Buzz
Assassination attempts rarely unfold as intended. While successful ones can be chaotic, failed attempts often turn out to be bizarre or even comical. The absurdity of the plan and the peculiar or foolish reasons behind the failure often come to light when we delve into the specifics of the incident.
For example, the king of Morocco once survived an assassination attempt by commanding his attackers to cease fire, claiming he was already dead. But as we’ll soon discover, he wasn’t the only one with such a story. Here are ten astonishing ways individuals managed to escape assassination.
10. King Hassan II Told His Assailants to Stop Shooting, Declaring He Was Already Dead
King Hassan II ascended to the throne of Morocco on February 26, 1961. Initially, his reign faced significant opposition, with many predicting he wouldn’t survive six months as king. He proved his critics wrong by ruling for an impressive 38 years.
However, discontented military officers in Morocco didn’t passively wait for the king’s demise. They orchestrated multiple coup attempts to assassinate him. One notable attempt occurred on July 10, 1971, when around 2,000 rebel soldiers stormed King Hassan’s palace during his 42nd birthday celebration, firing indiscriminately at the attendees.
Over 100 people lost their lives, but King Hassan survived. Reports claim he confronted the coup leader directly, reciting Quranic verses while maintaining eye contact. This act unnerved the leader, who couldn’t bring himself to shoot the king.
Another assassination attempt took place a year later. On August 16, 1972, while returning from Paris to Morocco, Hassan’s plane was intercepted by four Royal Moroccan Air Force F-5 jets near Rabat airport. Hassan, a trained pilot, was in the cockpit during the attack.
The rebel pilots targeted the king’s aircraft, causing significant damage to its engine and other critical components. In a quick-thinking move, Hassan impersonated a regular pilot, seizing the radio to shout, “Cease fire! The tyrant is dead!” Believing their mission accomplished, the F-5 pilots retreated. Hassan’s plane safely landed, and he promptly had the conspirators arrested.
9. A Poorly Positioned Bomb Saved the Saudi Prince
Abdullah and Ibrahim al-Asiri, brothers wanted by Saudi authorities for terrorism, were key members of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). This group emerged after the merger of Al-Qaeda factions in Saudi Arabia and Yemen in January 2009.
AQAP’s inaugural mission was the attempted assassination of Nayef Bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, a former crown prince of Saudi Arabia. At the time of the attack, Prince Nayef oversaw Saudi Arabia’s national security.
Abdullah expressed his desire to renounce terrorism and requested a face-to-face meeting with the prince. The prince agreed and even arranged for Abdullah to be transported to Jeddah on his private aircraft. Unbeknownst to the prince, Abdullah’s surrender was a deceptive ploy.
Abdullah concealed a bomb either in his underwear or his body, intending to detonate it when he was near the prince. He executed his plan upon reaching close proximity. Thankfully, the explosion’s force was directed downward, resulting in Abdullah being the sole fatality. While Abdullah was torn apart, the prince escaped with only minor injuries.
8. Qin Shi Huang Evaded an Assassin by Circling a Pillar
Emperor Qin Shi Huang reigned over China from 220 to 210 BC. He conquered and unified the six warring Chinese states, declaring himself emperor. He is credited with naming China and initiating the construction of the Great Wall.
Qin Shi Huang created numerous adversaries during his campaign to unify the warring Chinese states. Among his fiercest enemies was the crown prince of Yan, whom he had taken hostage. The prince managed to escape and returned to Yan, where he allied with General Fan.
General Fan, once a trusted commander under Qin Shi Huang, had fled to Yan after losing the emperor’s favor. The emperor had already executed Yan’s family and sought the general’s death. Fearing Qin Shi Huang might wage war against Yan to capture the general, the prince ordered the emperor’s assassination.
The task fell to Jing Ke, who needed a credible reason to approach Qin Shi Huang. He approached General Fan and requested his head to present as a gift to the emperor. General Fan consented and took his own life. Jing and an accomplice later delivered the general’s head and a box of maps to the emperor.
