolded him in the presence of others. Gradually, he began to avoid
his little son. Lady Snhui visited her son every day and tried to bring
him up strictly - with instructions always preceding affection. Sado was
terrified of her, too, and extremely careful in everything concerning her.
In 1743, the King and Queen chose as Sado's future wife Lady Hong
(1735-1815). She was the 8-year-old daughter of Hong Pong Han (17131778), a brilliant scholar. He descended from a Korean Princess, but
belonged to a poor branch of the Hong family. The two children were
married on April 27, 1744. Towards the end of 1745, Sado fell seriously
ill and behaved in a peculiar manner. In January 1746, he and his bride
were temporarily moved to another palace, closer to his mother's
mansion, and there Sado studied earnestly. He was well skilled in the
techniques of archery and swordsmanship, but also read mythical works.
The court regulations were very strict, and the young Prince and
Princesses were supposed to bring respectful early morning greetings to

354

the King, Queen, Queen Dowager and Lady Snhui several times a
week. At these meetings, Sado always behaved very stiff. He respected
his elder sisters, but sympathised most with his beautiful sister Hwayp
(1733-1752), because she, like himself, was not in the King's favour. In
April 1747, Sado and his wife were relocated to the distant Chphidang Hall. The Prince could now see his mother and sisters only rarely
and started to abandon himself to amusements.
In 1749, when Sado was 14 years old, it was decided that he should
begin full-married life. The next year, Sado's first child was born, a son
Uiso, who died 2 years later. Soon afterwards, Lady Hong gave birth to
Prince Chngjo (1752-1800). That year a measles epidemic was raging.
The court physicians requested that the Crown Prince and Royal
Grandson were moved to another residence to avoid the disease. At the
time, the baby was less than three weeks old. By sunset, Sado had
contracted the disease, along with all the court maids, so Lady Snhui
came in person to look after her son. Luckily, Sado's symptoms were
mild, apart from a very high temperature. As soon as the Prince
recovered, his wife, hardly recovered from the confinement, went down
with the measles. The baby broke out in a rash, but fortunately he
recovered without much trouble. Sado's wife recovered, too, but his
favourite sister, Hwayp, died from the disease.
Since his illness at the age of 10, Sado had been suffering from mental
disturbances and slightly abnormal behaviour. Now he began suffering
from delusions and nightmares. He declared that he could see an
apparition of the god of thunder. He was terrified of the sky and the
characters for 'thunder' and 'thunderclap'. If a thunderstorm appeared in
winter, Sado would become very concerned lest the King would blame
him. He suffered periods of mental instability in 1752 and 1753. Soon
outbreaks were occurring more and more frequently. Still, during short
official appearances, the Crown Prince usually managed to behave
reasonably normal.

355

Sado had always wanted to see the countryside, but, time after time, his
father denied permission. As King Yongjo grew older, he began to shun
such words as 'death' or 'return'. When he happened to hear ominous
words, he used to wash his ears. After speaking a few words to his son,
the King would always rinse out his mouth, wash his ears, and change
into a fresh robe. The King was also very particular about which doors
he used, distinguishing between doors for pleasant and unpleasant
duties. He would often ask Sado to replace him by some ominous task,
like presiding at the torture of a condemned criminal. When the Crown
Prince was acting for the King, however, there were always difficulties
between them, and the Prince could never do any good.
In 1753, King Yongjo had an affair with a court lady, Mun, and made her
pregnant. Around the same time, Prince Sado did the same with another
court lady, Yangiye. In vain, he tried to procure her an abortion, because
he was terrified of his father's reaction. The hypocritical King indeed
had an awful fit of rage. Yangiye gave birth to a son, and, soon
afterwards, another son followed. By 1754, the King's concubine had
given birth to 2 Princesses. Her brother, Mun Sng-guk, began reporting
details of Sado's eccentric behaviour to the King. It worsened the
relation between father and son even further.
Injong-jon Mansion, Ch-angdok Palace
In December 1755 Lady Snhui became ill and her son went to visit her.
King Yongjo flew into a temper and shouted: "Go back immediately!".
Sado jumped out of the window and returned in distress to his palace.
His condition deteriorated further and he began stammering. In the
summer of 1756, the King unexpectedly visited his son. He found him in
a state of mental confusion, and he incorrectly assumed his son was
drunk. He rebuked him bitterly, gesticulating and shouting. After he left,
Sado became violent. While he was chasing his servants, the palace
caught fire. The heavily pregnant Lady Hong managed to rescue little
Chngjo just in time.
In 1754 and 1756 Lady Hong had given birth to girls, Ch-ngyn and
Ch-ngsn. After her last confinement she became melancholic. She was

356

unable to look after herself properly and became completely exhausted.

In the summer Sado was finally allowed to accompany his father on a
voyage to a royal tomb. The following winter he was stricken with
smallpox. Lady Hong nursed him and he recovered soon afterwards. In
the spring the Queen and Queen Dowager died shortly after each other.
After these deaths, the frustrated Prince took to beating his eunuchs
more and more. If a court lady did not give in to his demands
immediately, he would become violent and raped her. After the funerals,
Sado became even more deranged. He murdered the eunuch on duty and
showed his head impaled on a stick to the court ladies. Soon afterwards,
he killed a great number of maids at random. Everyone close to the
Crown Prince was completely terrified. Sado once explained: "It relieves
my pent-up anger to kill people or animals when I am feeling depressed
or on edge." His wife tried to soothe him as much as she could.
In 1758 the husband of Princess Hwasun died. She demonstrated her
loyalty by starving herself, and thereby brought about her own demise
17 days after his death. She was very much admired for it. The next year,
King Yongjo married Kim Chngsun (1745-1805), who was 10 years
younger than her stepson. In the autumn Sado brought a seamstress,
Ping-ae, with him. Although he had very little money of his own, he set
her up in extravagantly furnished apartments. When the King found out,
he was stamping the ground in rage. The Crown Prince, in great distress,
threw himself into a well. Since the well was full of ice, the guards could
easily rescue him. Hearing of this incident, his father became even more
infuriated. Later, Ping-ae gave birth to a son. In January 1761, during a
sudden attack of insanity, Sado injured Ping-ae critically. She died
shortly afterwards.
Sado became obsessed with clothes. When he wanted to choose a new
outfit, his servants had to prepare 10, 20 or even 30 sets of new clothes.
Sometimes, he burned several silken outfits as an offering to a spirit
figure, before he could finally make a choice of an outfit. If his valet
made even the slightest mistake, while helping him to get dressed, he
would feel unable to wear that outfit, and would become very agitated.

357

That spring the King permitted the Crown Prince to accompany him to a
royal tomb, but along the way it rained so heavily that the King thought
that "heaven was showing its displeasure", and he sent Sado back. The
Prince was very melancholic and declared: "There is no way I can go on
living now." Later, he blamed the incident on a wrong choice of clothes
and his clothes obsession intensified. In 1760 he started to see passersby, who weren't there. He used vulgar language to his elderly mother and
screamed at his little children. In the summer he made a voyage to the
Onyang Palace. He stayed there for a week, but became depressed again
and returned to the court. In May 1761 Sado visited the P'yngyang
province. Afterwards, he suffered an attack of malaria that lasted for
several months.
Although alcohol had always been strictly prohibited in the Korean
court, Sado now started drinking huge quantities of it. He also organised
late-night parties with orgies. From March 1762 onwards, he tried to
become intimate with his younger sister, Princess Hwawan. At such
occasions, she was frightened and swore at him. Sado also maimed and
killed royal physicians, translators and court workmen, so that every day
several dead bodies were carried out of the palace. During the serious
attacks of his mental illness, Sado was scarcely aware of the existence of
his wife and children, but in more lucent periods, he was immensely
proud of his eldest son. King Yongjo often praised his Royal Grandson,
too. On February 25, 1762, Chngjo was married to Kim Hyoui (17531821).
In May 1762, Lady Snhui came to visit her son and left in tears. In June
King Yongjo received a document from one of his ministers, informing
him of the misconduct of the Crown Prince. One of the accusations was
that he had violated the court regulations by "bringing a nun into the
court and cohabiting with her". The minister was tortured and put to
death. Prince Sado suspected involvement of the widower of his sister
Hwahyp, and spoke out his intention to kill his brother-in-law.
Meanwhile, he continued to stalk his sister Hwawan and tried to break
into her apartments to get near to her.

358

On July 4, 1762, Sado was summoned by King Yongjo. The King struck
the floor with his sword and declared the Crown Prince deposed. Next, a
heavy wooden chest, used for storing rice or grain, was taken in. Sado
was put into it and it was very tightly shut. In this narrow prison, Sado
was left to starve. After 8 days, on July 12, Sado was found death. His
body was buried in the royal tomb mound. These events became known
as "The Imho Incident".
Sado's eunuchs, court guards, workmen and shamans were put to death,
too. His wife was demoted to commoner status and returned to her
family home. During the next three years, she was separated from her
son. She became melancholic and was often ill. Sado's mother, Lady
Sonhui, died on August 23, 1764. Princess Hwawan was demoted, sent
into exile and poisoned. Sado's son, Chong-Jo, acceded the Korean
throne in 1776. In the 19th century, one of his descendants posthumously
awarded Prince Sado the royal title of "Chonjo". By then the false story
had been spreading that Prince Sado hadn't been ill, but was executed as
a result of false charges. Fortunately, the memoirs of Lady Hong have
survived.
Copyright 2002-2007 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.

Bibliography
Hong, Lady: Memoirs of a Korean Queen (Hanjung nok), translated by
Yang-li Choe-Wall, KPI, 1985
Tennant, R.: A History of Korea, Kegan Paul International, 1996
Hulbert, H.B.: History of Korea II, Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1962
Last modified: 07/04/2012 17:41. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.

359

The most famous lunatic leader in antiquity has always been the
Babylonian ruler Nebuchadnezzar II (562 BC). He has become famous
for the hanging gardens and the terraced temple tower, but in the bible
Nebuchadnezzar received bad press for destroying the temple of
Jerusalem and carrying off the Jews into the "Babylonian captivity".
Both the bible and Herodotus portray him near the end of his reign as an
infirm and senile monarch, suggesting severe mental derangement and
physical illness: "He imagined he was a goat" and "ate grass with the
cattle". The Dead Sea Scrolls, however, suggest that the last ruler of the
dynasty, Nabonidus (539 BC), was the afflicted old monarch, not
Nebuchadnezzar.
The deranged Nabonidus was most likely married to Nebuchadnezzar's
daughter. He became king of Babylon in 555 BC. He had always been a
scholar and a recluse. He neglected the festivities in honour of the god
Marduk. Instead, he had a temple build for the cult of the moon god Sin,
and his mother and daughter were its priestesses. This worship of the
moon god in favour of the traditional Babylonian deity made Nabonidus'
rule disputed. Five years after his succession, his son Belshazzar was
named co-regent and thus became the actual ruler of Babylon. In 539 BC
Cyrus the Great of Persia invaded Babylon and the city fell without
resistance.
Copyright 1997, 2000, 2008 by J.N.W. Bos. All rights reserved.
Bibliography
Mann, G. (ed.): Hoge culturen van Centraal- en Oostazi, in: Universele
wereldgeschiedenis 2, Scheltens & Giltay N.V., 1974
Axelrod, A., Philips, Ch.: Dictators & tyrants (Absolute rulers and
would-be rulers in world history), FactsOnFile, 1995
Rowland-Entwistle, Th. & Cooke, J.: Famous Kings and emperors, Brief
Biographies, David & Charles
Canning, J. (ed.): 100 Great Kings, Queens and Rulers of the world,
Souvenir Press, 1973

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Hoek, K.A. van den (ed.): De groten der aarde, Universum, Kennis voor
mensen van nu, Lekturama, 1979
Hicks, J.: De Perzen, in: Het ontstaan der mensheid, Time-Life
International B.V., 1977
Humphreys, E.: The royal road (A popular history of Iran), Scorpion
Publishing Ltd, 1991
Bijbel, Danil 4: 1-37, Het Nederlands Bijbelgenootschap, 1975
Last modified: 09/12/2011 19:24. Content: Joan Bos. Design: Klaas
Vermaas. Info: FAQ.
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Top 10 Mad Kings and Queens
History is replete with instances of kings and queens who brought
misery upon their people with their cruelty, poor governance skills
or/and lack of sense for reality. But some monarchs went down in
history as mad for their baffling actions and unreasonable behavior for
which they were ridiculed and often also hated by their subjects. Listed
below are10 kings and queens whose reign was troubled by mental
disorders and in some cases, severe mental illness that made them unfit
and incapable to rule their kingdoms.
Caligula, Roman Emperor
Caligula, Roman Emperor
The brief rule of Roman Emperor Caligula (37-41 AD) was
characterized by numerous scandals which, according to the Roman
sources, clearly demonstrate that he was insane, sadistic and perverse
tyrant. He is reported to kill men for pleasure, having sexual intercourse
with his sisters, demanded to be worshiped as a living god, and caused a
financial crisis and starvation with his extravagant lifestyle and building

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projects. Though the reliability of the Roman accounts is a matter of

debate, the Emperor soon became deeply hated by his contemporaries.
In 41 AD, Caligula was assassinated by the Praetorian Guards, becoming
the first assassinated Roman emperor.

Charles VI of France
Charles VI of France
The reign of Charles VI of France (1380-1422) actually started off quite
well. After he took power at the age of 21, economic and political
situation in the country improved significantly and he came to be called
the Beloved. However, at the age of 32 he suffered his first episode of
insanity during which he killed four of his knights and attacked his
brother Louis of Orleans. From there on, he suffered from repeated bouts
of insanity which eventually became more frequent and longer lasting.
The Beloved King thus came to be called the Mad. Despite that, he
continued to rule France until his death in 1422 but his mental incapacity
had a devastating effect on his kingdom. The Kings inability to make
political decisions provoked fierce princely struggles for power that
would lead to a civil war-like state and encourage the English to resume
the Hundred Years War (1337-1453).
Henry VI of England
Henry VI of England
The fact that Henry VI of England was grandson of Charles VI of France
might have contributed to his mental instability. He inherited the English
throne in 1422 but assumed power only in 1437 when declared of age.
Troubles began almost immediately after he took power in his hands as
he was unable to check the factional struggles. At the same time, the
English possessions in France were slowly but steadily falling into the

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French hands. In 1453, he had some sort of a mental breakdown and fell
into a near vegetative state for over a year, not responding to anything or
anyone around him. The Kings condition was taken advantage by the
Duke of York who in the meanwhile increased his power. When Henry
recovered, a war broke out between the houses of Lancaster and York,
commonly known as the War of the Roses. In 1461, Henry lost the
throne but was reinstated in 1470. After less than half of a year, he was
overthrown and died shortly thereafter in the Tower of London.

Ivan IV of Russia (also known as Ivan the Terrible)

Ivan IV of Russia
The Tsar who laid the foundations of the Russian Empire was a brilliant
military leader and ruler but his fault lay in his unstable temperament
which manifested itself in bouts of rage and cruelty. In his later reign (he
ruled as the Grand Duke of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and as Tsar of
All the Russians from 1547 until his death in 1584), Ivans outbursts of
rage got worse. In one of these outbursts, he accidentally killed his own
son and heir to the throne by hitting him with a pointed staff in the head.
He also established a special force, the so-called oprichniki that
terrorized nobility and killed anyone who was perceived as a threat to
the Tsar. Before dissolution of the oprichniki in 1572, Ivan personally
led the forces to Novgorod, ransacking the city and killing thousands of
predominantly wealthy residents in what came to be known as the
Massacre of Novgorod.
Ludwig II of Bavaria
Ludwig II of Bavaria
Modern Bavarians might not regard Ludvig II of Bavaria as an insane
monarch but his contemporaries considered him mad, largely due to his

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extravagant lifestyle and an apparent disregard of his royal duties. He

inherited the Bavarian throne in 1864 at the age of 18 and by the time he
was 20, his kingdom became a part of the larger German Empire.
However, Ludwig who formally remained the King of Bavaria showed
no ambitions to regain his kingdoms independence. Instead, he
dedicated himself to over-ambitious artistic and architectural projects
that completely emptied the royal treasury. The very same projects,
many of which are today among the most recognizable and most visited
Bavarias landmarks, were used against him to remove him from the
throne. On June 12, 1886, Ludwig was declared insane and deposed. He
died one day later under mysterious circumstances.
Ibrahim, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
Ibrahim, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
Ibrahim succeeded his deceased brother Murad IV as Sultan of the
Ottoman Empire in 1640. But the 25-year-old Sultan was mentally
unstable and incapable to rule. And his mental condition didnt go
unnoticed and he soon came to be referred to as Ibrahim the Mad. The
Empire was kept relatively stable by his regent mother Kosem Sultan but
Ibrahims irrational deeds such as having the entire harem drowned,
growing influence of his concubines and extravagant lifestyle requiring
imposition of new taxes caused a mass discontent with his rule. A
conspiracy that was organized by the Grand Vizier and his own mother
to depose him in 1647 failed but the Mad Sultan was finally deposed
by the janissaries one year later. 10 days after his deposition, Ibrahim
was strangled.
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor from 1575 to 1612 was a very
controversial figure. He was very passionate about arts and the occult

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sciences but less so about ruling. His disastrous political decisions which
are attributed to his preoccupation with his passions on the one hand and
lack of understanding for the realities of his time on the other soon
provoked a widespread discontent that was shared even by his own
family - the Habsburgs. Rudolf, however, was also suffering from
frequent fits of depression which was quite common among the
Habsburgs. Due to his political failures and deteriorating mental health,
the Habsburg archdukes eventually forced him to give the effective
power over much of the Empire to his younger brother Matthias. By the
time of his death in 1612, Rudolf II was only nominally the Holy Roman
Emperor.
George III of the United Kingdom
George III of the United Kingdom
Known as the Mad King Who Lost America, George III of the United
Kingdom was nevertheless one of the longest reigning British monarchs.
His rule that lasted nearly 60 years (from October 1760 to January 1820)
is above all remembered for the British defeat in the American
Revolutionary War (1775-1783) and the subsequent loss of the American
colonies but it is also remembered for the Kings ill health, both physical
and mental. According to some recent findings, his madness might
have been a side effect of medications he has been taking to relieve the
many health problems. Whatever was the cause of his mental instability,
George III finally lost it in 1811. He spent the last years of his life in
seclusion of the Windsor Castle, stripped of all power that was assumed
by his son and successor, the later George IV.

