History Main / ManInTheIronMask

* In ''ComicBook/Superboy1949'' #5, [[EvilChancellor Norvello]] gets an iron mask locked over Queen Lucy's head and melts the key. His plan was to keep Lucy masked and locked up while he carried out a smear campaign against her, but ComicBook/{{Superboy}} exposes his plan and then releases and unmasks Lucy.
* ''ComicBook/TheWarlordDC'': Travis Morgan is captured and imprisoned by Deimos while an IdenticalStranger usurps his position as Warlord of Skartaris. An iron mask is locked over Morgan's head to prevent his gaolers learning his true identity.

Sometimes this is justified on the grounds that shedding RoyalBlood has side-effects, or that the land [[FisherKing will suffer]] if the rightful king dies. Non-magically speaking, it could be that EvenEvilHasLovedOnes and the Evil Prince is not evil enough to turn into a new [[CainAndAbel Cain]] or the rightful ruler voluntarily went into exile as part of a deal and IGaveMyWord because EvenEvilHasStandards.

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': [[spoiler:When Sanji was just 8 years old, his father, Judge, extremely displeased with how Sanji was born a "dud" despite receiving the same physical/psychological alterations as his quadruplet brothers in utero, had his son thrown in the dungeons with an iron mask on his face and pubically declared dead so the Vinsmokes could start over with a "clean slate". Fortunately, his older sister, Reiju, freed him and helped him run away to the East Blue]].

* In the ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'' doujin ''The Silence of the Rabbits'', it turns out that [[spoiler:Eirin was incapacitated and replaced by a clone she created to manage her other major creations, but who went very evil. Eirin is a Hourai Immortal and cannot be killed, so the clone had her imprisoned in a [[PeopleJars People Jar]] while she spent much of her time as "Eirin" trying to formulate a poison that would kill the original. The clone lived in constant fear of the original Eirin, due largely to the fact that she was designed using the template for the Udonge clones and cannot even hope to match the original in power]].

* [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen Tsarmina's]] nice-guy brother in the Literature/{{Redwall}} book ''Mossflower''.

* In the second WesternAnimation/{{Bionicle}} movie, [[spoiler: Lhikan]] gets this treatment, down to the [[VisualPun mask]]. Weird but funny in hindsight, because most characters wear masks ''anyway''. The character in question actually ''complied'' with the treatment to be able to train three of the Toa Metru. [[spoiler: It turns out he could have escaped at any time.]]

* A subversion of this appears in the ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' series, with the character [[spoiler: Diz.]] in reality [[spoiler: Ansem the Wise,]] his kingdom and his very name are taken by [[spoiler: his apprentice, Xehanort, whose Heartless and Nobody are the [[BigBad main antagonists]]]] of Kingdom Hearts I and II separately. When he escaped from his prison, he decided to fulfill the disguised-face bit himself, with at least one instance of him used magic to impersonate the guy impersonating him.

* In ''ComicBook/Superboy1949'' #5, [[EvilChanciller Norvello]] gets an iron mask locked over Queen Lucy's head and melts the key. His plan was to keep Lucy masked and locked up while he carried out a smear campaign against her, but ComicBook/{{Superboy}} exposes his plan and then releases and unmasks Lucy.

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': A very tragic example for [[spoiler:Sanji]]. [[spoiler:When Sanji was just 8 years old, his father, Judge, extremely displeased with how Sanji was born a "dud" despite receiving the same physical/psychological alterations as his quadruplet brothers in utero, had his son thrown in the dungeons with an iron mask on his face and pubically declared dead so the Vinsmokes could start over with a "clean slate". Fortunately, his older sister, Reiju, freed him and helped him run away to the East Blue]].

[[folder:Comics]]
* In Marvel's ''[[ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel G.I. Joe]]'' comic, [[PraetorianGuard Crimson Guardsman]] [[YouAreNumberSix Fred VII]] kills the original COBRA Commander and takes his place, concealing his own identity with the mask of CC's battle armour. [[spoiler:The Commander turns out to be NotQuiteDead and returns the favour.]]

[[folder:FanWorks]]

* King Candy from ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'' usurped the throne of [[spoiler: Princess Vanellope von Schweetz]] by [[spoiler: replacing her code with his. He couldn't out right delete her code, so he turned her into a glitch, leaving her as a prisoner in her own game.]] On top of that, [[spoiler:King Candy locked up the memories of everyone in the game, including Vanellope herself, and developed a FantasticRacism against her in order to keep her from racing, as her crossing the finish line would cause the [[ResetButton game to reset]], restoring her rightful place on the throne, and exposing Candy's con.]]

* ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneySpiritOfJustice'' has a rare example where there's an entirely justified reason why the usurper keeps the original ruler alive. [[spoiler: Ga'ran took the throne by faking the assassination of her sister, Amara, and framing Amara's husband for it so she would hide her identity and become Ga'ran's prisoner voluntarily. She couldn't simply kill Amara because in the Kingdom of Khura'in, only spirit mediums can become queen, and unbeknownst to the general population Ga'ra can't channel spirits. So she needs Amara around to perform a TwinSwitch whenever a channelling is required.]]

* In ''Literature/TheVicomteDeBragelonne'' by Creator/AlexandreDumas ''père'', the {{Trope Namer|s}}, King Louis XIV has a twin brother who is kept in the Bastille -- by their mother, the dowager queen -- to avoid the possibility that he might usurp the throne. To make sure that the guards do not get the wrong idea, the man is placed in a secure part of the prison and forced to wear an iron mask to conceal his identity. This is based on accounts of a real prisoner in the Bastille (among other prisons) forced to wear a mask. His identity was never revealed. This also subverts expectations as [[spoiler:the attempted rescue fails, unlike in all its myriad adaptions]].

* In ''Comicbook/TheWarlord'', Travis Morgan is captured and imprisoned by Deimos while an IdenticalStranger usurps his position as Warlord of Skartaris. An iron mask is locked over Morgan's head to prevent his gaolers learning his true identity.

* ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneySpiritOfJustice'' has a rare example where there's an entirely justified reason why the usurper keeps the original ruler alive. [[spoiler: Ga'ran took the throne by faking the assassination of her sister, Amara, and framing Amera's husband for it so she would hide her identity and become Ga'ran's prisoner voluntarily. She couldn't simply kill Amara because in the Kingdom of Khura'in, only spirit mediums can become queen, and unbeknownst to the general population Ga'ra can't channel spirits. So she needs Amara around to perform a TwinSwitch whenever a channelling is required.]]

* ''Literature/TheVicomteDeBragelonne'' (see under Literature, below) has had several film adaptions of varying fidelity focused on this subplot, usually retitled ''The Man in the Iron Mask''. For example:
** Creator/RichardChamberlain starred in the 1977 version where the older twin son had been spirited away for leverage to make the younger one a PuppetKing. To prevent this, the younger king has his brother imprisoned with the mask, but not killed because it would be TemptingFate to commit regicide (especially of an identical twin). The older one was rescued and managed to confuse the younger's flunkies so that his brother was sent off for the same fate.

** ''Film/TheIronMask1962'' is a French swashbuckling film. A lighthearted take on the novel, it stars Creator/JeanMarais as an old and [[LargeHam hammy]] D'Artagnan.
** The [[Film/TheManInTheIronMask 1998 version]] stars Creator/LeonardoDiCaprio as the king (Louis) and twin brother (Phillipe). [[spoiler:The movie has the switch between the EvilTwin and GoodTwin succeed.]] It was notable for massive AdaptationDistillation, Louis being more evil than depicted in the novel, and [[spoiler:the twist that D'Artagnan was the real father to the twins]]. This was also [=DiCaprio=]'s follow-up movie to ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'', during which legions of fangirls were ''still'' swarming to the earlier film in theaters: ''Iron Mask'' took second place.

** Creator/RichardChamberlain starred in one where the older twin son had been spirited away for leverage to make the younger one a PuppetKing, so the younger one was not, in fact, responsible. But he found out and ordered his brother imprisoned with the mask so no one could do this, but didn't have him killed because it would be TemptingFate to commit regicide (especially of an identical twin). The older one was rescued and managed to confuse the younger's flunkies so that his brother was sent off for the same fate.

* The Literature/{{Discworld}} series plays with the trope a couple of times.
** In ''Literature/GuardsGuards'', [[MagnificentBastard Lord Vetinari]] is deposed, but has correctly anticipated that a successful usurper may be unable to resist throwing him in the palace dungeons rather than just killing him, for gloating purposes. So he has made sure that [[spoiler:the cell which will be used for the purpose is tolerably comfortable and has multiple secure locks -- ''on the inside of the door'']].
** The trope is parodied in ''Literature/TheTruth'', which involves a plot to dethrone Vetinari by framing him for a crime using a man who looks just like him. After the plot is thwarted, William De Worde asks Lord Vetinari if he's giving his lookalike this treatment. Vetinari responds that the man is, in fact, alive and now employed by the Guild of Actors, appearing as Vetinari in stage productions and children's parties. William de Worde theorizes that he might occasionally be used as a stand-in for Lord Vetinari when the real one is unavailable for some boring task or posing for an oil painting, but Vetinari just answers that with a characteristic blank look.