Initially pleased with the offerings, the emperor’s delight turned to terror when Jing grabbed his sleeve and unveiled a poisoned dagger hidden among the maps. Instead of killing the emperor immediately, Jing attempted to negotiate peace. However, the panicked emperor fled before Jing could speak, prompting Jing to chase him.
No guards intervened due to the policy prohibiting weapons near the emperor. The emperor struggled to draw his sword because of his oversized robes. The entire court watched in shock as the emperor and Jing circled a pillar, with Jing brandishing his dagger. The chase continued until Qin Shi Huang’s physician hurled a medicine bag at Jing, disrupting the pursuit.
The distraction allowed Qin Shi Huang to unsheathe his sword, which he used to slash Jing’s thigh. Despite his injury, Jing hurled the poisoned dagger at the emperor but missed. Covered in blood, Jing declared to Qin Shi Huang, “I failed because I sought to intimidate you rather than kill you!” before the emperor’s guards executed him.
7. Heavy Winter Attire Saved King Louis XV
On January 5, 1757, Robert-Francois Damiens attempted to assassinate King Louis XV of France using a knife. At the time, Louis XV was deeply unpopular, and many wished for his demise. The king, who rarely ventured outside, had been visiting his ailing daughter, Madame Victoire, when the attack occurred.
As Louis XV was returning to his palace, Damiens stabbed him in the side with a knife. The king began bleeding profusely and feared he was mortally wounded. Upon reaching his bedroom, he confessed his infidelity to the queen, begged for forgiveness, and vowed to reveal more indiscretions if he survived.
King Louis survived the assassination attempt due to the minor and non-lethal nature of the injury. The cold weather had prompted him to wear heavy winter clothing, which absorbed most of the knife’s impact. Only the tip penetrated his body, resulting in a superficial wound.
6. Charles De Gaulle Escaped Assassination Thanks to His Car’s Suspension
Sometimes, a reliable car is all that stands between life and death. Charles de Gaulle, who became France’s president in 1958, can attest to this.
In August 1962, de Gaulle angered the paramilitary group OAS by granting Algeria its independence. Algeria had been embroiled in a brutal war for independence against France, compelling de Gaulle to concede. However, the OAS wanted Algeria to remain a part of France.
Twelve OAS members ambushed de Gaulle’s car as he traveled from Elysee Palace to Orly Airport, firing 140 rounds at his Citroen DS. Remarkably, the president survived thanks to the vehicle’s advanced suspension system.
The Citroen DS was a marvel of engineering, both in its time and even by today’s standards. Unlike modern cars that rely on springs for suspension, the Citroen DS featured a fully independent hydropneumatic suspension. This innovation kept the car stable and level, regardless of road conditions or wheel position.
Reports vary, but the intense gunfire destroyed at least two to four tires. Despite this, the car’s suspension kept it balanced, enabling the driver to flee even with the damaged tires. Tragically, two of de Gaulle’s bodyguards lost their lives during the attack.
5. A Nazi Salute Saved Hitler From Being Shot
Adolf Hitler faced numerous assassination attempts, all of which ended in failure. One such attempt took place in 1938, when Maurice Bavaud attempted to shoot Hitler during a rally in Nuremberg.
Bavaud positioned himself on an overpass with other onlookers, waiting for Hitler to pass by. However, his plan was thwarted when the crowd raised their arms in the Nazi salute, blocking Bavaud’s line of sight and preventing him from targeting Hitler.
Determined, Bavaud traveled by train to Berchtesgaden, where he believed Hitler would be after the rally. Upon arrival, he learned Hitler was still in Munich. He boarded another train to Munich, only to discover Hitler had already left for Berchtesgaden.
Stranded at the train station without funds, Bavaud’s scheme unraveled when police arrested him for vagrancy. A search revealed a gun, a letter addressed to Hitler, and a forged letter of introduction. Bavaud was sentenced to death and executed by guillotine in 1941.
4. Assassination Plot Foiled When Target Moves
The apartheid era was a harrowing period for black South Africans. Anti-apartheid organizations, such as Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress, emerged to resist the white government’s oppressive rule. In response, the government tasked the Civil Co-operation Bureau (CCB) with eliminating key figures in these movements.
