Story perspectives

250th-Anniversary Exhibits Show George III as Bipolar Monarch

6/4/2026

Summary

Story summary

New scholarship and museum exhibits recast King George III as a constitutional monarch for America’s 250th birthday.
Historian Andrew Roberts, analyzing 100,000 Georgian documents, says the king had bipolar Type 1 disorder, not porphyria.
The Library of Congress opened the “Two Georges” exhibit, pairing George III with George Washington.
The Museum of the American Revolution displayed a gallery of early American affection for George III, using items from the 2015 release of 280,000 Georgian papers.

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Story summary

New scholarship and museum exhibits recast King George III as a constitutional monarch for America’s 250th birthday.
Historian Andrew Roberts, analyzing 100,000 Georgian documents, says the king had bipolar Type 1 disorder, not porphyria.
The Library of Congress opened the “Two Georges” exhibit, pairing George III with George Washington.
The Museum of the American Revolution displayed a gallery of early American affection for George III, using items from the 2015 release of 280,000 Georgian papers.