George Washington Got Hit By Lightning In The Womb

If we asked you what an American Founding Father and getting struck by lightning have to do with each other, your first reaction might be to say, "Well, that's what you get for flying a kite during a storm, Benjamin Franklin." However, before Big Ben even got the notion into his head, there was another great American who tussled with Thor: Baby George Washington.

When Mary Ball Washington was pregnant with the future first president, she was part of a shocking event. One night during a dinner party, there was a storm outside and a bolt of lightning struck the Washington house, barreling down the chimney and exploding in the dining room. The jolt hit one of the Washingtons' dinner guests so hard that she died instantly, her knife and fork actually fusing to her hands. Still, the ham was not overcooked and no one fought during charades, so overall a pretty successful dinner party.

Sitting close to both the chimney and the unfortunate fork/knife woman was Mary, who felt the shock pass through her. Now, we're not doctors, but a massive lightning bolt shooting through your pregnant body must be pretty bad for a baby. Fortunately, this wasn't some rando baby; it was Baby George Washington, the greatest fetus ever almost-born. Washington came out of the affair (and his mother) completely unscathed. However, this scary event did make mother Mary very protective of her precious lightning baby. Even during the American Revolution, she'd still order her boy to stop all that independence nonsense and just come home already. Or to at least stop waving that saber so high in the air. That thing's made of metal, you know!

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