Exploring The Complex Reign Of FranceS Charles VI
At the dawn of his reign, Charles VI of France was the epitome of royal charm, earning the affectionate moniker “Charles the Beloved” from his subjects. Yet, as the years unfurled, the king’s image underwent a dramatic transformation, culminating in the far less flattering sobriquet “Charles the Mad.”
The initial signs of Charles’s psychological unraveling did not surface until his 20s, when puzzling episodes of amnesia gripped him. During these perplexing spells, the king would lose all recognition of his own identity and even that of his close family members.
His personal hygiene plummeted; he abandoned the practice of bathing and clung to the same garments for months on end.
Compounding his deteriorating mental state was an acute paranoia, crystallized in the form of a glass delusion. Charles became profoundly convinced that his body was as fragile as glass, at constant risk of shattering into pieces. This fear led him to extraordinary measures to protect his brittle form, including the reinforcement of his attire with iron rods—an armor against his invisible, internal fragility..