How did Patton die? The short story is that he sustained spinal cord and neck injuries in an automobile accident near Neckarstadt, Germany. He passed away from pulmonary embolism as a result of the accident.
How did Patton die? The long story
On December 9, 1945, Patton was returning from a pheasant hunt with his chief of staff, Major General Hobart “Hap” Gay. Sergeant Mims, his regular driver, was in the hospital, and a substitute was at the wheel. They were traveling at about thirty-five miles per hour when an army truck turned from a side road into their path. In the glancing collision, Patton was thrown against the roof and fell forward into the glass partition behind the driver’s seat. His neck was broken.
