As psychiatric disorders go, few are stranger to me than “Glass Delusion,” which is when the sufferer honestly thinks they are made of glass, meaning that any kind of rough treatment, could cause them to break, thereby bringing about their demise. Glass delusion was a psychiatric condition observed in Europe during the late Middle Ages and early modern period (15th to 17th centuries).
During the 16th and 17th centuries in Europe, glass became a highly prized material, seen as both magical and alchemical, the medieval forerunner of chemistry. Its association with fragility and luxury shaped how noblemen viewed their privileged roles in society. This fascination with a new material played a part in the rise of a unique delusion. Edward Shorter, a psychiatry historian from the University of Toronto, suggests that this delusion in 17th-century Europe was tied to the novelty of glass, noting that “throughout history, the inventive unconscious mind has pegged its delusions on to new materials and the technological advances of the age.” To most of us that seems strange and far-fetched, but delusions of the mind rarely make sense.
Glass delusion was mostly concentration among the wealthy and educated classes, which allowed modern 
scholars to associate it with a wider and better described disorder of melancholy. Of course, like many other delusions, it was based of fear, and usually a fear of death. Fear is never a good thing, but when the fear is completely unfounded, it quickly escalates, and for the wealthy, maybe the things to fear are more profound that the rest of us. Nevertheless, the mind has to be susceptible to psychosis in order to have the delusion take hold.
Apparently, King Charles VI of France was one sufferer of glass delusion. He believed he was made of glass. On a scorching August day in 1392, King Charles VI traveled through a forest near Le Mans in northwest France, accompanied by a group of knights and retainers, heading on a mission to Brittany. Eager to confront the enemy, the 23-year-old monarch was known for his intense energy, which would likely be considered somewhere between bi-polar and psychotic today. On that day, his overwhelming energy reached its peak, and when a page boy accidentally dropped a lance, the loud clang drove the Gallic ruler into a wild frenzy. Swinging his sword aimlessly, he accidentally killed five of his own knights before being pulled from his horse and restrained. This event, recorded as Charles’s first psychotic episode, was described by the Religieux de Saint-Denis as resulting from fear of persecution, delusion, and uncontrollable violence. From that point on he was dubbed ‘Charles the Mad’ and at times reportedly failed to recognize his wife and children and would dash madly around the palace. In November 1405, Charles who after refusing to wash for five months was covered in infected sores and lice was forcibly bathed at the behest of the king’s physician.
People affected by the glass delusion normally believed that parts of their body, like their head, arms, or buttocks, were made of glass. It was believed that King Charles VI as possibly the first known case of someone believing their entire body was composed of glass. The future Pope Pius II described Charles VI’s condition: “His illness worsened daily until he lost his mind entirely. At times, he believed he was made of glass and avoided being touched. He even had iron rods sewn into his clothes and took various precautions to prevent himself from falling and shattering.” It was likely the strangest psychotic break known to man.
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