Ward's Book of Days.
Pages of interesting anniversaries.
What happened on this day in history.
MARCH 24th
On this day in history in 1751, died Frederick, Prince of Wales.
Frederick was the eldest son of George II and heir to the throne, but apart from that, he was not particularly remarkable for anything. One commentator astutely gave him the following epithet:--
‘Here lies Fred
Who was alive and is dead.
There is no more to be said.’
Frederick was, however, noteworthy for the unusual manner of his death. He died of septicaemic poisoning after being hit on the head by a cricket ball. A classic case of play stopped reign!
Other unusual royal deaths:
-
William III died after a fall from his horse, which stumbled on a molehill.
-
King John died of a surfeit of peaches and cider.
-
Edward II was murdered by having a rhino horn inserted up his rectum.
-
Henry I died of food poisoning after eating too many lamphreys.
-
George I died sitting on the toilet.
-
George II died sitting on the toilet.
-
William I's body exploded when placed in the coffin.
-
Alexander III of Scots rode his horse off a cliff while rushing home to his young bride.
-
Margaret, Queen of Scots died of seasickness after a journey from Norway, to claim her kingdom.
George Duke of Clarence was drowned in a butt of malmsey wine.
©2006 Ward’s Book of Days