Edward VII dies as Halley's Comet blazes
King Edward VII died on 6 May 1910, while Halley's Comet was in the sky. Some people at the time read the death as the comet's doing.
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King Edward VII died on Friday 6 May 1910, aged 68, following several heart attacks. His state funeral took place on 20 May. His only living son succeeded him as George V.
Halley's Comet was then in the sky. In early May it sat near brilliant Venus, and superstitious Englishmen saw the king's death as lining up with that. Another account says the comet's harmful influence got the blame, at a time when people elsewhere feared poisonous gases from its tail. A history of the period says the king's death, and that of Mark Twain, who had foretold his own death at the comet's return, unsettled the superstitious. Both men were in poor health.
"Edward VII, King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, died on Friday 6 May 1910 at the age of 68. His state funeral occurred two weeks later, on 20 May 1910. He was succeeded by his only living son, George V."
- Awaiting the Comet, Ian Ridpath
- Ventura's Brush with the Tail of the Comet, Museum of Ventura County
- Some Washingtonians prepare for the end as Earth begins passing through the tail of Halley's Comet on May 18, 1910, HistoryLink.org
- Halley's Comet, 1910, Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum