King George V Died of Intentional Morphine/Cocaine Overdose

Okay, so this is apparently old news–the folks over at the New York Times unearthed this gem back in the eighties. But it’s new to me. In 1936 the doctor of King George V of Great Britain administered an intentionally lethal dose of cocaine and morphine to the monarch as he lay on his death bed. This was not an example of secret euthanasia hastening an inevitable death out of compassion. This was because (and I’m quoting his doctor here) they wanted George V to die in time for the announcement to be carried ”in the morning papers rather than the less appropriate evening journals.” Let that sink in for a moment. That would be like if Queen Elizabeth II was given a cocaine and morphine overdose at a specific time of day to ensure The Guardian broke her death rather than The Daily Mail. Scheduling your death for snob appeal is the most monarch-y thing I’ve ever heard of.

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