1 00:00:01,350 --> 00:00:04,320 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 2 00:00:04,390 --> 00:00:14,320 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio. Hello and welcome to the podcast. I'm Holly Frey. 3 00:00:14,540 --> 00:00:18,890 Speaker 1: And I'm Tracy B. Wilson. So in July of 2010, 4 00:00:18,890 --> 00:00:22,540 Speaker 1: quite some time ago now. So long. previous hosts of 5 00:00:22,579 --> 00:00:26,450 Speaker 1: the podcast did an episode called Mad King Ludwig Dines 6 00:00:26,610 --> 00:00:30,490 Speaker 1: Alone about Bavaria's King Ludwig II. And in it, they 7 00:00:30,550 --> 00:00:35,610 Speaker 1: mentioned one of his doctors, psychiatrist Johann Bernhard Alois von Guten, 8 00:00:36,310 --> 00:00:37,950 Speaker 1: but they didn't talk about him a whole lot. And 9 00:00:37,990 --> 00:00:41,880 Speaker 1: he is a very interesting man. We did learn a 10 00:00:41,979 --> 00:00:44,699 Speaker 1: little bit more about him. Tracy and I did when 11 00:00:44,720 --> 00:00:48,500 Speaker 1: we were in Bavaria recently. And I started making notes 12 00:00:48,600 --> 00:00:53,730 Speaker 1: because I really wanted to investigate him more. You'll hear why. 13 00:00:53,800 --> 00:00:57,470 Speaker 1: He's fascinating. And it turns out he actually did a 14 00:00:57,510 --> 00:01:01,490 Speaker 1: whole lot of stuff and was incredibly well-respected as a 15 00:01:01,670 --> 00:01:05,130 Speaker 1: physician and a psychiatrist before he he ever got tangled 16 00:01:05,190 --> 00:01:08,059 Speaker 1: up with the Bavarian royal family. So that is who 17 00:01:08,080 --> 00:01:11,000 Speaker 1: we're going to talk about today. We will, of course, 18 00:01:11,100 --> 00:01:13,460 Speaker 1: because he is so closely tied to the story of 19 00:01:13,540 --> 00:01:16,750 Speaker 1: Ludwig II, talk a little bit about him. But there's 20 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:20,130 Speaker 1: not very much overlap at all with the old episode 21 00:01:20,170 --> 00:01:23,890 Speaker 1: from Sarah and Dublina. Although I would argue we could 22 00:01:23,930 --> 00:01:26,780 Speaker 1: revisit that topic and get a little deeper into everything 23 00:01:26,810 --> 00:01:31,850 Speaker 1: that happened there. Yeah. Johann Bernard Alois von Guten was 24 00:01:31,950 --> 00:01:37,160 Speaker 1: born on June 7, 1824, in Kleve, Germany. As he 25 00:01:37,190 --> 00:01:40,220 Speaker 1: grew up, he started going by the name Bernard. His 26 00:01:40,260 --> 00:01:42,900 Speaker 1: father was Johannes Guten, who owned a great deal of 27 00:01:43,020 --> 00:01:46,020 Speaker 1: property in Lower Rhineland and made his money from renting 28 00:01:46,060 --> 00:01:51,550 Speaker 1: that property out. And his mother was Bernadine Fritzen. Bernard 29 00:01:51,750 --> 00:01:53,870 Speaker 1: was the couple's third son, and they went on to 30 00:01:53,910 --> 00:01:57,220 Speaker 1: have four more after him. There is not a whole 31 00:01:57,260 --> 00:02:01,700 Speaker 1: lot of information about Gooden's childhood. That's not uncommon. His 32 00:02:01,720 --> 00:02:04,640 Speaker 1: story kind of picks up when he moves from secondary 33 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:09,970 Speaker 1: school to the realm of higher education, which happened in 1843. 34 00:02:09,970 --> 00:02:12,950 Speaker 1: That year, he began studying medicine, which he did at 35 00:02:13,030 --> 00:02:17,010 Speaker 1: several universities in Germany before earning his medical degree in 1848. 36 00:02:17,010 --> 00:02:20,410 Speaker 1: I saw a lot of biographies of him, like, you know, 37 00:02:20,430 --> 00:02:22,790 Speaker 1: kind of online quick write-ups that kind of start with, 38 00:02:23,090 --> 00:02:25,910 Speaker 1: he was born in Kleve. He got his medical degree 39 00:02:25,940 --> 00:02:27,860 Speaker 1: in 1848. It's like there's nothing in the middle. There's 40 00:02:27,900 --> 00:02:32,000 Speaker 1: a little jumper there. Gooden's dissertation that capped off his 41 00:02:32,060 --> 00:02:35,060 Speaker 1: medical studies gives a little bit of insight into one 42 00:02:35,080 --> 00:02:38,100 Speaker 1: of the areas that he would distinguish himself in, and 43 00:02:38,320 --> 00:02:41,660 Speaker 1: that was completely unrelated to his later association with King 44 00:02:41,690 --> 00:02:48,950 Speaker 1: Ludwig II. That dissertation was titled Questiones du Motu Oculi Humani, 45 00:02:49,750 --> 00:02:53,329 Speaker 1: in Latin, of course, which is questions concerning the movement 46 00:02:53,430 --> 00:02:57,119 Speaker 1: of the human eye. The year after Gooden passed his 47 00:02:57,220 --> 00:03:01,820 Speaker 1: medical exams, he was hired by Carl Wigand Maximilian Jacobi 48 00:03:01,940 --> 00:03:06,910 Speaker 1: to work at the Siegburg Asylum in the Prussian Rhine province. 49 00:03:07,750 --> 00:03:10,970 Speaker 1: Of course, this was a very different time in mental 50 00:03:10,990 --> 00:03:14,030 Speaker 1: health care, but Jacobi was an early leader in the 51 00:03:14,150 --> 00:03:18,690 Speaker 1: field known as somatic psychiatry. Somatic psychiatry is based on 52 00:03:18,730 --> 00:03:21,770 Speaker 1: the idea that all mental illness has some kind of 53 00:03:21,990 --> 00:03:26,510 Speaker 1: physical basis, meaning something physically wrong with a person's brain 54 00:03:27,030 --> 00:03:29,730 Speaker 1: or something else that could be happening in a person's 55 00:03:29,790 --> 00:03:34,850 Speaker 1: body that somehow impacted their brain and its function. Philippe Pidel, 56 00:03:34,950 --> 00:03:38,800 Speaker 1: who we discussed recently and who championed humane care for 57 00:03:38,840 --> 00:03:43,620 Speaker 1: mentally ill patients, was one of Jacobi's influences. Yacobi and 58 00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:46,650 Speaker 1: Gooden became more than just associates in their work. They 59 00:03:46,710 --> 00:03:51,870 Speaker 1: became family in 1855 when Gooden married Clarissa Voigt, who 60 00:03:51,930 --> 00:03:56,820 Speaker 1: was Yacobi's granddaughter. That same year, Gooden's scientific credentials were 61 00:03:56,860 --> 00:04:00,620 Speaker 1: bolstered when he was able to provide research that verified 62 00:04:00,700 --> 00:04:04,700 Speaker 1: that mites were the cause of scabies. But by the 63 00:04:04,740 --> 00:04:07,910 Speaker 1: time that marriage happened, Gooden had already moved on to 64 00:04:07,950 --> 00:04:11,030 Speaker 1: another position. He was not working with Yacobi anymore. That 65 00:04:11,070 --> 00:04:14,770 Speaker 1: was at the Ilanau Asylum. Ilanau actually has its own 66 00:04:14,830 --> 00:04:16,990 Speaker 1: very important history in that it was one of the 67 00:04:17,070 --> 00:04:21,810 Speaker 1: first purpose-built facilities for treating mental illness in a compassionate 68 00:04:21,890 --> 00:04:24,830 Speaker 1: and thoughtful way. So many of the facilities we have 69 00:04:24,870 --> 00:04:27,099 Speaker 1: talked about on the show before are like, this used 70 00:04:27,120 --> 00:04:28,820 Speaker 1: to be a prison, so then we threw all the 71 00:04:28,839 --> 00:04:31,720 Speaker 1: people who were deemed mentally ill there. But this was 72 00:04:31,820 --> 00:04:34,760 Speaker 1: actually built to house and take care of those people. 