# Have any post-10th century Heads of State committed suicide while still in office? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 2, 2009, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743 "2009-07-02T21:28:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Troubles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Troubles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troubles)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/1 "2009-07-02T21:28:55Z")
I’m curious. Some have killed themselves after they left office (like Roh Moo Hyun), and some were ancient leaders, but have any ‘modern’ heads of state done the act while still…well, heading the state? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/2 "2009-07-02T21:42:34Z")
[Dipendra of Nepal](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dipendra_of_Nepal) killed himself, though he did so after killing his father the former king of Nepal on July 1, 2001. He actually ruled for about 3 days, but was in a coma, so his rule was hardly effective. Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/3 "2009-07-02T21:45:17Z")
Budd Dwyer up in PA committed suicide in the middle of a press conference… he was state treasurer… > **[R. Budd Dwyer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budd_Dwyer)** > > Robert Budd Dwyer (November 21, 1939 – January 22, 1987) was an American politician. He served from 1965 to 1971 as a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and from 1971 to 1981 as a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate representing the state's 50th district. Dwyer then served as the 30th state treasurer of Pennsylvania from January 20, 1981, to January 22, 1987, when he killed himself during a live press conference. > In the early 1980s, Pennsylvania discovered that ... ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/4 "2009-07-02T21:47:27Z")
Hitler? ---
**Author:** ![Caffeine.addict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f475e1/32.png) [@Caffeine.addict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caffeine.addict)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/5 "2009-07-02T21:48:09Z")
[Getúlio Vargas](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Getulio_Vargas) did. He committed suicide in 1954. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/6 "2009-07-02T21:50:08Z")
**Adolf Hitler** and his wife Eva [del]Braun[/del] Hitler killed themselves a few hours after marrying in the last days of the Third Reich. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2009, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/7 "2009-07-02T21:50:26Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > Hitler? Everybody knows he’s hanging out with John Dillinger and Elvis at the South Pole. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/8 "2009-07-03T01:14:49Z")
[Salvador Allende](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvador_Allende#Death) probably committed suicide. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/9 "2009-07-03T01:43:03Z")
[Deleted link already provided by bibliophage] ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/10 "2009-07-03T02:45:14Z")
[Ludwig II of Bavaria](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_II_of_Bavaria), although there is some question over that. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/11 "2009-07-03T03:55:23Z")
[Adolf Friedrich VI, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Friedrich_VI,_Grand_Duke_of_Mecklenburg-Strelitz), who killed himself in 1918. ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/12 "2009-07-03T04:15:10Z")
Because **Guinastasia** stole my entry, I’ll steal it back by noting that Ludwig wasn’t quite a head of state at the time of his death (even setting aside his deposition the day before). Fifteen years earlier, Bavaria under Ludwig had joined the new German Empire, which was dominated by the Prussian political establishment. Wikipedia tells me that the Empire coined the money and, although Bavaria had an army, it was under imperial command. (The throne of Bavaria did continue after Ludwig’s death until the Empire dissolved into the Weimar Republic after the First World War.) –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/13 "2009-07-03T05:26:15Z")
Similar comments would surely apply to the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz? I’m a bit unclear as to the exact constutional arrangements that prevailed in the German Empire from 1871 to 1919. The predecessor states continued to function in many respects, and certainly treated one another as sovereign entities, even to the point of exchanging embassies. But I don’t know to what extent this was simply window-dressing. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/14 "2009-07-03T06:27:36Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > Similar comments would surely apply to the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz? Yes, certainly. > [@UDS](#): > > I’m a bit unclear as to the exact constutional arrangements that prevailed in the German Empire from 1871 to 1919. The predecessor states continued to function in many respects, and certainly treated one another as sovereign entities, even to the point of exchanging embassies. I don’t know much about this either. I just happened to think of the example of the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz because he and his family were very close to the British royal family. I remember reading that King George V and Queen Mary paid a visit to Strelitz just before the outbreak of WWI, in order to visit the Dowager Grand Duchess (Queen Mary’s beloved Aunt Augusta). ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/15 "2009-07-03T07:21:40Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > I’m a bit unclear as to the exact constutional arrangements that prevailed in the German Empire from 1871 to 1919. The predecessor states continued to function in many respects, and certainly treated one another as sovereign entities, even to the point of exchanging embassies. But I don’t know to what extent this was simply window-dressing. In the German Empire, a state of the Empire had almost complete power over its internal structure and laws, unless there was a specific Imperial law contradicting it. The Empire governed foreign affairs, diplomacy and controlled the navy. The Empire also controlled the Army general staff and oversight, but individual unit regulation was left up to the individual states. In addition, some states had been granted special rights/exceptions to the general law when they joined the Empire, and Prussia had certain special rights because its King was also Emperor. ---
**Author:** ![orcenio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orcenio/32/1036_2.png) [@orcenio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orcenio)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/16 "2009-07-03T11:44:44Z")
[Tewodros II of Ethiopia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tewodros_II_of_Ethiopia) ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/17 "2009-07-03T11:50:49Z")
Possible suicide: [Harold Holt](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Holt), prime minister of Australia. In 1967, he was involved in (directly or indirectly) a lot of political scandal. He was out boating with friends and decided to go swimming in one rough area (a favorite of his), against his friends’ pleas because of the strong waves, and disappeared. No body was found. Speculation included suicide and faking his disappearance. ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/18 "2009-07-03T21:21:00Z")
President Antonio Guzmán Fernández of the Dominican Republic shot himself in 1982, while still in office. > **[Antonio Guzmán](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Guzman)** > > Antonio Guzmán may refer to: ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2009, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/19 "2009-07-03T21:30:41Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > Hitler? Four post in and this thread is already “Godwinized”. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Noel\_Prosequi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b19c9b/32.png) [@Noel\_Prosequi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noel_Prosequi)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2009, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-post-10th-century-heads-of-state-committed-suicide-while-still-in-office/501743/20 "2009-07-04T01:02:54Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > Possible suicide: [Harold Holt](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Holt), prime minister of Australia. In 1967, he was involved in (directly or indirectly) a lot of political scandal. He was out boating with friends and decided to go swimming in one rough area (a favorite of his), against his friends’ pleas because of the strong waves, and disappeared. No body was found. Speculation included suicide and faking his disappearance. Prime Ministers are not Heads of State, they are heads of government. The Head of State in Australia derives from the Monarchy and is notionally the Queen, although her representative the Governor-General is the Head of State for almost all practical purposes. In any event, the suicide theory is pretty far-fetched. The overwhelming likelihood is that he drowned while surfing. Uncommon but not rare.