The Figures
In early games kings are the most valuable card, with no exceptions. As early as the end of the fifteenth century, a special meaning began to be given to the nominally lower value card, now called ace, so as to make it of greater value (and give the lesser value to 2).
“Suicide” King of Hearts
Over the centuries the drawing has become more schematic and some details have been lost. The king of hearts initially brandished an axe above his head and not a sword, which is why, today, he is nicknamed the suicide king.
The story has it that after the death of two of his three sons, Charlemagne began to show signs of mental imbalance. In reality, Carlo lay in bed consumed from the diseases becoming weaker and weaker until he died.
There are a lot of stories around his death, a Creepy Pasta that almost sounds credible if you didn’t know the real cause of Charlemagne death says that during that period he was used to spend his time fiddling with a deck of cards. Charles was obsessed with the idea that the king, the thirteenth dressed card, was bringing him bad luck. He told several times how he began to see the number 13 appear everywhere and that he was close to understanding the secret. Of course, his ramblings were blamed, he was declared insane, then he abdicated and his son Louis XII took his place.
One day, several months after the end of his reign, one of the court doctors reached his rooms to find the frail old man standing in the middle of the room, wielding a massive sword. Before the doctor could do anything, the king said: “Ils m’ont montré la vérité du treize et ce n’est pas fais pour les yeux des motels.” which can be roughly translated “They have shown me the truth of thirteen, and it is not the preserve of mortal eyes.” Without hesitation the king had his head pierced by the blade (between his ear and his temple) until the other end came out. He hesitated a minute before collapsing to the ground, dead.
After the incident it was announced that the king had gone mad, the image of Charles the King of hearts was then altered to show him while he was injured.
Perhaps the strangest part of the whole story, however, is the day when Charles chose to die: 07/06/1462. Whether intentional or not, the fact is that: 6 + 7 = 13 and 1 + 4 + 6 + 2 = 13 can only be understood as a coincidence.
It should be noted that Charles was the only one of the four kings still alive to see his own face printed on a playing card.
