Forever Young: People Who Died in Their Late Twenties

Caligula (August 31, 12 – January 24, 41)

Roman Emperor (AD 37-41)

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The great-grandson of Augustus, and a great nephew and successor of Tiberius, Caligula was crowned as Gaius Julius Caesar Germanicus. His mental instability led to personal excesses that included introducing ritual obeisance to Rome; appointing his horse, Incitatus, as a consul; and declaring himself to be a manifestation of all the gods. His 4 years of bloody and authoritarian reign ended when he was assassinated at age 29 by a member of his palace guard.

Crazy Horse (ca. 1840 – September 5, 1877)

Sioux Chief of Oglala Lakota

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In 1876, Crazy Horse, who opposed White infiltration into the mineral-rich Black Hills and plans to settle Native Americans on reservations, headed the alliance that defeated both General George Crook at the Battle of the Rosebud and, later, General George Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. He was stabbed to death at age 27 under US Army custody at Fort Robinson, Nebraska, allegedly while trying to escape.

Jim Elliot (October 8, 1927 – January 8, 1956)

Evangelical Christian Missionary

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In 1952, Jim Elliot flew to Ecuador with the purpose of evangelizing Ecuador’s Quichua Indians that included the violent Huaorani tribe, then known as the Aucas. However, just two day after achieving friendly contact with 3 Huaorani following months of fruitless attempts, he and four other missionaries returned only to be killed in a spearing attack by 10 warriors from the same clan. He was only 28 years old.

John XII (ca. 937 – May 14, 964)

Roman Catholic Pope (ca. 955-964)

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Born Octavianus, John XII ascended the papal chair at eighteen years of age. His term was marked with scandals due to his numerous adulterous affairs that the moral corruption of Rome became a byword of reproach. Though the true circumstances of his death at age 27 are uncertain, it was rumored that he was either murdered by a jealous husband whose wife he had an affair with or stricken by paralysis while in the act of adultery.

Henry Moseley (November 23, 1887 – August 10, 1915)

British Physicist

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Henry Moseley’s most significant contribution to science was the application of X-ray spectra to the study of atomic structure that resulted in a more precise arrangement of elements in the Periodic Table by closer determination of atomic numbers, which were not arbitrary as previously thought but have a physical basis. At age 27, Moseley was killed in action at Gallipoli during World War I.

Fanny Kaplan (February 10, 1890 – September 3, 1918)

Russian Socialist Revolutionary

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The 28-year-old Fanny Kaplan attempted, albeit unsuccessfully, to assassinate Vladimir Lenin on August 30, 1918 after becoming disillusioned when the latter’s Bolshevik party ordered the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly following their failure to win a majority in the November 1917 elections. She was arrested and shot to death 4 days later. Her actions led to the “Red Terror” campaign of mass arrests and executions carried out by the Bolshevik government.

Philip I “the Handsome” ((July 22, 1478 – September 25, 1506)

King of Castile

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Philip I became the first Habsburg ruler of Spain upon his 1496 marriage to Joanna the Mad, the daughter of Ferdinand V and Isabella I of Spain, that united the Habsburg and Spanish dynasties. The son of Maximilian I and Duchess Mary, he inherited Burgundy, parts of Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg after his mother’s death in 1482; and became joint ruler of Castile in 1504 after Isabella’s death, and sole ruler in 1506 when Joanna’s condition worsened. He died at age 28 of typhoid fever that same year.

Dipendra Bir Brikam Shah (June 27, 1971 – June 4, 2001)

King of Nepal (June 1 – 4, 2001)

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After being chastised for drinking heavily and told to leave the party, the Crown Prince Dipendra went on a shooting rampage inside the Narayanhity Royal Palace killing 10 members of his family including both his parents and wounding five others before turning the gun on himself. He was officially proclaimed king while in the state of coma in his hospital bed, but died of his injuries at age 29 after a three-day reign.

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More articles you might be interested in:

• 10 Bizarre Deaths in History
• 10 (more) Bizarre Deaths in History
• 10 (ultimate) Bizarre Deaths in History
• Unusual Wills and Testaments