** ''Film/The IronMask1962'' is a French swashbuckling film. A lighthearted take on the novel, it stars Creator/JeanMarais as an old and [[LargeHam hammy]] D'Artagnan.

* ''Literature/TheVicomteDeBragelonne'' has had several film adaptions of varying fidelity, usually retitled ''The Man in the Iron Mask''. For example:

* In ''Literature/TheVicomteDeBragelonne'' by Creator/AlexandreDumas ''père'', ({the {Trope Namer|s}}), King Louis XIV has a twin brother who is kept in the Bastille -- by their mother, the dowager queen -- to avoid the possibility that he might usurp the throne. To make sure that the guards do not get the wrong idea, the man is placed in a secure part of the prison and forced to wear an iron mask to conceal his identity. This is based on accounts of a real prisoner in the Bastille (among other prisons) forced to wear a mask. His identity was never revealed. This also subverts expectations as [[spoiler:the attempted rescue fails, unlike in all its myriad adaptions]].

* ''The Man in the Iron Mask'' has had several adaptions. Creator/RichardChamberlain starred in one where the older twin son had been spirited away, for leverage to make the younger one a PuppetKing, so the younger one was not, in fact, responsible. But he found out and ordered his brother imprisoned with the mask so no one could do this, but didn't have him killed because it would be TemptingFate to commit regicide (especially of an identical twin). The older one was rescued and managed to confuse the younger's flunkies so that his brother was sent off for the same fate.
* In ''Film/TheIronMask'' (1929), one of the many film adaptations of Dumas's novel, Phillipe the twin is allowed to live in comfort in a chateau with servants. It's Phillipe who usurps the throne from his twin brother, and has the real UsefulNotes/LouisXIV put in a dungeon, clad in an iron mask.
* ''Film/{{The Iron Mask|1962}}'' (1962) is a French swashbuckling film. A lighthearted take on the novel, it stars Creator/JeanMarais as an old and [[LargeHam hammy]] D'Artagnan.
* The [[Film/TheManInTheIronMask 1998 version]] starring Creator/LeonardoDiCaprio as the king (Louis) and twin brother (Phillipe). [[spoiler:The movie has the switch between the EvilTwin and GoodTwin succeed.]] Was notable for massive AdaptationDistillation: Louis being more evil than depicted in the novel, and [[spoiler:the twist that D'Artagnan was the real father to the twins]]. This was also [=DiCaprio=]'s follow-up movie to ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'', during which legions of fangirls were ''still'' swarming to the earlier film in theaters: ''Iron Mask'' took second place.

* In ''Literature/TheVicomteDeBragelonne'' by Creator/AlexandreDumas ''père'' ({{Trope Namer|s}}), King Louis XIV has a twin brother who is kept in the Bastille -- by their mother, the dowager queen -- to avoid the possibility that he might usurp the throne. To make sure that the guards do not get the wrong idea, the man is placed in a secure part of the prison and forced to wear an iron mask to conceal his identity. This is based on accounts of a real prisoner in the Bastille (among other prisons) forced to wear a mask. His identity was never revealed. This also subverts expectations as [[spoiler:the attempt fails, unlike in all its myriad adaptions]].
* Subverted in the ''Literature/SwordOfTruth''; part of the enchantments on the Rahl bloodline make that an unfortunate necessity. Any Rahl who isn't an absurdly powerful wizard has a chance of being a "[[AntiMagic Pristinely Ungifted]]" whose propagation threatens the existence of the world. That's not to say that all Rahls kill their children so as to save the rest of their world. Richard runs into most of the survivors over his adventures, with various levels of emotional scarring and insanity, possibly deconstructing this trope by showing what those behind the iron masks would actually be like growing up in their father's country.

* Played with a bit in ''Literature/ThePrisonerOfZenda''. [[ItWasHisSled You probably already know this,]] but, [[spoiler:Kidnapping the rightful heir was an act of desperation, as the original plan -drug him and make it look as if he were too drunk to be crowned- suffered a SpannerInTheWorks in the form of a distant relative of the royal family who resembled the heir closely enough to pass as the intended King in the short term. The would-be usurper would have had his brother killed immediately, but that would have made it impossible to depose the ringer without incriminating himself. For the stand-in King's part, acting to rescue the real King would have revealed himself as an imposter, so the situation became a MexicanStandoff.]]
* Parodied in the Literature/{{Discworld}} novel ''Literature/TheTruth'', which involves a plot to dethrone Lord Vetinari by framing him for a crime using a man who looks just like him. After the plot is thwarted, William De Worde asks Lord Vetinari if he's giving his look-alike this treatment. Vetinari responds that the man is, in fact, alive and now employed by the Guild of Actors, appearing as Vetinari in stage productions and children's parties. William de Worde theorizes that he might occasionally be used as a stand-in for Lord Vetinari when the real one is unavailable for some boring task or posing for an oil painting, but Vetinari just answers that with a characteristic blank look.