Joanna of Castile
Joanna of Castile

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Joanna, Queen of Castile from 1504 and 1516 spent most of her life
confined in a convent. Suffering from mental instability from her youth,
the Queen who later came to be called Juana la Loca (Spanish for
Joanna the Mad) broke down after the sudden death of her husband
Philip the Handsome in 1506. Joannas mental illness - she is thought to
suffer from severe depression, psychosis or schizophrenia - prompted
her father Ferdinand II of Aragon to assume regency and had her
confined in a convent from which she never returned. After her fathers
death in 1516, the throne passed to her son Charles but she formally
remained a co-regent until her death in 1555.
Christian VII of Denmark
Christian VII of Denmark
Christian VII of Denmark reigned his kingdom for over 40 years (from
1766 to 1808) but he was King of Denmark only by title. Just like his
cousin, George III of the United Kingdom, the young Danish king was
mentally ill and unfit to rule. Christians mental incapacity soon
provoked struggles for power and de facto King of Denmark was anyone
who managed to win influence over him. The struggles over the throne
finally came to an end in 1784 when Christians son and the later
Frederick VI of Denmark became an unofficial regnant and took the
governance of Denmark into his own hands.
10 (Allegedly) Mad Monarchs
NOVEMBER 4, 2014 By Nate Barksdale
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Tabloid fodder for the ages, mad monarchs have been the focal point of
fascination, and controversy for as long as there have been human rulers.
The combination of divine sanction, absolute power and unmooring

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from everyday reality makes the idea of an insane king or queen both
threatening and fascinating. It also makes accusations of madness a
powerful tool of statecraft and intrigue. Although its uncertain whether
all 10 of the kings and queens listed below suffered from mental
illnesses as defined by todays standards, their lives were all marked by a
reputation for madness that makes them fascinating to this day.
Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon (604-562 B.C.)
nebuchadnezzarWilliam Blake's painting of Nebuchadnezzar's bout with
madness.
The granddaddy of all mad kings is King Nebuchadnezzar, the
Babylonian ruler whose first-person account of a seven-year descent into
animal-like insanity is one of the most fascinating sections of the Old
Testament book of Daniel. According to that account, the arrogant king
was struck down for his disbelief in the Hebrews God, leaving his
palace and living in the wild. The Biblical story of Nebuchadnezzars
madness became the framework through which royal insanity was seen
in the Judeo-Christian world.
Caligula, Emperor of Rome (A.D. 12-41)
caligula
Topping even his nephew Nero for the crown of cruelest and craziest
Roman emperor, Caligula was known for his lavish projects, his sadism
and his eccentricity. He once had his army construct a two-mile floating
bridge so he could gallop along it on his horse. In another episode he
ordered his troops to plunder the sea by gathering shells in their
helmets. Tall and hairy, Caligula is said to have banned the mention of
goats in his presence, but practiced facial contortions to better terrify his
subjects. He built a lavish house for his horse Incitatus and attempted to
appoint the steed to the high office of consul, though he was assassinated
before he could complete the promotion.
Henry VI of England (1421-1471)

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henry vi
The subject of a three-part Shakespearean drama cycle, Henry VI was
made king before his first birthday but spent his final decades battling
mental illness as his kingdom lost land to France and slid into the chaos
of the War of the Roses. Never a strong leader, Henry suffered his first
full mental breakdown in 1453, which left him in an incommunicative
stupor for more than a year. After a temporary recovery, his condition
worsened in 1456 into lethargy punctuated by a routine of religious
devotions. He was deposed by Yorkist forces in 1461, exiled in Scotland,
briefly restored to the throne in 1470 but then reimprisoned and
murdered the next year.
The Zhengde Emperor of China (1491-1521)
zhengde
One of the most notorious rulers of the Ming Dynasty, the Zhengde
Emperor was renowned for both his foolishness and his cruelty. He was
fond of leading capricious military expeditions and liked to give orders
to an imaginary double he called General Zhu Shou. During the first five
years of his reign, he unwisely put a senior eunuch, Liu Jin, in charge of
most of the affairs of state. When the two fell out five years later, the
emperor ordered Liu executed by a three-day process of slow slicing
(Liu succumbed on day two). Ming-era novels such as The Zhengde
Emperor Roams through Jiangnan cast the emperor as foolish and
gullible, at one point enjoying a bowl of rice gruel he believes to have
been made from cooked pearls.
Joanna of Castile (1479-1555)
juana
Few queens stories are sadder than that of Juana la Loca, whose
family and rivals colluded to keep her confined in asylums. Born fourth
in line to the throne of her parents Ferdinand and Isabella, Joanna was
married off to Philip the Handsome of Burgundy at age 16. When a

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series of deaths made her heir apparent to Isabellas throne, her husband
kept her confined after her mothers death in an attempt to press his
claim (over Ferdinands) for the Castilian throne. After Philips death in
1506, Joannas confinement continued for another decade of her fathers
regency. After Ferdinands death in 1516, Joanna and her teenage son
Charles were made co-monarchs. From then on it was Charles who kept
his mother imprisoned, creating a fictional world to keep her in isolation.
When he was concerned that she might try to flee during a plague
outbreak, Charles arranged for fake funeral processions to pass by her
lodgings, convincing her to stay put. A group of rebels freed Joanna in
1520 and pronounced her sane and fit to rulebut changed their minds
after she refused to support them instead of her son and sometime
tormentor Charles.
Ivan the Terrible (1533-1584)
ivan teh terrible
The first tsar of all Russia, Ivan IV (whose nickname in Russian implies
imposing or threatening more than evil) expanded Moscows influence
into the lands of the ancient Eastern European federation known as the
Kievan Rus. Ivan promulgated wide-ranging reforms, centralized
administration and created the black-clad forerunners of Russias
dreaded secret police. He took great pleasure in bringing members of the
nobility to heel through torture and sadistic executions. Fed up with rule,
Ivan attempted to resign in 1564 but was convinced to return a year later.
He went on to create his own private fiefdom, the oprichnina, through
which he exerted total control of as much as one-third of the Muscovite
realms. In 1581 Ivan murdered his own son and heir, striking him with a
pointed staff in a fit of rage. Despite his foibles, though, Ivans
terribleness made him one of the most respected tsars in Russias history.
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor (1552-1612)
rudolf ii

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One of the most eccentric rulers of the European Renaissance, Rudolf II

was perhaps the greatest collector of his age and an enthusiastic patron
of the arts, sciences and pseudo-sciences. His castle complex at Prague
featured a vast menagerie of animals, including lions, tigers, an
orangutan and a live dodo bird. His cabinet of curiosities included a
dizzying array of human and natural artifacts, organized by genre.
Throughout his life Rudolf alternated between bouts of elation and
melancholy. As a ruler, he would withdraw from court from weeks on
end, or speak in an inaudible voice. He gave generous support to the
astronomers Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler, helping to lay the
foundation of the Scientific Revolution. Blessed and cursed with, as one
historian put it, a willingness to believe almost everything, Rudolf was
an equally enthusiastic supporter of astrologers, alchemists and mystics
of every stripe.
George III of England (1738-1820)
george iii
Famously derided by poet Percy Bysshe Shelley as an old, mad, blind,
despised, and dying king, George III showed his first signs of mental
illness in 1765, early in his reign, but did not permanently succumb to
his affliction until 1810, a year before Parliament made his son regent.
George III ruled during a tumultuous era that including the American
Revolutionthe Declaration of Independence is addressed to himas
well as the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars that followed it.
Some medical historians believe Georges illness, which was
characterized by hallucinations, paranoia, general breakdowns and
abdominal pains, was caused by the enzyme disorder porphyria, though
a retroactive diagnosis remains tricky.
Carlota of Mexico (1840-1927)
carlotta
It would be hard to imagine a stranger life than the one led by Carlota,
the first and only Habsburg empress of Mexico. Born Charlotte of

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Belgium, she was the daughter of King Leopold I and the first cousin of
Queen Victoria. At a young age she was married to Maximilian, then the
archduke of Austria, and went to live with him in a castle in Italy. In
1864 a group of Mexican archconservatives colluded with Frances
Napoleon III to depose the liberal president Benito Juaraz and appoint
Maximilian emperor of Mexico. Maximilian and Carlota arrived in
Veracruz, backed by French troops and conservative supporters, and
made their way to Mexico City. For three years the royal couple did their
best to win over the Mexican people, enthusiastically speaking Spanish
as they promoted liberal agendas including land reform and better
policies towards the countrys native communities. In doing so, though,
they lost their conservative backers. After the French withdrew their
troops in 1866, Maximilian and Carlotas empire was left teetering.
Carlota was sent to Europe to regain support from the French and the
pope. When she failed at this she suffered a mental breakdown and was
institutionalized. The reinstated Benito Juarez ordered Maximilians
execution in 1867. Carlota lived on another six decades, never regaining
her sanity and remaining sequestered in her familys 14th-century castle
in Belgium.
Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845-1886)
ludwig ii
Opera fan, builder of dream palaces, spendthrift, deposed monarch and
likely murder victim, Ludwig II was a prototypical mad king who may
not have been mad at all. Today best known for Neuschwanstein, the
fairy-tale palace he ordered built on a Bavarian hilltop, Ludwig was an
enthusiastic patron of the arts. On ascending the Bavarian throne at 18
he quickly summoned his hero, the composer Richard Wagner, for a
lengthy audience. Ludwig became one of Wagners main patrons, giving
him funding to work on some of the eras most renowned operas.
Ludwigs castle building left him in increasing debt, though, and in 1886
a group of conspirators filed a medical report (drafted by doctors who
had never examined him) that declared the king permanently unfit to
rule. The next morning Ludwig and his personal physician were found

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floating dead in a Bavarian lake under mysterious circumstances,

lending credence to one of Ludwigs most famous statements, I wish to
remain an eternal enigma to myself and others.
With election season in full swing, perhaps its time to take a step back
and be glad that neither candidate makes out with corpses or thinks they
have bones made of glass. Whether they were born with mental illness
or slowly descended into lunacy as a result of leading tragic lives, these
11 rulers definitely make both of our candidates look better.
1. Queen Maria I of Portugal. Queen Maria exhibited some eyebrowraising behavior prior to her husband/uncles death in 1786, but it was
that sad event that really set her on the road to madness. When her eldest
son and only daughter followed soon after, Marias already fragile
mental state took a nose dive. The religious fanatic became convinced
she was going to hell and reported visions of her deceased fathers
blackened corpse being tortured by demons. Visitors to her apartments
would complain that they were tired of her constant screaming and
wailing. According to some reports, she also became rather fond of
wearing childrens clothing.
2. Charles VI of France. Charles had many manic episodes, including
one in 1392 where he slaughtered four of his own men after being
startled when a page dropped a lance. After the massacre, Charles fell
into a comatose state for two days and had to be carried home on a cart.
But the most interesting delusion King Charles had was that his bones
were made of glass. To prevent himself from shattering, the king had
iron rods sewn into his clothes.
3. Otto of Bavaria. Otto was brought in to replace his insane brother,
King Ludwig II of Bavaria. No one was banking on the fact that Otto
was actually in worse mental shape than his sibling. The New York
Times reported on November 5, 1913, that Otto was replaced after being
found in a pathetic condition: He stammered some inarticulate words.
When [members of the delegation] withdrew from the room they heard a
great crash, and on going to see what had caused it they found that Otto

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had dashed to the floor a tea tray, which had been set for the Deputies,
and had smashed all the costly porcelain.
Recent theories state that both of the brothers were in perfect mental
health; the insane behavior was completely fabricated to make it easy
to overthrow them.
4. Vlad the Impaler. Anyone who tortured people to the extent and
numbers that Vlad of Walachia did had to be insane as well as cruel. His
favorite form of torture, impalement, wasnt just used as capital
punishment; he took pleasure in it to the point of complete and total
obsession. When Vlad and his evils were finally brought to an end via
house arrest in Hungary, he obsessively continued to torture and impale
any living thing that had the misfortune to cross his path - birds, rats,
mice.
5. Juana of Castile. Although Juanas marriage was arranged by her
famous parents, Ferdinand and Isabella, she fell completely and totally
in love with her husband, Philip the Handsome (you be the judge) of
Austria. Juana was so in love, in fact, that when Philip died of typhoid
fever in 1506, Juana had his tomb reopened several times so she could
gaze at her husbands face, which surely was no longer quite as
handsome as it once had been. When she had to flee town to escape the
plague, she demanded to take Philip with her and had the tomb opened
once again to make sure he was still inside. He was still there, and
presumably still decaying, but that didnt stop Juana from kissing and
caressing the corpse.
6. Erik XIV of Sweden. King Eriks paranoia completely consumed his
life and his sanity. It wasnt unusual for people caught laughing, smiling
or whispering within Eriks earshot to be sentenced to death for treason.
He had an entire family imprisoned in his castle and later murdered
simply because he believed they were too influential. After the
executions, King Erik wandered outside to the woods and disappeared
for three days. He believed himself to be his own brother for a period of

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time, and in 1568, that brother really did take over the throne after
advisors deemed Erik too compromised to wear the crown. Though Erik
took his paranoia to the extreme, he may have been justified: when he
met his end in 1577, it was the result of poisoned pea soup.
7. Fyodor I of Russia, AKA Fyodor the Bellringer. Fyodor, son of Ivan
the Terrible, wasnt thrilled about ruling and left most of it up to his
brother-in-law, Boris Godunov. Known for his vacant gaze, Fyodors
undoing seems to have happened when his only daughter died at the age
of two. He took to wandering up and down Russia, obsessed with
ringing all of the church bells in the land.
8. Princess Alexandra Amalie of Bavaria. By all accounts, Alexandra of
Bavaria was a lovely, charming princess who became convinced that
when she was a child, she had swallowed an all-glass piano. It's said she
also had an obsession with cleanliness and would wear only white
clothing. Too bad she never made it across the sea to meet Emily
Dickinson - the two of them could have compared notes (through a door,
of course) on how to get their whites whiter.
9. Mustafa I of Turkey. You cant really blame this guy for being crazy:
being locked in a room for 10 years at your own brother's behest might
cause a screw or two to come a little bit loose. After his brother died,
Mustafa was released from his golden cage, but was sent back after
just a few months when his brothers son took the throne instead. When
his nephew was assassinated just four years later in 1622, Mustafa was
again dragged from the safety of his cage to have the crown plopped on
his head. He was frequently found running through the palace, knocking
on doors and screaming for his dead nephew to come back and rule
Turkey again.
10. Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg. Maria Eleonora was desperate to
give her husband a son, but after a couple of miscarriages and stillbirths,
she kind of lost it when the baby she finally delivered in 1626 was a girl,
screaming, Instead of a son, I am given a daughter, dark and ugly, with

374

a great nose and black eyes. Take her from me, I will not have such a
monster!
She tried several times to kill baby Christina, accidentally dropping
her or shoving her down the stairs. Though King Gustavus Adolphus
was happy to have a daughter, he was killed in battle less than two years
later. Maria Eleonora responded with hysterical grieving that included
keeping her husband's body above ground for 18 months so she could
periodically touch it. Additionally, she made Christina sleep under a
golden casket that contained her fathers heart.
Miraculously, Christina grew up to be a completely functioning woman
and queen.
11. Ferdinand I of Austria. The product of inbreeding - his parents were
double first cousins - Ferdinand was epileptic, encephalitic, rarely talked
and had problems doing simple tasks. As Emperor, it's been alleged that
the only words he uttered were, I am the Emperor, and I want
dumplings. However, Ferdinand did keep a perfectly coherent diary,
suggesting that he wasnt crazy at all, just a guy with the misfortune to
be born to a family obsessed with keeping the bloodline "pure."
For more stories like these, check out Mad Kings & Queens: History's
Most Famous Raving Royals.
The 5 Most Hilariously Insane Rulers of All Time
The boring thing about modern democracy is that we almost never elect
truly crazy people. Oh, sure, we'll vote in somebody with mild
eccentricities or sexual appetites, and we may refer to some extremist as
"crazy," but back when rulers took the throne based only on their
bloodline, a nation could wind up under the fist of someone who was
literally "howl naked at the moon" insane.
Don't get us wrong -- we're sure it was a nightmare for everyone
involved. But it does make for hilarious stories down the line.

