List of mentally ill monarchs

This article lists monarchs who were documented to have mental illness. Such allegations are not necessarily conclusive, since the documenters might have written from political biases or rumor.

Roman emperors

  • Tiberius (42 BC–37 AD, ruled 14–37 AD). While Tiberius was in his later years in Capri, rumours abounded as to what exactly he was doing there. Historian Suetonius records the rumours of lurid tales of sexual perversity, including graphic depictions of child molestation, cruelty, and especially paranoia. While heavily sensationalised, Suetonius' stories at least paint a picture of how Tiberius was perceived by the Roman senatorial class, and what his impact on the Principate was during his 23 years of rule.
  • Gaius Caligula (12–41 AD, ruled 37–41). Contemporary author Philo of Alexandria recorded that he fell ill soon after becoming emperor, and his subsequent reign was marked by shocking extremes of paranoia, cruelty and megalomania.[1] Seneca the Younger, who once fell foul of Caligula, confirmed his erratic behavior in passing.[2] His successor Claudius neither condemned nor defended his memory, and later historians continued to describe his madness.
  • Nero (37-68 AD, ruled 54–68 AD). The historians Tacitus, Suetonius and Cassius Dio described him as a depraved and jealous tyrant who sought public acclaim in the theater and arena while ordering the deaths of rivals, even his relatives, including his mother Agrippina the Younger. Based on these histories (about which doubts exist) he has been suspected of psychotic or paranoid delusions.[3][4]
  • Commodus (161–192, reigned 177–192) succeeded his father Marcus Aurelius at the age of 19. He left government to different advisors during most of his reign, preferring to impress the public as a gladiator. After the overthrow of his chamberlain Cleander he developed extreme megalomania, attempting to transform the empire into his own personality cult.[5]
  • Antoninus Elagabalus (204–222, reigned 218–222) was made emperor as a teenager by conspirators against Macrinus. He proved uncontrollable, indulging himself in sexual orgies and human sacrifice, appointing incompetent favorites to office, and defiling all religions other than his own.[6]
  • Justin II (c.520–578, ruled 15 November 565–574). John of Ephesus, who suffered theological persecution under Justin, wrote that his "mind was agitated and darkened" such that he behaved at times like a wild animal. On the advice of his wife Sophia and the Senate, he adopted the general Tiberius II Constantine as his son and delegated state authority to him.[7]

European monarchs

Middle Eastern monarchs

  • Nebuchadnezzar II (c.634 BCc.562 BC, ruled c.605 BCc.562 BC) is described in the Bible as displaying symptoms consistent with boanthropy.[22]
  • Majd al-Dawla (993–1029, ruled 997–1029) was experiencing boanthropy until he was cured by Avicenna, according to Persian traditions.[23]
  • al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, Fatimid Caliph (985 – 1021, ruled 996 – 1021) became notorious in the West as the "mad caliph" for his exceptional persecution of Christians and Jews, including the mandate of distinctive dress and the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
  • Mustafa I of the Ottoman Empire (1600 – 1639, reigned 1617 – 1618 and 1622 – 1623) was a palace prisoner throughout his life except during his brief reigns, having been spared the fratricide that normally accompanied Ottoman succession. As sultan he displayed profound eccentricity and delusions.[24] Historians differ on whether his mental condition was a natural disability or the result of his imprisonment.[25]
  • Ibrahim of the Ottoman Empire (1615 – 1648, reigned 1640 – 1648) was, like Mustafa, a palace prisoner. During his reign he neglected politics for sexual pleasure and was easily manipulated by favorites.[24]
  • Talal of Jordan (1909–1972, ruled 1951–1952) was forced to abdicate the throne after being unsuccessfully treated for schizophrenia.[26]

East Asian monarchs

  • Emperor Yōzei (陽成天皇, Yōzei-tennō, January 2, 869 – October 23, 949, ruled December 18, 876 – March 4, 884) was described by the 14th-century historian Kitabatake Chikafusa as affected by madness, killing people and animals without reason. His unstable and violent behavior prompted his advisors to force his abdication in 884.[27]
  • Emperor Taishō (大正天皇, Taishō-tennō, 31 August 1879 – 25 December 1926) of Japan, had a variety of neurological disorders, which though at least partially physical in origin incorporated psychological elements as well. Discussion or criticism of an emperor, including that of health issues, remains a controversial subject in Japan for cultural, political, and religious reasons and is referred to as the Chrysanthemum taboo.[28][29][30]

