The history-geography books are formal: King Saint Louis (also known as Louis IX) died of the plague in 1270, returning from the eighth crusade, on Tunisian soil.
However, if we are to believe the results of a recent French study (published this Tuesday, June 18, 2019 in the Journal of Stomatology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery), historians will undoubtedly have to revise their copy: “Saint Louis did not die of the plague, but of a complication of scurvy which attacked the gums, then the bone” explain the researchers.
To reach this conclusion, the scientists (under the direction of Dr. Philippe Charlier, medical examiner, anthropologist and paleopathologist, already known for having studied the mummified head of Henry IV, the skull of Descartes, the jaw of Hitler and the heart of Richard the Lionheart) studied a piece of jawbone that belonged to the 44th king of France, kept at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris.
An error related to a bad translation?
“Tradition has made the plague the cause of his death, but this could come from a bad translation of the old French word “pestilence”, which designates an infectious disease” write the researchers, who specify that a “cause of death can hide another”: “as he was weakened by scurvy, he could have developed one or more infections and died of it”.
Moreover, the research is not completely finished: “we are examining the mummified intestines of Saint Louis to determine which bacteria, which viruses or fungi colonized them” develops Dr. Charlier.
Scurvy is a (rare) disease linked to vitamin C deficiency: it occurs when the daily intake is less than 10 milligrams for several months – the recommendations of the health authorities being 110 mg per day. The pathology leads to a weakening of the blood capillaries: the symptoms of scurvy are therefore hematomas, healing disorders, muscle, joint and bone pain, bleeding (from the gums, nose, scalp, etc.), or still blood in the urine.
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