73 00:04:35,540 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 1: The man behind the design of that facility and its 74 00:04:38,120 --> 00:04:42,100 Speaker 1: administration was Wilhelm Roller, who was Gooden's colleague and friend 75 00:04:42,140 --> 00:04:47,700 Speaker 1: at Illinois from 1851 to 1855. Both the Ziegborg Asylum 76 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:50,740 Speaker 1: and the Illinois Asylum were relatively new, and they were 77 00:04:50,779 --> 00:04:53,400 Speaker 1: part of a whole wave of new facilities that were 78 00:04:53,460 --> 00:04:57,919 Speaker 1: established as the scientific community's understanding of mental health and 79 00:04:57,960 --> 00:05:03,570 Speaker 1: mental illness was rapidly expanding. In 1853, Schloss Wernick, a 80 00:05:03,690 --> 00:05:07,450 Speaker 1: palace built in the 1730s as a summer residence, began 81 00:05:07,500 --> 00:05:11,380 Speaker 1: a conversion project for it to become an asylum. That 82 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:15,740 Speaker 1: conversion was something that Bavaria's King Maximilian II had instructed, 83 00:05:16,140 --> 00:05:18,080 Speaker 1: and it was a project that took two years to 84 00:05:18,100 --> 00:05:22,840 Speaker 1: be completed. The design of that new space was based 85 00:05:23,080 --> 00:05:27,220 Speaker 1: on Illinois. When the Wernick Asylum opened on October 1st, 1855, 86 00:05:27,220 --> 00:05:31,339 Speaker 1: it had a young new administrator at the helm. and 87 00:05:31,380 --> 00:05:36,159 Speaker 1: that was 31-year-old Bernhard von Gooden. Gooden had been involved 88 00:05:36,200 --> 00:05:39,260 Speaker 1: in the conversion, so though the palace was not purpose-built 89 00:05:39,360 --> 00:05:42,260 Speaker 1: to be a facility, it was one of the most 90 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:44,839 Speaker 1: advanced that existed by the time it was opened as 91 00:05:44,880 --> 00:05:48,990 Speaker 1: a hospital. In addition to being informed by the work 92 00:05:49,029 --> 00:05:52,770 Speaker 1: of his mentors in his two prior facilities, Gooden also 93 00:05:52,850 --> 00:05:56,990 Speaker 1: incorporated the ideas of English psychiatric doctor John Connolly, who 94 00:05:57,029 --> 00:06:02,060 Speaker 1: was another proponent of non-restraint facilities. And in some instances, 95 00:06:02,200 --> 00:06:05,240 Speaker 1: the young doctor broke with the practices of his mentors 96 00:06:05,640 --> 00:06:10,230 Speaker 1: to further develop higher levels of care for patients. One 97 00:06:10,270 --> 00:06:13,710 Speaker 1: of the areas he thought needed more attention was the 98 00:06:13,790 --> 00:06:18,050 Speaker 1: way patients were restrained. In instances where a patient was 99 00:06:18,089 --> 00:06:21,589 Speaker 1: deemed to be dangerous or out of control, even very 100 00:06:21,730 --> 00:06:26,960 Speaker 1: forward-thinking facilities would still employ physical force. And there were 101 00:06:26,990 --> 00:06:30,089 Speaker 1: a set of physical symptoms that were often reported in 102 00:06:30,150 --> 00:06:33,789 Speaker 1: cases of mental illness, and those included things like bed sores, 103 00:06:34,170 --> 00:06:38,770 Speaker 1: ear reddening, and fluid buildup known as otohematoma, and even 104 00:06:39,070 --> 00:06:42,500 Speaker 1: rib injuries. And Gooden was the first person to really 105 00:06:42,570 --> 00:06:46,280 Speaker 1: attribute all of this to poor or insufficient care, and 106 00:06:46,360 --> 00:06:50,020 Speaker 1: even neglect and cruelty on the part of hospital staff. 107 00:06:50,779 --> 00:06:54,580 Speaker 1: This led to him to establish a true no-restraint policy. 108 00:06:55,350 --> 00:06:58,310 Speaker 1: We mentioned in our Philippe Pinel episode that even Pinel 109 00:06:58,350 --> 00:07:02,770 Speaker 1: believed that sometimes restraint was necessary, but didn't believe that 110 00:07:02,810 --> 00:07:08,030 Speaker 1: things like straitjackets were actually causing trauma and making patients worse. Yeah, 111 00:07:08,089 --> 00:07:15,150 Speaker 1: particularly that ear hematoma situation. It was often listed as 112 00:07:15,230 --> 00:07:18,130 Speaker 1: a symptom of a mental illness and not this is 113 00:07:18,190 --> 00:07:21,720 Speaker 1: being caused by an exterior thing. People were like, hi, 114 00:07:21,740 --> 00:07:24,020 Speaker 1: I wonder why people's ears start to swell. And he 115 00:07:24,060 --> 00:07:27,320 Speaker 1: was like, well, I could tell you why. And we 116 00:07:27,340 --> 00:07:30,420 Speaker 1: can change it if we want. He instituted a number 117 00:07:30,460 --> 00:07:33,250 Speaker 1: of new policies at Vernac that had never been implemented 118 00:07:33,350 --> 00:07:36,910 Speaker 1: anywhere else aside from just the no restraint rule. He 119 00:07:36,930 --> 00:07:39,990 Speaker 1: wanted patients at the facility to have personal freedoms as 120 00:07:40,050 --> 00:07:42,310 Speaker 1: a way to ensure a sense of agency and self. 121 00:07:42,690 --> 00:07:45,300 Speaker 1: And he wanted them to socialize. There are even stories 122 00:07:45,450 --> 00:07:48,410 Speaker 1: at some instances of him allowing patients to to just 123 00:07:48,450 --> 00:07:51,350 Speaker 1: leave the grounds and walk into town by themselves because 124 00:07:51,390 --> 00:07:53,730 Speaker 1: he felt like they could do that and that that 125 00:07:53,750 --> 00:07:56,910 Speaker 1: would actually be beneficial to them. He also believed that 126 00:07:56,930 --> 00:08:00,390 Speaker 1: the doctors working with the asylum's patients should be completely 127 00:08:00,450 --> 00:08:04,390 Speaker 1: transparent with those patients about their treatment and that they 128 00:08:04,410 --> 00:08:09,340 Speaker 1: should encourage a cooperative relationship between physician and patient. Additionally, 129 00:08:09,700 --> 00:08:14,020 Speaker 1: he insisted on much more comprehensive training for all hospital staff, 130 00:08:14,390 --> 00:08:17,310 Speaker 1: and it was deeply important to him that anyone working 131 00:08:17,410 --> 00:08:20,750 Speaker 1: under him felt duty-bound to care for everyone in their charge. 132 00:08:21,460 --> 00:08:24,080 Speaker 1: He wrote papers about these issues, and he made the 133 00:08:24,120 --> 00:08:26,260 Speaker 1: case that there was a cause and effect to the 134 00:08:26,300 --> 00:08:29,840 Speaker 1: way patients were treated or handled, leading to physical issues 135 00:08:29,980 --> 00:08:33,550 Speaker 1: and poor mental health outcomes if they weren't done properly. 136 00:08:34,380 --> 00:08:37,700 Speaker 1: Gooden headed up the Wernick facility for 14 years, and 137 00:08:37,720 --> 00:08:40,140 Speaker 1: during that time, he really made a name for himself. 138 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:43,730 Speaker 1: So when a brand new mental hospital was constructed just 139 00:08:43,809 --> 00:08:47,550 Speaker 1: outside of Zurich, Switzerland in the 1860s, he was the 140 00:08:47,690 --> 00:08:50,910 Speaker 1: obvious choice to run it. He became director of the 141 00:08:50,990 --> 00:08:56,630 Speaker 1: hospital called Bergolzli in 1869. At the same time, he 142 00:08:56,720 --> 00:09:00,440 Speaker 1: also became a professor at the University of Zurich teaching psychiatry. 