Dr. Amadeus Arkham was prominent doctor in Gotham City during the time of Solomon Wayne. He was best remembered as the founder of Arkham Asylum, a psychiatric hospital he'd opened following the brutal murder of his family. Arkham lost his sanity after killing his family's killer Martin "Mad Dog" Hawkins during treatment, eventually being locked up in his own facility. During Batman's time of operations, Arkham's spirit apparently came back from the dead to continue his work.
Biography[]
Amadeus Arkham was at university during Cyrus Pinkney's lifetime. The two quickly became associates and began formulating ideas for a mental hospital in Gotham. Towards Pinkney's forty-fourth birthday, both he and Arkham learned of a plot to assassinate him by Henry Cobblepot over debt the architect. They soon formulated a plan to instead replace the poisoned wine with another, drugged with a chemical which simulated a death-like state. The plan was successful, with Pinkley later taking Cobblepot's life and making it look like an accident.[1]
After his mother's death from dementia, Arkham began work on the Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane to treat growing "filth". According to an account from the "Spirit of Arkham", he visited various cities such as Keystone and Metropolis, learning their about various fields and treatments for mental health. Upon returning to Gotham, Arkham found his wife and family brutally murdered. In the midst of grief, Arkham was shown the culprit: Martin "Mad Dog" Hawkins. As he listened to the man's admission to the murders and other unspeakable crimes, Arkham decided to treat him out of pity, making him the first inmate of his asylum.[2]
According to the Spirit, Arkham was able to treat Hawkins and eventually declared him sane. On the day he was set to be discharged, he listened to the man's plans for release. However, Hawkins' illness apparently lapsed back and he stabbed Arkham's secretary to death with the pen he would have used to sign his release signature on. Readmitting him into therapy, Arkham would later kill Hawkins in an "accident" during electroshock therapy.[3] Following Hawkins' death, Arkham was diagnosed with delusional schizophrenia, leading him to be imprisoned in a cell in the Arkham Manor. Arkham spent the rest of his life in the very asylum he'd spent his whole life creating.[2]
Legacy[]
Amadeus Arkham's grave on Arkham Island
Arkham's body was buried in the East of Arkham Island between the Mansion and its Botanical Gardens.[2] Arkham Asylum was later shut down years before Batman's operations in Gotham, though was soon reopened after successful lobbying from figures like Quincy Sharp (possibly under the League of Assassins' influence).[1] The Asylum, though previously well known for Arkham's fall and failing other inmates like Hawkins, soon became a prison for many so-called supervillains in Gotham, including the Joker, Killer Croc, Poison Ivy, Victor Zsasz and the Scarecrow. Similarly, other staff like Harleen Quinzel would lose their sanity like Arkham, becoming involved in criminal behavior.[2]
At some point after its reopening, Arkham's spirit apparently returned back to the Asylum, targeting patients within the modern asylum. The individual, Warden Quincy Sharp, took to writing accounts of Arkham's life and eventually his own activities under the "Spirit's influence".[3] In reality, Sharp was actually under the control of psychologist Hugo Strange, who was testing mind-control and brainwashing techniques on him. Under his influence, Sharp would shut down Arkham Asylum to open a new Arkham City prison.[4] By Batman's apparent last night of operations, the Asylum had become more well known for the super-criminals it failed to hold rather than Amadeus and his attempts to clean the "filth" from Gotham.[5]
Journals[]
Batman Arkham Asylum "Dr. Amadeus" Trailer
In the "Dr. Amadeus" trailer for Batman: Arkham Asylum, Amadeus' journals appear in one of the trailers detailing his deteriorating sanity. The canonicity of these journals are unknown, with some details appearing to contradict accounts from "the Spirit of Arkham":
- Journal Entry #1, June 4th, 1920
- "Mother is dead. Dementia took her. With my knowledge, I can begin working to cure the world's ailments. The name 'Amadeus Arkham' will become legendary."
- Journal Entry #2, September, 1920
- "A radical step must be taken to combat Gotham City's diseased."
- Journal Entry #3, February, 1921
- "Construction has begun on the Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the criminally insane. Finally, I will be able to treat my patients properly."
- Journal Entry #4, April 1st, 1921
- "Returned home today to find my family murdered by my patient Martin Hawkins. I feel oddly detached."
- Journal Entry #5, September 17th, 1921
- "Today, I begin treatment of Martin Hawkins. I will rehabilitate this man."
- Journal Entry #6, April 2nd, 1922
- "During treatment with Hawkins, I resorted to...extreme measures. It proved more than he could sustain."
- Journal Entry #7, June 4th, 1923
- "Gotham City is lost. The lunatics are irrepressible. Incurable. The only sensible treatment: Eradication."
- Journal Entry #8, October 18th, 1923
- "Am I a doctor, or a murderer? I can no longer differentiate. I will give my last breath to deal with the filth that infects Gotham City!"
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Batman: Arkham Origins
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Batman: Arkham Asylum
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Batman: Arkham Asylum: Chronicles of Arkham
- ↑ Batman: Arkham City
- ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight