Famous People Who Died At 43

A versatile actor and an inspiration for a generation of black youths, Chadwick Boseman is best remembered for portraying notable real life black figures like Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall and James Brown in their biopics. His excellent performance in Black Panther, though, turned him into a household name.

Johannes Vermeer was a Dutch painter renowned for his use of light in paintings. Although he did not achieve fame during his lifetime, Vermeer's works gained popularity in the 19th century. Today, Vermeer is often counted among the greatest painters of the Dutch Golden Age. Over the years, Vermeer's work has inspired artists like Wilhelm Hammershoi and Thomas Wilmer Dewing.

Robert Falcon Scott was an explorer and Royal Navy officer. He is remembered for leading two expeditions to the Antarctic regions, the second of which was the ill-fated Terra Nova expedition. Although Scott and his companions died during the second expedition, they helped discover the first Antarctic fossils, which proved that the place was once forested.

Eric Liddell was a Scottish athlete who won a gold medal in 400 meters race at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. In his later years, he became a Christian missionary. Though he was of Scottish origin, he was born in China, where he spent most of his life and died eventually.

Chandragupta Maurya established the Maurya Empire in India. He was mostly advised by philosopher Chanakya. He conquered the Nanda Empire and fought the Seleucid-Mauryan War, too. His reign was marked by religious tolerance, and cultural and economic prosperity. He later relinquished his throne and became a Jain monk.

Henning von Tresckow was a German Army officer who played a key role in organizing German  resistance against Adolf Hitler. He drafted the Valkyrie plan for a coup against the German government and even attempted to assassinate Hitler in 1943. The next year, he once again plotted to kill Hitler and failed again, upon which he committed suicide. 

A king from the Chahamana dynasty, Prithviraj Chauhan ruled Sapadalaksha in present-day north-western India. The son of king Someshvara and queen Karpuradevi, he ascended to the throne when he was just a child. As a young man, he became known as a brave warrior and an excellent military commander. Various sources differ on the exact circumstances of his death.

Túpac Amaru II  was the leader of a large Andean uprising against the Spanish in Peru. His wife was also a revolutionary and played a key role in the uprising. They were both captured, tortured, and put to death by the Spaniards. Following his death, he became known as a mythical figure in the Peruvian struggle for independence. 

Russian composer and pianist Aleksandr Scriabin is considered one of the most innovative and controversial of early modern composers. Interested in music from an early age, he built pianos as a young man and didn’t take long to establish himself as a brilliant composer. Unfortunately, he died at the height of his career, at the age of just 43. 

The Dragon King of Bhutan, Jigme Dorji Wangchuck had a major role in modernizing his tiny Himalayan country. In his 20-year reign, he built countless roads, schools, and hospitals. He also secured financial aid from India and other Asian countries. An avid reader, he also loved hunting and gardening.

With his Billboard number one track Sukiyaki, Kyu Sakamoto became the first to score a pop number one with a song entirely sung in Japanese. Born to a restaurateur, he had started his career singing in jazz clubs. He died in a 1985 plane crash that killed over 500 people.

Michael Phillip Anderson began his career with the United States Air Force, logging more than 3,000 hours of flight time before joining NASA. Selected as a mission specialist first on STS-89 Endeavour and then on STS-107 Columbia, he was killed along with the rest of the crew when the later disintegrated during its re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere.

Mihai Viteazul, or Michael the Brave, was the prince of Walachia, who became a national hero after uniting all Romanian principalities under his rule. Known for his exploits against the Turks, he also conquered Transylvania and Moldavia. He was killed shortly after suppressing a revolt of Magyar nobles.

John Huss was a Czech philosopher and theologian. He is credited with inspiring a Proto-Protestant Christian movement called Hussitism, which started in the Kingdom of Bohemia before spreading across the Lands of the Bohemian Crown. He also inspired the Bohemian Reformation, which is regarded as one of the most important social, political, and religious movements of the early modern period.

After losing his father at age 2, Henry Kendall was raised on a farm by his mother. The Australian bush poet is remembered for his depictions of nature in works such as Leaves from Australian Forests. Throughout his life, he continued to switch from one job to another.

Bangladeshi actor Manna is also known as the Dhallywood Yuvraj and the Mahanayak of Dhaliwood. His role in the film Bir Soinik won him a National Film Award. He also headed the Bangladesh Film Actors Association as its general secretary. His film Ammajan remains one of the Bangladeshi film industry’s most successful films.

Madalina Manole was a Romanian singer and actress. A pop recording artist, Manole has been associated with various labels throughout her career. Some of her best known albums include Fată dragă, Happy New Year, Trăiesc pentru tine, and 09 Mădălina Manole.

Ahmed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was a Saudi royal and an important figure in thoroughbred horse racing. Also a media executive, Ahmed bin Salman served as the chairman of a joint stock company named Saudi Research and Marketing Group.

Niels Ryberg Finsen was a Danish-Faroese scientist and physician. Finsen's method to treat diseases, such as lupus vulgaris, using concentrated light radiation, earned him the 1903 Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology. Copenhagen University Hospital houses the famous Finsen Laboratory, which is named in his honor.