Who is sometimes referred to as the ‘Suicide King’?

In playing cards the king of hearts is sometimes called the Suicide King because the sword he holds behind his head might be visualized as being used to stab himself in the head. This design evolved from earlier designs where he was holding a battle axe. Over the course of copies being made, the axe head was omitted, and the weapon changed to a curiously positioned sword.

Playing cards arrived in Europe in the late 14th century and decks differed greatly depending on where they were produced. As card-playing in Europe became more widespread, the decks were mass-produced with stencils and always included 52 cards, the same number a deck includes now.

In the late 16th century French card-makers standardized the suits of spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs and designated the four kings respectively as David (King of Israel), Alexander (the Great), Charlemagne (King of France), and (Caesar) Augustus. This designation link ended in the late 18th century and from then on, the kings in decks of cards have represented no specific person, any more than the kings on a chessboard stand for illustrious royals of the past.

English king cards have never been named for any historical person and the connection of real royals to the cards was a wholly French invention.