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5
Justin II of Byzantine Heard Voices, Bit People on the Head
traumwerk.stanford.edu
Justin II was a sixth century emperor of Byzantine, which was how they
rebranded the Roman Empire after it wasn't cool to be the Roman
Empire anymore. Also, apparently they let pretty much anyone be
emperor in those days, because Justin II was nucking futs.
History remembers Justin mainly as a kind of shitty leader who wound
up losing most of Italy to Persia, which, if you're the emperor of Rome,
is dropping the ball pretty badly. But the ancient historian John of
Ephesus recounts some interesting facts about Justin's personal life, like
how he would hear voices in his head and scream and hide under his bed
to escape them. Apparently, the only way his servants could help him out
was to play organ music throughout the palace to drown out the voices.
Photos.com
They'd have had better luck with dubstep.
That part of the story is key: the fact that nobody knew how to treat
mental illness back then. So it wasn't much fun to be around the palace
when Justin II went into full crazy mode -- it's said that when his
servants were rushing around trying to restrain him, he would fight back
by biting them, often on the head. Eventually, the servants had to go to
greater lengths to entertain him, and came up with a solution that would
appeal to any toddler -- building a makeshift throne on wheels and
pushing Justin around the palace on it, to his great delight. As John of
Ephesus puts it, "... having placed him on it, his chamberlains drew him
about, and ran with him backwards and forwards for a long time, while

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he, in delight and admiration at their speed, desisted from many of his
absurdities."
traumwerk.stanford.edu
"Couldn't you just ride hookers like a regular monarch?"
Are you imagining this? You have an apparently very mentally ill man
who A) nobody knows how to treat, B) has the power to have you
imprisoned or killed if you cross him, and C) cannot be removed from
power. You have a palace full of underlings desperately trying to keep a
lid on his madness. Let's put it another way: At some point, a legend
even arose that Justin II actually ate two of his servants. And there
wasn't a goddamned thing anybody could do about it.
4
Charles VI of France Thought He Was a Wolf and/or Made of Glass
Wiki
Charles "the Mad" VI was king of France from 1380 (when he was 12)
to his death 1422, all during the Hundred Years' War with England, and
when your country is fighting something called the "Hundred Years'
War," it's really unfortunate if the man sitting on the throne is nicknamed
"Charles the Mad." Unless it means he's really angry. (It doesn't.)
Wiki
"What if we just add an extra "D" and tell people he really hates drunk
driving?"
In 1392, during a trip through a forest to look for a fugitive who had
attempted to murder an adviser of his, Charles VI randomly attacked his
own knights, killing some of them, until they all managed to hold him

377

down and carry him back to the castle. They concluded that he was
probably just under a lot of stress, as it was the first time that Charles
had shown signs of not really being totally right in the head.
In the following years, Charles would go through episodes of forgetting
people's names, including his own, and the fact that he was king. Oh,
and he would also run through his castle pretending to be a wolf,
howling at people. And he freaked out when people touched him
because he thought he was made of glass.
Wiki
"Bring me the head of the one they call Bruce Willis."
Eventually, Charles' batshittery reached such a fever pitch that the
monarchy of France broke down into civil war, with his brother vying
for power on one side and his first cousin leading the other. That's a war
breaking out during another war. This infighting allowed rival countries
like England to attack with impunity, and by the end of Charles VI's rule,
much of France was occupied by foreign powers. He could have done
something about it, but, you know, somebody might have touched him.
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Christian VII of Denmark's Chronic Masturbation Problem

378

Wiki
Christian VII rose to the throne of Denmark in 1766, even though
everyone was pretty sure he was crazy. That probably had something to
do with the fact that he would often throw food at his dinner guests ...
but then, rich people can be real jerks. His reign seemed otherwise pretty
normal -- that is, until the masturbation started.
Getty
Which is the same way your mother describes you to people behind your
back.
At some point, Christian developed a newfound fascination with his
penis, by which we mean he jerked it so often that it interfered with his
duties. The court physicians actually worried that Christian's chronic
habit was affecting his health -- they thought that it would render him
infertile and that it was stunting his growth, which was the 18th century
version of "Stop that or you'll go blind."
But at least Christian didn't usually do it in front of visiting dignitaries.
What he did do was leapfrog over them when they bowed to him, and
sometimes he'd slap people in the face in the middle of a conversation
for absolutely no reason. OK, so that's actually the second thing he did
that we would also do if we became king.
Photos.com
"Wait a minute, which hand did he just slap me with?"
Eventually, Christian's mind was so far gone that his personal physician,
Johann Streunsee, basically yanked the whole kingdom out from
underneath him by talking the king into handing over control of his

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executive decisions, as well as boning the queen behind Christian's back.

Presumably he was too busy jerking it to notice.
Wiki
"What queen could compare to Lady Palma and the Quintuplets?"
2
The Zhengde Emperor of China Liked to Play Make-Believe
Wiki
The Zhengde Emperor was emperor of China in the beginning of the
16th century, having taken the throne at the age of 14, and as far as
anyone could tell, he remained 14 for the next decade and a half of his
rule.
For instance, Zhengde liked to play games of make-believe instead of,
you know, running a giant empire like he was supposed to be doing. In
fact, he built a whole fake city block on the imperial grounds where he
would pretend to be a shopkeeper, to the puzzlement of his subjects, who
were forced to go along with it.
Getty
"Make-believe or not, these prices are bullshit."
Occasionally, he pretended he was a general and went on raiding parties
(almost getting captured) with an army dressed all in silk, for some
reason. Weirder still, he invented for himself an alter ego he named Zhu
Shou, whom he would "order" on pointless raiding parties, to the
exasperation of his government, who had to pretend they weren't just
talking to the emperor in a wig. There might be a powerful lesson here in
the fact that the dude was king, but still preferred fantasy to reality. Then

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again, maybe he just found being king way more boring than he
imagined.
Cultural China
"Mel Brooks lied."
Eventually Zhengde died in predictable fashion: after getting really
drunk and falling off a boat during a fishing trip.
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1
Farouk of Egypt, the Pickpocket King
Wiki
The last ruling king of Egypt, King Farouk, was as nutty as most of the
world's leaders seemed to be during World War II, and was ultimately
the reason Egypt decided to pack it all in with this whole monarchy
thing. Known early in his reign for his excessive partying and gambling,
Farouk was once described as a "stomach with a head" after he grew to
over 300 pounds. According to his sister, he would drink 30 bottles of
soda a day and eat caviar straight from the can. But gluttony is pretty
much expected, if not mandatory, for a despot. That alone certainly
would not qualify him for this list.
But more bizarre for someone with infinite money, Farouk was a
complete kleptomaniac, once stealing a watch from Winston Churchill.
He later claimed to have simply found it lying around, but neglected to
mention that he'd "found" it in Churchill's pocket.
Wiki

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"You're also about to 'find' my foot in your ass."

Another time, after having nightmares about lions attacking him, Farouk
decided to take a trip to the Cairo Zoo to see the lions. And by see them,
we mean shoot them while they were in their cages, because that's a
perfectly reasonable reaction to night terrors if you are insane.
Finally, when Hitler's army was preparing to invade Egypt, it's safe to
say that Farouk was the only world leader to send Hitler a telegram
thanking him for coming to kick his country's ass. He didn't like the
British forces occupying his country, and apparently he figured Nazis
were somehow a step up.
Bundesarchiv, Bild 146-1990-048-29A / CC-BY-SA
"Our mutual love of terrible facial hair really sealed the deal."
As you might have guessed, Farouk wasn't too popular with the people,
who supported the British and were pretty anti-Nazi. In 1952, he was
overthrown, and upon raiding his treasures, an interesting discovery was
made: Farouk had tons of coins, magic tricks, stamps ... and the world's
largest porn collection.
For more world leaders that were certifiable, check out 7 Modern
Dictators Way Crazier Than You Thought Possible and The 5 Most
Shockingly Insane Modern Dictators.
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382

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Gad

10 Monarchs Whose Madness Changed History

In fiction, kings and queens who succumb to madness are a great time.
In reality, not so much. Its no fun having huge chunks of the world
controlled by someone who is irrational and unstable. Here are ten kings
and queens whose craziness changed the course of world events.
10. Ivan the Terribles Fits Ushered in the Romanovs (1530-1584)
This list could have been all tsars. These rulers were raised under
conditions guaranteed to make anyone a sociopath. Most of them saw
close relatives murdered by other close relatives. Though abused
relentlessly as children, as adults they had both absolute power and a
sword of Damocles over their heads. Ivans father died when Ivan was
only three, and his mother was poisoned when he was eight. During his
minority an unruly gang of noblemen governed the land, and starved,
beat, and neglected the boy and his brother. He took the abuse out on
small animals, which he would throw off the roofs of palaces. Hurling
things about proved good practice for the tsar-in-training. At 16, Ivan
marched into the throne room, grabbed the leader of the noblemen, and
threw the man to Ivans trained hunting dogs.

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Ivans reign was marked by violent paranoia. When Ivan suspected a

nobleman wanted the throne, he dressed the man up as a king, put him
on the throne, and gutted him. Ivan created a special police force, the
members of which rode around with dogs heads hanging from their
saddles and could murder anyone at any time, in public. Once, when
Ivan heard a rumor that a town called Novgorod was rebellious, he killed
every single person in the town, sewed the towns archbishop up into a
bearskin, and had his dogs hunt the bearman down.
Its hard to write all that and then use the phrase, conditions
deteriorated, but, somehow, conditions deteriorated. Ivan started having
fits. In paintings hes depicted as having a prominent nose and forehead.
These are the way kind (and probably fearful) artists rendered calluses
that Ivan had built up by banging his head on the stone floor in front of
religions icons. Ivan would also have fits of rage. During one fit, he
kicked his pregnant daughter-in-law in the stomach and caused her to
miscarry. His son, an able and promising ruler, yelled at him. Ivan beat
his son to death with his scepter, then went into paroxysms of remorse. It
was that moment that changed history. Ivan was a member of the ancient
Rurik line of nobility. With the only strong heir to the throne swept out
of the way, Russia descended into chaos after Ivans death. At last,
nobles cast around for any noble family that the nation could rally
around. They came up with an heir called Michael Romanov.
9. Peter the Great Changed the Line of Succession For His WifePsychologist (1672-1725)
Peter the Great was, in many ways, a wonderful sovereign. Passionately
committed to both his country and his own education, he spent much of
his childhood (imprisoned and under constant threat from his half-sister
Sofia) learning army tactics and designing ships. As an adult, he toured
Europe, learning about the latest advances in the sciences so he could
bring them back to Russia.

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Sometimes he took his love of learning, and his impatience with those
who didnt get on board, too far. When he was learning dentistry, he
would practice on his nobles. When a group of attendants were upset
while watching the dissection of a corpse, he ordered them to walk up to
the corpse and take a bite out of it. Then there was his terrible paranoia.
Peter was the child of the former tsars second wife. When he was ten,
he saw the relatives of the tsars first wife toss his uncles and aunts off
the roof of a building to the courtyard below, where they were torn apart
by supposedly loyal soldiers. He was fanatical about loyalty, to the
point of having his own son tortured to death for temporarily fleeing to
Sweden.
One person he trusted was his wife, Catherine. Catherines life was a
Cinderella story made into a horror movie. Captured by the Russian
army, she was passed around by soldiers. She happened to be passed up
the chain of command. Eventually she met the tsar, who became
enthralled to her. Peter had fits of terror, and during those fits, Catherine
was the only one who could soothe him. Peter decreed that a tsar should
be able to name his own successor, and though he never specified
Catherine should succeed him, she did. More importantly, this decree
marked a sharp turn away from blood ties and first born sons, and the
beginning of a belief that any ruler would do, provided they were a good
Russian.
8. Peter IIIs Madness Created Catherine the Great (1728-1762)
It says something about Peter III that the only reason historians believe
that his son, Paul I, was legitimate was that Paul has his fathers
instability. Peter was an entirely contemptible ruler, but he was also a
pitiable figure. Like many of the Romanovs in line for the throne, he had
almost no contact with his parents. Instead, he was raised by a tutor who
was horribly abusive to the slow pupil. Peter was regularly beaten,

385

starved, and humiliated. He developed into a creepy blend of manchild

and sociopath.
He didnt consummate his marriage to Catherine, a pretty little German
nobody who had been imported as a brood mare, for at least nine years,
because he spent every night in bed playing with toy soldiers. When he
wanted a little power, he would force his wife to dress up as a soldier
and put her through military drills. For a change of pace, he indulged in
animal abuse, training a pack of hunting dogs by beating them, and
conducting military trials and hangings of the rats he found nibbling his
toy soldiers. So predictable was his insanity that, in order to get him
away from Catherine while she was giving birth to a definitely
illegitimate child (instead of just a probably illegitimate child), a
minister loyal to her set fire to his own house. He knew the tsar would
rush off to see the flames and leave Catherine alone.
Most crazy tsars, unpleasant as they were, kept their throne. Why did
Peter get deposed in a coup that left the foreign Catherine free to become
one of Russias most famous rulers? Because Peter was crazy like a
Prussian, not crazy like a Russian. Peter was, for some time, considered
the heir to the Swedish throne. He was raised to dislike Russia, and he
did. He idolized the Prussian leader Frederick the Great, who was, when
Peter became tsar, at war with Russia - and losing. At the moment when
it looked like Frederick was done for, Peter ordered his army to settle
with his idol on very favorable terms. Catherine, who actually was born
in Prussia, had spent the first few years of her marriage vigorously
Russianizing herself and equally vigorously cultivating the Russian
army. The army preferred a Prussian who had decided she was Russian
to a Russian who had decided he was Prussian, and Peter was captured,
deposed, and killed in short order.
7. Charles VI Signs Centuries of War Into Being (1380-1422)

386

At last, we shall leave Russia. On to France! Charles the VI was king for
a very long time, during which a united, prosperous, and powerful
country fell into civil war and chaos. Charles had all the paranoia of the
tsars, but none of the aggression. This was a shame, as he arguably had
more cause to be aggressive. Charles brother, Louis of Valois, enjoyed
everything that made the people around him miserable, including money,
prestige, and other peoples wives. Other peoples wives, in this case,
included the Queen. People soon began questioning how far Louis
would go to get the Queen, when, during a ball, the king and some
fellow noblemen dressed up as wild men in full-body suits of tar and
flax. Charles had happened to wander away from the group when Louis
grabbed a torch and, declaring he wanted to figure out who the men
were, thrust it at the group. The other men burned to death.
Charles soon began having spells. Convinced he was made of glass and
would shatter if he moved too quickly, he would hardly move for hours
on end. He became incoherent and paranoid. Perhaps out of resentment,
he grew enamored with Louis wife, and would demand she stay with
him at all times. During these spells, Louis became the de facto king.
This made him a formidable opponent. Anyone who made a move to
weaken the Count of Valois would find, a month or so later, that they
were the enemy of the acting king of France. One night, John the
Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, decided to put an end to Louis. He hired a
group of conspirators to hack Louis to death in the street (as he was
coming from the Queens apartments). The conspirators werent
particularly talented. They wore the livery of the Duke of Burgundy. It
wasnt long before people found out exactly who killed Louis.
The nation erupted into civil war, which the fragile king couldnt quell.
John the Fearless went to the English for military support, which they
happily gave him, in exchange for land in France. After John the
Fearless was killed, the English seemed strangely reluctant to leave.
Charles the Mad had to declare an English king the heir to France. The
treaty didnt hold, because of turmoil in the English court, but it did give

387

England and France an excuse to go to war for the next few hundred
years.
6. Emperor Qianfei Starts the Decline of the Liu Song Dynasty (449465)
Heres another line that could populate the entire list. The members of
the Liu Song dynasty enjoyed killing two types of people: (1)their
family and (2)everyone elses family. Qianfei started out his life as a
prisoner of his own uncle. The young Qianfei was under constant threat
until his father killed his uncle, and set the boy free. That turned out to
be a mistake, both historically and personally. The boy showed his
gratitude by hating his father so much that, when he became emperor at
the age of 15, he demanded all his fathers portraits be given a large ugly
nose. He also repealed all his fathers laws at once, throwing the country
into chaos.
Its never a good sign when a mothers last words are, Somebody bring
me a sword and cut me open to see how this animal came out of me.
Qianfei killed nearly everyone in his family, starting with his brother His
brother was a third son and the last few emperors had been third sons as
well. Qianfei was superstitious. He left some of his uncles alive, but
caged them and put them on public display. One nobleman who plotted
against him got his eyes scooped out. Qianfei put the eyes in honey and
called them pickled ghost eyes. In between bouts of murder he engaged
in sexual depravity, ordering his female relatives to have sex in front of
him. If they refused, he killed their family. One aunt did not refuse, and
started an affair with Qianfei. When her husband objected, Qianfei faked
her death by killing a servant and sending the husband the mutilated
body. And he killed the husband. And he killed the general who
suggested that he not kill the husband.
This episode provides the first clue as to why he didnt last long. As
Qianfeis paranoia increased, he slaughtered anyone who even looked

388

like a traitor. Once he killed a servant because she looked like a woman
who had told him, in a dream, that he would be killed. Then he was
killed.
Amazingly this act was not committed by his family, or by the military.
(If there is one thing about being a monarch Ive learned from making
this list, its never piss off the military.) He was killed by his attendants.
Just to drive that home, a group of servants killed the emperor, and
nobody objected. Thats how bad Qianfei was. One of the caged uncles
was put on the throne, but the dynasty was done for. The uncle killed
everyone except for another underaged nephew, who succeeded him but
who was killed at fourteen, by his general. (See? Military.) The general
began the Qi dynasty, and thats all she wrote for the Liu Songs.
(Note: This is a picture of Liu Yu of the Song dynasty, as there dont
appear to be any pictures available of Qianfei)
5. Maria of Portugal Lets In Napoleon (1734-1816)
Maria, unlike almost everyone else on this list, had an idyllic childhood.
Her father, the King of Portugal, doted on her and her sisters. He spent
most of his days taking the court from one beautiful location to another,
giving his daughter dolls modeled on the saints, and patronizing
musicians and artists. For anyone else, this would have made for a happy
life, but thats not the kind of thing one can do when one is king. While
the King played around, his minister, the Marquis of Pombal, managed
the country. In the Marquis view, managing the country meant
imprisoning everyone who questioned him, and killing the rest. When an
attempt was made on the Kings life, the Marquis rounded up his
strongest political enemies, tortured them into confessions, broke their
bones on a scaffold, and then burned the scaffold down.
This might not have touched Maria so deeply if religious mania didnt
run in her family. (Her family also ran in her family. She was married to

389

her own uncle. Her son was married to her sister.) When she acceded to
the throne, she became tormented by the thought that her beloved father
was in hell for being a bad king, and that she was soon to join him. She
amnestied all the political prisoners, and gave many positions at court.
This did not help things, as decades in a 18th century Portuguese prison
do not make for mental health. Many of her counselors and courtiers
were as unstable as she was.
When, within the space of a year, her eldest son, her only living
daughter, and two of her closest ministers all died, Maria fell apart.
Some days she would embrace the fact that she was already damned by
talking in an unchaste manner. Some days she would pace the halls
screaming. Her twenty-six-year-old second son was made regent, but he
was a lackadaisical man with no ability to reform an entire court of
lunatics. The country was in no shape to meet Napoleon in 1807. The
moment he marched on them, the entire family fled to Brazil.
4. Sultan Mustafa Nearly Broke the Ottoman Empire Apart. Twice.
(1592-1639)
As with the Russian tsars and the Liu Song dynasty, so with the sultans
of the Ottoman empire - and for much the same reasons. The sultans
stories are complicated by many wives and many sons. Strap in. Our tale
begins with a group of brothers, the most prominent among them being
Ahmed I and Mustafa. Ahmed, wanting power to himself, put his
eleven-year-old brother Mustafa in The Cage, a tower with no
windows, a brick wall built over the door, and no human contact. Ahmed
had a few sons, but died at the exceedingly early age of twenty-eight.
His most influential consort knew that her sons were too young to hold
the throne, and that any of Ahmeds other sons would probably either
kill or imprison hers. Out of the Cage Mustafa came, fourteen years after
being put in what was basically an above-ground pit.

