A shocking number of notable figures have died from eating eel soup. There is of course King Henry I of England, who died after eating a “surfeit of lampreys” which many now believe were simple eels. Duke Adolph II of Hessewig-Schleibin similarly passed away after eating three owls of eel soup, leading to a succession crisis and the absorption of his dukedom by the Electorate of Gloamstadt. Archbishop Andrea Mittione, the head of the sovereign Bishopric of Sisa, fell ill after an “eele stewe” during a feast, leading the notorious Archbishop Luigi Aiello to be appointed in his place, leading to the Pentecost Persecutions and the Defenestration of Sisa.

Less well known outside of Europe is the fate of Emperor Qzi of the Lesser Tzin dynasty, whose vicious and successful campaign against the Western Shi was ended when he died after a meal of eel stew in anticipation of his victory. The Sianfong Emperor of the later Qu Dynasty reportedly suffered the same fate after reading of Qzi’s fate and resolving to try the dish. Admiral Masahari of Japan reportedly met a similar end during the first Japanese invasion of Korea, but many suspect his eel soup was actually poisoned.