History is full of unusual things and deaths are no exception. In this blog, we discover some of the most unusual deaths in history. Whether it’s being killed on the toilet, eating to death or even dying of laughter- this instalment of the not-so-romantic blog has it all.
Constans II
Constans II (2nd) is the first unusual death in history (not the first ever- but the first I’m writing about). He was a Byzantium emperor and according to scholar and writer Theophilus of Edessa, the emperor was assassinated with a bucket.
I’m not sure if the bucket was used to hit him over the head or if it was put over his head and he fell off a high ledge, unable to see where he was going.
Actually the more I think about it, the more questions I have. Was the bucket empty? Was it filled with sand or rocks? Someone invent the time machine so we can find out, please.
An unusual death if ever there was one though.
Edmund ironside
Edmund Ironside was King of England in 1016. His father was called Ethelred the unready because he was never ready to stop the Danish Vikings from taking over the country. He even married one of the Danish invaders to make it more likely he’d be allowed to become King.
You must be thinking, I bet Edmund died heroically on the battlefield, or of extreme old age. Nope! Edmund was killed whilst sitting on the toilet.
An assassin was hiding underneath his loo- remember toilets looked a bit different back in 1016, they would have been large wooden boxes with holes cut in rather than the toilets we have nowadays, so there would have been plenty of room for the assassin to hide.
It’s not a silver lining for Edmund but a definite silver lining for the cleaners was that all the blood didn’t go all over the floor so would have been easier to clean.
Jean-Baptiste Poquelin
Jean, better known by his stage name “Moliere”, was a French playwright, actor and poet. In fact, he was such a good writer he is considered one of the best French writers of all time.
He was so into method acting that he actually died when he coughed to death whilst acting as a sick person in a play. Now that’s deadication. (Get it?)
Maria de Souza
A slightly more modern unusual death. In 2013, Maria, died when a cow fell through his roof and squashed him to death.
Not very a-moo-sing. (sorry couldn’t resist)
Adolf Frederick
Adolf Frederick was King of Sweeden between 1751 and 1771- his 20-year reign had nothing amazing to write home about but his death should be the stuff of legend.
You know how people often say I’m so full I could burst?
Well, despite Adolf Frederick not actually bursting, he did eat himself to death.
He ate lobsters, drank champagne and had an insane 14 servings of his favourite dessert (a bun served with milk).
I wonder how much more he could have eaten before he actually burst.
This has got to be one of the most unusual deaths in history, right?
Sigurd the Mighty
Do you know how you showed how strong you were when you lived in Viking times?
You chopped off your enemies’ heads and tied the head to your horse, then everyone would know you were not to be trifled with.
“Look how strong I am- my enemy’s head is attached to my horse”
In the 9th century, Sigurd the mighty killed his enemy and strapped his head to his horse. As Sigurd got on the horse his leg was cut by his victim’s tooth. His cut got infected and he died.
Turns out his victim got the last laugh.
Long-bearded man
In the 1500s an unnamed man was recorded as having the longest beard in the world. He died when he tripped over it…
Chrysippus of soli
Honestly, I’ll give £5 to anyone who finds me in the street and pronounces this Greek philosopher’s name correctly.
I’m not sure if I fully believe this, but apparently, Chrysippus died of laughter when he saw a donkey trying to eat his figs. I should really add that Chrysippus had given the donkey wine and got it drunk- the donkey wasn’t just a food thief.
Do you think this unusual death was true?
So there we have some of the unusual deaths in history. Which one was your favourite? There are obviously a lot more unusual deaths we could talk about but for now, I think this is enough to get us hyped for part 2!