This topic was posted , thanks Red Badger, a sort of update.
- Why Alexander the Great May Have Been Declared Dead Prematurely (It's Pretty Gruesome)
Live Science | Owen Jarus | published February 04, 2019
Posted on 01/29/2019 11:02:15 AM PST by Red Badger
FULL TITLE:
Alexander the Great ‘was ALIVE while his body was prepared for burial’ – after rare disease left him paralysed for six days
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It has baffled boffins for decades, but we may finally know what killed one of history's finest military minds
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HE mystery over the death of Alexander the Great may have finally been solved – and his passing was grislier than historians had ever imagined.
The fearsome military genius succumbed to a rare disease that left him paralysed for six days, gradually robbing him of his ability to move, speak and breath, claims a new study.
It means the ancient Macedonian ruler was likely still alive while his loyal soldiers prepared his body for burial in 323 BC.
His muscles were paralysed to the point that doctors couldn't see he was still breathing, meaning he was pronounced dead nearly a week early.
One of history's finest warmongers, Alexander the Great established the largest empire the ancient world had ever seen through a series of ferocious military conquests.
At the age of 25, his army overcame overwhelming odds to crush the Persian territories of Asia Minor, Syria and Egypt without suffering a single defeat.
The towering leader fell ill suddenly in Babylon aged 32, and for decades historians have puzzled over what finished him off, with some blaming typhoid, alcoholism or even poison.
Now health boffins in New Zealand think they have the answer: A rare autoimmune disease that destroyed his body from the inside.
They suggest the condition left him paralysed and unable to speak, meaning his staff failed to recognise, for nearly a week, that their king was still alive.
"I wanted to stimulate new debate and discussion and possibly rewrite the history books by arguing Alexander's real death was six days later than previously accepted," said study author Dr Katherine Hall, of the Dunedin School of Medicine in New Zealand.
Alexander's astonishing military victories are depicted in hundreds of ancient artworks
Who was Alexander the Great?
Here's everything you need to know...
Alexander the Great is the outstanding military genius of antiquity — a seemingly invincible general who conquered half the known world in his short life. To the ancients he was the ultimate hero – unflinchingly brave, outrageously daring, generous to his enemies and devoted to his friends. But there was a darker side to Alexander and his life story is peppered with tales of drunken brutality and bloody purges. Alexander was born in 356 BC, the son of Philip II, king of the northern Greek state of Macedonia. As a child, he was taught by the great philosopher Aristotle, and became king of Macedon when Philip was assassinated by a disgruntled guardsman in 336 BC. One of history's finest warmongers, Alexander established the largest empire the ancient world had ever seen through a series of ferocious military conquests. At the age of 25, his army overcame overwhelming odds to crush the Persian territories of Asia Minor, Syria and Egypt without suffering a single defeat. His empire stretched across three continents, covering 2million square miles. Alexander inspired such loyalty in his men they’d follow him anywhere and, if necessary, die in the process. He passed away aged just 32 in Babylon, the metropolis he had planned to make his capital. The cause of his death is unknown, though historians have blamed typhoid, alcoholism or poison.
"His death may be the most famous case of pseudothanatos, or false diagnosis of death, ever recorded."
Dr Hall's team pored over ancient accounts of Alexander's symptoms, as well as modern medical textbooks, for their research.
His illness is said to have begun after a raucous night of drinking in which he downed 12 pints of wine.
Alexander complained of fatigue and "generalised aches" the next morning, but chose to power through another dozen pints of wine that evening.
A day later, and sharp abdominal pains plagued Alexander, while an increasingly severe fever took hold of the doomed warrior.
Bedridden and in excruciating pain, Alexander gradually lost his ability to move, only able to flicker his eyes and twitch his hands just eight days after his symptoms began.
By the eleventh day, the King of Macedonia and Persia was pronounced dead, though staff claimed he remained sound of mind right until the end.
Dr Hall says Alexander's symptoms match up with the brain disorder Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS).
The disease occurs when the body's immune system attacks its nervous system, gradually paralysing the victim.
It affects one in 100,000 people in the UK and US today.
Dr Hall says GBS would explain the fearsome warrior's paralysis, which first took the use of his legs and arms before rendering him unable to speak.
The disease, caused by a bacterial infection in the stomach, does not affect the brain, which matches reports that Alexander was sound of mind through his illness.
His new diagnosis raises the gruesome possibility that Alexander was still alive long after he was pronounced dead.
At the time, doctors didn't use your pulse to check if you were still alive, instead looking for signs you were still breathing.
The paralysis would have gradually restricted Alexander's respiratory muscles until his breaths were so small that doctors couldn't spot the movement of his chest.