390

Some found it odd that he walked around, always accompanied by two

naked slave girls, but that wasnt the problem. The problem was he had a
habit of giving important positions to random people he liked - such as a
man by the side of a road who offered him some water on a hot day.
Without a strong and organized central government, the empire started to
crumble. Back into the Cage he went, with the two women this time.
He was replaced by Ahmeds oldest son, Osman. The young man might
have made a decent ruler. He tried to reorganize the government and put
in capable people. But he forbade drinking and smoking, especially for
soldiers, and tried to chastise the elite royal guard, called the Janisarries.
They rebelled and sentenced him to death by compression of the
testicles. (Does anyone remember what I wrote about not angering the
military?)
Out of the Cage came Mustafa again. At this point, he had a habit of
sitting and giggling to himself. In between giggle fits, he would go
around looking for his nephew, Osman, forgetting the man was dead.
When reminded that his other nephews were alive, he made plans to kill
them. He also went back to his old tricks, appointing random people to
important positions. Tax revenue from the provinces was choked off.
The officials in the provinces were one step from declaring themselves
local kings. To put a cap on things, the Safavid Persian Empire attacked
and grabbed what is now Iraq. Back into the Cage Mustafa went, for
good this time.
3. Sultan Ibrahim Bankrupts the Ottoman Empire and Starts a Two
Decade War (1615-1648)
Mustafa was succeeded by Murad IV, one of the nephews that hed
considered killing. Murad IV was a ruthless but effective ruler. His last
act, before dying, was ordering the execution of his last surviving
brother. He had nothing against little Ibrahim -although as it turns out he
should have. Murad simply believed that the line was cursed by

391

madness and needed to be annihilated. Sadly for at least 279 women,

Ibrahims mother successfully pleaded for her sons life.
Ibrahim had spent his entire life in the Cage, with only occasional
contact with humans. He came out with what can be tactfully described
as a lust for life. Made frantic by his years of deprivation, he acquired
everything he could, and lashed out violently at anyone who might take
his possessions away.
He quickly accumulated 280 concubines in a harem. One day, when he
saw a young cows genitals he had a cast made of them, circulated it
throughout the empire, looking for a woman to match them. (Here is our
second horrifying version of Cinderella.) At last, a woman was found.
She became his favorite concubine. He nicknamed her sugar lump or
sugar cube. Sugar didnt care for competition, so she told the
psychotically jealous Ibrahim that one of the women in the harem was
unfaithful, only she didnt know which one. Ibrahim had all 280 tied up
in sacks and thrown in the Bosphorus. Only one survived when her sack
came undone. She was taken aboard a French freighter bound for Paris which was probably the minimum safe distance from Ibrahim.
This he got away with. What finally did Ibrahim in was deciding that
one of his concubines should be the daughter of the Grand Mufti - the
interpreter of religious law. He kidnapped the girl, but returned her after
a few days, so she was not among the women drowned. Meanwhile, he
was fanatically acquiring all the gold and jewels he could, pulling jewels
from temples and threatening to stuff his ministers with straw if they
objected. Just to put a further strain on resources, Ibrahim started a war
with Venice. He soon couldnt pay the Janissaries. They might have felt
guilty deposing, sending to the Cage, and eventually executing their
sultan. How fortunate for them that there was an interpreter of religious
law there to assure them that it was the right thing to do. The war with
Venice outlasted Ibrahim by 22 years.

392

2. Justin II Lost Half of Italy While Playing Bumper Cars (520-578)

Justin II, like most of the other monarchs on this list, spent his formative
years wondering if he was going to be murdered. He was one of the
potential heirs to the Byzantine Empire, and he grew up under the
empires most notorious couple, Justinian and Theodora. Eventually only
Justinian was left, but all the potential heirs knew they could get the
chop either before or after the emperors death. Justin was one of two
Justins in a whole crop of cousins. He had been Theodoras favorite, the
child of one of her sisters, and Justinian remained a uxorious man. So
this Justin got crowned. The other Justin got killed.
Lets be fair. Justin II inherited a tough situation. Justinians foreign
policy had consisted of expanding militarily as far as he could, then
paying his new neighbors not to attack him. Although not something that
one would think about while saluting a flag, it was a crackerjack idea.
Tribute was not anywhere near as expensive as war. Unfortunately, the
empire was going through some tough financial times, and Justinian had
been borrowing to cover his annual payments. Justin believed he would
do better by refusing payment to the Persians in the east while playing
the tribes to the north against each other. It did not go well.
It was then, under the strain of multiple nearing armies, that Justin
started to disintegrate. While ministers asked him what they should do,
he would claim that he heard voices and climb under his bed to escape
them. Those were good days. On bad days, he would violently attack the
servants, biting them on the arms and head. Legend has it that he
literally ate a couple of his servants. In desperate self-preservation, the
servants tried to think up some way to keep the emperor too distracted to
eat them all. They came up with a throne on wheels. The servants raced
him around the halls of his palace in the throne, trying to keep him
amused with the speed.

393

In the end Justin II fared pretty well - perhaps better than he deserved
considering his last words as emperor were complaints about his
servants. He regained some of his senses, and handed over power to one
of his generals. (Military. Military. Military.) He lived out his life in
obscurity, unmurdered.
1. Ludwig II of Bavaria Went Uphill After He Went Downhill (18451886)
Ludwig II of Bavaria is also known as the Swan King, or the Fairy King,
names he no doubt would have encouraged during his lifetime. He liked
the idea of being a king, but wasnt particularly good at it. How not
good? He lost his whole nation within two years. Two years into his
reign, Bavaria was swallowed up by Prussia. King Ludwig was allowed
to retain his title and some powers, but beyond the title, he wasnt much
interested in government.
He was interested in the things that have made him, subsequently, a
beloved monarch. He built a succession of stunning palaces. He hired
theater managers to revolutionize theater in Munich, setting new
standards of drama for the western world. He was the most important
and enduring patron of Wagner. (Well. They cant all be winners.)
Whats more, he did all this with royal funds. Naturally, he accrued a lot
of debt.
It was this debt that caused a council to declare him insane and unfit to
rule. Thats right, building too many pretty things and funding the arts
qualified as madness. Standards for insane monarchs really dropped in
the 19th century. Today, many people believe that Ludwig was unfairly
condemned. Its tough to say whether the fact that three days after he
was deposed Ludwig was found dead in a shallow lake along with the
doctor who diagnosed him strengthens or weakens their case. Whatever
the conclusion, Ludwig II was the one mad monarch who left his
country a great legacy. Bavaria remained the cultural center of Prussia

394

for the next sixty years, many people enjoy Wagner for some reason, and
to this day Ludwigs palaces draw millions of visitors. And not even one
member of the clergy was dressed up as a bear and hunted by dogs.
[Via The Secret Lives of Tsars, Absolute Terror, Blood Royal, 1000
Words for 1000 Days, Maria I of Portugal, Mustafa I of Turkey, Ibrahim
I of Turkey, Murad IV, Bavarias Mad King Ludwig May Not Have Been
So Mad After All, King Ludwig II, Justin II.]
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Reply288 replies
Esther Inglis-Arkells Discussions
All replies
gigglesticks
Esther Inglis-Arkell
11/26/14 6:22pm
As always, women are under-represented.
What, for example, about Queen Ranavalona I of Madagascar?
Revisionist historians have disputed exactly how mad or sane she was
(she was only trying to "expand her empire", apparently). But at the very
least:
In 1838, it was estimated that as many as 100,000 people in Imerina died
as a result of the tangena ordeal [a traditional test of innocence: feeding

395

the subject three chicken skins, and then poison, and seeing how many
they throw up], constituting roughly 20 percent of the population.
Approximately one million slaves entered Imerina from coastal areas
between 1820 and 1853, constituting one-third of the total population in
the central highlands and two-thirds of all residents in Antananarivo.
Due in large part to loss of life throughout the years of military
campaigns, high death rates among fanompoana workers, and harsh
traditions of justice under her rule, the population of Madagascar is
estimated to have declined from around 5 million to 2.5 million between
1833 and 1839, and from 750,000 to 130,000 between 1829 and 1842 in
Imerina, contributing to a strongly unfavorable view of Ranavalona's
rule in historical accounts.
Yes, that might just give one an unfavourable impression of her rule.
George McDonald Fraser wrote a colourful, fictionalized account of her
personal eccentricities in Flashman's Lady.
Oh god, can we please finally stop that debt-nonsense? The immense
debt Ludwig accumulated is a myth fabricated by his enemies. The
rulers before him have spent just as much and even more for the
military. At his time, people were pissed that he used the money to built
things and enhance the economy instead of buying new toys for war
games. As you said - never piss of the military.
Yep. The liberals of the Bavarian Landtag _offered_ to help him cover a
credit for Neuschwanstein, but then the ministers feared for their power
and started the plot to incapacitate (kill) Ludwig.
He wasn't a manchild invested in buying really large castles. It was
probably the souverignty lost by the Bavarian state that bothered him so
he didn't follow up on his _representational_ duties. He always
subscribed everything he had to, followed up the politics, and never
hindered state business in any way.
25
Emperor Justin II

396

Justin II
wikipedia
As the Byzantine Emperor from 565 to 576 Justin reportedly began to
lose his mind near the end of his reign. He was pushed around the palace
on a wheelchair snapping at attendants as he passed and even reportedly
ate a few of them.
24
Ibrahim of the Ottoman Empire
Ibrahim of the Ottoman Empire
wikipedia
An Ottoman Sultan known to have an obsession with fat women he had
his agents track down the fattest one possible. He also had 280 of his
concubines drowned in the ocean when he heard that they had slept with
another man and he would regularly feed coins to fish in the palace pool.
23
King Charles VI of France
King Charles VI of France
wikipedia
Before going made he was apparently known as Charles the Well Loved,
afterwards he became Charles the Mad. Reportedly killing his own
knights after one of them dropped a spear, he also refused to bathe and
for a long time believed he was made of glass.
22
Anna of Russia
Anna of Russia

397

wikipedia
Although she was placed on the throne by old nobels hoping that she
would be a figurehead, she not only assumed power by her wooing of
the imperial guards but she was found to love cruel jokes, especially on
the nobels who appointed her.

21
Erik XIV of Sweden
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Erik XIV of Sweden
wikipedia
Known for being insanely paranoid, he was known to have people
executed simply for laughing in his presence. He even believed he was
his own brother for a while. Eventually though his worst fears came true
and he died of poisoning.
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5
Qin Shi Huang of China
Henry VI of England
wikipedia
Known for being terrified of being assassinated he never slept in the
same place twice. It wasnt just humans he was wary of though.
Apparently he feared a giant sea monsters as well.
14
Juana I of Spain
Juana I of Spain
wikipedia
Also known as Juana the Mad, she was so scared that her husband would
cheat on her that even after he died she wouldnt let any women come
near his corpse, not even nuns.
13
Ludwig II of Bavaria

400

Ludwig II of Bavaria
wikipedia
Known for being really shy, Ludwig didnt do much ruling during his
reign by rather spent his time building fairy tale castles.
12
Ivan IV
Ivan IV
wikipedia
Known as Ivan the Terrible, he was scarred at an early age by the loss of
his parents and abuse at the hands of the government. At 14 he seized
control of Russia and fed the government to a pack of dogs. He didnt
stop there though, and went on to kill and torture numerous others.

11
Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg
Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg
wikipedia
Desperate for a son, she was reported to have gone mad when she finally
had a girl. Although the king was happy to have a daughter she tried
numerous times to kill her. Incredibly, her daughter survived.
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Fyodor I of Russia
Fyodor I of Russia
wikipedia
Also known as Fyodor the Bellringer, when his daughter died at two
years old he took to wandering across Russia ringing every church bell
he came across.
9
Queen Maria I of Portugal

402

Queen Maria I of Portugal

wikipedia
After the deaths of her husband, son, and daughter, Maria apparently lost
it. She was known for screaming non stop late into the night and having
a fondness for wearing childrens clothes.
8
Otto of Bavaria
Otto of Bavaria
wikipedia
Brought in to replace his brother Ludwig II, he was found to be even
worse, stammering and breaking things wherever he went. Recent
theories have arisen claiming that the insane behavior was made up in
order to make them easy to overthrow.
7
Christian VII of Denmark
Christian VII of Denmark
wikipedia
Although he was officially king, it was his advisers who basically ran
the country. Christian was mentally ill, paranoid, engaged in self
mutilation, and was extremely promiscuous.

403

Carlos II of Spain
Carlos II of Spain
wikipedia
The result of severe inbreeding Carlos II was so deformed that he
couldnt even close his mouth to chew. Although he was supposed to be
king his mother had to rule for him and he spent his life believing
himself to be bewitched.
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404

Afonso VI of Portugal
Afonso VI of Portugal
wikipedia
Due to a disease when he was younger he was left partially paralyzed on
his left side. He then grew up to be known as the crazy glutton king of
Portugal and like many other kings on this list he ended up confined. In
fact it was even said that there was a groove on the floor from where he
paced so much.
4
Charles IX of France
Charles IX of France
wikipedia
Due to a disfiguration he was dubbed the Snotty King and was given to
fits of rage and sadism even though he was a mamas boy.
3
Henry VI of England
Henry VI of England
wikipedia
He was so bipolar that his wife had to take over the kingdom. He would
enter prolonged periods of mental breakdown become completely
unaware of everything around him.
2
King George III of England
King George III of England

405

wikipedia
One of the most well known crazy rulers in history probably due to the
movies that have been made about him. Like Charles IX he also ended
up behind bars and his only legacy besides being mad was that he lost
the American Colonies.

1
Emperor Caligula
Emperor Caligula
wikipedia
Hands down probably the most insane ruler of any nation in history, it is
said that he was once had an entire family executed. The husband and
wife went first and he then proceeded down the line of children until he
reached the youngest, a 12 year old girl. She was crying hysterically by
this point and the disgusted crowd begged for mercy as she was a virgin.
Smiling, he had the executioner rape her and then kill her as well.
Were there any homosexual kings, queens or emperors in history?
John Allie, Not a history expert, but I know a few things about classical music.
Written 18 Dec 2015 Upvoted by Lyonel Perabo, B.A. in History. M.A in related
field (Folkloristics)
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you... Mad King Ludwig!
Ludwig was the ruler of Bavaria from 1864-1886. His homosexuality was largely
an open secret. He never married and as a young adult he was once moved to
tears by the sight of a shirtless woodcutter.

406

His biggest crush, however, was the famed opera composer Richard Wagner.
Unfortunately for Ludwig, Wagner was not gay--far from it, he was an
unrepentant womanizer who frequently had affairs with the wives of his creditors.
Ludwig was a big fan of Wagner's operas, and when he heard the composer was
again on the run from angry creditors (having failed to repay them and then ruined
their marriages, as usual), he invited him to come live in his court.
To Wagner, Ludwig was effectively a limitless credit card. The King was more
than willing to underwrite whatever projects the composer had in mind, and spent
ruinous amounts of money on them. This isn't to imply that he didn't have his own
expensive projects, either...he also constructed the fairy-tale castle of
Neuschwanstein, probably one of the biggest vanity projects ever undertaken.
Ludwig's public eventually tired of the nonsense and forced Wagner to leave the
country, hoping that would alleviate the problem. Ludwig, however, still had a
mad crush on the guy and wrote to Wagner proposing to abdicate the throne and
come live with him. Wagner, for his part, talked him out of it, probably because it
would mean an end to the money waterfall.
Eventually the Bavarians realized that the only way to solve the problem entirely
would be to get Ludwig demoted to former king. The most efficient way to do so
was to declare him insane, on the grounds that he had no control over his
impulses. He was deposed and sent to a distant castle, along with his psychiatrist.
He lasted less than twenty-four hours after that point. The bodies of Ludwig and
the psychiatrist both were discovered drowned in the shallows of the lake beside
the castle the day after their arrival. There were no signs of struggle and the other
residents of the castle knew nothing. The exact cause of death has never been
determined.
Wikipedia article for those who wish to learn more: Ludwig II of Bavaria
32.2k Views View Upvotes
Related QuestionsMore Answers Below

History of Great Britain: If Prince Phillip is not King because he married

into the Royal family, then how can people talk of Kate Middleton b...

Who was the worst King or Queen in English history?

We know about kings and their mistresses, but were any queens known to
have misters, or multiple men if they were single?

