5 Royals Who Went Crazy As Kings And Queens

Have you heard about a mad royal before? Do you know that King John III of England and Charles VI of France were mad Kings? Well I am surprised as you are and curious to know more about them. Without wasting much time, let's check them out quickly.

5. King John III of England

This is the man who lost to America in their war of Independence. But there is also a well-known tale about him being erratic and mad. Due to his inability to rule and his mental stability, he was replaced with his son George IV who ruled as Prince Regent in his stead.

King John III was said to have suffered from depression, and at times he would wail and cry during the day and night. He also suffered greatly from paranoia and hallucinations where he was caught at different times speaking to himself.

His urine color was said to be Blue, Purple, or Red, which made some experts think the former King suffered from Porphyria.

4. King Nebuchadnezzar II

The insanity of King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon is attested in the Book of Daniel from the Old Testament. According to the book, the king went mad for over 7 years and chose to live in the forest as an animal.

While some historians and experts considered the work to be historical fiction, others believe that the said events might have actually occurred, but perhaps should be ascribed to a different Babylonian King, known as Nabonidus.

3. Nero

Unlike the former Roman emperor, Nero’s legacy as a ruler is quite complicated. While some historical reports and research claim he was beloved by common folks. Other historians and nobles (the ones who tend to do the writing) saw Nero as a hedonistic tyrant and cruel ruler who cared only for himself.

Though both perspectives are partially true, it was vividly clear that he was going crazy. This made many accounts support the hedonistic tyrant heavily.

According to history, it was said that when Nero’s second wife died—she was popularly known as Poppaea—he had a young man who looked exactly as Poppaea castrated and put in a dress. It was said that Nero married the young man and referred to him as Poppaea.

2. Charles VI of France

Just like King John III of England, Charles VI of France was one of the strongest and bravest Kings of France. He is known for his numerous victories such as in the case of the battle of Agincourt. Also, Charles built a lot of reputations just like George.

Unlike King John, there are two displays of Charles VI mental illness. The first was the 'Glass delusion'. He was of the belief that his body was made of glass and therefore fragile like that of glass. King Charles IV refused to allow people to touch him on the belief that he would break.

The second display of his chronic mental illness was that of his violent behaviour and murderous outbursts he unleash on anybody close to him. He even went further to kill his own knights.

1. Princess Alexandra of Bavaria

Princess Alexandra of Bavaria was a very intelligent girl. She refused to marry and instead decided to devote herself to her studies. She became an essayist, translator and novelist. But despite her accomplishments and intelligence, she struggled greatly.

According to history, the princess was a notorious germaphobe, and for that reason she refused to wear any other color clothing except white. Weirdest of all, she was convinced that she had swallowed an entire grand piano that was made of glass as a child.

This made her avoid touching other people and objects and was even seen walking sideways through doors to avoid the door frames, else they would break her (this was similar to Charles VI of France).