What was wrong with Mary todd?

Answer 1

She was very likely, Bipolar.

Mary Todd Lincoln often gets a "bad rap" from historians and there is no doubt, she was a troubled woman. She also was a remarkable woman, who endured more than most, and was a wonderful partner to her husband, who stood by him, loyally to the end.

Mary was well educated, and refined, opinionated, kind, a good mother, a good friend, and could be a social disaster, at times, as well as, cruel to her husband.

During her marriage to Abraham Lincoln, 2 of her 4 sons died. Her son Edward, "Eddy" died just before his 4th birthday, and her son William Wallace, "Willie", died when he was 11. Her husband, had just been inaugurated President, for a second term, was shot in the head, as she was holding his hand, and watching a play (along with another couple.), in a well-known theater. Her husband did not die right away, but was comatose for a gruelling 9 hours before his death.

After her husband's death, she moved to Germany, briefly, while she battled congress for a widow's pension, which resulted in success. She was awarded $3,000.00 a year, and returned to the United States, and settled in Chicago with sons, Tad and Bob. The same year she returned, tragedy struck again, when Tad just 18 years old, died (likely from Tuberculosis). Given just these three events, this is more than most people EVER face, in a lifetime. It is no wonder that Mary Todd Lincoln, had trouble coping.