143 00:09:01,230 --> 00:09:03,830 Speaker 1: During his time in the Zurich area, he also became 144 00:09:03,910 --> 00:09:08,130 Speaker 1: one of the editors of Archive for Psychiatry and Nervous Diseases. 145 00:09:09,090 --> 00:09:12,590 Speaker 1: He was not at Bergolzli for nearly as long as 146 00:09:12,650 --> 00:09:15,720 Speaker 1: his previous job. He stayed there just three years before 147 00:09:15,780 --> 00:09:19,840 Speaker 1: attaining a similarly prestigious role back in Germany as director 148 00:09:19,980 --> 00:09:23,819 Speaker 1: of the district mental health facility for Munich. As with 149 00:09:23,860 --> 00:09:27,120 Speaker 1: his role in Switzerland, he also parlayed this move into 150 00:09:27,179 --> 00:09:29,929 Speaker 1: a teaching role at the University of Munich. once again 151 00:09:29,970 --> 00:09:33,810 Speaker 1: teaching psychiatry. During this time at the Munich Hospital, he 152 00:09:33,890 --> 00:09:38,199 Speaker 1: expanded it significantly, like physically expanded the building, and he 153 00:09:38,300 --> 00:09:40,579 Speaker 1: revamped the way that it ran to match the other 154 00:09:40,620 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 1: facilities that he had also run. Coming up, we'll talk 155 00:09:44,200 --> 00:09:47,420 Speaker 1: about some of Gooden's medical achievements, but first we will 156 00:09:47,460 --> 00:10:01,090 Speaker 1: pause for a sponsor break. Music In 1874, Gooden published 157 00:10:01,270 --> 00:10:05,840 Speaker 1: Experimental Studies on Cranial Growth. The research involved in that 158 00:10:05,880 --> 00:10:10,400 Speaker 1: paper was icky. It involves some icky animal experiments, but 159 00:10:10,440 --> 00:10:14,709 Speaker 1: the resulting writing became a bedrock text for understanding skull 160 00:10:14,730 --> 00:10:18,300 Speaker 1: development in mammals. He also did a lot of cutting-edge 161 00:10:18,360 --> 00:10:21,559 Speaker 1: research on the ways that brain injury can cause secondary 162 00:10:21,620 --> 00:10:25,150 Speaker 1: degeneration in other areas of the brain, but doesn't lead 163 00:10:25,190 --> 00:10:28,470 Speaker 1: to degeneration of the peripheral nervous system. That was something 164 00:10:28,490 --> 00:10:31,610 Speaker 1: that had been believed prior to this. This is actually 165 00:10:31,670 --> 00:10:35,400 Speaker 1: today called Gooden's Law. There are also fibers in the 166 00:10:35,540 --> 00:10:38,780 Speaker 1: optic tract that are named for him, Gooden's Inferior Commissure. 167 00:10:39,390 --> 00:10:40,550 Speaker 1: I'm not going to lie to you, I did not 168 00:10:40,570 --> 00:10:43,850 Speaker 1: understand anything I read about that. I was completely confused 169 00:10:43,890 --> 00:10:46,300 Speaker 1: from top to bottom. You know how sometimes you'll read 170 00:10:46,340 --> 00:10:48,970 Speaker 1: a paper and you'll go find another thing that describes it, 171 00:10:49,040 --> 00:10:52,160 Speaker 1: hoping it will become simpler? Even the most pared-down thing, 172 00:10:52,300 --> 00:10:56,079 Speaker 1: I felt like a chimpanzee trying to read, like, Greek. 173 00:10:56,160 --> 00:10:59,210 Speaker 1: I was just like, I don't... This is not for me, clearly. 174 00:11:00,390 --> 00:11:02,189 Speaker 1: When I saw your note that you didn't understand it, 175 00:11:02,210 --> 00:11:04,390 Speaker 1: I was like, oh, would I understand it? I took 176 00:11:04,450 --> 00:11:07,270 Speaker 1: anatomy and physiology, and then I tried to read it 177 00:11:07,309 --> 00:11:11,050 Speaker 1: and went, this is... infinitely more detailed than any of 178 00:11:11,150 --> 00:11:15,110 Speaker 1: the eye and ocular anatomy I learned. Yeah. I mean, 179 00:11:15,130 --> 00:11:16,950 Speaker 1: I know a little bit about that stuff and I've 180 00:11:16,990 --> 00:11:19,410 Speaker 1: had some adventures in it recently for myself, but I 181 00:11:19,429 --> 00:11:23,100 Speaker 1: was like, I don't know. I don't know. That's where 182 00:11:23,130 --> 00:11:25,160 Speaker 1: I go. I bet Gooden couldn't sew a dress and 183 00:11:25,240 --> 00:11:29,579 Speaker 1: I can't. Anyway, but he did some amazing stuff in 184 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:32,040 Speaker 1: the medical field. And for all of this work and 185 00:11:32,080 --> 00:11:35,370 Speaker 1: his previous reform work in the mental health space, He 186 00:11:35,410 --> 00:11:40,040 Speaker 1: was granted a noble title by the German government in 1875. 187 00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:44,579 Speaker 1: In the 1870s, Gooden became the psychiatrist to Ludwig II's 188 00:11:44,720 --> 00:11:48,860 Speaker 1: younger brother, Otto. Otto had shown signs of some sort 189 00:11:48,900 --> 00:11:51,920 Speaker 1: of mental illness from the time he was young, but 190 00:11:52,020 --> 00:11:55,959 Speaker 1: after serving in the Franco-Prussian War, his issues became a 191 00:11:55,990 --> 00:12:00,670 Speaker 1: lot more pronounced. He exhibited signs of severe anxiety and 192 00:12:00,770 --> 00:12:06,310 Speaker 1: depression and sometimes mania, Modern clinicians have guessed that he 193 00:12:06,490 --> 00:12:10,490 Speaker 1: might have had some form of schizophrenia. In 1878, Ludwig 194 00:12:10,590 --> 00:12:13,550 Speaker 1: ordered a guardianship for Otto, and the two brothers had 195 00:12:13,600 --> 00:12:16,620 Speaker 1: been close in their younger years, but they became estranged 196 00:12:16,740 --> 00:12:20,380 Speaker 1: as they aged. Yeah, and just to be clear, Gooden 197 00:12:20,440 --> 00:12:23,939 Speaker 1: was not talking to Ludwig II about his work with Otto. 198 00:12:23,960 --> 00:12:27,079 Speaker 1: That's going to come up in a minute. Because in 1886, 199 00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:31,450 Speaker 1: Gooden was asked to perform a very specific analysis of 200 00:12:31,490 --> 00:12:34,370 Speaker 1: the king himself. which would change the course of Gooden's 201 00:12:34,429 --> 00:12:38,670 Speaker 1: life and Ludwig's. We're going to speed run Ludwig II's 202 00:12:38,710 --> 00:12:41,410 Speaker 1: background because there is already an episode on him and 203 00:12:41,600 --> 00:12:43,650 Speaker 1: it is possible we might revisit it in the future 204 00:12:43,670 --> 00:12:46,410 Speaker 1: and it is worthy of its own episode, but we 205 00:12:46,429 --> 00:12:49,920 Speaker 1: just need quick context here. Here are the basics. King 206 00:12:49,980 --> 00:12:54,520 Speaker 1: Ludwig II of Bavaria ascended to the throne in 1864 207 00:12:54,520 --> 00:12:57,459 Speaker 1: after his father died. He was 18 at that point, 208 00:12:57,980 --> 00:13:02,290 Speaker 1: incredibly handsome and kind of a shy nerd. His famous 209 00:13:02,390 --> 00:13:05,890 Speaker 1: obsession with Wagner had already been well-established at this point. 210 00:13:06,490 --> 00:13:08,929 Speaker 1: And once he became king, he started spending money on 211 00:13:08,990 --> 00:13:12,410 Speaker 1: things like a theater for Wagner and other projects. But 212 00:13:12,980 --> 00:13:16,920 Speaker 1: more troubling to the people around him was that he 213 00:13:16,980 --> 00:13:21,000 Speaker 1: wasn't married and he wasn't producing heirs. He was engaged 214 00:13:21,059 --> 00:13:24,660 Speaker 1: in 1867 to Duchess Sophie Charlotte, but then he called 215 00:13:24,740 --> 00:13:28,300 Speaker 1: off the marriage. There is a whole side topic we 216 00:13:28,320 --> 00:13:31,250 Speaker 1: could do about that. and his struggles with his sexual 217 00:13:31,309 --> 00:13:34,970 Speaker 1: identity that is outside the scope of this Guten-focused episode. 