407

Why were Tamil Nadu and Kerala not captured or ruled by Mughal Kings
or any emperors before them?

Who are/were the best Rajas/Kings in Indian History, and why?

Quinten Pilon, I read a lot...
Written 19 Dec 2015 Upvoted by Lyonel Perabo, B.A. in History. M.A in related
field (Folkloristics)
King Willem II van Oranje-Nassau, King of the Netherlands 1840-1849 and
Duke of Luxembourg and Limburg.
Willem II was the son of the first King of the newly formed kingdom of the
Netherlands. The Nassau family came back from England after Napoleon lost the
battle of Leipzig. They had fled when the Patriots together with French
revolutionary forces took over in 1795 and established the short-lived Batavian
republic (it would quickly be incorperated into the French empire).
Willem II quickly became a national hero for his new home country (being born
in 1792 he had spent most of his life in England). He fought in the British army as
a general during the battle of Waterloo. He reportedly fought well and got
wounded in his shoulder. He returned as the 'hero of Quatre-Bras'.
Waterloo 1815: the central figure is General Wellington. At the bottom left
William, Prince of Oranje (later known as Willem II) is being carried away.
Willem II married Anna Paulowna, daughter of the Russian Tsar in 1816. It was a
very miserable marriage, especially for Anna, since she was homesick and had an
homosexual husband (tip for dutchies: watch 'de troon').
For more than a hundred years any news about the King's homosexuality was
strictly censored. The first person the openly speak about the King's sexuality,
Eillert Meeter, was called a liar for the rest of his life. His publications were first
published in the Netherlands in 1966.
His sexuality did allegedly play an important role in the revolutions of 1848.
High-ranking revolutionaries blackmailed Willem II. The king had to give up
pretty much all of his power in order for his secret to be 'protected'. He was known
to be a weak-minded person and quickly succumbed to the pressure. Over one
night, the Dutch monarchy became ceremonial. Whether this would have

408

happened anyways is unclear, but the king's shame about his sexuality probably
played a large role in a very important part of Dutch History.
Willem II der Nederlanden - Wikipedia
Koninkrijk der Nederlanden - Wikipedia
tweemaal Slag bij Waterloo
8.4k Views View Upvotes
Neil Anderson, Combined degree in history
Updated 11d ago
Has there ever been a gay Monarch in Europe?
Yes, several, although Im only really knowledgeable about the English/British
ones, so heres a few.
Richard I, aka Richard Coeur de Lion, 1189 to 1199.
Although married (like all these kings) Richard was rumoured to take several
male lovers, including King Philip II of France. Some of the rumours may have
been character assassination.
Edward II, king 1307 to 1327, whose relationship with Piers Gaveston almost sent
England into civil war. Debate remains about whether Edward was distracted
from his reign, or merely just a bad ruler.
Richard II, reign 1377 to 1399, king from the age of 10, he was aided (a lot) by his
uncle John of Gaunt. Richards reign was plagued by disasters, and is often
assumed to have been more interested in his male friends than his rule. His
lacklustre rule is one of the reasons for the ensuing War of the Roses, that led
England to Civil War over the next century.
James I (also James VI of Scotland), reign 1567 to 1625, had a love of having
young men from the street scrubbed up and paraded for his please. James went
rather mad and paranoid, assuming everyone was out to get him (especially
witches). This was not completely unfounded.
William and Mary, joint rulers 1689 to 1702 (Mary died 1694). Both monarchs,
they had an equal claim and thus rule jointly, had numerous favourites and it is

409

sometimes assumed sam sex lovers. Which may have accounted for their lack of
children.
6.6k Views View Upvotes Answer requested by Dustin Chiasson
S. Ranck, Amateur historian
Written 31 Jan 2016
Yes. Throughout the British isles history of monarchy, there's a lot of supposed
homosexuals. The most infamous one would probably be Edward II. He was the
second son of Edward I and the father of Edward III. He had controversial
relationships with two nobles, Piers Gaveston and Hugh Despenser. Plenty of
barons and other nobles resented this as they had a bit too much control on him.
Both his favorites were killed in pretty gruesome ways. His wife also left him for
her lover, Roger Mortimer. He was abdicated in 1327 and died later that year. He
is mostly seen as an ineffective ruler today.
38.7k Views View Upvotes
Khalid Elhassan, Eclectic Rabbit Hole, Writing Consultant
Updated 3 Feb 2016
There were many bisexuals who engaged in both heterosexuality and
homosexuality - from Alexander and Caesar and Nero in ancient times, through
Edward II and Richard II of England in the medieval era, through Frederick the
Great and Mad King Ludwig in modern times. Most Ottoman Sultans, as well as
many Central Asian rulers, also had a taste for pederasty. Some Chinese
emperors, such as Ai of Han, were notorious for their homosexuality.
But probably the most pure and openly homosexual ruler of all history was
Roman emperorElagabalus . He was so dedicated to his homosexuality that he
imported a Syrian religious sexual cult to Rome and lavishly promoted it. He had
numerous male lovers, and even prostituted himself. He wasn't just gay - he was
super flamboyantly gay.
Needless to say, such open disregard for Roman sexual taboos did not end well
for him.
6.1k Views View Upvotes

410

Arihant Pawariya, History Buff

Written Dec 19, 2015
Yes. Of course.
Warning: This answer contains adult content. NSFW.
Afghanistan's national hero Sultan Mahmud Ghaznavi's love for Ayaz is
celebrated in Persian poetry.

Auliya Chalebi's travelogue 'Siyahatnameh' says that homosexuality was

common in the holy Caliphate. Special districts were designated for it.
Homosexuality was accepted among public & nobility of the holy
Caliphate as esoteric hobby. Adolescent boys graced the Sultan's
parades.

Ottoman miniature from book Sawaqub al-Manaquib depicting

homosexuality, an esoteric taste of the cultured & high.

411

Pious gentlemen in the Ottoman Caliphate lining up to use a

boy, sampling a fruit of Qur'anic Paradise on Earth.

412

413

The merry-go-round was a Sufi invention [Sufism became

popular in the medieval ages - especially in India]. (Perhaps also
depicts closed circles of esoteric authority & licence.)

Source: Allama 1ball

13k Views View Upvotes

Stefan Hill, studied at Master of Science Degrees

Updated Apr 27, 2016 Upvoted by Lyonel Perabo, B.A. in History.
M.A in related field (Folkloristics)

414

Gustav V of Sweden. King 1907-1950

The Kings lover

........
Homosexuality was a great shame in Sweden in those days.
The king Gustav V was very convinced that kings and princes who
married women out of love were acting with a weakness that was
unacceptable for royals. The king himself had a very little contact with
his wife, Victoria of Baden. Victoria spend a lot of time with her
personal physician, Axel Munthe... The Queen was very pro-German
and is often accused of beeing a nazist. The king himself was proGerman but really disliked Hitler, considering him a vulgar man from
the underclass.
Could someone make a film about this:
The nazi Queen

The aristocratic and not to bright king

Kurt, the kings homosexual lover

Anna the wife of Kurt

Societies reaction: Protect the king, sacrifies the commoner.

THE STORY

A man, Kurt Hajby, visit the king to get a permission to serve alkohol on
his restaurant. The King and Kurt (could by the films name) starts a
sexual relationship.
Anna wants to now where Kurt is sneaking off and finds out: To the
Royal palace.

415

Anna is confronting Kurt who confesses: He is having a homosexual

relationship, with the king.
Anna wants to divorce. Not an easy thing in Sweden 1936. She had to
convince the court that she has a reason for divorce. The reason:
adultery. She explains that her husband is being unfaithful and have to
explain that it is with the king.
The royal court (not the judges) pays Anna to keep quite and sends Kurt
abroad to USA. Kurt cant make a living in USA and when the money he
has been paid has been spent, he returns to Sweden.
The court makes Kurt disapear into a mental hospital but a doctor in the
hospital realise that Kurt is not mentaly ill and sets him free.
The courts treatening Kurt with a new session on a mental hospital. Kurt
panics and agree to emmigrate to Nazi-Germany. Homosexuallity was a
capital crime in Nazi Germany so its not the best choise for Kurt but
mayby for the King.
Kurt is arrested by Gestapo and kept in Gestapo custody. (Are Gestapo
acting after instructions from the King?).
Somehow Kurt is able to get free (how?) and returns to Sweden.
After the war Anna meets Kurt and forgives him. They remarry. Kurts
writes a book about his experiences. All books are bought and destroyed
by the court.
When the king died 1950, the monarchy reached an all time low in
popularity and Kurt think that he now can seek redress and writes to
different state officials and complains about how he has been treated.
The result:

Kurt is brought to trial. He is accused for blackmailing. (Not

true. He never asked anyone for money).
The people who had put him into mental hospital and deported
him to Gestapo was not brought to trial.

416

All official documents about the case is being classified.

Kurt is send to jail. When he has served his sentence he is released. Kurt
and Anna unites again. When Anna dies Kurt commits suicide.

......
Later have several other male employees at the royal court testified that
they received money to keep quite about their sexual relations with the
king.
Haijby affair
58.7k Views View Upvotes

Laurel Schmidt, history and european monarch buff since childhood

Updated Dec 24
Because nobody has mentioned a woman yet
I give you Cristina of Sweden. She was the only daughter and child of
King Gustavus Adolphus Lion of the North, who unfortunately died
when she was quite young (only 6). Cristina was actually crowned King
of Sweden and referred to herself as such until her abdication. Her
childhood was rather depressing - her mother was mentally and
emotionally unstable and despised the fact that her only child was a girl,
and Cristinas beloved aunt, who raised her after the death of Gustavus
Adolphus, died when Cristina was still an adolescent. In spite of all this,
Cristina became a very enlightened monarch, and corresponded
regularly with the leading Western philosophical minds of the time,
which led to her being dubbed Minerva of the North. In 1654, when
she was only 28 years old but had reigned for 22 years, Cristina
abdicated the Swedish throne. She moved to Rome, and continued to
focus on her intellectual interests, and also converted to Catholicism

417

(something that she could not have done as monarch of Sweden).

Cristina died in 1689.
Throughout her life, Cristinas sexuality and gender identity were - and
have been since her death - the subject of much curiosity and
speculation. She disdained all social conventions prescribed to women,
and never married. When Cristina was born, it had initially been
suspected that she was a boy because she was hairy, had a deep voice,
and her genitalia were covered by caul. Cristina dressed specifically for
comfort and conveniance, and was reportedly very mannish in her
appearance even as an adult.

Cristina also was said to be, variously, a lesbian, bisexual, and intersex.
Postmortem evaluations of her corpse suggest that she was in fact
genetically female, albeit with physical characteristics that are
considered more masculine. Her sexuality is still in question. She likely
died a virgin, but it is obvious that she experienced romantic attraction to
members of the same gender. She did almost marry her (male) cousin,
Karl, but instead appointed him as her successor before she abdicated; it
is unknown though if her willingness to marry him sprang from actual
romantic attraction or from a sense of duty to her country and family.
Cristina was also in love with the beautiful Swedish noblewoman Ebba
Sparre as a young woman. Later in life, she may have had relationships
with various other women. Whatever the case, Cristina was certainly not
heterosexual and is a prime example of an LGBTQ European monarch.
Christina, Queen of Sweden - Wikipedia
16.4k Views View Upvotes

Patrick O'Neill, In the past, I studied history

418

Written Dec 19, 2015

Yes and no.
If the question is "are there monarchs or emperors who had sexual or
romantic relations with people of the same sex," than yes, very much
so. Homosexuality in ancient Greece was very common, as it was
throughout the Mediterranean world. Alexander the Great may have had
a romantic relationship with his friend Hephaestion, and
Emperor Hadrian certainly did with Antinous. There are many more
examples.
However, pre-modern people didn't really think of Sexual orientation in
the same way that we do, so you have to be careful about what
conclusions to draw from that. A Greek or Roman ruler who had sex
with a man wouldn't have been considered "gay" in the sense we thing of
today, provided he was the penetrative partner.
7k Views View Upvotes

Steve Waddington, Network Engineer, CIO and CEO. Current

Gemologist
Written Sep 27, 2015
Many.
Julius Caesar was widely rumoured to be. With a lot of innuendo about
his relationship with his nephew Augustus.
For Alexander (the Great), it seems to have been a choice between
Hephaestion andBucephalus.

419

So too have many great leaders in history borne the scurrilous gossip of
the common soldiery.
For the most part though, whatever their orientation, they still did their
duty to produce an heir. Or tried to.
13.5k Views View Upvotes

Petter Gusten, gay man living in Stockholm

Written Dec 20
Ludwig II von Bayern (he with the fantastic castles) Ludwig II of
Bavaria - Wikipedia
Gustav V of Sweden. Not officially, but there was a blackmailing story
in the 3040-ties.Haijby affair - Wikipedia
1.1k Views View Upvotes

Tim Tran, studied at Brooklyn Technical High School

Written Dec 20
No one here mentioned East Asia so here it is:
Emperor Ai of Han

420

He was a notoriously homosexual emperor and was quite incompetent

with his duties. His lover was Dong Xian, a government official. Dong
Xian was loved for his simple nature contrasting with the vibrant nature
of the Imperial court.
Their love was immortalized through the quote passion of the cut
sleeve (), which is quite representative of homosexual love in
China. The story was that, in one day, in the morning, the Emperor had
to leave for his duties. However, Dong Xian was sleeping on his cloak.
To not disturb him, Emperor Ai cut off his sleeves so he would be able to
continue to sleep.
29.8k Views View Upvotes

Justin Eiler, Studying old stuff.

Written Sep 27, 2015

421

There is considerable debate over the sexuality of James VI and I. The

issue is ambiguous.William II of England and Edward II of
England widely suspected of being gay.
The big problem is that homosexuality was punishable by death back
then. Only with the last century has sexual orientation been recognized
as a natural variation.
6.4k Views View Upvotes

Doug Welch, works at Arizona Health Sciences Library

Written Dec 23
Roman Emperor Hadrian had his lover Antinous drown in the Nile while
they were on vacation there. Hadrian was devastated, although there is
another story that somehow Hadrian made a human sacrifice of his
boyfriend in order to gain some kind of advantage for himself. Anyhow,
Hadrian honored Antinous with statues all over the Empire as well as
building a brand new city on the Nile named after Antinous and to get
people to move there, he decreed that people living there would live tax
free.

1.9k Views View Upvotes

Dee Cooper
Written Jan 25, 2016

422

During the 1690s, satiric pamphlets pinned by William III's Jacobite

detractors fueled rumors that William of Orange was homosexual.
Admittedly, he rewarded two courtiers who had come with him from the
Netherlands with earldoms--Hans Willem Bentinck, the Earl of Portland,
and Arnold Joostian van Keppel, the Earl of Albermarle. Moreover, he
kept only one mistress, which left him susceptible to this accusation.
Nevertheless, historians doubt that his friendship with Bentinck was
homosexual, although keeping van Keppel as a favorite was suspicious
since this "strikingly handsome" courtier was 20 years younger than
William III.
Rumors about the sexual preferences of English monarchs have
circulated for centuries. Most historians have concluded, however, that
the kings listed below were most probably either gay or bisexual:
---William Rufus (r. 1087-1110): Openly homosexual, the oldest son of
William I was an excellent soldier, but a ruthless ruler, who often
clashed with church officials. He never married nor fathered any
children.
---Richard I, "Coeur de Lion" (r.1189-1199): Since the 1950s, Richard
II's newly discovered public confessions and penitences as well as his
childless marriage have led some historians to classify him as
homosexual, although he fathered one illegitimate child.
---Edward II (1307-1327): The butt of scurrilous humor in Mel Gibson's
"Braveheart", Edward II conducted long-term homosexual relationships
with court favorites Piers Gaveston, first Earl of Cornwall, and Hugh
Despenser.
---Richard II (r. 1377-1399): Central casting's idea of an effeminate
monarch, Richard II was a patron of the arts, which left him immediately
suspect. He also elevated a favorite, Robert De Vere, from Earl of
Oxford to Duke of Ireland. However, Thomas Walsingham, who is the
primary source of gossip about Richard II, heartily disliked him.

423

Unfortunately, Shakespeare's Richard II clouds the historical view of

Richard II. Richard II took two wives, but he didn't father a heir.
---James I of England, and VI of Scotland (1567-1625): James I gave
quite freely from the treasury to several court favorites: Esme Stuart,
Duke of Lennox; Robert Carr, Earl of Somerset, and George Villiers,
Duke of Buckingham. James referred to Buckingham as his wife.
Nevertheless, James I was truly grieved upon the death of his consort,
Anne of Denmark, and counseled his sons not to fall prey to such
temptations. Graffiti scrawled on London walls identified James as a
"queen".
4.9k Views View Upvotes

Lida Rose, I read a lot.

