Napoleon Bonaparte was deliberately poisoned with arsenic

Record	OBS-0487
Category	Unsorted/Other
Status	DEBUNKED
Summary	Proponents claim that Napoleon was assassinated by British captors through chronic arsenic poisoning, culminating in a lethal dose of mercury cyanide. This theory is based on hair analyses and reinterpretation of his symptoms. Modern historians and medical experts largely reject it, attributing his death to stomach cancer.
Origin	The theory gained traction in the 1960s after activation analyses of Napoleon's hair suggested elevated arsenic levels, and was popularized by publications such as the 2001 book 'The Murder of Napoleon'.
Claimed	Napoleon was chronically poisoned with arsenic over time to weaken him. The lethal phase involved a dose of calomel and orgeat forming mercury cyanide. Hair analyses from 1960 and 1995 confirm toxic arsenic levels. The British government or agents were responsible for the assassination.
Evidence / consensus	Multiple scholarly studies and historians conclude that Napoleon died of stomach cancer, as indicated by autopsy reports and modern pathological review. Elevated arsenic levels in hair are attributed to environmental contamination (e.g., arsenic in wallpaper, medications, or hair treatments) rather than deliberate poisoning.

> OBSERVER NOTE:
A classic poisoning narrative that persists despite overwhelming medical consensus. The arsenic-in-hair evidence is a textbook example of correlation without causation.

Sources

Sources are external and provided for verification. Listing does not imply the Observer endorses their claims.