218 00:13:35,929 --> 00:13:39,390 Speaker 1: But Ludwig spent both government money and his family money 219 00:13:39,510 --> 00:13:43,230 Speaker 1: on some of those big construction projects, including Linderhof Palace 220 00:13:43,630 --> 00:13:48,809 Speaker 1: and Neuschwanstein Castle. These castles, which were famously filled with 221 00:13:48,970 --> 00:13:53,750 Speaker 1: unorthodox designs like rooms dedicated to recreating scenes from Wagner operas, 222 00:13:54,520 --> 00:13:56,260 Speaker 1: a couple of which we have been lucky enough to see, 223 00:13:56,660 --> 00:13:59,520 Speaker 1: were paid for with his own family money, plus some 224 00:13:59,540 --> 00:14:02,720 Speaker 1: money that he borrowed. But the expense of staffing and 225 00:14:02,780 --> 00:14:06,300 Speaker 1: running them fell to the state, and that got increasingly 226 00:14:06,360 --> 00:14:11,280 Speaker 1: more expensive. As Bavaria was caught in the shifting boundaries 227 00:14:11,380 --> 00:14:15,559 Speaker 1: and conflicts of Austria, Prussia, France, and the new German Empire, 228 00:14:16,280 --> 00:14:18,939 Speaker 1: Ludwig's behavior had become more and more at odds with 229 00:14:18,980 --> 00:14:22,430 Speaker 1: his cabinet. That happened over the course of years. And 230 00:14:22,470 --> 00:14:27,530 Speaker 1: his spending worried both politicians and his relatives. That lack 231 00:14:27,570 --> 00:14:30,510 Speaker 1: of an heir and his interest in men were also 232 00:14:30,580 --> 00:14:36,680 Speaker 1: causing problems. So his ministers and uncle, Prince Luitpold, who 233 00:14:36,740 --> 00:14:40,020 Speaker 1: was next in line for the throne, conspired to have 234 00:14:40,100 --> 00:14:43,760 Speaker 1: Ludwig declared insane. And that's when they asked for an 235 00:14:43,820 --> 00:14:48,880 Speaker 1: official report on the king's mental health from Bernard von Gudden. Yeah, 236 00:14:48,960 --> 00:14:52,800 Speaker 1: technically Otto would inherit the throne, but he had already 237 00:14:52,860 --> 00:14:58,490 Speaker 1: been determined to not be in a sound mental state. 238 00:14:58,570 --> 00:15:02,350 Speaker 1: So Luitpold was going to basically get the power. This 239 00:15:02,410 --> 00:15:06,010 Speaker 1: report that Gooden prepared was a crucial document. It opened 240 00:15:06,070 --> 00:15:09,110 Speaker 1: the door for Ludwig to be deposed based on the 241 00:15:09,230 --> 00:15:14,300 Speaker 1: expertise of medical doctors. But it is deeply, deeply problematic. 242 00:15:15,330 --> 00:15:19,330 Speaker 1: Gooden wrote this report about the king without ever having 243 00:15:19,530 --> 00:15:22,620 Speaker 1: examined him or even spoken to him about his health, 244 00:15:23,030 --> 00:15:27,440 Speaker 1: mental or physical. He met Ludwig exactly once before this 245 00:15:27,600 --> 00:15:31,360 Speaker 1: in 1874, but that was not a clinical scenario and 246 00:15:31,380 --> 00:15:35,060 Speaker 1: it was very brief. So instead, he used statements and 247 00:15:35,120 --> 00:15:38,680 Speaker 1: descriptions that were given by people who were around Ludwig, 248 00:15:39,220 --> 00:15:41,860 Speaker 1: but those were also the very people who wanted him 249 00:15:41,960 --> 00:15:46,200 Speaker 1: removed from the throne. Those statements were given under questioning 250 00:15:46,260 --> 00:15:50,660 Speaker 1: by Count Maximilian von Holstein, with the Bavarian foreign minister 251 00:15:50,820 --> 00:15:55,630 Speaker 1: Friedrich Kraft von Krelsheim and Gooden observing. The interviews were 252 00:15:55,670 --> 00:16:00,989 Speaker 1: conducted on May 18, 1886. Gooden completed his report on 253 00:16:01,090 --> 00:16:03,730 Speaker 1: June 8, and he signed it, as well as three 254 00:16:03,790 --> 00:16:10,190 Speaker 1: other psychiatric doctors, Hubert Grashly, Friedrich Wilhelm Hagen, and Max Hubrich. 255 00:16:11,080 --> 00:16:15,550 Speaker 1: Like Gooden, they did not ever speak with or examine Ludwig, 256 00:16:15,630 --> 00:16:18,570 Speaker 1: and they worked only from interview notes as they reviewed 257 00:16:18,610 --> 00:16:22,630 Speaker 1: the report. First in his report, Gooden laid out the 258 00:16:22,670 --> 00:16:26,010 Speaker 1: genetic case for Ludwig to be declared insane. And I'm 259 00:16:26,030 --> 00:16:28,060 Speaker 1: going to confess, I did not connect him to the 260 00:16:28,100 --> 00:16:30,960 Speaker 1: prior show topic we're about to mention in my head 261 00:16:31,020 --> 00:16:34,220 Speaker 1: when I was thinking about all of this, or ever, frankly. Quote, 262 00:16:34,320 --> 00:16:37,420 Speaker 1: First of all, one should recall the notorious fact that 263 00:16:37,520 --> 00:16:41,720 Speaker 1: one of His Majesty's aunts, Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra... 264 00:16:41,740 --> 00:16:45,840 Speaker 1: suffered from an incurable mental illness for many years, namely 265 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:49,760 Speaker 1: the delusion that she had swallowed a glass piano. While 266 00:16:49,800 --> 00:16:52,100 Speaker 1: this should not be given too much weight, it must 267 00:16:52,160 --> 00:16:55,680 Speaker 1: be emphasized all the more that His Majesty's younger brother, 268 00:16:55,900 --> 00:17:00,250 Speaker 1: His Royal Highness Prince Otto of Bavaria, is also incurably 269 00:17:00,350 --> 00:17:04,850 Speaker 1: mentally ill. Gooden then listed out the various behaviors with 270 00:17:04,930 --> 00:17:09,210 Speaker 1: commentary that Ludwig had been exhibiting, saying they were indicative 271 00:17:09,270 --> 00:17:12,710 Speaker 1: of a mental health condition. It mentioned how the king 272 00:17:12,770 --> 00:17:15,740 Speaker 1: had become so shy that he had stopped going to 273 00:17:15,820 --> 00:17:18,860 Speaker 1: church and instead had a private church built for himself. 274 00:17:19,660 --> 00:17:22,920 Speaker 1: He had initiated a practice of private theater performances for 275 00:17:23,000 --> 00:17:27,210 Speaker 1: him alone, and he insisted on massive, ornate centerpieces at 276 00:17:27,270 --> 00:17:30,310 Speaker 1: banquets so that he could hide behind them. It also 277 00:17:30,369 --> 00:17:34,210 Speaker 1: noted that he drank a good deal before any such events, quote, 278 00:17:34,369 --> 00:17:38,320 Speaker 1: to ease the burden. Ludwig had also become known for 279 00:17:38,359 --> 00:17:41,620 Speaker 1: wanting to venture into the woods at night, and this, too, 280 00:17:42,000 --> 00:17:46,260 Speaker 1: was mentioned in Gooden's report. It noted that during full moons, 281 00:17:46,340 --> 00:17:48,300 Speaker 1: he wanted to have parties in the forest, but he 282 00:17:48,340 --> 00:17:52,740 Speaker 1: wasn't inviting nobles or royalty. He insisted that the stable 283 00:17:52,800 --> 00:17:56,520 Speaker 1: servants were the attendees. The report also noted, quote, his 284 00:17:56,680 --> 00:18:00,639 Speaker 1: majesty's expressed lively desire to fly through the air in 285 