Died on the Throne...Literally

September 11, 1063 - It was on this day that Bela, King of Hungary, died an unusual death. As he sat on his throne the large canopy above him collapsed. There was much discussion at the time that this "accident" may have been a cleverly disguised assassination.

During his brief reign, Bela had to deal with a pagan uprising. The angry mob sought his approval to massacre all the priests. Bela asked for three days to think about it, during which time he assembled an army that he used to put down the revolt.

He had plenty of enemies, but no compelling proof of an assassination was ever put forward.