Between 1986 and 1987, the CCB targeted Dr. Pallo Jordan and Ronnie Kasrils of the African National Congress for assassination. Both men resided in London, prompting the CCB to employ a Bulgarian umbrella—a modified umbrella designed to fire poison darts.
The assassin, Trevor Floyd, traveled to Britain and met Jan Lourens, who was supposed to instruct him on using the weapon. However, complications arose when some of the poison accidentally spilled on Lourens. After Lourens recovered, Floyd proceeded to London with the umbrella.
Floyd soon discovered the umbrella was too long, risking damage to the dart tip if it touched the ground. He used tongs to shield the tip, but the plan fell apart when Dr. Jordan moved away from London. Although Kasrils remained in the city, Floyd could never locate him. Ultimately, Floyd discarded the umbrella in the River Thames.
3. Nero’s Plot to Kill His Mother Failed When She Swam to Safety
Roman emperor Nero had a strained relationship with his mother, Agrippina. Agrippina sought to dominate Nero’s rule, which he vehemently opposed. When Nero resisted, she spread rumors about his homosexuality to anyone who would listen.
On another occasion, Agrippina sided with Nero’s wife, Octavia, during a dispute over Nero’s infidelity. This pushed Nero to the brink, and he resolved to eliminate his mother permanently. His first attempt involved rigging the ceiling above Agrippina’s bed to collapse while she slept, but the plan failed.
Nero then exiled Agrippina from the palace but later presented her with a party boat as a gesture of reconciliation. Unbeknownst to her, the boat was designed to sink at sea. When the mechanism activated, Agrippina managed to swim to safety.
After this failed attempt, Nero resorted to a more direct method: he dispatched assassins to stab Agrippina to death. Nero then framed Agermus, Agrippina’s bodyguard, for the murder and had him executed.
2. An Assassination Plot Failed Due to the Incompetence of the Assassins
In July 1835, Giuseppe Marco Fieschi attempted to assassinate the French king, Louis Philippe. Fieschi, disillusioned with life, decided to kill the king as a way to vent his frustrations.
Fieschi collaborated with two accomplices, Morey and Pepin, to construct a complex weapon they dubbed the infernal machine. This device combined over 20 guns into a single mechanism. On July 28, 1835, they fired the weapon as King Louis Philippe, his three sons, and their entourage passed by.
A bullet narrowly missed King Louis Philippe’s head, but his horse and those of two others, including a prince, were struck. The attack resulted in 18 deaths and numerous injuries. Fieschi himself was severely wounded by his own weapon, while the king and princes escaped unharmed.
Fieschi was provided with top-notch medical care, which left him astonished. Believing the crown might spare his life if he revealed his accomplices, he eagerly implicated Morey and Pepin during the trial. However, Fieschi’s hopes were dashed when he, along with Morey and Pepin, was sentenced to death. A fourth conspirator received a 20-year prison term, while a fifth was acquitted.
1. Margaret Thatcher Survived an Assassination Attempt Because She Stayed Up Late
We previously discussed the p. Tyr362HIS gene, which allows some individuals to function on less sleep. This gene is also known as the Thatcher gene, named after British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who often worked late into the night. Interestingly, this gene may have played a role in saving her from an assassination attempt.
On October 12, 1984, a 9-kilogram (20 lb) bomb exploded at the Grand Hotel in Brighton, where Thatcher and her Conservative Party colleagues were attending a conference. The bomb was planted by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) in retaliation for the deaths of several IRA prisoners who had died from hunger strikes in British prisons.
The bomb had been planted in the hotel weeks in advance by Patrick Magee and a female IRA operative. It was timed to detonate at 2:53 AM, 24 days later, coinciding with the Conservative Party’s stay at the hotel for their conference.
Thatcher was in her suite’s sitting area with her private secretary when the bomb went off. The explosion damaged the bathroom and bedroom but spared the sitting room. Other parts of the hotel suffered more severely, resulting in five fatalities and 34 injuries.
