by Edgar Rice Burroughs (Author)
The Mad King by Edgar Rice Burroughs. The Mad King is a Ruritanian romance by "Tarzan" creator Edgar Rice Burroughs, originally published in two parts as "The Mad King" and "Barney Custer of Beatrice" in All-Story Weekly, in 1914 and 1915, respectively. The story is Burrough's version of the then popular Ruritanian romance exemplified by Anthony Hope's The Prisoner of Zenda and its sequel Rupert of Hentzau. Set in Europe immediately before and during World War I, Burroughs' story differs from the Hope books in a number of details, though sharing much of their basic plot. The main difference between this story and Hope's two books is the portrayal of the rightful king as an actual antagonist to Barney, especially in the second part of the book, where he is as much a villain as Prince Peter and the Austrians. The other significant difference is the fact that the protagonist lives happily ever after with his princess, unlike the far more tragic ending of the "Zenda" series. Also, in The Mad King, Prince Peter is a clear villain, unlike Hope's more nuanced Duke Michael, who apparently is popular with the commoners. In Burroughs's story the role of the common people's hero is taken by a secondary character, Prince Von Der Tann; Prince Peter is universally reviled.