Greek scholars later wrote that in the days after his death, Alexander's body didn't decompose, proving the warrior king was a god.
But Dr Hall says this may have been because he was in fact still alive.
She added that Alexander was likely was in a coma by the time preparations for his death began.
"It is very likely [he] was in a deep coma by this stage and would have had no awareness when they began their task," she said.
The research was published in the journal The Ancient History Bulletin.
Thanks. Thought the word sounded vaguely familiar.
Yep. Looks like that’s close. Went and dug a little and it can be transferred as a Herpes virus to the gastrointestinal tract.
Thanks for the PING...one of the weirdest and most interesting ones ever!
Of course, it's with the proviso that, his body isn't avaiable for study. :^) Perfect hypothesis, IOW.
True, but nonetheless, this is an interesting take on it all.
If only he had lived in our time...even with his severe paralysis he could have served a few decades as a US representative or Supreme Court justice. Just sayin!
It is.
if he was breathing so shallowly that his chest movement was imperceptible, how was he able to take in enough oxygen to stay alive?
No, but the Democrats might find this useful with Ruth Bader Ginsberg.
Dem: She’s alive!
Rep: She hasn’t moved or spoken in days.
Dem: She’s alive! Maybe she is paralyzed!
Rep: No pulse.
Dem: That’s because your fingers are insensitive, just like your President. She’s alive.
Rep: Her chest isn’t even moving!
Dem: She’s alive! She’s taking tiny breaths.
Rep: Look, here is a mirror... I’ll hold it near her mouth and nose and you’ll see. See? No sign of fogging on this mirror. Dead as a doornail.
Dem: She’s probably got that disease Alexander the Great had.
Rep: What?
Dem: He had this disease that paralyzed him and even though he had his wits after partying all night and swilling wine like Nancy Pelosi he got sick the next day and soon he couldn’t move and his breathing couldn’t be even be detected so he got buried alive...
Rep: That disease is rare and anyway you have no evidence she’s got it or that she’s alive. You are just making up bullschitt to avoid admitting it’s time to nominate a judge for her seat...
Dem: Racist!
First thought—Lazarus is probably the most famous case of false death we have heard about.
When my son was in Iraq in the summer, he said they drank water by the gallons, so the quantity of wine, possibly watered, drunk by Alexander in June is not surprising. In fact if it was too well watered it may have been contaminated by disease. Beer and cider, often hard, were two major beverages in the American colonies. The addition of resin to wine may have had health giving properties. Pycnogenol from the French maritime pine, Taxol from Pacific coast yew trees, and Arbor Vitae an important herb in Colonial America are all from pine type trees. Cabot was amazed at how quickly is crew recovered from scurvy once the Canadian Indians introduced him to use of pine, spruce buds I think it was. I don’t think it was the vitamin C of limes, but rather a form of pycnogenol that healed them much quicker than conventional Vitamin C might have done.
Regarding “finest warmonger”, the author is of British heritage not US. The Brits have fishmongers, ironmongers, etc. Warmonger probably does not have the ugly connotation there that it does in the USA, but more the sense of a craftsman or professional.
Death by dehydration takes a while. My late husband suffering from advanced Alzheimers had begged to be allowed to die in our home. Two VA doctors had met with us in March, examined his advanced directives, and confirmed his wishes with him. In June he collapsed, spent a brief time in hospital and rehab nursing facility, managed to climb the stairs to our bed and never got up again. On Thursday in June he did not want to eat the soup I tried to feed him. My son was there and we called the VA doctors. They told us feed him if he asks for it, give him water if he wants it. By that evening he was in a coma and died the following Tuesday. Five to six days without water. He was 75.
How can they possible really know?
The addition of resin to wine may have had health giving properties.
Retsina is the national beverage of Greece, and residue of it has been found in Mycenaean-era pottery. Interesting idea that he may have picked up something from the water.
I’m sorry you had to go through that experience with your husband. The average person has not discussed it at all, (passing away at home) and those who do may not realize how hard it can be on the entire family. I am making the presumption that it could become very difficult. I’ve not lived through it myself. Not so far. There was likely a part of his mind who felt better that you were near him, but was unable to express it to you.
My mother had also wanted an at home death, so I brought her to my home for her last six months. A big difference was that she knew she was dying and it caused her anguish. My husband did not, and for about 3 years he did not know I was his wife, just the nice lady who took care of him. My husband’s ancestry was Scottish and he hated the idea of spending money on nursing homes ($70,000 a year) or expensive funerals (minimum $8,000) so I did what I had to. I had undergone quite a bit of psychotherapy which made it easier for me to handle both death watches. My husbands war caused PTSD eventually gave me PTSD which I eventually was able to exorcise.
This topic was posted , thanks Red Badger, a sort of update.
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