* Eric does this to Corwin at the end of the first book in Creator/RogerZelazny's ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfAmber''. Somewhat subverted--it is later revealed that this was done as much to protect Corwin as to keep him off the throne.

(if you're looking for the novel, see ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'')

* In ''Fanfic/TowardsTheSun'' Prince Zuko was thrown in a dark, small jail when he was captured after his post-eclipse HeelFaceTurn. Fire Lord Ozai had Zuko jailed instead executed with the implication that he wanted his son to waste away and die in jail. [[EvilIsPetty And to be able to gloat to Zuko's face.]] Ty Lee and Mai attempted to break Zuko out of jail but failed. Ultimately it was Zuko's jailers who release him to take throne. Zuko was the only royal left after Ozai's defeat and capture by the Avatar and [[SanitySlippage Azula going insane.]]

* King Candy from ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'' usurped the throne of [[spoiler: Princess Vanellope von Schweetz]] by [[spoiler: replacing his code with hers. He couldn't out right delete her code, so he turned her into a glitch, leaving her as a prisoner in her own game.]] On top of that, [[spoiler:King Candy locked up the memories of everyone in the game, including Vanellope herself, and developed a FantasticRacism against her in order to keep her from racing, as her crossing the finish line would cause the [[ResetButton game to reset]], restoring her rightful place on the throne, and exposing Candy's con.]]

[[quoteright:350:[[Literature/TheVicomteDeBragelonne https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rsz_hulton_archive.png]]]]

* ''Franchise/EvilliousChronicles'': This is what the king of the Yellow Kingdom does to his son Len in a non-canon manga adaptation of "Servant of Evil" upon hearing the murdered fortuneteller's prophecy that the child born with the birthmark shaped like a splatter of blood will bring ruin to his kingdom. The king declares that Len's twin sister Rin is the only heir who was born that night and imprisons Len in a tower where he remains alone until Rin discovers him years later. Justified in that it's made explicit that killing the prophesied child will also bring ruin to the kingdom.

* This is what the king of the Yellow Kingdom does to his son Len in a non-canon, Music/{{Vocaloid}} focused manga adaptation of Music/{{mothy}}'s "[[Franchise/EvilliousChronicles Servant of Evil]]" upon hearing the murdered fortuneteller's prophecy that the child born with the birthmark shaped like a splatter of blood will bring ruin to his kingdom. The king declares that Len's twin sister Rin is the only heir who was born that night and imprisons Len in a tower where he remains alone until Rin discovers him years later. Justified in that it's made explicit that killing the prophesied child will also bring ruin to the kingdom.

** [[spoiler:Drefan and Oba]] Rahls think they're this, but both turn out to be delusional and possibly ''possessed''.

* Played with a bit in ''Literature/ThePrisonerOfZenda''. [[ItWasHisSled You probably already know this,]] but:
** [[spoiler:Kidnapping the rightful heir was an act of desperation, as the original plan -drug him and make it look as if he were too drunk to be crowned- suffered a SpannerInTheWorks in the form of a distant relative of the royal family who resembled the heir closely enough to pass as the intended King in the short term. The would-be usurper would have had his brother killed immediately, but that would have made it impossible to depose the ringer without incriminating himself. For the stand-in King's part, acting to rescue the real King would have revealed himself as an imposter, so the situation became a MexicanStandoff.]]

** On the other hand, for which of the two is being mistaken for the other more dangerous...? Rhetorical question, of course.
** In ''Literature/RaisingSteam'' Vetinari definitely does have him cover for him while donning a disguise to fight in the final battle personally.

* ''The Prisoner in the Mask'' by Creator/DennisWheatley.

** Mata Nui by Makuta, though that one turns out to be ''significantly'' more complicated.
** The real [[spoiler: Turaga Duma]], by Makuta.
** The Toa Hordika could be considered a version of this, though Roodaka tried to execute them by pushing them off a skyscraper.

** A popular ''Friendship Is Magic'' FandomSpecificPlot is [[DracoInLeatherPants making]] Princess Luna/[[SealedEvilInACan Nightmare]] [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Moon]] into one of those, imprisoned in the Moon by the [[RonTheDeathEater evil Princess Celestia]] so that no one would challenge her dictatorial rule over Equestria. (Canonically, Luna was imprisoned because she [[TheCorruption became corrupted]] and turned into a threat to all life in the world, not for political reasons.)