In 1996 E. Pies, a German scholar, published a book questioning this account, based on a letter by Johann van Wullen, who had been sent by Christina to treat him, something Descartes refused, and more arguments against its veracity have been raised since.[35] Descartes might have been assassinated[36][37] as he asked for an emetic: wine mixed with tobacco
On 1 February he caught a cold which quickly turned into a serious respiratory infection, and he died on 11 February.