Written Dec 21, 2015
Most scholars agree about Richard the Lion-hearted on
England. Richard I of England
Also Edward II of England. Edward II of England
Also Queen Anne of England. Anne, Queen of Great Britain
4k Views View Upvotes

Melanie Reynolds
Written Mar 9, 2016

424

A Sultan is like a King and the current Sultan of Oman is highly and
credibly reported to be gay.
http://www.gaystarnews.com/artic...
So much so that many higher ranking families send their young men
away to avoid the Sultan hitting on them. Unfortunately the common
person can still go to jail for years if caught as homosexual.
9.7k Views View Upvotes

Di Liu
Written Sep 28, 2015
There was an emperor of Chinese Han Dynasty, who wanted to give his
throne to his homosexual lover:
Emperor Ai of Han
4.5k Views View Upvotes

John Wilkins, studied at Bethesda - Chevy Chase High

Written Apr 20, 2016
Here are just a few of the most prominent:

Edward II of England (1284-1327) had two sexual

relationships with men, Piers Gaveston, Earl of Cornwall (12841312), and Hugh Despenser (1286-1326).
Louis XIII of France (1601-1643) had an alleged homosexual
relationship with Charles d'Albert, duc de Luynes (1578-1621)
Gustav V of Sweden (1858-1950) allegedly had an affair with
Kurt Haijby

425

Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845-1886) was obsessed with the

famous 19th century romantic composer Richard Wagner (18131883), who was a famous womanizer, and didn't return the
feelings, treating the relationship more like a friendship
2.4k Views

Anonymous
Written Dec 20
Alauddin Khilji, of Mongol dynasty, was known to had homosexual
relationship with his army general Malik Kafur, who was a eunuch.
776 Views

Marcus Tuzzolino
Written Mar 12, 2016
On the Roman side,,,
As the big historian Gibbon wrote Claudius was the only one (Roman
Emperor) whose taste in love was entirely correct., although it must
also be mentioned that it was written that this health challenged emperor
had difficulty with concentrating on anything without a slave giving him
blow-jobs.
Most other Roman emperors tended to be at least bi-sexual.
Note worthy is Emperor Hadrian, who ducked the homophobic culture
he was living in, and had a fully homosexual relationship with a guy he
also took with him when on the road.

426

As can be seen with the other answers, homosexual behavior is

extremely common, especially with royalty and army situations, nice
puzzle for Freudian nerds,, ;-)
2.3k Views
What is the saddest truth about life?

Shuba Swaminathan, studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Updated Sep 23, 2014
The truth behind this accurate observation by the Dalai Lama "Man surprised me most about humanity. He sacrifices his health in
order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health.
And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the
present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future;
he lives as if he is never going to die, and t...

Read More
What are some things for 15 year olds to declare themselves independent
from?

Jamie Barth, Father, husband, teacher, realist

Written Aug 28
This will sound stupid, but in retrospect as an adult, it means a lot to me.

427

It was on my 15th birthday that I decided to stop playing with Legos,

because they werent cool. All of my friends were dating or had
discovered their fathers stash of porn. Not me. My father had no porn (I
looked), and no one wanted to date me because I was ugly.
Getting rid of my childish toys, like Legos, was, what...
Read More
What is the rudest thing that a customer told you while serving them?

Sarah Lynn Johnson, Structural Engineer, Cupcake Enthusiast, Movie

Buff, Unicorn
Written Dec 28
I used to spend my summers waiting tables, while I was in high school
and college.
Once, a group walked in to be seated. As is customary, I asked how
many were in the party. I could easily see that there were six of them,
but I always asked the total in case more people were on the way.
One woman said Four adults and two children.
A man, I assume her husband, then sputtered: That makes six tota...
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428

Top 10 Strangest Monarchs

POSTED BY EVAN ANDREWS ON DECEMBER 6,
2010 IN BIZARRE, HISTORY, PEOPLE | 23,590 VIEWS | 7
RESPONSES
Thanks to their sheltered lives and the adverse effects of inbreeding, a
lot of historys kings, queens, and other royals became known for their
eccentricities. There was Countess Elizabeth Bathory, who delighted in
torturing her servants and was even rumored to bathe in the blood of
virgins; there was Gian Gastone of Italy, who was so lazy that he spent
the latter part of his reign bedridden; and there was Anna of Russia, who
so enjoyed humiliating others that she was known to ridicule her
underlings by making them marry one another while dressed as clowns.
But these rulers were normal compared to some of their counterparts,
and in many cases the cruelty, vanity, and insanity of those in power
would go on to have dire consequences for the countries they led. Here
are ten of historys strangest monarchs:
10. Zhengde of China
Reign: 1505-1521

429

The Ming Dynastys strangest emperor, Zhu Houzhao, aka the Zhengde
Emperor, took to the throne of China at the age of 14. Not long after
becoming Emperor, Zhengde became drunk with power. He neglected
his duties as ruler, and instead chose to spend his time drinking and
visiting brothels, which he filled with women of his choosing. He built
lavish palaces to store exotic animals like tigers and leopards, and he
would often have them turned loose so that he could hunt them down for
his own amusement. Even weirder, Zhengde would have his servants go
to great lengths to dress up the inside of his palace like a city block. He
would then command all the court employees to pretend to be vendors
and passersby, so that he could stroll down the street and pretend to be
an everyday person. This kind of childish behavior made Zhengde
notorious within the court, and some historians have credited him with
starting a trend of dissipation and indolence among emperors that would
ultimately lead to the fall of the Ming Dynasty.
Strangest Behavior

430

Zhengde died rather comically in 1521, supposedly as a result of

infections he contracted from falling into a canal while drunk. But his
strangest exploit took place a few years before his death in 1518, when
the Emperor suddenly decided that he would like to be in the military
and declared himself a General. He personally led an expedition to the
Jiangxi province in order to catch a Prince who had revolted against his
authority, only to find that the man had already been rounded up. Angry
at having his chance to play soldier ruined, Zhengde ordered the man
released, just so he could experience the thrill of hunting him down and
capturing him himself.
9. Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia
Reign: 1713-1740

431

Although he enjoyed a peaceful tenure as king, Prussias Friedrich

Wilhelm I is most remembered today for his enduring affection for the
military. He would frequently drill his army units himself, and enjoyed
having them march before him, even when he was sick and confined to
bed. An ascetic man who was known to enjoy sleeping in the soldiers
barracks, he made it his personal goal to see Prussias army become the
most glorious in all of Europe. This obsession even extended into his
own family. He wished to make his son Friedrich II into a good soldier,
and had the boy awoken each morning with the firing of a cannon. He
even gave Friedrich II a small arsenal and a complement of child
soldiers to command, and had the boy beaten whenever he failed to
perform well in his training. Not surprisingly, Friedrich II eventually
tried to run away, but was captured and briefly imprisoned by his father.
Strangest Behavior
The Kings strangest behavior was undoubtedly his obsession with
creating the Potsdam Giants, a special army regiment comprised of only
the tallest and strongest soldiers. The Giants were a pet project of
Friedrich Wilhelms, and he went about recruiting them by any means
necessary. Mercenaries were hired (one Irish soldier of fortune stood
some 7 feet tall), and neighboring kingdoms were known to send the
Prussians their tallest fighters as a means of encouraging friendly
diplomatic relations. In his efforts to gather as many suitable recruits as
possible (the cut off was 62very tall for the era), Friedrich Wilhelm I
even resorted to ordering that all tall young boys be conscripted into the
unit, and tall men and women were encouraged to have kids together.
8. Ludwig II of Bavaria
Reign: 1864-1886

432

One of Bavarias most beloved and eccentric monarchs was Ludwig II,
who became famous for his strange personality and his obsession with
building enchanting and whimsical castles. Ludwig had a troubled
family life, and as a child he would lose himself in arts, music, and
elaborate fantasy worlds. This behavior carried over into his reign as
king, which began when he was only 18. He disliked public
appearances, preferring instead to stay inside his castle alone, where he
would frequently have operas and plays performed for only him. This is
not to say that Ludwig was a shut-in. He was known to travel about
Bavaria, and would even stop and chat with any subjects he met along
the way. The Kings unassuming nature earned him the adoration of the
people, but it drew the ire of his high-ranking court employees, who
planned to have him removed from power. The conspirators provided a
list of Ludwigs eccentricitiesamong them talking to imaginary
people, poor manners, shyness, and even a penchant for moonlight
picnics with naked male dancersand used them as proof that the King
was insane. While the veracity of these claims is debatable, in 1886
Ludwig was declared unfit to rule and removed from power. In a

433

mysterious twist, the king was found floating dead in a lake the very
next day, prompting many to argue that he was murdered by his rivals.
Strangest Behavior
Today, Ludwig II is best remembered for the many fairy tale castles that
he built around Bavaria. He was obsessive about their construction, and
frequently travelled abroad to consult architects and builders. One of the
most elaborate is Schloss Neuschwanstein, a stunning fortress inspired
by the works of Richard Wagner that Ludwig had built on the edge of a
cliff. Ludwig invested considerable time and money in his castles, and at
one point he nearly bankrupted the Kingdom with his architectural
habits. Ironically, today the castles are some of the most famousand
lucrativetourist attractions in all of Bavaria.
7. Charles VI of France
Reign: 1380-1422

434

Also known as Charles the Mad1, Charles VI was the ruler of France
during the Hundred Years War. Charles exhibited signs of psychosis and
paranoia early in life, and modern historians have postulated that he may
have been schizophrenic. His mental illness first manifested itself in
1392, when he had a fit while travelling through the forest on
horseback. According to accounts from those present, the King became
disoriented and frantic, and attacked several of his own men, even
killing one knight before his servants were able to subdue him. From
then on, Charless behavior only worsened. He would frequently forget
who he was, and have to be reminded that he was king. During another
episode, he refused to bathe or change his clothes for several months.
Charles VI was also known to run wildly through the halls of his palace
for no reason, and for his own safety the doors eventually had to be
boarded up.
Strangest Behavior
Charless strangest bout of madness was noted by Pope Pius II, who
wrote that the King once became convinced that he was made out of
glass and could break into pieces. Fearful of shattering, Charles took to
wearing padded clothing and commanded that he not be touched. The
middle ages saw several different cases of this disorder, which has since
become known as the Glass Delusion.
6. Qin Shi Huang of China
Reign: 246 BC-221 BC (King of Qin), 221 BC-210 BC (Emperor of
China)

435

While he was a capable (albeit brutal) administrator, in his personal life

Chinas first emperor Qin Shi Huang had some serious issues. Chief
among them was a crippling fear of death that led him to spend the
majority of his life searching for the key to immortality. Qin Shi Huang
was forever wary of the possibility of his enemies making an attempt on
his life, to the point that he never slept in the same place twice, and
regularly carried a massive crossbow at his side when travelling.
Revealing the Emperors whereabouts was deemed a capital crime, and
after a while underground passageways were constructed that allowed
him to travel unseen between his different palaces. Later in life, Qin Shi
Huang began construction on a massive tomb that, in the event of his
death, would protect him from his enemies. The monument contained
over 8,000 life-sized terra cotta soldiers, along with a miniature city
for the king to rule over in the afterlife. Of course, for Qin Shi Huang all
of this was only precaution, and in the meantime the Emperor consulted
soothsayers, apothecaries, and other spiritualists in the hope of finding
some kind of elixir that would extend his life or make him immortal.

436

Strangest Behavior

Qin Shi Huangs paranoia wasnt completely unwarrantedduring his

reign there were three attempts on his lifebut his suspicions were often
directed in completely nonsensical directions. For example, one of the
Emperors most enduring fears was the threat of being killed by a sea
monster. He claimed to have dreamed that the creatures were on the
prowl for him, so he never left his palace without a posse of guards. This
paranoia eventually led to his death in the most ironic way possible:
after going on the hunt for one of these sea beasts and slaying a
beached whale, Qin Shi Huang developed an illness and died only a few
days later.
5. Emperor Norton I
Reign: 1859-1880 (unofficially)

In the 19th century, the United States was unofficially ruled by

Emperor Norton I, a San Francisco native who declared himself
Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico. Emperor
Nortons real name was Joshua Abraham Norton. A British national, he
came to the U.S. in 1849 as a wealthy man, but a string of poor
investments soon left him nearly broke. His financial troubles

437

supposedly lead to him developing a number of eccentricities and

delusions of grandeur, and in 1859 he officially declared himself the
ruler of America. Local newspapers originally published Nortons claim
as a joke, but he became beloved by San Franciscos locals, who gave
him a regal uniform and addressed him in public as your highness.
Norton spent much of his early reign issuing edicts to dissolve the
corrupt U.S. congress and officially declare himself Emperor. But
when his efforts were ignored, he turned to local matters. He was known
to stroll through the city streets inspecting roads and buildings, and he
even issued his own money, which was widely accepted by local
merchants. Norton was a poor man, but he was allowed to eat in San
Franciscos finest restaurants and was given seats to any new play that
opened. In exchange, he would place an imperial seal of approval by the
establishments front door. Norton I died in 1880 after collapsing in the
street. Grand obituaries were written in all the local papers, and his
funeral was supposedly attended by as many as 30,000 people.
Strangest Behavior
Despite his obvious mental problems, Norton I often demonstrated
remarkable foresight. He proposed that a League of Nations be formed
years before the U.S. government considered it, and he decreed that a
bridge be built linking Oakland and San Francisco, which also
eventually became a reality. But this doesnt mean that all of his edicts
were completely rational. In 1872, he declared that anyone who referred
to his fair city by the abominable word Frisco would be fined the
sum of $25.
4. Ibrahim I of the Ottoman Empire
Reign: 1640-1648

438

Also known as Ibrahim the Mad, Ibrahim I was the most mentally
unstable of a series of insane and cruel Turkish sultans that ruled the
Ottoman Empire during the 16th and 17th century. Ibrahim is believed to
have suffered from a host of mental illnesses, all of which were no doubt
encouraged by the Cage, a windowless building where he was kept for
most of his youth. When his brother died in 1640, 23-year old Ibrahim
was released and declared sultan. Ecstatic and more than a bit unhinged,
he immediately made up for lost time by building up a harem of virgins
to satisfy his voracious sexual appetite. Ibrahim supposedly enjoyed
having his concubine gather in a palace courtyard so that he could gallop
around them while neighing like a stallion. He also had a fetish for fat
women, and at one point sent his servants on a quest to find the heftiest
lady in all the land. They returned with a 350-pound woman nicknamed
sugar cube, who became a favorite member of his harem. Ibrahims
excesses didnt end with sex. The Sultan was also greedy, and his agents
frequently looted houses to provide him with perfumes, clothes, and
anything else he desired. He was also notoriously violent. In addition to
ordering executions and torture at will, Ibrahim once threw his baby son
in a pool of water, and later stabbed the boy in the face out of anger. This
kind of debauchery and wanton cruelty won Ibrahim his fair share of
enemies, and in 1648 a coup was staged. After being captured, the Sultan
was briefly put back into the Cage before being strangled to death by a
gang of assassins.

439

Strangest Behavior
Ibrahim was known for his impulsive, terrifically violent behavior. For
example, when the Sultan received information that a member of his
harem had been compromised, he proceeded to have a number of the
women tortured. When he couldnt get any of them to give a name,
Ibrahim had 280 members of the harem thrown into a lake and drowned.|
3. Juana I of Spain
Reign: 1504-1555

Also known as Juana the Mad, Juana de Castile became the first
Queen of the Hapsburg dynasty when she married Philip of Burgundy in
1496. The couple started out madly in loveunusual for an arranged
royal marriagebut things soon became complicated. Juana was as
jealous as Philip was promiscuous, and his infidelities soon drove her
into a state of extreme paranoia. Because her husband would chase after
any attractive lady of the court, Juana took to only including old and

440

ugly women in her retinue, and in one case she even have attacked a
woman she believed to be her husbands mistress. Desperate to for
Philip to be true to her, Juana started consulting sorcerers and using love
potions, and when her husband ignored her she even briefly went on a
hunger strike. Whether or not Juana was actually crazy, is debatable,
but this kind of erratic behavioralong with the desire of the men
around her to usurp her powereventually led to her being locked away
in a castle for the latter part of her life.
Strangest Behavior
Queen Juanas eccentricities ramped up considerably in 1506, when
Philip died after a brief illness. Utterly distraught, Juana constantly wore
black and wept uncontrollably, and she even had the coffin opened on
several different occasions so that she could kiss the feet of her
husbands corpse. Worried that her husband would cheat even in death,
Juana forbid any women from coming near his coffin, even nuns.

2. George III of England

Reign: 1760-1820

441

Perhaps the most famous case of royal madness involved Englands

George III, who suffered from recurring bouts of mental illness
throughout the latter part of his life. Modern historians have theorized
that the King probably suffered from porphyria, a blood disease, but
Georges doctors were forever at a loss to diagnose his condition. The
King would rant, rave and insult and curse at his servants to the point
that his caretakers were often forced to gag him and confine him with a
straight jacket. A team of doctors was enlisted to help King George, but
their primitive treatments, which included everything from purging and
blistering to bloodletting, only seemed to make his condition worse.
Soon, the King began to become delusional. He developed the belief that
London was flooding, gave orders to imaginary or long-dead court
officials, and once even tried to sexually assault one of his servants. In a
bizarre episode on Christmas Day, the King named his pillow Prince
Octavius and celebrated that it was to be new born this day. The King
did have moments of clarity, and for a time his illness abated. But with
age the delusions returned, and after losing a good deal of his sight and
hearing, George III was kept in seclusion until his death.

442

Strangest Behavior
One of King Georges more bizarre delusions occurred during his first
outbreak of illness, when he met and developed an obsession with a
woman named Elizabeth Spencer. In the heat of his infatuation, George
began to believe that he and Elizabeth were married, and he even
claimed that his own wife, Queen Charlotte, was an impostor intent on
killing him.

1. Caligula
Reign: AD 37-AD 41

Caligula only served as Romes emperor for four years, but in that short
span he managed to establish himself as one of the cruelest and weirdest
rulers in history. He was only 25 when he rose to power, and while for
the first two years of his reign he was well liked and seemed a capable
leader, those in the know rarely doubted that the emperor was stark

443

raving mad. These psychotic tendencies would eventually come out in

some of Caligulas laws. For one, he made it illegal for anyone to look
him in the face, an offence that was punishable by being thrown into a
lions den. He also delighted in torture and executions, and took great
pains to think up new ways to dispatch his enemies (one of his personal
favorites was said to involve covering the condemned in honey and
setting loose an army of wasps). Of course, today Caligula is best known
for his deviant sexual behavior. This involved everything from
bisexuality and bestiality to even incest (he was rumored to have slept
with all three of his sisters). He was fond of great excesses, and along
with declaring himself a demigod and frequently holding gluttonous
feasts and parties, Caligula turned the Imperial palace into a veritable
whorehouse, complete with days-long orgies. Not surprisingly,
Caligulas insanity and cruelty eventually drew the ire of his political
rivals, who successfully murdered the emperor and his family in AD 41.
Strangest Behavior

Some of Caligulas weirdest exploits involved his favorite horse,

Incitatus. The emperor dressed the animal in lavish blankets, and had it
housed in a marble stable and tended to by a small army of handlers.
Caligula even let the horse eat from the table during dinner parties, and
guests were frequently invited to the palace at Incitatuss behest. Still,
the most ridiculous extravagance came when Caligula announced his
intention to make Incitatus an official citizen of Rome, and later a
Consul and even a priest.

