| Address |
| Beckenham, England |
| |
| Information |
Bedlam
The term Bedlam derives originally from the Bethlem Royal Hospital in London, England, founded in 1247. It was the world's first psychiatric hospital and is infamous for its brutal treatment of its inmates. Aside from the deplorable conditions they live in, the patients were subjected to public scorn of those who were allowed in (for a fee) in the 19th century to gawk, laugh and aggravate the patients. They were even allowed to bring in long sticks to poke the patients.
Boys of Bedlam
It is widely rumored that some of the more "fortunate" inmates were discharged from the hospital and were given license to beg on the streets of London. They were identifiable by the tin plate that they wore on their arms. These people became known as the Bedlam Beggars, Abraham-Men, Bedlamers, Bedlamites or Tom O'Bedlam. The current belief is that these beggars were nothing more than impostors that faked a mental illness for public sympathy.
Regardless, that didn't stop these beggars from appearing in various literary works of the time, like in King Lear when one character assumes the identity of a Bedlam Beggar to avoid detection. Another literary work was a 1600's anonymously written poem titled Tom O'Bedlam, which proved to be so popular that other ballads were written in response, including Bedlam Boys, also known as Mad Maudlin's Search for Her Tom of Bedlam and Boys of Bedlam, among others.
Re-Location
This location is not the original location of the hospital. It has moved several times over the years before finally reaching its current location in 1930. Its original location is now occupied by the railway station, Liverpool Street Station. |
| |
| GPS Interface |
Save Waypoint to Garmin Device.
|
|
| |
| User Trips |
| There are no user trips associated with this location. |
| |
| Related Sites |
Bethlem Royal Hospital: Archives & Museum
The official site for the Archives/Museum portion of Bethlem Royal Hospital (Bedlam), one of the oldest mental health facilities in the world. The site offers the current hours of operation and information on their exhibits. |
| |
| Similar Destinations |
| Mutter Museum |
| Day the Music Died Crash Site |
| The Burns Archive |
| |
| See Also on TheCabinet.com |
| Track of the Day - 2/28/2007 |
| Uncle Dirtytoes - "Boys of Bedlam" |
| |
| Available from Amazon.com |
The History of Bethlem Hospital |
Bedlam |
Presumed Curable: An Illustrated Casebook of Victorian Psychiatric Patients in Bethlem Hospital |
Scenes from Bedlam: A History of the Bethlem Royal and Maudsley Hospitals |
| |
