4 diseases that marked the lives of historical personalities

The world we live in today owes much to historical figures who have had to overcome major obstacles in their personal lives to help build modern society. The life story of these figures from the past is sometimes marked by pain, chronic illness, and various sufferings, which eventually merge with their own stories, revealing surprising facets of each character.

1. Epilepsy

Julius Caesar, the famous Roman general and politician, suffered from epilepsy, as Plutarch recorded in his biographical work on the heroes of antiquity. However, we do not know the intensity or frequency of the epileptic seizures affecting the Roman leader. The list of historical characters who suffered from the disease also includes Caligula, Roman emperor, and Lenin, leader of the Russian Revolution.

2. Renal Calculus

French thinker Michel de Montaigne, creator of the essay as a literary genre, took refuge in his castle to write the Essays, his masterpiece. He suffered from terrible kidney cramps, a hereditary problem that marked him all his life. It is speculated that Michelangelo, a well-known Italian painter and sculptor, also had recurrent kidney stone attacks.

3. Arthritis

In addition, Michelangelo also suffered from arthritis, facing many difficulties to develop his works, as reported by correspondences exchanged by the artist. The presence of this rheumatic disease shows the irony of fate, since the pains that the renowned figure of the Renaissance suffered may have arisen due to overwork.

4. Poliomyelitis

The disease, which has afflicted a huge population contingent throughout recent history, also suffered no less than Franklin Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States. He is known to have implemented the New Deal, which was a set of measures responsible for restoring the American economy after the Great Crisis of 1929. In 1921, while still a candidate for office, he was diagnosed with the disease, which could, including justifying an end point in his political career. She remained wheelchair dependent while she ruled the country and lived with the situation with the utmost discretion, which explains the absence of images of him exposing her condition.