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The first in a trilogy of programmes presented by the historian Lucy Worsley which studies the medical problems of monarchs with the premise that by looking at their belongings and letters we can tell their intimate secrets - and these are what defined their actions. Worsley's first artefact is a pisspot excavated from Henry VIII's privy garden at Hampton Court. She considers the many ways that the king may have tried to boost his sperm count when it was clear that his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, was unlikely to bear him further children after she reached the age of 40. Several wives later, he had his desired son - Edward. Edward was the first monarch to write an intimate diary; he wrote about the injustices of being a child monarch and complained about his guardian and uncle (Somerset). He died at 15 after contracting a fever (probably tuberculosis). His elder sister Mary became queen and 3 months after she was married, she became pregnant. As was the custom she retired from public view. However, despite all appearances, she never had a baby. A text about childbirth at the time by Eucharius Rösslin (The Birth of Mankind) was available in English but there were no diagnostic tests for pregnancy and Mary would not have been examined so no one knows whether this was a phantom pregnancy She died 3 years later, probably of cancer. Elizabeth I is side-stepped. Next Worsley looks at the Stuart dynasty; King James and his heir. From contemporary accounts it was clear that James preferred the company of young men which changed the nature of court-life; his favourite was Buckingham. James' heir, Henry was a robust youth but he contracted typhoid and died. The next in line, Charles I had a problem walking as a child and he had orthopaedic boots made for him (attributed to rickets). By accounts he was very introverted as a person, growing up in the shadow of his preferred elder brother; he had a stammer. Political unrest and the civil war put a temporary end to the British monarchy.

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 1.Tudors to Stuarts: From Gods to Men.

The second in a trilogy of programmes presented by the historian Lucy Worsley which studies the medical problems of monarchs with the premise that by looking at their belongings and letters we can tell their intimate secrets - and these are what defined their actions. Starting with Stuart II, Worsley charts the evolution of the monarchy and identfies William and Mary as being the harbingers of our modern monarchy. William refused to perform the 'King's touch', a widely held belief that the king alone could cure the King's Evil (srofula). They were cousins and William had a slight hunch-back and suffered from chronic ill-health. Mary, more robust and taller than stature, never fell pregnant which became a heavy burden to her psychologically. She wrote that being queen was a heavy burden and a task to be endured. She contracted smallpox aged 32 and died.William suffered complications as a result of a riding accident. Parliament chose Mary's sister, Anne to succeed her. In her16 years as queen she had 17 pregnancies; 12 she miscarried and her eldest lived to only 11. There was a suggestion that Anne, despite her flattering portraiture was very overweight and suffered from gout. At the time, forceps were in use and a text about midwifery by Jane Sharp entitled 'The Whole Art of Midwifry Discovered'. Medicine was still heavily dependent on the humours of Hippocratic medicine. Queen Anne had a complex relationship with Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough. Anne was succeeded by Georg Ludwig of Hanover (George I). He had two children and his son who became George II had 8 healthy children with his wife Caroline. Unfortunately with so many members of the royal family, feuding was rife. The king and queen had the right to witness the birth of their grandchild; their estranged son and heir, Frederick, contrived for this not to happen. Worsley discusses the psychological strain of being the adult son and heir and running a parallel court. Caroline died of an acute umblical hernia - it took 10 days for her to die. George suffered from angina and chest pains - he died of a heart attach. Drawings of his diseased and autopsied heart were published. George's heir, Frederick pre-decseased him - he died of a blood clot on his lung. George was succeeded by his grandson, George III and although his reign is often characterised as being that of 'mad' King George, he did rule for 60 years. Dr Peter Garrard from St George's Hospital, University of London, points to new evidence (studying his letters and handwriting) that he had bi-polar disorder or depression. He was only fully incapacitated at the end of his reign. He had 15 children and was succeeded by George IV who was overweight, self-indulgent and debached. He was addicted to alcohol and drugs. Worsley speculates that his rebellious behaviour arose from his disciplinarian education. Later in life his waist is estimated at 54 inches; he died of a burst blood vessel in his stomach.

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 2. Bad Blood: Stuarts to Hanoverians.

The third and final programme in a trilogy of programmes presented by the historian Lucy Worsley which studies the medical problems of monarchs with the premise that by looking at their belongings and letters we can tell their intimate secrets - and these are what defined their actions. The programme starts with the tragic story of Princess Charlotte who died in childbirth. She was attended by Sir Richard Croft, a leading male midwife who left a minute by minute account of the birth. Meconium was detected and her son was stillborn 50 hours after labour had started. They tried to revive the baby. Charlotte later haemhorraged and died. William IV died ignominiously after 7 years rule and the throne went to Victoria. Victoria was kept under lock and key with all her movements and contacts controlled; her mother called 'the Kensington System'. Before she became queen she had a serious illness which may have been typhoid or possibly stress. In any case, her personality was willful and imperious. Her eldest son, Bertie (Prince Albert), was at 8 years old considered to be a bit slow. A leading phrenologist was engaged and expressed concerns about the shape of his head which was thought to influence intelligence. There was speculation that George III's unfavourable heredity (his 'madness') had been passed on. The queen's husband, Albert contracted typhoid at 42 and died leading to Victoria withdrawing from state affairs in an extreme form of grief and what is now thought to be clinical depression. Dr Jenner, her physician, published anonymous excuses for her health in the medical journal 'The Lancet'. The programme then looks at the roots of the modern royal family in the twentieth century.

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 3. Happy Families: Hanoverians to Windsors.

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Worsley, Lucy

Catalogue

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 1.Tudors to Stuarts: From Gods to Men.

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 2. Bad Blood: Stuarts to Hanoverians.

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 3. Happy Families: Hanoverians to Windsors.

Wellcome uses cookies.

Worsley, Lucy

Catalogue

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 1.Tudors to Stuarts: From Gods to Men.

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 2. Bad Blood: Stuarts to Hanoverians.

Fit to rule : how royal illness changed medical history. Part 3. Happy Families: Hanoverians to Windsors.

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