00:18:00,660 --> 00:18:04,179 Speaker 1: a carriage drawn by peacocks would also fall in the 286 00:18:04,240 --> 00:18:09,200 Speaker 1: realm of exuberant imagination, completely disregarding the boundaries of reality 287 00:18:09,320 --> 00:18:12,560 Speaker 1: and possibility. And it mentioned that he had developed a 288 00:18:12,600 --> 00:18:15,439 Speaker 1: habit of bowing before a tree in the forest that 289 00:18:15,520 --> 00:18:18,960 Speaker 1: he believed was holy, and he would address it as 290 00:18:19,020 --> 00:18:23,200 Speaker 1: a holy entity. One of the more disturbing allegations put 291 00:18:23,260 --> 00:18:25,830 Speaker 1: forth in the report is that Ludwig had a proclivity 292 00:18:25,880 --> 00:18:29,830 Speaker 1: for violent outbursts. The initial section of the text about 293 00:18:29,869 --> 00:18:33,760 Speaker 1: this sounds almost like someone who's just frustrated and kind 294 00:18:33,780 --> 00:18:37,820 Speaker 1: of making exaggerated statements about how they'd like to destroy 295 00:18:37,880 --> 00:18:41,130 Speaker 1: the source of their stress. Quote, there has already been 296 00:18:41,170 --> 00:18:45,710 Speaker 1: repeated talk of his majesty's irritability, his outbursts of anger 297 00:18:45,790 --> 00:18:49,130 Speaker 1: and rage. It was often heard how wonderful it would 298 00:18:49,170 --> 00:18:52,300 Speaker 1: be if one could set fire to the cursed nest, 299 00:18:52,359 --> 00:18:55,699 Speaker 1: his own capital and residence at every corner, and if 300 00:18:55,740 --> 00:19:00,280 Speaker 1: the entire Bavarian population had only one head so they 301 00:19:00,300 --> 00:19:04,300 Speaker 1: could be executed in one fell swoop. But then these 302 00:19:04,380 --> 00:19:09,040 Speaker 1: violent rages are described as being physically abusive. Quote, the 303 00:19:09,080 --> 00:19:12,340 Speaker 1: reports are made and his majesty's orders are usually given 304 00:19:12,400 --> 00:19:15,899 Speaker 1: through the closed door. Scratching on the door is the 305 00:19:15,960 --> 00:19:20,100 Speaker 1: sign that his majesty has been understood. Servants who are 306 00:19:20,180 --> 00:19:23,500 Speaker 1: permitted or required to enter must bow deeply and may 307 00:19:23,540 --> 00:19:26,500 Speaker 1: not look at his majesty. If a member of the 308 00:19:26,540 --> 00:19:30,530 Speaker 1: service staff is under punishment, he must also kneel or 309 00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:34,320 Speaker 1: lie face down on the floor. The latter was introduced 310 00:19:34,359 --> 00:19:37,580 Speaker 1: last year after His Majesty had read about the ceremonial 311 00:19:37,700 --> 00:19:42,119 Speaker 1: at the Chinese court. Very often, however, His Majesty also 312 00:19:42,180 --> 00:19:46,629 Speaker 1: resorts to violence, sometimes beating and kicking the servants until 313 00:19:46,670 --> 00:19:50,470 Speaker 1: they bleed. That is obviously horrible, but it is also 314 00:19:50,540 --> 00:19:52,720 Speaker 1: worth noting that we don't know if any of these 315 00:19:52,780 --> 00:19:56,500 Speaker 1: stories were true. The summary judgment by Gooden was that 316 00:19:56,580 --> 00:20:00,240 Speaker 1: Ludwig had paranoia to a degree that it compromised his 317 00:20:00,340 --> 00:20:03,960 Speaker 1: sanity and ability to work, and that his mental illness 318 00:20:04,020 --> 00:20:08,650 Speaker 1: had reached, quote, a very advanced degree. The state was not, 319 00:20:08,850 --> 00:20:10,590 Speaker 1: in the words of the doctor, something that could be 320 00:20:10,670 --> 00:20:14,990 Speaker 1: resolved with time or treatment and that, like his brother Otto, 321 00:20:15,070 --> 00:20:19,190 Speaker 1: it was incurable. It concluded with, quote, suffering from such 322 00:20:19,210 --> 00:20:22,350 Speaker 1: a disorder, freedom of action can no longer be allowed 323 00:20:22,850 --> 00:20:27,369 Speaker 1: and your majesty is declared incapable of ruling, which incapacity 324 00:20:27,430 --> 00:20:30,770 Speaker 1: will be not only for a year's duration, but for 325 00:20:30,810 --> 00:20:36,460 Speaker 1: the length of your majesty's life. After this report, Ludwig's cousin, 326 00:20:36,590 --> 00:20:40,149 Speaker 1: Empress Sissi of Austria, who he was known to be 327 00:20:40,210 --> 00:20:43,489 Speaker 1: incredibly close to, was insistent that the whole thing was 328 00:20:43,670 --> 00:20:47,460 Speaker 1: incorrect and that Ludwig was, quote, not a fool, just 329 00:20:47,520 --> 00:20:51,900 Speaker 1: an eccentric living in other worlds of ideas. Other people 330 00:20:51,940 --> 00:20:54,840 Speaker 1: that knew him actually made similar statements. So it wasn't 331 00:20:54,859 --> 00:20:57,630 Speaker 1: just one person that was like, that's not true. There 332 00:20:57,650 --> 00:21:00,320 Speaker 1: were quite a few. But those opinions did not have 333 00:21:00,380 --> 00:21:03,199 Speaker 1: any impact in the way things played out once Gudden's 334 00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:08,480 Speaker 1: authority had established Ludwig's madness. On June 10th, government officials 335 00:21:08,540 --> 00:21:12,399 Speaker 1: went to Neuschwanstein to take Ludwig into custody, but the 336 00:21:12,440 --> 00:21:14,919 Speaker 1: police from the village, as well as a baroness and 337 00:21:15,040 --> 00:21:19,100 Speaker 1: other people who were local, defended the castle and Ludwig. 338 00:21:19,740 --> 00:21:22,900 Speaker 1: The king also put out calls for help to his cousin, 339 00:21:22,980 --> 00:21:26,660 Speaker 1: Prince Ludwig Ferdinand, and the people of Bavaria to protect him, 340 00:21:27,030 --> 00:21:29,810 Speaker 1: and he... tried to plan an escape. And though he 341 00:21:29,850 --> 00:21:33,330 Speaker 1: did have some support, ultimately he was taken into custody 342 00:21:33,710 --> 00:21:37,410 Speaker 1: and his uncle Luitpold was installed as prince regent. We're 343 00:21:37,450 --> 00:21:39,899 Speaker 1: about to talk about the sudden end of Ludwig's and 344 00:21:39,940 --> 00:21:42,640 Speaker 1: Gudrun's lives, but before we get into that, let's take 345 00:21:42,680 --> 00:21:45,020 Speaker 1: a breather and hear from the sponsors that keep Stuff 346 00:21:45,040 --> 00:21:57,680 Speaker 1: You Missed in History Class going. So Interestingly enough, though 347 00:21:57,720 --> 00:22:01,100 Speaker 1: Gooden had not spent time with Ludwig in diagnosis, he 348 00:22:01,180 --> 00:22:04,190 Speaker 1: did spend time with him after the report was completed. 