Charles was a major player in the Hundred Years War. At times he sided with the English, and at other times he sided with the French. His unscrupulous machinations got him the title Charles the Bad. His death probably brought a smile to many of his enemies. According to legend, Charles was in considerable pain from an undiagnosed illness. His doctor prescribed heat. Specifically, he should be put to bed swaddled in the sheets to increase his body temperature. As an additional measure, the doctor recommended the sheets be soaked in alcohol. The king’s servants were determined to make the cure as effective as possible. He was literally sewn inside the sheets. When the seamstress finished sewing all the way up to his neck, she was left with a bit of thread remaining. Unable to locate a pair of scissors, she took a candle to burn the offending thread. Not surprisingly, the candle caught the brandy soaked linens on fire. Charles could not get out of his flaming cocoon and died a horrible death. In another version, the sheets were wine infused and the blame went to a pan of hot coals that was placed under the bed.
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