History is full of great men and women who laid down their lives for a cause they believed in. What the history books don't tell you about, however, is the small handful of bull-headed people who've given their lives for causes that really didn't matter to anyone but them. Here are six people who proved a very important point: It's really easy to die doing something stupid. Advertisement

6 Franz Reichelt Continue Reading Below Advertisement What He Tried to Prove:

That he was both an awesome inventor and that the law of gravity simply did not apply to him. The Method:

Franz Reichelt, a tailor by trade, dreamed of inventing a fashion accessory that would allow a person to float safely to the ground after falling from a great height (perhaps after jumping out of one of those new-fangled flying machines they were experimenting with at the time). What He Actually Proved:

Newton's law of universal gravitation. More specifically, he proved that falling from a great height will result in death even if you happen to be wearing one of these convenient, comfy garments: Continue Reading Below Advertisement

"Ladies, gentlemen... behold! My entire wardrobe, sewn together!" Reichelt's "coat parachute," pictured above, was supposed to function in the same way as a modern parachute. The ultimate test of his invention was when, in 1912, he jumped off the Eiffel Tower in front of an assembled group of worried onlookers. You can pretty much imagine how that went. Fortunately for the internet, but unfortunately for Reichelt, his tragic failure and subsequent impact with France was captured on what has to be one of the first ever examples of a viral video. It's difficult to imagine how Reichelt could have thought his invention would be successful. Sure, Batman pulls off this stunt repeatedly and with alarming ease in The Dark Knight. However, Bruce Wayne had the advantage of space age smart cloth, he wasn't just sewing a bunch of trench coats together. And he's also the goddamned Batman. Continue Reading Below Advertisement

Not pictured: Franz Reichelt