349 00:22:04,830 --> 00:22:08,250 Speaker 1: Because once Ludwig had been deposed, he was sent to Schlossberg, 350 00:22:08,490 --> 00:22:12,750 Speaker 1: a manor house that sits on Bavaria's Lake Starnberg. This 351 00:22:12,970 --> 00:22:15,389 Speaker 1: was where the former king was expected to live out 352 00:22:15,430 --> 00:22:18,130 Speaker 1: the rest of his days, and Gooden went with him 353 00:22:18,270 --> 00:22:21,470 Speaker 1: as his caregiver. The two of them were transported to 354 00:22:21,510 --> 00:22:27,919 Speaker 1: Schlossberg on June 12, 1886. On the morning of June 13th, Ludwig, Guten, 355 00:22:28,040 --> 00:22:30,260 Speaker 1: and several of the house staff went on a walk 356 00:22:30,340 --> 00:22:34,119 Speaker 1: in the woods around the manor house together. That afternoon, 357 00:22:34,180 --> 00:22:37,659 Speaker 1: Guten reportedly sent a letter to Baron Johann von Lutz, 358 00:22:37,800 --> 00:22:40,939 Speaker 1: the politician who had asked him to prepare the analysis 359 00:22:41,020 --> 00:22:44,860 Speaker 1: of Ludwig's mental state. Apparently, they were going to compile 360 00:22:44,980 --> 00:22:49,679 Speaker 1: a similar analysis of Otto, who technically inherited the throne 361 00:22:49,810 --> 00:22:53,429 Speaker 1: after Ludwig, but who they were anticipating would similarly be 362 00:22:53,530 --> 00:22:57,950 Speaker 1: represented by Luitpold as Prince Regent. That letter read, quote, 363 00:22:58,070 --> 00:23:02,169 Speaker 1: doctors Hagen and Hubrick have been summoned for Tuesday, 9 a.m., 364 00:23:02,230 --> 00:23:06,480 Speaker 1: to give an opinion respecting Prince Otto. They will probably 365 00:23:06,520 --> 00:23:09,640 Speaker 1: be able to give their decision Tuesday evening. Here all 366 00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:13,360 Speaker 1: is going wonderfully well. A personal examination, I may add, 367 00:23:13,400 --> 00:23:18,080 Speaker 1: has only confirmed my written opinion. That evening, there was 368 00:23:18,140 --> 00:23:21,220 Speaker 1: another walk. This time, it was just Ludwig and Gudden. 369 00:23:22,140 --> 00:23:25,510 Speaker 1: A few hours later, both men were found dead, presumably 370 00:23:25,590 --> 00:23:29,890 Speaker 1: from drowning. At the time, an autopsy was performed by Dr. 371 00:23:29,950 --> 00:23:35,130 Speaker 1: Nikolaus Rudinger with government representatives observing. The autopsy stated that 372 00:23:35,190 --> 00:23:38,169 Speaker 1: no injuries were present on Ludwig's body and that there 373 00:23:38,210 --> 00:23:41,250 Speaker 1: were no gunshot or stab wounds and no signs of 374 00:23:41,310 --> 00:23:45,090 Speaker 1: blunt force trauma. While there could not be a definitive 375 00:23:45,130 --> 00:23:48,389 Speaker 1: drowning pronouncement, it was believed that was what happened, or 376 00:23:48,430 --> 00:23:50,900 Speaker 1: that he may have had a heart attack or similar 377 00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:54,699 Speaker 1: acute health event. But the official pronouncement was that he 378 00:23:54,740 --> 00:23:59,340 Speaker 1: had died by suicide. That version of events traveled far 379 00:23:59,480 --> 00:24:03,720 Speaker 1: and wide. Even U.S. papers ran the story under the headline, 380 00:24:03,920 --> 00:24:08,270 Speaker 1: Mad King Ludwig, a Suicide. That account, which appeared in 381 00:24:08,290 --> 00:24:12,410 Speaker 1: the Philadelphia Times by a dispatch from Munich, includes pretty 382 00:24:12,450 --> 00:24:16,540 Speaker 1: compelling details that suggested what had happened. Quote, There are 383 00:24:16,720 --> 00:24:20,419 Speaker 1: evidences that a violent struggle occurred in the lake between 384 00:24:20,460 --> 00:24:23,199 Speaker 1: the king and the doctor in the endeavor of the 385 00:24:23,280 --> 00:24:27,740 Speaker 1: latter to rescue his patient. Many footprints can be seen 386 00:24:28,119 --> 00:24:30,520 Speaker 1: in the soil at the bottom of the lake near 387 00:24:30,560 --> 00:24:34,060 Speaker 1: where the bodies were found, and there are several bruises 388 00:24:34,260 --> 00:24:37,500 Speaker 1: on Dr. Gooden's face which were probably made by the 389 00:24:37,560 --> 00:24:41,730 Speaker 1: king's fingernails. The marks consist of two large and two 390 00:24:41,790 --> 00:24:44,730 Speaker 1: small scratches on the right side of the nose and forehead. 391 00:24:45,310 --> 00:24:49,900 Speaker 1: The king's nails exactly fit these scratches. Dr. Gooden must 392 00:24:49,940 --> 00:24:52,740 Speaker 1: have been forced beneath the water during the struggle as 393 00:24:52,800 --> 00:24:55,980 Speaker 1: the king's foot marks were traced further than the doctor's. 394 00:24:56,980 --> 00:25:00,270 Speaker 1: The umbrellas of both and the king's coat and overcoat, 395 00:25:01,030 --> 00:25:03,950 Speaker 1: which had evidently been torn from his body, were found 396 00:25:04,170 --> 00:25:06,450 Speaker 1: on the bank of the lake and led to the 397 00:25:06,490 --> 00:25:10,340 Speaker 1: discovery of the tragedy. So, in addition to the marks 398 00:25:10,380 --> 00:25:13,790 Speaker 1: that are already mentioned, the official record notes that Gooden 399 00:25:13,850 --> 00:25:19,150 Speaker 1: had marks on his neck that suggested strangulation. Although, just 400 00:25:19,170 --> 00:25:21,790 Speaker 1: to be clear, like, his body was not autopsied. Only 401 00:25:21,830 --> 00:25:25,830 Speaker 1: the King's was. But some people just didn't buy that account. 402 00:25:26,090 --> 00:25:28,990 Speaker 1: They believed that all of this was carefully crafted by 403 00:25:29,040 --> 00:25:33,930 Speaker 1: Ludwig's political enemies. There is some validity to that idea, but... 404 00:25:34,380 --> 00:25:37,720 Speaker 1: Because the same account also stated that once the report 405 00:25:37,859 --> 00:25:41,600 Speaker 1: claiming Ludwig was insane had been submitted, quote, the king 406 00:25:41,940 --> 00:25:45,100 Speaker 1: quietly submitted to the evidence of the medical commission and 407 00:25:45,180 --> 00:25:48,400 Speaker 1: left for Berg Castle. And that is not how that 408 00:25:48,440 --> 00:25:52,379 Speaker 1: had gone down. What exactly happened that evening is something 409 00:25:52,460 --> 00:25:55,960 Speaker 1: that people continue to debate. And just about every theory 410 00:25:56,060 --> 00:25:59,420 Speaker 1: and interpretation of the matter has proponents who will stay 411 00:25:59,619 --> 00:26:03,050 Speaker 1: confidently that it is the only possible truth. And we 412 00:26:03,090 --> 00:26:05,250 Speaker 1: actually need to backtrack a little bit to talk about 413 00:26:05,290 --> 00:26:07,650 Speaker 1: both the report and the drowning as we go forward 414 00:26:07,790 --> 00:26:10,550 Speaker 1: and the ways that those two are connected. Because just 415 00:26:10,630 --> 00:26:13,060 Speaker 1: as the deaths of these two men are debated today, 416 00:26:13,150 --> 00:26:16,980 Speaker 1: so too is the Gooden report and its ramifications. Because 417 00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:19,459 Speaker 1: the question of whether Gooden and the other doctors who 418 00:26:19,520 --> 00:26:23,300 Speaker 1: signed that report believed they were accurately capturing the state 419 00:26:23,320 --> 00:26:26,869 Speaker 1: of Ludwig's mental condition or if they were somehow conspirators 420 00:26:27,160 --> 00:26:31,430 Speaker 1: is its own mystery. The most popular and least sensational 421 00:26:31,470 --> 00:26:34,300 Speaker 1: theory about the drowning was that during the walk on 422 00:26:34,320 --> 00:26:38,340 Speaker 1: the evening of June 13th, Ludwig ran into the water, 423 00:26:38,460 --> 00:26:42,379 Speaker 1: intending to end his own life. Then the doctor chased 424 00:26:42,420 --> 00:26:45,919 Speaker 1: him and tried to stop him. The two men tussled, 425 00:26:46,160 --> 00:26:50,970 Speaker 1: and then either they both drowned as they struggled, or Ludwig, 426 00:26:51,030 --> 00:26:55,270 Speaker 1: who was quite strong, killed the doctor and then killed himself. 