Arkham Home for the Emotionally Troubled

"We have hospitals that treat the mentally ill with compassion. But that's not where you're going. I arranged for you to get transferred to Arkham Asylum in Gotham. I still have some friends there. They're expecting you."

―Batman to Lex Luthor^[src]

The Arkham Home for the Emotionally Troubled, formerly known as the Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane or Arkham Asylum, was a Victorian-style psychiatric hospital and sanatorium located within the outskirts of Gotham City. It was founded by Amadeus Arkham in 1974, who transformed the facility from a family estate to a treatment center for the mentally ill.

It is dedicated to rehabilitating those considered too dangerous for normal prisons such as Blackgate Penitentiary.

History[]

Foundation[]

The Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane took shape under the vision of Amadeus Arkham, who transformed his family's estate into a treatment center for the mentally ill, before ultimately descending into madness himself.

21st century[]

Assault on Arkham Asylum[]

"Talk about a workplace romance gone wrong."

―Amanda Waller, while discussing the Task Force X pitch^[src]

At some point after being captured by Batman, the Joker was imprisoned in Arkham, where he would eventually become the patient of the then Doctor Harleen Quinzel. The psychopath would successfully manipulate her into supposedly falling in love with him and setting him free. Arkham was later restored from the damage caused by Joker.^[1]

Tourism[]

The asylum is known to attract both history buffs and architectural connoisseurs. Visiting even the gates of Arkham is officially discouraged by the city, but many tourists are still known to take pictures of the Asylum's exterior from time to time.

Lex Luthor's imprisonment[]

After Lex Luthor was found guilty of committing mass murder (in both Zambesi and Washington, D.C., he was found to be mentally unfit to stand trial for his unspeakable crimes and was sent to Belle Reve to await his final sentence.

Batman, furious that Lex had manipulated him and also wanting to keep a close eye on the criminal mastermind, took the law into his own hands and had him transferred to Arkham Asylum where he could make sure that Luthor wouldn't cause any more trouble.

After he spent a year imprisoned in Arkham, Lex learned of the Justice League's formation and hence decided that it was finally time to enact his breakout plan.

Renaming[]

At some point, Arkham Asylum would eventually be given the new name of Arkham Home for the Emotionally Troubled.

Red Hood's Campaign[]

In order to defeat the Red Hood, crime boss Black Mask ordered for the Joker to be released.

Known staff[]

Amadeus Arkham - founder
Harleen Quinzel - psychiatrist

Known inmates[]

Originally, Arkham Asylum was used only to house genuinely mentally ill patients, having no connection to Batman or his allies, but in more recent years, it has become infamous for holding the majority of the Dark Knight's adversaries, with almost every one of them ending up within Arkham at least once.