No Arsenic Found in Hair Believed to Be Napoleon’s

The FBI found no poisonous levels of arsenic in a lock of hair purported to be Napoleon’s, historians said Sunday, but the finding did little to resolve the debate over how he died.

The history books say the deposed French emperor died of stomach cancer. But some say the British murdered him; others contend French royalists did him in.

The FBI findings were released on the last day of the 10th annual meeting of the Napoleonic Society of America, where historians debated Napoleon’s death.

“This hair did not come from a person who died of arsenic in the time period represented by the hair growth,” said a signed letter from FBI Special Agent Roger N. Martz.

The lock of hair is said to be backed up by a chain of documentation, starting with a linen maid who wrote that she snipped the lock six hours after Napoleon died.

Yet, historians who support the theory that Napoleon was poisoned said they believe that the hair didn’t come from his head.

“Since the hair is not authentic, what difference does it (the test) make?” said Ben Weider, co-author of the book “The Murder of Napoleon.” Weider took part in the debate, presenting evidence that the maid’s note was doctored.

Weider and others, such as Prof. Rene Maury, author of “L’Assassin de Napoleon,” believe Napoleon was weakened over time with arsenic and finished off with cyanide.

Historical accounts show Napoleon was given beverages containing oil of bitter almonds and a laxative called calomel, which when combined, produce a cyanide compound, Weider said.

The 220-strand lock of hair, sealed in a glass covered-leather box, was also displayed at the meeting for anyone who might have wanted to bid more than $100,000 for it. The hair is owned by a French physician.

Napoleon was exiled by the British to the remote island of St. Helena off southern Africa in 1815. His health began to fail in 1817; he died in 1821 at 51.

Napoleon’s official autopsy said his stomach was riddled with cancerous lesions and an ulcer.