The Madness of Charles VI

 

In August 1392, King Charles VI of France was leaving Le Mans on a campaign against the Duke of Brittany. The weather was unpleasantly hot. The King himself was not in a good condition, either physically or mentally. Throughout the year, he suffered from different ailments. These ranged from headaches and fevers to eating and drinking very little. Of course, the last of those symptoms is particularly serious in hot weather. Charles would have been severely dehydrated which would make him very unfit for a difficult and long journey in hot conditions. And there would be terrible consequences. On top of these afflictions, Charles also suffered from severe anxiety. His anxiousness was in no way allayed by an attack on his Constable and personal favourite. This attempted assassination would only have increased the worries in Charles’ already overactive mind. Early into his journey towards Brittany, Charles was accosted by a strange man whilst he and his men rode through the forests of Le Mans. The man warned the troubled French king to advance no further and he even grabbed hold of Charles’ horse which sprung the king’s guard into action. The man was beaten, quite severely, and warned off. The supposed madman’s warnings were disregarded and the king’s party continued their progress. Their is little doubt though that Charles would have been rattled by this encounter and not a little unnerved.

It was now the middle of that August day and Charles and his party would have had a sweat on. One chronicler describes the day as the hottest that had ever been seen. Whilst this is likely a rather large exaggeration, it gives you an idea of the conditions the poor king was riding in. The decision to ride at such a time on such a day is quite lamentable. The Duke of Brittany could wait; the expedition was jeopardising the king’s health and perhaps even his life. But onwards they rode until…..CLANG! A sword was dropped by a member of the king’s retinue. Charles’ mind had remained fully on the madman but this loud drop tipped him over the edge. His paranoia had been sent into overdrive. He must surely have thought, like his constable, that he was now also about to be attacked and so the only thing for it, in Charles’ mind, was to go on the attack. Of course, the dropping of the sword was nothing more than an innocent accident but Charles launched himself at his own men. He charged after the Duke of Orleans and his own pages. There was chaos. A number of the king’s men were killed. The remainder of his party formed a circle around Charles until eventually he grew weak and his furious outburst had died away. He lay upon the ground, with his eyes rolling and not speaking to anyone. This must have been a frightening experience for all those around the king, not least for the unfortunate soul who had dropped the sword. That same night, Charles’ doctors worked overtime to come up with a satisfactory explanation for the disturbing events. Different theories had been put forward. Perhaps the king had been drugged or that he was a victim of witchcraft. Rumours were abound but Charles’ doctors had been fully aware that the king had been suffering from illnesses for some time and the Duke of Burgundy knew full well that the king's state had only been worsened by the summer heat. In the Duke’s own words though, Charles had virtually demanded that the expedition set off straight away and would not hear advice against it. The unfortunate king had rather brought on the events himself. It was also clear that Charles, before he had set off, had eaten or drank very little that morning. With a little common sense, it’s not hard to see how the attack came about but as the Duke of Burgundy points out, in a rather whiny sort of way, he and the nobility would get the blame for allowing the journey to begin.

The king remained in a similar state into the next morning. He is said to have looked at people in a “strange way” as though struggling to recognise them. And he was still very weak. News of the king’s condition spread far and wide and not just in France but across Europe. When Pope Boniface IX heard the news, he and his cardinals called Charles their greatest enemy and, rejoicing in his suffering, proclaimed that God’s will had been responsible. Charles’ condition seemed to be improving. Some credit is given to a doctor by the name of Guillame De Harselly. De Harselly appears to have been successful in getting the French king to eat and drink again. Gradually, Charles got better, to the point where he was able to go out hunting and riding again. De Harselly is praised for his treatment of the king and attempts were made to keep him in the king’s service but he declined. It’s not all praise for the doctor and he is accused of being incredibly tight, accepting free meals and drinks for his work, whilst he amassed huge sums of money. Unfortunately for Charles, his madness was not an isolated incident and whilst his outburst at Le Mans can be attributed to various factors, there was clearly a deeper, underlying cause for his illnesses that would become so severe later in his reign. The consequences would not only be felt in France either. Indirectly, Charles’ health would impact England, leading to the Wars of the Roses. By the 1410s, France was as vulnerable as their fragile king and Henry V would take advantage of that, nearly becoming king of France himself. Henry would leave his inheritance to his baby son, another Henry. Henry VI was the grandson of Charles and he too would suffer from mental fragility. This caused his own reign to fall into disrepair.