444

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7 Responses
1.

445

Paul June 13, 2013 at 7:20 am | Permalink

The picture for Charles VI of France is wrong. Actually its the picture
of Charles VI of Austria, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (around
1730).
Reply

2.
YouRang? July 17, 2011 at 1:50 am | Permalink
Juana wasnt mad. She was in love. With women, its sometimes hard to
tell the difference. As for the others, youll notice that they often retained
power and continued to control the lives of others long after those
around themknew they were honking bonkers. Do you suppose things
have changed much since then? Cause I doubt it.
Reply

1.
nebarure April 1, 2013 at 3:37 pm | Permalink
I am surprised Charles II Habsburg of spain and the last Julio-Claudian
Nero arent on the list. Nero is the only Roman Emperor listed by name
in the Bible as returning before the apocalypse. Dude was either
loonytoons.
Reply

1.

446

zackery July 21, 2013 at 11:26 pm | Permalink

Charles II of spain should be first on this list.
Reply

3.
Mandy July 14, 2011 at 10:01 pm | Permalink
But this doesnt mean that all of his edicts were completely rational. In
1872, he declared that anyone who referred to his fair city by the
abominable word Frisco would be fined the sum of $25
Actually I think that it is a great idea (ignoring the whole freedom of
speech thing. Locals hate hearing Frisco. I remember reading in a book
once that back in the day police caught a man (forget what he did wrong)
because he said he was from the city but he called it Frisco
Reply

Oral History: The Sex Lives of the Kings and Queens of England
Prince Harrys famous romps, Prince Charless tampon comment
these are nothing compared to some of their ancestors. Tom Sykes on the
royals familys naughty history.
Tom Sykes
TOM SYKES
07.10.12 2:15 PM ET
We common folk can hardly be blamed for our sometimes prurient
interest in the sex lives of the Kings and Queens of England. Given the
hereditary principle, whos doing what to whom when has not just been

447

a subject for terrific gossip for the upper classes and peasantry alike
through the ages, its a matter of vital national interest. Kate.
Indeed, the sex life of Prince Charles has been the subject of
constitutional importance ever since a 1989 conversation with Camilla,
recorded by an amateur radio enthusiast, was published in which Charles
expressed a desire to be reincarnated as his lovers tampon (in fact, when
you read the tape in full and hear the tampon quote in context, its less
creepy and more dumb than it sounds).
One of the principle reasons why Prince Charless detractors say he
should not be King is because he indulged in an extra-marital affair with
his now-wife, Camilla Parker-Bowles, when he was married to Princess
Diana. But the outrage that greeted the revelation that the Prince of
Wales was having an affair, especially when compared to the wellknown licentiousness of the monarchs of the past, shows just how
puritanical we have become in the 21st century, demanding that our
rulers - even ceremonial ones - lead lives free from the blemish of
sexual infidelity.
It was not always thus: King George II (1683 - 1760) was quite happily
married to his wife, Queen Caroline (he had to be dragged from an
enthusiastic bout of love-making to be informed of his fathers death and
his own accession) but he took mistresses to maintain his reputation. A
mistress-less king could be seen as weak or worse still, impotent.
He kept one mistress, Henrietta Dowd, for twenty years, and when he
finally dropped her, his wife begged him to reconsider, for fear he would
go on the tear with a string of feisty new lovers, which he duly did,
hanging a portrait of one of them at the base of his bed.
Of course, there is no King who can compete in the popular imagination
with the original Tudor Bad Boy, King Henry VIII, who came to the
throne in 1509 and had six wives. In fact, however, Henry was more of a
serial monogamist than a philanderer. As the writer Hilary Mantel,
author of the Tudor epics Wolf Hall and Bring Up The Bodies recently
remarked, each time he married his mistress, he created a vacancy.

448

Henry was like a male Elizabeth Taylor - the only difference being that
when he grew tired of his spouses, they had a one-in-three chance of
being beheaded, usually on trumped-up charges of incest and/or the
gall of it infidelity.
Henry came to the throne an 18-year-old virgin, and was first married to
the widow of his brother, Catherine of Aragon, and did not embark on
his first affair until 1514, when Catherine was pregnant (it was believed
that having sex with a woman while pregnant could cause miscarriage).
He swiftly made up for lost time thereafter, having affairs with several
noblewomen at court, including Lady Anne Hastings, and Jane
Poppincourt of Flanders, who was at the time also the mistress of the
Duc de Longueville, who was being held hostage, in great comfort,
within the Royal household.
Henry had several illegitimate children, including one with Mary
Boleyn, the sister of his second wife, Anne Boleyn (see Philippa
Gregorys book, The Other Boleyn Girl). Anne and Marys ambitious
father offered his wife to the King, but Henry declined, with the
immortal words, Never with the mother, according to the writer Nigel
Cawthornes masterful and encyclopedic book on the subject, Sex
Lives of the Kings and Queens of England, shortly to be reissued on
Kindle.
In his later life, Henry would send the artist Holbein overseas to paint
portraits of prospective lovers and wives. In a scenario familiar to
todays internet daters, Anne of Cleves didnt live up to her picture, and
he subsequently dubbed her the mare of Flanders.
When his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, was beheaded for adultery,
Henry celebrated by throwing a party with 26 ladies at his table.
It was not a case of like father, like son, however: Edward VI, Henrys
sickly son, died a virgin.
There have been many gay Kings in British history. William Rufus, son
of William the Conqueror was gay, as was James I, his son Charles I and
Richard I (Richard the Lionheart). Indeed, some historians say Richards
sexual orientation had a pivotal role to play in the history of the world as
it was responsible for the prolonging of the Crusades because gay sex

449

was tolerated in the Middle East. Richard never slept with his wife,
unlike Edward II, who was bisexual, and produced four children with his
wife Isabella of France (who was twelve when he married her). His gay
relationships however caused his knights to revolt against him he was
forced to abdicate and then murdered by having a red-hot poker forced
into his back passage.
Of all the sex rumors about the current British royal family, none had
been quite so bizarre as that of Prince Charles's supposed gay affair with
his valet. For several weeks in late 2003, the British press printed banner
headlines about a royal sex scandal but, conscious of Britain's strict libel
laws, never came out and openly stated the accusations, instead, relying
on hints and innuendo. This led to the strange phenomenon of the royal
family issuing a statement denying allegations that had never publicly
been made.
Charles II, the figure head for the libertrine Restoration era used to say,
God will never damn a man for allowing himself a little pleasure, and
during his nine years of exile (when Oliver Cromwell ruled Britain), he
had at least seventeen recorded mistresses, according to Cawthorne. His
first sexual experience at the age of 15 was a deeply Oedipal affair,
taking place with his former wet nurse (in the era before bottle feeding, a
wet nurse was a woman employed to breast feed noble-born children).
At 16 he fathered his first illegitimate child - who subsequently became
a Jesuit priest.
One of Charless most valued court members was Colonel Cundum, the
inventor of the condom. Pregnancy was less of an issue than syphilis,
which could be fatal (the disease killed the heir to the throne as late
1908).
Charless most famous mistress was Barbara Villiers, who had studied
the banned sonnets of Pietro Aretin, whose work graphically illustrated
the sixteen known sexual positions. Her husband was created Earl of
Castlemaine by a grateful King, and after she was discarded as a
mistress, she retained her power and influence at court by managing a
stable of young women for the King to sleep with throughout his
marriage to Catherine of Braganza.

450

The Restoration court of King Charles was famous for restoring the
theatres and he also restored the tradition of seducing the actresses of the
stage, including Moll Davis and Nell Gwyn, who received a townhouse
in Pall Mall for her trouble.
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Charles was succeeded by his brother James II, who was even more
promiscuous, and was said to have bedded over a thousand women.
Queen Victoria was the mother of the new era of respectability, but her
father Edward, Duke of Kent, had a mistress for 25 years. He was finally
forced to marry another European royal to pay off his debts. When his
mistress read of the impending marriage in a newspaper, she accepted
her fate with equanimity. Edward wrote, It produced no heat or
violence on her part, just an extraordinary noise and a strong convulsive
movement in her throat.
One of the few kings who was never unfaithful was George III. He
married the plump Princess Sophia Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz in
1761. Seeing her for the first time on their wedding day, George winced
in disgust, but the two came to love one another immensely (and
frequently - they had 15 kids).
The most promiscuous monarch of modern times was Edward VII, the
son of Queen Victoria, famous for being the longest-serving Prince of
Wales owing to his mothers longevity. His first sexual experience was
with an Irish actress named Nellie Clifton, who was smuggled into his
bed when he was on duty with the army at the Curragh.
Edward had many mistresses, but in 1870 there was a huge scandal
caused by The Mordaunt Case, when, in 1870, Sir Charles Mordaunt
bought a divorce against his wife, and the Prince of Wales was
subpoenad. She confessed to having done wrong with the Prince, and
the man of letters, Sir Henry Ponsonby, commented, London was black
with the smoke of burnt confidential letters.
Other mistresses included Frances Daisy Brooke (later Lady Warwick),
Mrs Langtry and Mrs Keppel who was his mistress for the last twenty

451

years of his life. His taking up with Mrs Keppel was met with almost
universal satisfaction. He was, according to Lady Sutherland, a much
pleasanter man since he changed mistresses.
By the time he took up with Mrs Keppel, the Queen had nicknamed him
tum tum because he was so fat.
Mrs Keppel was invited to be in the room with the Queen when Edward
died, where the Queen said to her, I am sure you always had a good
influence over him.
Portrait of the Duchess of WINDSOR at Charters, in Sunninghill county,
England, in May 1947.
The Duchess of WINDSOR, a twice-divorced American woman,
married King EDWARD VIII of England in 1937.
Portrait en mai 1947 de la Duchesse de WINDSOR Charters dans le
comt de Sunninghill en Angleterre.
La Duchesse de WINDSOR, une Amricaine divorce deux fois, a
pous le roi d'Angleterre EDOUARD VIII en 1937.
KEYSTONE FRANCE / GETTY IMAGES
The most important sexual relationship for the Royals in the modern era,
however, was undoubtedly that between Mrs Wallis Simpson and
Edward VIII, which led to the abdication crisis and nearly finished the
British monarchy for good. Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, always
claimed that Walliss hold over Edward was purely sexual, and destroyed
the Windsors by spreading the rumour that Walliss power over Edward
derived from secret sexual practices she had learnt in brothels in China.
It was completely untrue, but she even managed to get the British
government to investigate her claims, many of which are still repeated
today.
Of the current crop of young Royals, Prince Harry is widely portrayed as
a woman-chasing Lothario. However, as the example of his promiscuous
ancestors shows, naughty Harry still has a long way to go before even
being considered for entry into this gallery of Royal Rogues.
With thanks to Nigel Cawthorne

452

Royally Screwed Up
Main
Laconic
Quotes
Create New
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Juan_de_Miranda_Carreno
_002_2494.jpgCharles II "The Bewitched" of Spain. Most people have
family trees. This guy had a family tumbleweed. Yes, that is his tongue
poking vertically out of his mouth, and yes his lower jaw really did jut
out that far, and yes his nose really was that messed up. Also, this is a
flattering portrait.
"Madness and greatness are two sides of the same coin. Every time a
new Targaryen is born, the gods toss that coin into the air and the world
holds its breath to see how it will land."
Barristan the Bold, A Song of Ice and Fire
Nearly every family of a decent size has at least one relative who's a
little... strange. Maybe it's Great-Aunt Enid and her collection of
carefully mounted cat skeletons (no one knows where she gets them
they just appear), or second cousin Dolf's extensive research library on
famous serial killers, complete with memorabilia he buys off of eBay at
outrageous prices. (Those clown paintings he adores are particularly
creepy.)
This isn't much of a problem, usually, as long as one is careful not to get
cornered by them at family reunions. But, what happens when your
family are hereditary rulers of some kind?
Kings, Emperors, High Priests, whatever you want to call it, the point is
you have power. Power that belongs to your family, and your family
only. Power that somehow meets Crazy. Due to random chance or,
sometimes, not-even-remotely-random, deliberate action, Great-Aunt
Enid or second-cousin Dolf will end up with the royal prerogatives.

453

What follows is either a reign of grotesque excess, blood, and terror, or

some other form of epically bad king or queen. Rarely, you'll actually
get somebody so bonkers and out there, they actually work well enough
for their... little quirks (they're just paintings, for crying out loud!) to be
ignorable. Eventually, however, our "At Least Painting the ThroneRoom Puce and Yellow Worked" King Dolf or "Perhaps We Should
Have Looked Into Those Cats More" Queen Enid will leave the throne
(or be made to leave)... That should be the end of this outbreak of
eccentricity, right?
Not necessarily. In fact, not even probably. Potentially dangerous
insanity in the ruling line rarely appears in a single, isolated case when it
comes to fiction. Nope. Chances are the whole family line is just as
affected somehow, which means that sooner or later probably sooner
along will come Queen Enid II and King Dolf III both or either of
whom is painfully, obviously off their rocker enough for people to
openly comment... And, the whole thing will start up all over again.
This may continue for a good many decades or even centuries, with each
new generation crossing its fingers that they get one of the "good" rulers
from the line and not one of the "iffy" bunch. If you are unfortunate
enough to get stuck with one of the blood-drenched loonies, one
common solution is to go find someone else from the same family who
didn't get hit with the Ax-Crazy stick and put them on the throne instead
of poor Enid or Dolf before revolution breaks out. This is where
disgraced half-brothers, exiled princes/princesses and unknown
sons/daughters come into play. Unless something permanent is done
about the family problem, however, this is most likely just a temporary
solution. Give it a generation or three of this side-branch inheriting, and
it's back to our regular Queen Enid "Tree-Whisperer (and Agricultural
Reformer)" IV and King Dolf "Utterly Insane" VI programming.
In fiction there are several common reasons why a royal family might be
prone to madness.
Genetics: It's In the Blood in the completely literal, biological and
strictly genetic sense. Often, that means excessive inbreeding,
sometimes very excessive. The initial problem maybe wasn't inbreeding,
but some genetic damage caused by an outside source that then becomes

454

intensified and cemented into the royal line after the fact either through
deliberate inbreeding or the sheer bad luck of not understanding biology
when selecting mates. In any case, the family just has a crazy streak
that's now inbuilt, and you're not getting rid of it unless your society is
advanced enough to have genetic engineering (or a magical equivalent
thereof) to deal with the problem. Or, becomes egalitarian enough for
the high nobility to stop marrying each other so much. That last bit ought
to help. Eventually.
Moral Lamarckism is the classical, magical version. The moral failings
of your forebears express themselves in a taint on your own soul or
karmic bank balance, like a kind of spiritual gene. Functionally, there
isn't much difference.
Family Curse: Arguably, this is worse than a crappy genetic surprise.
Someone, or something, has cursed the royal line, somehow. This can
easily be a lot nastier to deal with than the problem of bad physical or
moral genes, because even if you're careful about avoiding the
inbreeding and selecting for brains, upstanding habits and/or governing
skills, the curse really doesn't care. It may even spread out to people who
marry into the royal line and cause them to go mad even though they're
only family by marriage, not by blood. It also means that you might not
solve the problem by just picking a new family to rule over you
they're likely to get swatted by the curse just as soon as they take power.
Obviously, to fix this you need to figure out who or what cursed the
royal family and why, and deal with it by whatever means necessary.
You could try jumping straight to a parliamentary system and see how
the curse deals with having hundreds of "rulers", but you'd better hope it
just doesn't spread out to cover them all, or it will make your old
problem seem laughably trivial by comparison.
One variant of this is a spiritual or moral imbalance brought on by
upsetting the planetary or universal equilibrium or law in some way.
This works just like a curse, but is the result of natural processes rather
than deliberate magic.
Cultural: The madness is the product of nurture, not nature; which means
turning to exiled princes will be fine, at least for the first generation. If

455

people don't change the culture that produced the madness, it will return,
however. Possible reasons include:
The family has just become too used to being pampered and in power
over generations, and each successive one has become a little more
backstabby, corrupt and decadent until finally people start to notice the
extent of what has become a huge problem.
The culture actually expects its rulers to be "divinely touched" and
requires the king or high priest to be at least a little crazy, particularly in
theocracies with a Mad Oracle tradition or another culture with a
particularly notable flavour of the Divine Right of Kings idea behind
them say a line of God Emperors where rampant megalomania and
other quirks are considered just part and parcel of the Royalty Super
Power package. Not being weird enough might even disqualify you, so
you'd better learn to be nuts at the very least. Comes with risks attached,
however.
The culture itself is so hard on its rulers that not being paranoid and
vicious means your reign will be measured in months... if you're lucky.
In this case, you only look insane to cultures or classes outside your
own; within your own palace, madness is just a survival strategy.
The very way the royal kids are raised becomes severely detrimental to
their sanity. Bring them up to specifically become sheltered, entitled,
morally myopic, empathy-free Royal Brats and Caligulas are almost
inevitably what you'll get when they hit majority. Be it by accident or
design.
Environmental: Some X-factor specific to the royal family's home
location, diet, or environment is mucking things up.
Heavy metal poisoning, especially lead. (If you're looking for others to
shake things up, however; antimony, mercury and arsenic are places to
look: they've also had effects.) Seriously; it's a fashion at the moment for
forensic archaeologists to imply this as the cause of most of the real
world cases of mad monarchs 1500-1815, the source primarily being
lead makeup. There were a few reasons for this: lead makes for an easily
applied and very white pigment... which aristocrats loved to whiten their
skin with to emphasis how little outside work they had to undertake, as
well as not to look sweaty or smell so bad (lead pigments also can act to

