Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is a spin-off of the Netflix hit show, Bridgerton. It navigates the journey of Queen Charlotte being married into high society and eventually securing her place as the Queen of England. Young Charlotte, played by India Ria Amarteifio, must grapple with her newfound role and find her place within the palace walls. The popular Netflix show also dives into King George III’s hallucinations and mental illness, which he hides from outsiders, including Charlotte. His condition has been hidden, ever since childhood, for the sake of the sanctity of the crown.
However, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story only manages to scratch the surface of King George III’s mental health. He was nicknamed “The Mad King” due to his declining health and frequent confusion. However, dark details of his actual condition were left out, perhaps to keep the show more digestible, given the broad audience the show harbors. Here is the grim detail about King George the show selectively omits.
King George Had Hallucinations of His Dead Children
The Bridgerton spin-off offers viewers glimpses into the life of Queen Charlotte as she deals with the shock of finding out her husband’s condition, and the difficulties their marriage faces due to it. However, the show leaves out his frequent mood swings, aggressive behavior, and conversations with the dead, especially his dead children. He often also has hallucinations of speaking to angels as though he were dead. The show briefly touches on this in the scene in the palace garden where he thinks to have encountered the goddess Venus.
Given the unsettling reality of King George’s condition, played by Corey Mylchreest, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story treads lightly with the details of his illness. His hallucinations were significantly unsettling, the true extent of which was not depicted in the series. Given his state and determination to improve, he even subjects himself to a horrifying ‘treatment’ at the hands of Doctor Monro.
The Loss of Princess Amelia
A particularly dark fact that was intentionally left out was when King Georg III speaks to his dead daughter, Princess Amelia. A loss so significant that he was unable to bear it. Having been the youngest child, Princess Amelia’s untimely death greatly impacted King George and his mental condition. This also led him to speak incoherently to himself for hours on end.
While Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story does not touch upon this particular episode in his life explicitly, viewers are shown a subtle scene where Queen Charlotte has to remind him of his daughter’s death. King George’s mental state becomes particularly heartbreaking and tragic through the utilized artistic choices. His declining health, depicted as a psychiatric condition, was termed madness at the time. This eventually led to his son taking up his role as monarch.
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