References

  1. Philo, On the Embassy to Gaius
  2. Seneca, Of Consolation, to Polybius
  3. https://scholar.umw.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1347&context=student_research
  4. Pace, Eric (18 June 1985). "Nero Emerges as Ruthless but Less Baffling". The New York Times.
  5. Green, Vivian (2016). Madness of Kings.
  6. Historia Augusta
  7. John of Ephesus, Ecclesiastical History, Part 3, Book 3
  8. Tuchman, Barbara (1978). A Distant Mirror. New York: Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-345-30145-5.
  9. María A. Gómez; Santiago Juan-Navarro; Phyllis Zatlin (2008), Juana of Castile: history and myth of the mad queen (illustrated ed.), Associated University Presse, pp. 9, 12–13, 85, ISBN 978-0-8387-5704-8
  10. Dahlström, G.; Swahn, J-Ö (1984). Bra Böckers Lexikon Book nr 7. Bra Böcker AB.
  11. "Philip V of Spain (1683–1746)" in Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/philip-v-spain-1683-1746
  12. "Ferdinand VI | king of Spain". Encyclopedia Britannica. 19 September 2023.
  13. Roberts, Jenifer (2009). The Madness of Queen Maria. Templeton Press. ISBN 978-0-9545589-1-8.
  14. "King George III: Mad or misunderstood?". BBC News. July 13, 2004. Retrieved 2007-07-15.
  15. Hatton, R. M. (1957). "Scandinavia and the Baltic". In Lindsay, J. O. (ed.). The New Cambridge Modern History. Volume 7, The Old Regime, 1713–1763 (Reprinted. ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 342. ISBN 978-0-521-04545-2.
  16. Hacker, R; Seitz, M; Förstl, H (October 2007). "Ludwig II. von Bayern – schizotype Persönlichkeit und frontotemporale Degeneration?". Deutsche Medizinische Wochenschrift. 132 (40): 2096–2099. doi:10.1055/s-2007-985648. PMID 17899506. S2CID 260110058.
  17. King, Greg (1996). The Mad King (A Biography of Ludwig II of Bavaria). London: Aurum Press. pp. 252–255. ISBN 978-1-55972-362-6.
  18. The University Department of Psychiatry in Munich: From Kraepelin and his predecessors to molecular psychiatry. By Hanns Hippius, Hans-Jürgen Möller, Hans-Jürgen Müller, Gabriele Neundörfer-Kohl, p.27
  19. Prof. Hans Förstl, "Ludwig II. von Bayern – schizotype Persönlichkeit und frontotemporale Degeneration?", in: Deutsche Medizinische Wochenschrift, Nr. 132/2007
  20. On the Kaiser's "histrionic personality disorder", see Frank B. Tipton (2003). A History of Modern Germany Since 1815. U of California Press. pp. 243–44. ISBN 978-0-520-24049-0.
  21. John C. G. Röhl; Nicolaus Sombart (1982). Kaiser Wilhelm II New Interpretations: The Corfu Papers. Cambridge University Press. pp. 50–51. ISBN 978-0-521-01990-3.
  22. C. G. Jung, Analytical Psychology (1976) p. 123
  23. تبیان, موسسه فرهنگی و اطلاع رسانی (21 August 2008). "معالجه کردن بوعلی سینا / آن صاحب مالیخولیا را". article.tebyan.net.
  24. Rank, Scott (2020). History's 9 Most Insane Rulers.
  25. Duducu, Jem (2012). The Sultans.
  26. ""Schizophrenia," Time Magazine, 18 August 1952". Archived from the original on September 5, 2007.
  27. Titsingh, Isaac (1834). Nihon Ōdai Ichiran. Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. OCLC 5850691.
  28. [Herbert Bix, Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan. Page 22]
  29. [See Asahi Shimbun, March 14, 2011, among many other reports.]
  30. [ Nagataka Kuroda. "Higeki no Teiou – Taisho Tennou". Bungeishunjū, February 1959.]
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.