From brilliant conquerors and reformers to eccentric rulers and unforgettable legends, history’s kings have left behind stories that are often stranger than fiction. These 100 facts explore remarkable victories, unusual traditions, royal scandals, surprising decisions, and the lasting impact monarchs had on civilizations across the world.
Persian Style and Wives
1. After defeating the Persians, Alexander the Great began wearing their clothing and married two Persian women.
2. During World War II, King Christian X of Denmark was among the few leaders of an occupied nation who did not leave for exile for his own protection. He rode through Copenhagen every day without escort to show that he was unafraid.
3. Because of his poetic skill, King Edward III of England gave Geoffry Chaucer, known for The Canterbury Tales, “a gallon of wine daily for the rest of his life.”
4. In 539 BC, Persian King Cyrus the Great issued the first known human rights decree. He set slaves free, said that everyone had the right to choose their own religion, and created racial equality.
5. Tsar Peter III of Russia had a rat court-martialed and hanged after it gnawed off the heads of his toy soldiers.
6. On Columbus’s first voyage to America, his ship’s captain, Rodrigo de Triana, saw land before anyone else, but Columbus later said he had noticed it a few hours earlier, which let him take the lifetime pension King Ferdinand had promised to the first person to spot land.
7. Over 15 years of conquest, Alexander the Great did not lose a single battle.
8. King Cambyses II of Persia used cats to invade Egypt. Knowing that cats held a high place in Egyptian society, the king brought hundreds of cats into his front lines. As a result, Egyptian archers refused to fire on his felines, fearing that they would injure the animals.
9. In 1776, revolutionaries pulled down a lead statue of King George III in Boston. They then melted the statue’s lead and turned it into musket balls to use against the British.
10. When King George III learned that Washington had resigned command of the revolutionary army and intended to return to his farm after the war, he said, “If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world.”
Coffee Tea Life Terms
11. During an experiment, King Gustav III of Sweden reduced a pair of twins’ death sentences to life imprisonment on the condition that one drink 3 pots of coffee each day and the other drink tea every day for the rest of their lives.
12. King Abdullah II of Jordan is directly descended from the Prophet Muhammad and also once appeared briefly in Star Trek.
13. Most scholars agree that the Qur’an’s account of Dhul-Qarnayn refers to Alexander the Great.
14. Tsar Simeon II of Bulgaria, who reigned from 1943 to 1946 as a child and was ousted after World War 2, was later chosen as Prime Minister of Bulgaria in 2001. He remains the only monarch in European history to become head of government through democratic elections.
15. King George V’s doctor administered a fatal dose of morphine and cocaine to speed his death so the announcement could appear in the morning edition of The Times rather than “Less appropriate evening journals.”
16. John Deydras was a clerk who said he was the true King Edward II, claiming he had been switched at birth. He tried to take over a palace and issued a challenge to Edward for single combat. During his trial, he admitted he had invented the story and said his cat, which he claimed was possessed by the devil, had inspired it. He and the cat were both hanged.
17. One researcher says that ancient kings and royals, including Alexander the Great, were sometimes entombed in honey. After roughly one hundred years, these candied bodies were allegedly dug out and eaten as medicine.
18. In 1191, King Richard I confined the ruler of Cyprus with silver chains because he had promised not to bind him in iron.
19. Eunus, a slave and magician, joked on stage that he intended to topple Roman rule and rule Sicily as king. He later led a massive slave revolt and honored his promise to spare those who had tipped him.
20. King Zog of Albania was the only modern national leader to shoot back during an assassination attempt.
Bear Gifted to Henry
21. In 1252, King Haakon of Norway gave Henry III a polar bear. The animal was kept at the Tower of London and was fitted with a long tether so it could swim in the River Thames and catch fish.
22. A Siamese king once faced his brother in a fight to the death atop elephants, saying, “Let us fight the elephant battle for our own honors. No future kings will do what we are going to do.”
23. In the book of Isaiah, Lucifer was actually a Babylonian king.
24. About 1,389 people died when they were trampled at Tsar Nicholas II’s coronation party after a rumor spread that there would not be enough free beer and food.
25. King Alexander of Yugoslavia would not take part in public events on Tuesdays because three members of his family had died on Tuesdays. When he eventually started a state visit on a Tuesday, he was assassinated.
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