Editing Ferdinand VI (section)

===Death===
During his last year of reign, Ferdinand VI was rapidly losing his mental capacity and he was held in the [[Castle of Villaviciosa de Odón]] until his death on 10 August 1759. That period of time between August 1758 and August 1759 is known in Spanish historiography as the year without a king, due to the absence of the royal figure as ruler. The cause of the disease is still debated. 
Some authors suggest that the king suffered a [[Depression (mood)|depressive]] episode. The death of his wife Barbara, who had been devoted to him, and who carefully abstained from political intrigue, broke his heart. Between the date of her death in August 1758 and his own on 10 August 1759, he fell into a state of prostration in which he would not even dress, but wandered unshaven, unwashed and in a nightgown about his park.<ref name="EB1911" />

Another opinion is that Ferdinand VI suffered a rapidly progressive clinical syndrome where behavioral disorganization with [[apathy]] and [[impulsivity]], loss of judgment, and [[epileptic seizures]] of the right [[frontal lobe]] semiology were predominant. This semiology is highly suggestive of a right frontal lobe syndrome.<ref>{{cite web|first1=Fernández Menéndez|last1=Santiago|title=Estudio de la enfermedad del rey Fernando VI|url=http://digibuo.uniovi.es/dspace/bitstream/10651/54075/2/TD_SantiagoFernandezMenendez.pdf|work=Tesis doctoral. Universidad de Oviedo}}</ref>

As the couple had no children, Ferdinand VI was succeeded as King by his half-brother [[Charles III of Spain|Charles III]].