Famous Before Death Quotes

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When facing imminent death, people are no more afraid of anything else in the world; therefore, they speak nothing except what is true. In the epic poem, Sohrab and Rustam, by Matthew Arnold, Sohrab says to his father Rustam;

‘Man, who art thou who dost deny my words?
Truth sits upon the lips of dying men,
And falsehood, while I lived, was far from mine.’

Great kings and queens have spoken of their worthless material possessions just before death. In many religions, the last words of people are given special importance and it is considered binding upon the people present at that time, to convey these words to the concerned, honestly in letter and spirit. Depending upon the way people spent their lives, they perceive the coming events, from beautiful to horrible.

1. Et tu, Brute?

Gaius Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar

Gaius Julius Caesar was born in July 100 BC in Rome and died on March 44 BC, at the age of 55. He was the Roman dictator and ruled from October 49 BC to March 15, 44 BC. The Roman senate named Caeser as dictator perpetuo, the lifelong dictator .He was assassinated by a team of senators led by Marcus Junius Brutus. The senators were against his being an emperor. Brutus, along with his close senators, who called themselves the liberators, started planning to assassinate Caesar. They made many plans and these were documented by Nicolaus of Damascus. Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus stabbed Caesar to death near the Theatre of Pompey on March 15, 44 BC. According to a popular belief and as expressed in Shakespeare’s drama Julius Caeser, when blood was oozing out of his body, Caesar saw Brutus and said, ‘ET tu, Brute?’, meaning, ‘You too, Brutus?’

2. I give my soul to God

Michelangelo
Michelangelo

Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, better known as Michelangelo, was born to Ludovico di Leonardo di Buonarotto Simoni and Francesca di Neri del Miniato di Siena, on March 6, 1475 in Arezzo, Republic of Florence. He died on February 18, 1564 at the age of 88 years in Rome, Papal States. He is one of all the all-time greatest sculptors and painters. His works include the famous Madonna of the Steps, Pieta, Statue of David and the Sistine Chapel paintings. In his personal life, he was rich but liked to live like the poor and ate only out of necessity rather than for fun. He often slept in his clothes and wearing boots. His last words depict what a satisfied soul he had! Just before his death, he said, ‘I give my soul to God, my body to the earth, and my worldly possessions to my nearest of kin, charging them to remember the sufferings of Jesus Christ’.

3. I am not the least afraid to die

Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin

Charles Robert Darwin, commonly known as Charles Darwin, was born on February 12, 1809 in The Mount, Shrewsbury in Shropshire, UK. He died on April 19, 1882 at the age of 73 years in Downe, Kent, United Kingdom. He was one of the most influential scientists of all time and is best known for his works The Voyage of the Beagle, On the Origin of Species, evolution by natural selection and Common Descent. He established that all the species are descendants of common ancestry. On April 19, 1882, in the afternoon he breathed his last. His daughter Henrietta, her son Francis and Darwin’s wife Emma were alongside his bed. His last words were, ‘I am not the least afraid to die’.

4. Do you hear the rain?

Jessica Whitney Dubroff
Jessica Whitney Dubroff

Jessica Whitney Dubroff was born on May 5, 1988 in Falmouth, Massachusetts, US, and died on April 11, 1996 at the age of only seven years. According to media, she attempted to set a record by flying across US, as the youngest pilot. Her Cessna 177B Cardinal aircraft was flown by her flight instructor, took off from Cheyenne Regional Airport and was bound for an airportin Lincoln, Nebraska. According to eyewitnesses, the plane attained an elevation of a few hundred feet and then started descending and crashed into a residential street. All on board including herself, her father Dubroff and the flight instructor Joe Reid died in the crash. The last words of Jessica, just a few minutes before the crash were, ‘Do you hear the rain? Do you hear the rain?

5. It is very beautiful over there

Thomas Alva Edison
Thomas Alva Edison

Thomas Alva Edison was born to Samuel Ogden Edison, Jr. and Nancy Matthews Elliott, on February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio, USA and died on October 18, 1931 at the age of 84 years in West Orange, New Jersey, U.S. He was one of the most influential and most prolific inventors of all time. He is best known for the invention of the electric bulb. He died of diabetes on October 18, 1931 in his home in Llewellyn Park in West Orange, New Jersey. He had rendered invaluable services for the benefit of mankind in his life, and it was probably on this account that he was welcomed with grace in the life hereafter. His last words were, ‘It is very beautiful over there.’

6. All my possessions for a moment of time.

Elizabeth I, Queen of England
Elizabeth I, Queen of England

Elizabeth I, Queen of England, was born to Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn on September 7, 1533 at Placentia, Greenwich, England and died on March 24, 1603 at the age of 69 at Richmond Palace, Surrey, England. She was also known as Gloriana, the Virgin Queen and Good Queen Bess. She was the last of the Tudor Dynasty to rule England and Ireland from November 17, 1558 until her death on March 24, 1603. As it was preplanned, Cecil and the council proclaimed James VI of Scotland as the king of England just a few hours after her death. Her last words were, ‘All my possessions for a moment of time.’

7. I know you have come to kill me

Che Guevara
Che Guevara

Ernesto Guevara, commonly known as Che Guevara, was born on June 14, 1928 and died on October 9, 1967 at the age of 39 years in La Higuera, Vallegrande, Bolivia. He was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary and guerilla leader. He is a global icon of revolution. A few minutes before his death, he said his last words to his executioner, Sergeant Teran, ‘I know you’ve come to kill me. Shoot. Do it. Shoot me, you coward! You are only going to kill a man!’ While he was still speaking, the sergeant opened fire upon him with his M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle, ultimately killing him.

8. Go on, get out – last words are for fools

Karl Heinrich Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx

Karl Heinrich Marx was born on May 5, 1818 at Trier, Prussia, Germany and died on March 14, 1883 in London, UK. He was renowned German economist, philosopher and historian. He is best known for his works, The Communist Manifesto, Das Kapital, materialist conception of history. His housekeeper tried to extract last words from him, to which he responded to her, ‘Go on, get out – last words are for fools who haven’t said enough.’

9. I have offended God

Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci, commonly known as Leonardo da Vinci, was born on April 15, 1452 in Vinci, Republic of Florence and died on May 2, 1519 at the age of 67 years in Amboise, Kingdom of France. He was one of the greatest artists in history, best known for his works Mona Lisa, The Vitruvian Man and Lady with an Ermine. In spite of his some of his greatest works of the highest quality, he felt as if there was still something lacking on his part. His last words were, ‘I have offended God and mankind because my work did not reach the quality it should have.’

10. A King should die standing

Louis XVIII, King of France
Louis XVIII, King of France

Louis XVIII, King of France was born to Louis, Dauphin of France and Maria Josepha of Saxony on November 17, 1755 in the Palace of Versailles, France and died on September 16, 1824 at the age of 68 years in Basilica of Saint Denis, France. He belonged to the House of Bourbon and ruled as King of France, from 1814 to 1824, excluding a period of hundred days in 1815. He fell ill in 1824 and suffered from the medical conditions of his spine and legs. It is not only the vital organs, but also all the other organs too, which are important. Feeling the weakness in his legs, he said his last words, ‘A King should die standing’.

Conclusion

The swan song is a metaphor used to express the last performance of someone. The Greeks believed in that the swans spent their lives remaining silent throughout their lives, but just before their death they sang a beautiful song. Many famous before death quotes appear like the mythical swan song. They are great words to ponder.

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