Moles can kill Kings

On February 20th, 1702, King William III (William of Orange) was riding his horse in Hampton Court park.  As they broke into a gallop his horse stumbled on a mole hill and William was thrown to the ground. 

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What started as a broken collar bone lead to complications and on the 8th March William died.

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In the eyes of the English William was always a foreigner and his death at the hands of a mole gave rise to a new Jacobean toast - "To the little gentleman in black velvet" (The mole).