Rare dismissals of sovereigns or heads of state, linked to mental disorders incompatible with the art of governing, have existed. Here are two very famous ones.
Ludwig II of Bavaria, the whimsical
Born from the peace treaty signed on December 26, 1805 in Pressburg between Napoleon I and the German-Austrian Emperor Francis I, the short-lived Kingdom of Bavaria will have only six kings and will be dissolved in 1918 after the defeat of all the German monarchies. . Louis II (August 25, 1845-June 13, 1886) was the fourth of them and by far the most original. He was 18 when, following the death of his father, Maximilian II, on March 10, 1864, he ascended the throne. Fantastical, eccentric, he is endowed with a fertile imagination and driven to dreams. He loves art, architecture, theatre, music, history and not at all politics and military things. Having become a monarch, he will have as his best friend and confidante his cousin Elisabeth, Empress of Austria, better known as Sissi, the only one to understand the heaviness of a life linked to protocol. Between the two will be born a purely platonic love, because Louis
Paul Deschanel, the depressive
One day when he was in the temple of the magician Circe, one of Odysseus’ companions in Greek mythology, Elpenor, dozed off. As he was leaving, barely awake, he fell from the terrace and killed himself. In medicine, Elpénor’s syndrome or sleep intoxication results in a phase of deep sleep followed by incomplete awakening with mental confusion, temporal-spatial disorientation and uncontrolled automatic movements. Taking alcohol and/or sleeping pills promotes its occurrence. This evil was that of Paul Deschanel (February 13, 1855-April 28, 1922), President of the French Republic, elected to general surprise on January 17, 1920 at the expense of Georges Clemenceau. On May 23 of the same year, on his way to a commemoration, he fell from a train during the night, which the Presidency of the Republic commented as follows: “Mr. his wagon to avoid cooling. A few moments after the presidential train had passed through Montargis, Mr. Deschanel, feeling bothered by the heat, got up and went to one of the windows, which he opened.
Seized by the brisk night air, he tumbled out of the very large car window and fell onto the track. Fortunately, at this time the train was going at a moderate pace and the ballast was very sandy. The president, who had not lost consciousness in any way, was able to get up and go to the nearest barrier post. The sub-prefect came by car to fetch the president (still barefoot and in pajamas). This statement omitted to mention that Mr. Deschanel, seized with severe anxiety, had previously taken barbiturates. Since April 1920, overworked, he was subject to repeated anxiety attacks and severe depression which worried those around him. Needless to say, this accident aroused sarcasm from the press and songwriters. At that time, the big Mandarin hospital bosses had such authority that they could, through their medical power, force a head of state to resign for the good of the country. Professors Joseph Babinski and Fernand Widal first prescribed the president four months of rest, after which the symptoms worsened. They then wrote on Elysée letterhead: “The undersigned doctors have concluded that a resignation is necessary, releasing Mr. President of the Republic from obligations and concerns prejudicial to his health.” What happened… according to an expeditious procedure that is difficult to imagine today!
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He is only sexually attracted to men. In terms of his function, he has a high idea of royalty, which he wants to sublimate, and identifies himself with Parsifal, who has become the guardian of the Grail because of the purity of his soul. An unrealistic king, he will create a visual and musical environment that will be his refuge. Visual by the construction of several palaces and grandiose castles (the most famous being that of Neuschwanstein). Musical by becoming the lifetime patron of Richard Wagner, whose music transports him and whom he will bring to Munich near him. All of this is expensive and remains incompatible with the obligations of a head of state. In 1871, Bavaria, hitherto protected by Austria, passed with it under Prussian control. Otto von Bismarck, his German Chancellor, takes a dim view of the expensive lifestyle of Louis II whose ministers can no longer follow the requirements. Banks complain. Ludwig II changed nothing, lived at night, slept during the day, retired to his neo-Gothic castles and resented the death of Wagner in 1883, who was his God. The sanction falls: he is declared insane.
Stripped of his duties on June 12, 1886, interned in the castle of Berg, he died there the next evening with his psychiatrist Dr. von Gudden during a walk. Both of their bodies were found in the nearby icy waters of Lake Starnberg. What happened? Accident, assassination, argument after a fit of madness then suicide? No one ever knew!