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Despite being deceased, some individuals have not found peace in their final resting place. Throughout history, there have been numerous unusual cases where the dead have been exhumed for various reasons and then returned to their graves. These individuals range from world leaders and daring explorers to celebrities in the realms of art and cinema, as well as a few notorious criminals.
Delve into the past and explore the most renowned exhumations in history by clicking on the link provided.
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, is widely recognized as one of the most significant and impactful politicians in American history. Tragically, he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865, succumbing to his injuries a few hours later.
Abraham Lincoln was initially buried at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Illinois. After a failed attempt by thieves to steal his body for ransom, his coffin was hidden within the tomb's walls. Later, a more secure monument was constructed, and during this process, Lincoln's body was secretly exhumed and reburied nearby. Finally, in 1901, after 13 months of construction, Lincoln's remains were reinterred in the familiar Lincoln family mausoleum. The exhumation of Lincoln was documented in photographs published in Life magazine in February 1963.
Christopher Columbus, the well-known Italian explorer and navigator, is known for successfully completing four journeys across the Atlantic Ocean. He is both praised and criticized for facilitating European colonization of the Americas. On May 20, 1506, he passed away in Valladolid, Spain. However, even in his demise, it appears that Columbus's influence extended far and wide.
The final resting place of Christopher Columbus is shrouded in uncertainty and controversy. He was buried in several locations, including Valladolid and Seville in Spain. In 1536, his remains were reportedly moved to the Dominican Republic or Cuba. In 1898, they were believed to have been transported to Seville's cathedral. However, there's a debate among historians about whether Columbus' bones might also be in a tomb at the Columbus Lighthouse in Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic. The exact whereabouts of his remains remain unclear, creating historical intrigue and speculation.
Lee Harvey Oswald killed President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963. Two days later, Jack Ruby fatally shot Oswald. Oswald was laid to rest at Rose Hill Cemetery in Fort Worth, Texas. However, doubts arose regarding the identity of the man buried in the coffin.
Allegations arose that the individual buried in Rose Hill was not Oswald, but rather a Soviet agent resembling him. These claims endured for 18 years until Oswald's remains were exhumed in 1981. Dental records provided confirmation of his identity, leading to his reburial in a new coffin.
Salvador Dalí, the famous Spanish surrealist artist, passed away on January 23, 1989 due to heart failure. He was laid to rest in the crypt beneath the stage of his Theatre-Museum in Figueres, Spain.
In June 2017, a judge in Madrid directed the exhumation of Dalí's body in order to acquire samples for a paternity case. A woman alleged that the artist was involved in a romantic relationship with her mother during the mid-1950s. Tests carried out unequivocally established that Dalí and the claimant were not genetically related. Therefore, the case was dismissed. Interestingly, Dalí's signature mustache had miraculously preserved its iconic shape even after nearly three decades of burial.
Charlie Chaplin is globally admired for his on-screen character, The Tramp, and is recognized as a significant figure in the history of film. He passed away on December 25, 1977 and was buried in the Corsier-sur-Vevey village cemetery in Switzerland.
On March 1, 1978, two thieves unearthed the body of the comedian from its resting place and relocated it to a field in the nearby village of Noville. They subsequently tried to extort money from Chaplin's widow, Oona. Eventually, the grave robbers were apprehended and the body was again restored to its original grave, this time being reinterred in a stronger concrete vault.
Jesse James, an infamous outlaw from the Old West, was fatally shot in the back by Bob Ford on April 3, 1882. Soon after, James was laid to rest in Kearney, Missouri. Despite this, there were rumors suggesting that the notorious gunslinger miraculously survived the assault, escaping into the sunset and living a long life.
In 1995, the body laid to rest in Kearney, Missouri under the name of Jesse James was unearthed to undergo DNA testing. The purpose was to compare it with samples from Susan James, the sister of Jesse James. The results confirmed a match, conclusively ending the case.
Che Guevara, a prominent Argentine guerrilla leader of the Cuban Revolution, was executed on October 9, 1967, in Bolivia. The concealment of his body's precise whereabouts remained highly confidential for many years.
In 1995, a Bolivian general revealed the burial location of Che Guevara's remains near a Vallegrande airstrip, close to where he died. Two years later, his body was exhumed and returned to Cuba for the 30th anniversary of his death. Che Guevara was then interred with military honors in a mausoleum constructed for him in Santa Clara, Cuba.
María Eva Duarte de Perón, commonly known as Evita, passed away from cervical cancer in Buenos Aires on July 26, 1952. Following her death, a memorial was being built in her honor when her husband, President Juan Perón, was ousted in a military coup. Soon after, Evita's body inexplicably vanished.
Eva Perón's remains were secretly taken out of Argentina in 1957 and buried in Milan, Italy, under a false identity. In 1971, her body was moved to Spain and returned to Juan Perón, who later became the president of Argentina. After Juan Perón's death in 1974, his wife Isabel arranged for Eva's repatriation in 1976. Eva Perón was finally interred in the Duarte family mausoleum in La Recoleta Cemetery in Buenos Aires.
