There is dispute about the cause of Beethoven's death: alcoholic cirrhosis, syphilis, infectious hepatitis, lead poisoning, sarcoidosis and Whipple's disease have all been proposed. Most probably Beethoven was accidentally poisoned to death by excessive doses of lead-based treatments administered under instruction from his doctor. (26 March 1827)
There are 3377 births, 3944 deaths, 1122 murders, 498 disasters and 2079 other events about 5733 people in 6441 places until today.
Birth(+)Fact(x)Death(-) Calendar is an ongoing project since 1985 by DDV.
Tuesday 24th of August 1875 (x) — Swimmer Matthew Webb becomes the first man to swim across the Channel.. Backed by three escort boats and smeared in porpoise oil Webb set off into the ebb tide at a steady breaststroke. Despite stings from jellyfish and strong currents off Cap Gris Nez after approximately 21 hours and 40 minutes he landed near Calais. Webb's zig-zag course across the Channel was nearly 66 km long.