5. Herod died a uniquely horrific death.
In 4 BC when he was 69, Herod the Great finally succumbed to a horrible affliction that came to be known as “Herod’s Evil.” The disease was so painful that Herod tried to commit suicide to escape the pain. The king’s flesh was reputedly riddled with worms and an intense itching, painful bowels and convulsions plagued him. Gangrene also infested the King’s genitals. It was a horrible way to die. Experts now believe that Herod was suffering from a number of ailments at once, including kidney disease and Fournier’s gangrene that could have developed in the King’s genitals when a bowel and urinary infection spread to his groin. He was also probably suffering from some form of gonorrhea.