456

some extent as deodorants). These same aristocrats stopped using

makeup from about 1815-1920 for fashion and decency reasons (moral
decency, that is); not coincidentally, the incidence of insanity among
them dropped, although they weren't entirely clear on why at the time).
Although lead in the booze and water (more from the lead used in
distilling equipment and pipework than the relatively negligible amounts
leached from the crystal glasses) has also been implicated.note
There's also a fact that for most of the Classical Antiquity and Middle
Ages the lead acetate was known as "sugar of lead" and thought to be a
great sweetener: it's cheap, easy to produce and much sweeter than the
other alternatives. In was widely used in cider-, perry- and winemaking,
and given that for much of the period the preference was for very sweet,
syrupy concoctions, it exposed the drinkers to far worse doses of lead
than any lead plumbing could.
Until the trade with India really picked up at the height of the Roman
Republic, and cane sugar started to be imported, about the only
sweeteners known in the Europe were honey and must aka "boiled-up
fruit juice or pressings" (see also vin cuit, a direct, nothern descendant
similar to apple butter and vin cuit, a direct southern decendant which is
a concentrated wine). The juice of the sweet, ripe grapes famous around
the Meditetranean is rich in glucose, and boiling the water off a lot
concentrated the sugar; first into the syrupy defrutum, and then into the
molasses-like sapa. Given the Romans penchant for lead utensils at
every stage, one shouldn't be surprised that they widely used leadsoldered, lead-lined ot just plain lead cauldrons to do so, which exposed
a lot of lead to the acidic grape juice, leading to formation of the
aforementioned lead acetate as well as lead malate, lead ascorbate
and other lead salts that naturally went right into the syrup. In fact, the
lead acetate probably got its common name, "sugar of lead", because
someone tasted the whitish crystals that formed on the rim of their
defrutum-making pot.
Disease. Specifically, something like syphilis; it's an STD, so it would
get passed around the court, it causes madness if untreated, and the first
generally effective treatment wasn't discovered until the 20th century:
Salvarsan. This links back to the heavy-metal poisoning: the common

457

treatment before Salvarsan was mercury, and while that sometimes

worked it also ran the risk of driving the patient a different kind of mad
through mercury poisoning. Fun fact: syphilis can (and has) inserted its
DNA into the human genome, just for that extra In the Blood sparkle
you might be looking for.
A mysterious food, drink, drug or influential thing or place reserved for
royal use, only (the crown, palace or throne are good ones to go for),
with side effects. If a place or thing rather than a drink or drug, expect
some form of radiation specifically attached to it of ether molecular or
magical origin. If combining with magic, expect... a Curse and see
further up this list.
They're Just Nuts: anything and everything not covered by the above.
Whatever the reason, your rulers are bonkers, at least as far as objective
outside observers are concerned.
Note that royal/imperial insanity is Truth in Television often enough that
it can be a bit frightening.
The Caligula is a singular example of this trope, leaving out the familial
tendencies, although they arguably applied to him too. In the Blood
doesn't apply only to royals, but is one of the many reasons why a royal
family can have recurring madness problems.
Examples
Royally Screwed Up
Main
Laconic
Quotes
Create New
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Juan_de_Miranda_Carreno
_002_2494.jpgCharles II "The Bewitched" of Spain. Most people have
family trees. This guy had a family tumbleweed. Yes, that is his tongue

458

poking vertically out of his mouth, and yes his lower jaw really did jut
out that far, and yes his nose really was that messed up. Also, this is a
flattering portrait.
"Madness and greatness are two sides of the same coin. Every time a
new Targaryen is born, the gods toss that coin into the air and the world
holds its breath to see how it will land."
Barristan the Bold, A Song of Ice and Fire
Nearly every family of a decent size has at least one relative who's a
little... strange. Maybe it's Great-Aunt Enid and her collection of
carefully mounted cat skeletons (no one knows where she gets them
they just appear), or second cousin Dolf's extensive research library on
famous serial killers, complete with memorabilia he buys off of eBay at
outrageous prices. (Those clown paintings he adores are particularly
creepy.)
This isn't much of a problem, usually, as long as one is careful not to get
cornered by them at family reunions. But, what happens when your
family are hereditary rulers of some kind?
Kings, Emperors, High Priests, whatever you want to call it, the point is
you have power. Power that belongs to your family, and your family
only. Power that somehow meets Crazy. Due to random chance or,
sometimes, not-even-remotely-random, deliberate action, Great-Aunt
Enid or second-cousin Dolf will end up with the royal prerogatives.
What follows is either a reign of grotesque excess, blood, and terror, or
some other form of epically bad king or queen. Rarely, you'll actually
get somebody so bonkers and out there, they actually work well enough
for their... little quirks (they're just paintings, for crying out loud!) to be
ignorable. Eventually, however, our "At Least Painting the ThroneRoom Puce and Yellow Worked" King Dolf or "Perhaps We Should
Have Looked Into Those Cats More" Queen Enid will leave the throne
(or be made to leave)... That should be the end of this outbreak of
eccentricity, right?
Not necessarily. In fact, not even probably. Potentially dangerous
insanity in the ruling line rarely appears in a single, isolated case when it
comes to fiction. Nope. Chances are the whole family line is just as
affected somehow, which means that sooner or later probably sooner

459

along will come Queen Enid II and King Dolf III both or either of
whom is painfully, obviously off their rocker enough for people to
openly comment... And, the whole thing will start up all over again.
This may continue for a good many decades or even centuries, with each
new generation crossing its fingers that they get one of the "good" rulers
from the line and not one of the "iffy" bunch. If you are unfortunate
enough to get stuck with one of the blood-drenched loonies, one
common solution is to go find someone else from the same family who
didn't get hit with the Ax-Crazy stick and put them on the throne instead
of poor Enid or Dolf before revolution breaks out. This is where
disgraced half-brothers, exiled princes/princesses and unknown
sons/daughters come into play. Unless something permanent is done
about the family problem, however, this is most likely just a temporary
solution. Give it a generation or three of this side-branch inheriting, and
it's back to our regular Queen Enid "Tree-Whisperer (and Agricultural
Reformer)" IV and King Dolf "Utterly Insane" VI programming.
In fiction there are several common reasons why a royal family might be
prone to madness.
Genetics: It's In the Blood in the completely literal, biological and
strictly genetic sense. Often, that means excessive inbreeding,
sometimes very excessive. The initial problem maybe wasn't inbreeding,
but some genetic damage caused by an outside source that then becomes
intensified and cemented into the royal line after the fact either through
deliberate inbreeding or the sheer bad luck of not understanding biology
when selecting mates. In any case, the family just has a crazy streak
that's now inbuilt, and you're not getting rid of it unless your society is
advanced enough to have genetic engineering (or a magical equivalent
thereof) to deal with the problem. Or, becomes egalitarian enough for
the high nobility to stop marrying each other so much. That last bit ought
to help. Eventually.
Moral Lamarckism is the classical, magical version. The moral failings
of your forebears express themselves in a taint on your own soul or
karmic bank balance, like a kind of spiritual gene. Functionally, there
isn't much difference.

460

Family Curse: Arguably, this is worse than a crappy genetic surprise.

Someone, or something, has cursed the royal line, somehow. This can
easily be a lot nastier to deal with than the problem of bad physical or
moral genes, because even if you're careful about avoiding the
inbreeding and selecting for brains, upstanding habits and/or governing
skills, the curse really doesn't care. It may even spread out to people who
marry into the royal line and cause them to go mad even though they're
only family by marriage, not by blood. It also means that you might not
solve the problem by just picking a new family to rule over you
they're likely to get swatted by the curse just as soon as they take power.
Obviously, to fix this you need to figure out who or what cursed the
royal family and why, and deal with it by whatever means necessary.
You could try jumping straight to a parliamentary system and see how
the curse deals with having hundreds of "rulers", but you'd better hope it
just doesn't spread out to cover them all, or it will make your old
problem seem laughably trivial by comparison.
One variant of this is a spiritual or moral imbalance brought on by
upsetting the planetary or universal equilibrium or law in some way.
This works just like a curse, but is the result of natural processes rather
than deliberate magic.
Cultural: The madness is the product of nurture, not nature; which means
turning to exiled princes will be fine, at least for the first generation. If
people don't change the culture that produced the madness, it will return,
however. Possible reasons include:
The family has just become too used to being pampered and in power
over generations, and each successive one has become a little more
backstabby, corrupt and decadent until finally people start to notice the
extent of what has become a huge problem.
The culture actually expects its rulers to be "divinely touched" and
requires the king or high priest to be at least a little crazy, particularly in
theocracies with a Mad Oracle tradition or another culture with a
particularly notable flavour of the Divine Right of Kings idea behind
them say a line of God Emperors where rampant megalomania and
other quirks are considered just part and parcel of the Royalty Super
Power package. Not being weird enough might even disqualify you, so

461

you'd better learn to be nuts at the very least. Comes with risks attached,
however.
The culture itself is so hard on its rulers that not being paranoid and
vicious means your reign will be measured in months... if you're lucky.
In this case, you only look insane to cultures or classes outside your
own; within your own palace, madness is just a survival strategy.
The very way the royal kids are raised becomes severely detrimental to
their sanity. Bring them up to specifically become sheltered, entitled,
morally myopic, empathy-free Royal Brats and Caligulas are almost
inevitably what you'll get when they hit majority. Be it by accident or
design.
Environmental: Some X-factor specific to the royal family's home
location, diet, or environment is mucking things up.
Heavy metal poisoning, especially lead. (If you're looking for others to
shake things up, however; antimony, mercury and arsenic are places to
look: they've also had effects.) Seriously; it's a fashion at the moment for
forensic archaeologists to imply this as the cause of most of the real
world cases of mad monarchs 1500-1815, the source primarily being
lead makeup. There were a few reasons for this: lead makes for an easily
applied and very white pigment... which aristocrats loved to whiten their
skin with to emphasis how little outside work they had to undertake, as
well as not to look sweaty or smell so bad (lead pigments also can act to
some extent as deodorants). These same aristocrats stopped using
makeup from about 1815-1920 for fashion and decency reasons (moral
decency, that is); not coincidentally, the incidence of insanity among
them dropped, although they weren't entirely clear on why at the time).
Although lead in the booze and water (more from the lead used in
distilling equipment and pipework than the relatively negligible amounts
leached from the crystal glasses) has also been implicated.note
There's also a fact that for most of the Classical Antiquity and Middle
Ages the lead acetate was known as "sugar of lead" and thought to be a
great sweetener: it's cheap, easy to produce and much sweeter than the
other alternatives. In was widely used in cider-, perry- and winemaking,
and given that for much of the period the preference was for very sweet,

462

syrupy concoctions, it exposed the drinkers to far worse doses of lead

than any lead plumbing could.
Until the trade with India really picked up at the height of the Roman
Republic, and cane sugar started to be imported, about the only
sweeteners known in the Europe were honey and must aka "boiled-up
fruit juice or pressings" (see also vin cuit, a direct, nothern descendant
similar to apple butter and vin cuit, a direct southern decendant which is
a concentrated wine). The juice of the sweet, ripe grapes famous around
the Meditetranean is rich in glucose, and boiling the water off a lot
concentrated the sugar; first into the syrupy defrutum, and then into the
molasses-like sapa. Given the Romans penchant for lead utensils at
every stage, one shouldn't be surprised that they widely used leadsoldered, lead-lined ot just plain lead cauldrons to do so, which exposed
a lot of lead to the acidic grape juice, leading to formation of the
aforementioned lead acetate as well as lead malate, lead ascorbate
and other lead salts that naturally went right into the syrup. In fact, the
lead acetate probably got its common name, "sugar of lead", because
someone tasted the whitish crystals that formed on the rim of their
defrutum-making pot.
Disease. Specifically, something like syphilis; it's an STD, so it would
get passed around the court, it causes madness if untreated, and the first
generally effective treatment wasn't discovered until the 20th century:
Salvarsan. This links back to the heavy-metal poisoning: the common
treatment before Salvarsan was mercury, and while that sometimes
worked it also ran the risk of driving the patient a different kind of mad
through mercury poisoning. Fun fact: syphilis can (and has) inserted its
DNA into the human genome, just for that extra In the Blood sparkle
you might be looking for.
A mysterious food, drink, drug or influential thing or place reserved for
royal use, only (the crown, palace or throne are good ones to go for),
with side effects. If a place or thing rather than a drink or drug, expect
some form of radiation specifically attached to it of ether molecular or
magical origin. If combining with magic, expect... a Curse and see
further up this list.
They're Just Nuts: anything and everything not covered by the above.

463

Whatever the reason, your rulers are bonkers, at least as far as objective
outside observers are concerned.
Note that royal/imperial insanity is Truth in Television often enough that
it can be a bit frightening.
The Caligula is a singular example of this trope, leaving out the familial
tendencies, although they arguably applied to him too. In the Blood
doesn't apply only to royals, but is one of the many reasons why a royal
family can have recurring madness problems.
Examples udwig II or Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm, apart from being
entitled as the King of Bavaria, had a number of entitlements like the
Swan King, the Fairy Tale King, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of
Bavaria, Duke of Franconia, and Duke in Swabia. Unlike a good Ludwig
squandered his time and money on building lavish palaces and
architectural projects.
He pardoned many extravagant artists and cared not a whit for his
people. Based on his behavior, he was deemed insane by many, yet there
has always been a doubt regarding this call. Today in Bavaria, Ludwig II
is revered for his legacy of architecture and art.

Related: Top 6 Lost Cities In The World

6 Ancient Kings And Queens Who Were Insane
April 10, 2015 by Sufia Banu
Long gone are the days when kings and queens were called messenger
of God. Thanks to democracy we dont have to keep up with mad kings
and queen like the ones in this list. Check them out.

6. Joanna Of Castile, Queen Of Castile & Leon:

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Joanna Of Castile - Kings And Queens

Also called Joanna the mad, was originally from Aragon. She was
married to Philip the Handsome of Castile and it was out of the reunion
of the two, that modern Spain has emerged. Soon after their marriage,
Philip died and Joanna, who as a young woman, she was known to be
highly intelligent, was deemed mentally unstable. Today historians
speculate what her illness might have been melancholia, depressive
disorder, psychosis, or schizophrenia (that ran in her family). She was
sent off to live in nunnery for the rest of her life but legally remained the
queen of Castile.
5. Ludwig II, Bavaria:
Ludwig II Of Bavaria
Ludwig II or Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm, apart from being entitled
as the King of Bavaria, had a number of entitlements like the Swan
King, the Fairy Tale King, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria,
Duke of Franconia, and Duke in Swabia. Unlike a good Ludwig
squandered his time and money on building lavish palaces and
architectural projects.
He pardoned many extravagant artists and cared not a whit for his
people. Based on his behavior, he was deemed insane by many, yet there
has always been a doubt regarding this call. Today in Bavaria, Ludwig II
is revered for his legacy of architecture and art.
Related: Top 6 Lost Cities In The World
4. George III, UK:
George III

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George III ruled Great Britain and Ireland before the two countries were
united and after the union as well, until the day he died. His reign has
seen conflicts and has been mainly deemed as unsuccessful. During the
later part of his life George III had suffered from recurrent metal illness
which some think was related to the blood disease porphyria, cause of
which has remained unknown. Today in Britain, he has remained as a
symbol of the scapegoat for the failure of imperialism.

3. Ibrahim, Ottoman Empire:

Ibrahim Of Ottoman Empire
Known as one of the most notorious Ottoman Sultans, Ibrahim
succeeded his deceased brother Murad IV. Following a childhood of
persecution by Murad IV, when Ibrahim finally sat on the throne, he
began suffering recurring headaches and attacks of physical weakness.
Initially the Ottoman king had shown interest in public welfare but after
sickness dawned on him, he got detracted and came under the influence
of concubines.
He spent extravagantly on his eight chosen concubines, favored them
with positions at royal consort, granting them riches and lands and even
married one of them. Eventually he was seized, thrown to prison and his
7 years-old son Memed was made Sultan.
2. Caligula, Roman Emperor:
Caligula Roman Emperor
Caligula, better known as Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus
lived between AD 12 and AD 41. He got his nickname Caligula
(meaning little soldiers boot) when he was quiet young while
accompanying his father in a campaign. When his father died, Caligula

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along with his siblings and mother returned to Roman but had a terrible
quarrel with the then Emperor, grand-uncle and adoptive grandfather
Tiberius.
The conflict destroyed his family and Caligula became the sole
surviving male member. So upon Tiberius, he got the throne quiet easily.
And during the next 3 years 10 months reign Caligula proved to be
cruel, sadistic, extravagant, sexual pervert, somewhat of an insane
tyrant. He was later assassinated and succeeds by his uncle, Cladius.
Related: Top 6 Most Evil People In History
1. Charles VI, France:
Charles VI France
Sometime hes called the beloved sometimes the mad. Form the age
of 11, he sat on the throne and ruled over France for 42 long years.
Before reaching the age of 21 when hed be officially ready to handle his
power as king, the Kingdom was managed by his four uncles who, for
personal gains squandered the royal treasury.
When Charles VI came to full power, he got rid of his selfish uncles and
his fathers former advisers on board. But in 1392, during a campaign
Charles VI went mad all of a sudden, killing 4 knights and almost
slaying his brother. From then on hed have attacks on insanity
frequently and for longer duration, which was the cause many crisis in
the kingdom.