Oliver Cromwell, a prominent figure who signed King Charles I's death warrant in 1649 following the monarchy's loss in the English Civil War (1642–1651), remains a highly debatable character. Ranging from being hailed a champion of freedom to being condemned as a murderous dictator, his demise in 1658 resulted from natural causes, and he was laid to rest in Westminster Abbey, upholding his significant historical presence.
Cromwell's body remained at Westminster until Charles II came to power. Seeking revenge for his father's execution, Charles ordered Cromwell's body exhumed, in 1661. After being hanged from the gallows by an angry mob, the corpse was beheaded and the head displayed on a pole outside Westminster Hall until 1685. The remains, meanwhile, were dumped into a pit. It's believed Cromwell's head was interred in 1960 within the grounds of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, at a secret location near the antechapel.
Marie Curie, a Polish and naturalized-French scientist, is renowned for her notable achievements in physics and chemistry. Her groundbreaking discoveries include radium and polonium, as well as significant contributions towards cancer treatment. Notably, Curie was honored with two Nobel prizes. Following her passing on July 4, 1934, she was laid to rest in the cemetery in Sceaux, France, beside her husband Pierre.
In 1995, the Pantheon in Paris became the final resting place for Curie and her husband, a tribute to their impactful lives and groundbreaking achievements.
Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian political leader and chairperson of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), died on November 11, 2004 due to a significant stroke as stated by medical professionals.
Following the PLO leader's death, speculation arose surrounding the circumstances of his passing. Suha, his widow, insisted on a murder inquiry, suspecting foul play. On November 26, 2012, Yasser Arafat's remains were exhumed by Swiss and French forensic experts. Swiss findings indicated the possibility of polonium poisoning, while the French expressed skepticism. The controversy remains ongoing till present.
Zachary Taylor held office as the 12th President of the United States from 1849 until his passing on July 9, 1850. There were speculations of foul play, alleging that the president had been murdered through poisoning in his food or beverage.
In order to dispel the ongoing rumors about assassination that lasted until the 20th century, Zachary Taylor's remains were unearthed in 1991. There was no proof of poisoning discovered during this examination. Instead, it was concluded that he had died due to either cholera or gastroenteritis.
Pictured is Taylor's mausoleum at the Zachary Taylor National Cemetery in Louisville, Kentucky.
Haile Selassie, the Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974, was deposed in a coup orchestrated by dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam. During his captivity, Selassie reportedly passed away due to "respiratory failure" on August 27, 1975. However, numerous speculations arose suggesting that his captors might have assassinated him, given the convenient disappearance of his body.
In 1992, Haile Selassie's body was found under the former office of President Mengistu Haile Mariam at the Grand Palace. After an exhumation, his coffin was moved to Bhata Church for nearly ten years. In 2000, it was reburied in Addis Ababa's Holy Trinity Cathedral (pictured). Haile Selassie is revered by some followers of the Rastafari movement as a biblical messiah.
Inês de Castro, a noblewoman from Galicia, became the lady-in-waiting to Constance, the wife of Portuguese prince Pedro I. Pedro and Inês developed a forbidden romance after Constance's death in 1345. Despite his father King Afonso IV's opposition, Pedro married Inês. In 1355, Inês was brutally murdered on the king's orders. When Pedro became king in 1357, he sought brutal vengeance for Inês's death, driven by grief and anger.
King Pedro I ordered the arrest and execution of Inês' murderers by ripping their hearts out. Next, in a bizarre claim that history is still debating, he had Inês' body exhumed and placed on a throne. He then ordered the entire court to swear allegiance to their new queen. The doomed lovers' elaborate tombs grace the interior of the Royal Monastery of Alcobaça in central Portugal, placed together for eternity.
Elizabeth Siddal was the wife and inspiration of English artist and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828–1882), who helped establish the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Siddal passed away due to an opiate overdose on February 11, 1862. She was laid to rest alongside a yet-to-be-published compilation of Rossetti's poems in the ancestral plot at Highgate Cemetery in London.
In October 1869, Rossetti had a grave opened to retrieve a manuscript. The coffin was opened, and the book was recovered. Poems from this exhumation were later published as 'Poems' in 1870.
Sources: (Life Magazine) (The Independent) (Cambridge News) (Al Jazeera) (AP News)
Famous people who were exhumed from their graves
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CELEBRITY Death
Despite being deceased, some individuals have not found peace in their final resting place. Throughout history, there have been numerous unusual cases where the dead have been exhumed for various reasons and then returned to their graves. These individuals range from world leaders and daring explorers to celebrities in the realms of art and cinema, as well as a few notorious criminals.
Delve into the past and explore the most renowned exhumations in history by clicking on the link provided.