427 00:26:56,200 --> 00:26:59,360 Speaker 1: That's in line with the autopsy findings in the newspaper 428 00:26:59,400 --> 00:27:03,169 Speaker 1: version that we read a moment ago. A popular and 429 00:27:03,410 --> 00:27:06,850 Speaker 1: unsurprising theory is that Ludwig was assassinated by someone in 430 00:27:06,890 --> 00:27:10,490 Speaker 1: the Bavarian government to ensure that he didn't rally supporters 431 00:27:10,590 --> 00:27:13,629 Speaker 1: or cause any kind of trouble going forward. He was 432 00:27:13,850 --> 00:27:17,720 Speaker 1: actually pretty popular with a lot of people. This doesn't 433 00:27:17,780 --> 00:27:20,780 Speaker 1: seem all that far-fetched when the detail that Ludwig was 434 00:27:20,820 --> 00:27:24,399 Speaker 1: a very strong swimmer is introduced and that this happened 435 00:27:24,460 --> 00:27:26,830 Speaker 1: in only four feet of water. Of course, we know 436 00:27:26,930 --> 00:27:29,780 Speaker 1: people can drown in very tiny amounts of water, but 437 00:27:30,150 --> 00:27:32,500 Speaker 1: because he was known to love swimming and be good 438 00:27:32,560 --> 00:27:35,939 Speaker 1: at it, people are often a little incredulous about the 439 00:27:35,960 --> 00:27:40,100 Speaker 1: drowning theory. This theory also has many splinter theories that 440 00:27:40,140 --> 00:27:43,379 Speaker 1: offer varying specifics on the who and the how of 441 00:27:43,420 --> 00:27:45,679 Speaker 1: such an act. And there are a fair number of 442 00:27:45,740 --> 00:27:49,340 Speaker 1: historians who have been pretty convinced that foul play was involved. 443 00:27:49,920 --> 00:27:52,900 Speaker 1: Because while the official autopsy says there were no injuries 444 00:27:53,000 --> 00:27:56,700 Speaker 1: or bullet holes, that assessment has been called into question 445 00:27:56,740 --> 00:27:59,560 Speaker 1: with claims that that exam was rushed and that it 446 00:27:59,600 --> 00:28:02,859 Speaker 1: could have been falsified by the physician and the attending officials. 447 00:28:03,940 --> 00:28:09,080 Speaker 1: In 2007, the theories of assassination were once again reignited 448 00:28:09,180 --> 00:28:12,379 Speaker 1: when Der Spiegel ran a story about a man named 449 00:28:12,619 --> 00:28:17,240 Speaker 1: Detlev Uttermoor, who was 60 at that time, and claimed 450 00:28:17,280 --> 00:28:19,740 Speaker 1: that when he was 10, he attended a tea party 451 00:28:19,780 --> 00:28:23,500 Speaker 1: with his mother. And the hostess, who had access to 452 00:28:23,540 --> 00:28:28,320 Speaker 1: the Wittelsbach family property, produced a coat claimed to be 453 00:28:28,359 --> 00:28:31,090 Speaker 1: the one Ludwig had been wearing the night that he died. 454 00:28:31,109 --> 00:28:36,250 Speaker 1: This coat, according to Uttermull, had two bullet holes in 455 00:28:36,330 --> 00:28:39,989 Speaker 1: the back. That account was echoed by another account that 456 00:28:40,030 --> 00:28:45,150 Speaker 1: appeared in 2018 ahead of a documentary by filmmaker Klaus Bickelmeyer. 457 00:28:46,060 --> 00:28:50,070 Speaker 1: That documentary included an account of a 97-year-old man named 458 00:28:50,120 --> 00:28:53,130 Speaker 1: Willi Bael who lived on the estate of the Wittelsbach 459 00:28:53,170 --> 00:28:56,970 Speaker 1: family palace known as Nymphenburg in Munich with his parents 460 00:28:57,690 --> 00:29:02,250 Speaker 1: in 1961. So according to Bael, that year, his father, 461 00:29:02,520 --> 00:29:05,420 Speaker 1: who worked as a handyman on the property, was brought 462 00:29:05,600 --> 00:29:08,100 Speaker 1: a number of items from the palace and he was 463 00:29:08,220 --> 00:29:12,500 Speaker 1: ordered to burn those in the cellar stove. And those items, 464 00:29:12,560 --> 00:29:16,600 Speaker 1: he says, included a coat with two bullet holes. If 465 00:29:16,640 --> 00:29:18,980 Speaker 1: you tie this together with the tea party story we 466 00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:22,300 Speaker 1: just mentioned, because I'm sure you're doing calendar math right now, 467 00:29:22,660 --> 00:29:24,790 Speaker 1: that puts them just four years apart with the tea 468 00:29:24,830 --> 00:29:29,830 Speaker 1: party happening four years before this burning incident. It was, 469 00:29:29,910 --> 00:29:33,170 Speaker 1: of course, after that information was allegedly leaked to a 470 00:29:33,190 --> 00:29:36,690 Speaker 1: group of ladies and one little boy. These accounts could 471 00:29:36,750 --> 00:29:41,860 Speaker 1: be silenced pretty quickly as incorrect. if Ludwig's body, which 472 00:29:41,900 --> 00:29:44,080 Speaker 1: is in a crypt in St. Michael's Church in Munich, 473 00:29:44,220 --> 00:29:46,840 Speaker 1: were exhumed, but the family will not allow it. I 474 00:29:46,880 --> 00:29:50,320 Speaker 1: did see one interview with the director of that documentary 475 00:29:50,380 --> 00:29:53,050 Speaker 1: who said, there are ways you could do a scan 476 00:29:53,110 --> 00:29:55,450 Speaker 1: on the coffin without ever opening it that would probably 477 00:29:55,490 --> 00:29:59,390 Speaker 1: give us enough information, but they are not into it. 478 00:30:00,180 --> 00:30:04,240 Speaker 1: If there was an assassination, the logic is that Gooden 479 00:30:04,280 --> 00:30:08,840 Speaker 1: was killed to eliminate any witness to the crime. His body, 480 00:30:09,040 --> 00:30:12,080 Speaker 1: as we said, was not autopsied. There were just superficial 481 00:30:12,360 --> 00:30:15,450 Speaker 1: observations of the scratches and the bruising on his face 482 00:30:15,590 --> 00:30:19,110 Speaker 1: and neck. But if Gooden was killed to keep him quiet, 483 00:30:19,290 --> 00:30:22,110 Speaker 1: there are some interpretations of the facts of the case 484 00:30:22,150 --> 00:30:25,530 Speaker 1: that suggest that he sealed his own fate in colluding 485 00:30:25,870 --> 00:30:30,410 Speaker 1: with Ludwig's detractors. And whether he intentionally cooked his assessment 486 00:30:30,490 --> 00:30:33,520 Speaker 1: to appease people in power, or whether he simply got 487 00:30:33,560 --> 00:30:36,620 Speaker 1: things wrong by trusting the statements of the people interviewed 488 00:30:36,980 --> 00:30:40,620 Speaker 1: about Ludwig's state of mind, that is another debate. On 489 00:30:40,660 --> 00:30:44,380 Speaker 1: the one hand, of course, any clinician should make a 490 00:30:44,460 --> 00:30:47,960 Speaker 1: thorough examination of a patient. But on the other, would 491 00:30:48,030 --> 00:30:50,930 Speaker 1: he have been able to insist on such an exam 492 00:30:51,010 --> 00:30:54,450 Speaker 1: of a monarch? And considering the circumstances, could he have 493 00:30:54,510 --> 00:30:59,910 Speaker 1: expected any kind of cooperation, even if he did insist? Regardless, 494 00:31:00,510 --> 00:31:04,530 Speaker 1: modern physicians who have examined Gooden's report, the statements used 495 00:31:04,550 --> 00:31:07,510 Speaker 1: to compile it, and the autopsy notes that included a 496 00:31:07,550 --> 00:31:11,750 Speaker 1: lot of information about the king's skull and brain, believe 497 00:31:11,890 --> 00:31:16,080 Speaker 1: that even if Gooden was behaving in earnest, his diagnosis 498 00:31:16,190 --> 00:31:19,740 Speaker 1: is not quite correct. This has more to do with 499 00:31:19,880 --> 00:31:23,860 Speaker 1: deeper understanding of these conditions today than anything else, but 500 00:31:23,900 --> 00:31:27,060 Speaker 1: they also reflect information that Gooden would not have had 501 00:31:27,220 --> 00:31:33,160 Speaker 1: access to, specifically that autopsy. The information about Ludwig's brain 502 00:31:33,420 --> 00:31:37,400 Speaker 1: and skull would certainly have been of interest to Gooden 503 00:31:37,440 --> 00:31:42,500 Speaker 1: given his work in craniology and cerebral anatomy. Ludwig's low 504 00:31:42,580 --> 00:31:45,830 Speaker 1: brain weight and his behavior in his final years suggest 505 00:31:45,870 --> 00:31:48,600 Speaker 1: to some that he may have had Pick's disease, which 506 00:31:48,640 --> 00:31:52,100 Speaker 1: is a type of frontotemporal dementia that typically appears in 507 00:31:52,140 --> 00:31:55,430 Speaker 1: people between the ages of 40 and 60. It's considered 508 00:31:55,470 --> 00:31:58,850 Speaker 1: an early-onset dementia, and Ludwig was 40 when he died. 509 00:31:59,750 --> 00:32:03,110 Speaker 1: It leads to rapid personal and behavioral changes, which could 510 00:32:03,150 --> 00:32:06,470 Speaker 1: account for that violent behavior that was not characteristic of 511 00:32:06,530 --> 00:32:10,190 Speaker 1: him in the years before. It could also account for 512 00:32:10,230 --> 00:32:13,840 Speaker 1: the possible murder of Guten if Ludwig did it. However, 513 00:32:14,160 --> 00:32:18,560 Speaker 1: all of that is still just conjecture. even with analysis 514 00:32:18,600 --> 00:32:22,680 Speaker 1: by professionals. A paper published in the European Archive of 515 00:32:22,720 --> 00:32:27,620 Speaker 1: Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience in 2021 by Reinhard Steinberg and 516 00:32:27,640 --> 00:32:30,820 Speaker 1: Peter Falkai put it this way, quote, when attempting to 517 00:32:30,960 --> 00:32:35,700 Speaker 1: answer this question, one enters the minefield of retrospective diagnosis. 518 00:32:36,340 --> 00:32:39,580 Speaker 1: Imposing today's knowledge on the possible medical knowledge of that 519 00:32:39,640 --> 00:32:43,360 Speaker 1: time often results in a false picture, like the drawing 520 00:32:43,480 --> 00:32:48,840 Speaker 1: of a caricature. So, whether Dr. Gooden traded his professional 521 00:32:48,860 --> 00:32:52,620 Speaker 1: reputation for some sort of deal with Ludwig's political enemies, 522 00:32:53,320 --> 00:32:55,980 Speaker 1: or whether he was duped in some way and believed 523 00:32:56,040 --> 00:32:59,090 Speaker 1: himself to be acting in the best interests of Bavaria, 524 00:32:59,920 --> 00:33:04,050 Speaker 1: or something else, we will never know. We also won't 525 00:33:04,130 --> 00:33:08,270 Speaker 1: ever know with 100% certainty how he died, most likely. 526 00:33:09,180 --> 00:33:11,980 Speaker 1: but he will be forever tied to Ludwig II and 527 00:33:12,020 --> 00:33:16,700 Speaker 1: those last brief tragic weeks of the king's life. Despite 528 00:33:16,980 --> 00:33:20,880 Speaker 1: having been built only for Ludwig to enjoy, Neuschwanstein Castle 529 00:33:20,920 --> 00:33:24,360 Speaker 1: was opened to the public on August 1st, 1886, just 530 00:33:24,440 --> 00:33:27,560 Speaker 1: weeks after he died. And in the years since, it 531 00:33:27,700 --> 00:33:32,000 Speaker 1: and Ludwig's other expensive construction projects have paid for themselves 532 00:33:32,680 --> 00:33:35,840 Speaker 1: many times over in tourism dollars and have really become 533 00:33:35,880 --> 00:33:40,220 Speaker 1: the backbone of Bavaria's cultural identity. There are many people 534 00:33:40,300 --> 00:33:44,260 Speaker 1: who honor Ludwig each year on June 13th, believing him 535 00:33:44,380 --> 00:33:47,380 Speaker 1: to have been wrongfully removed from his reign and to 536 00:33:47,420 --> 00:33:52,500 Speaker 1: have been murdered. We'll talk about some of that on Friday. Yeah. 537 00:33:54,680 --> 00:33:59,150 Speaker 1: Do you have listener mail? I do. This is from 538 00:33:59,210 --> 00:34:04,380 Speaker 1: our listener, Lisa, and it's about candy. Lisa writes, Hi, 539 00:34:04,520 --> 00:34:07,160 Speaker 1: I just finished listening to your episode on eponymous candy 540 00:34:07,200 --> 00:34:09,920 Speaker 1: bars and wanted to recommend a side quest if you're 541 00:34:09,960 --> 00:34:12,859 Speaker 1: ever in the Las Vegas area. A couple of years ago, 542 00:34:12,900 --> 00:34:15,380 Speaker 1: I went there for vacation and I booked a chocolate 543 00:34:15,400 --> 00:34:18,279 Speaker 1: tasting at a local establishment away from the Strip that 544 00:34:18,320 --> 00:34:22,020 Speaker 1: had a very festive cactus garden you can tour. As 545 00:34:22,080 --> 00:34:25,080 Speaker 1: it turns out, Ethel M. Chocolates is named for its 546 00:34:25,140 --> 00:34:29,770 Speaker 1: founder's mother, Ethel Mars. Forrest Mars retired to the desert 547 00:34:29,830 --> 00:34:32,469 Speaker 1: in the late 70s and started this new brand in 548 00:34:32,530 --> 00:34:35,530 Speaker 1: her honor. I won't do the story the same justice 549 00:34:35,690 --> 00:34:37,670 Speaker 1: that they do when they tell it at the tasting, 550 00:34:37,969 --> 00:34:40,089 Speaker 1: but it was a pleasant surprise to learn about such 551 00:34:40,130 --> 00:34:43,140 Speaker 1: a historical connection, and I recommend it to anyone I 552 00:34:43,200 --> 00:34:46,500 Speaker 1: know who is visiting the area, especially around the holidays. 553 00:34:46,840 --> 00:34:49,080 Speaker 1: Thank you for all you do, Lisa. Everybody put this 554 00:34:49,140 --> 00:34:51,800 Speaker 1: on your list because it sounds great. I have a 555 00:34:51,840 --> 00:34:54,120 Speaker 1: complicated relationship with Las Vegas. I don't love it the 556 00:34:54,160 --> 00:34:59,390 Speaker 1: way people do, but this I would go for. If 557 00:34:59,469 --> 00:35:01,620 Speaker 1: you have side quests you would like to recommend to 558 00:35:01,700 --> 00:35:05,340 Speaker 1: us or just something you want to discuss or nothing 559 00:35:05,380 --> 00:35:06,660 Speaker 1: at all, you just want to send us a picture 560 00:35:06,700 --> 00:35:13,060 Speaker 1: of your cat, dog, tarantula, lizard, pony. Maybe you have 561 00:35:13,100 --> 00:35:16,279 Speaker 1: a flea circus. You could do that at History Podcast 562 00:35:16,340 --> 00:35:19,490 Speaker 1: at iHeartRadio.com. If you would like to see the show 563 00:35:19,550 --> 00:35:22,049 Speaker 1: notes for today's episode or any of the episodes that 564 00:35:22,090 --> 00:35:24,549 Speaker 1: we put together in the years that Tracy and I 565 00:35:24,570 --> 00:35:26,430 Speaker 1: have been on it, I think we have most of those. 566 00:35:27,100 --> 00:35:30,920 Speaker 1: You can do that at MissedInHistory.com. You can also subscribe 567 00:35:30,940 --> 00:35:33,990 Speaker 1: to the show on the iHeartRadio app or anywhere you 568 00:35:34,010 --> 00:35:41,930 Speaker 1: choose to listen to your favorite shows. Stuff You Missed 569 00:35:41,989 --> 00:35:45,140 Speaker 1: in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. For more 570 00:35:45,180 --> 00:35:49,600 Speaker 1: podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or 571 00:35:49,620 --> 00:35:51,440 Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows.