THE MISUNDERSTOOD MAD KING

 

King George III born on June 4,1738 and was the king of Great Britain. He had a difficult childhood due to the slow development of his mental health and the death of his father when he was just 12. He was left as an heir of the throne but he was not prepared for it. He considered John Stuart as his inspiration and married Charlotte Sophia on his suggestion. It was a healthy marriage which lasted for more than 50 years; and they had 15 children. His reign was marked by a lot of political instability and struggles. He also lost several American colonies during his rule.

It was in 1788-89 that he suffered his first medical illness. It lasted for a period of 6 months and was followed by jaundice. He was diagnosed with porphyria— a genetic blood disorder. It was marked by abdominal pains, skin sensitivity, insomnia and other psychiatric symptoms. His behaviour was largely affected by this disorder. He became a maniac, started having hallucinations. During that period, it was not clear that he had bipolar disorder because of the lack of resources. It was in 1964 that Timothy Peters identified around five episodes of bipolar disorder in King’s life. 

One of these episodes included him planting a beef steak on the ground and believing that it would turn into a full grown beef tree. To keep his mental illness a secret he was moved from Windsor Castle to Kew, a district in London. Since the court physicians were unable to understand his illness, Dr. Francis Willis was called to treat him. According to him the illness was merely caused by over excitement and can be brought under control by peace and control. During his treatment he was placed in a straitjacket whenever he would become over excited or lose control over himself. He was also kept away from knives and forks, even during the meals. 

Arsenic-based powders were applied to his skin causing it to blister – a method thought to draw the illness out. He was forced to fast, locked up, forced to sleep, bled, and given freezing cold baths as a way of ‘shocking’ the illness from his body. Purgatives such as rhubarb, castor oil and senna were used to treat his constipation and cause diarrhoea, while emetics were given to make him vomit, purging him of disease. (Hodgman, 2022).

In 1801, the king suffered another attack of porphyria. His wife and daughter were present with him throughout the treatment. He had another relapse in 1804. After this period, his vision also started deteriorating and he was almost blind from cataracts by 1805. He was very close to his daughter Princess Amelia and her death in 1810 pushed him to a full blown attack on his mental health and he could never recover from it. He used to speak alone for hours in his room and also started suffering from dementia. He was declared as a ‘maniac’ permanently by the physicians and other professional doctors. George III took his last breath at Windsor Castle in January 1820 after being physically and mentally ill for over a decade. His son Prince of Wales then became King George IV. 

REFERENCES

 

1. Hodgman, C. (2022b, August 30). The illness and decline of King George III. https://www.historyextra.com/period/georgian/history-explorer-the-decline-of-george-iii/

2. Ward, E. (2022, May 10). Did King George III have bipolar disorder, mental health? | Opinion. Deseret News. https://www.deseret.com/opinion/2022/5/9/23056815/opinion-king-george-iii-teaches-about-mental-health-awareness-month-bipolar-disorder-porphyria

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

The author is Hrishika Jain, studying in B.Sc. Applied Psychology. Being a psychologist has always been her ‘dream-career’ and to be able to pursue it makes her feel content. She loves reading and books have always been her happy place. She is an introvert and writing is her way of expressing thoughts. Mountains and Music are the 2 ‘M’s’ that make her feel calm.