Have a head of state die in battle in the industrialized age.

Didn't the leader of Paraguay during the War of the Triple Alliance die in battle against forces from Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay?
yep, he was killed in the Battle of Cerro Corá the last battle of the Paraguayan War
López was surrounded by the Brazilians and, after refusing to surrender, he was speared by Francisco Lacerda, penetrating into the woods shortly thereafter. General Câmara followed him and found him near the Aquibadán stream, where he again refused to surrender, being shot in the heart.
 
I'm not sure this would qualify, but say the imperial palace gets caught in the firebombing of Tokyo and the emperor can't get out?

Or the coup leaders kill or injure Hirohito and blame the allies for it?

Actually, I don't want to think about how horrible that could play out.
Personally, I'd consider death in or from air raid during a war as an aspect of industrial-age warfare.
Having said that, it looks a better fit with the OP outline to look for cases where someone's actions contributed to their misfortune. So Molotov in Berlin fits, possibly George VI choosing to stay in London, someone going out during an air raid whether from curiosity or to help out would fit.
 
King Albert I took personal command of the Belgian Army during WW1 (which Wikipedia says the Belgian constitution actually required him to do), and was active in the field right through to [at least] the liberation of Brussels, Furthermore his wife worked as a nurse close to the front lines, and their 12-year-old son Leopold was allowed to enlist -- as a private! -- and also saw action.

Whole royal family goes to war? Not sound great idea. Imaginate if they all would had been killed. Yes, then prince Chalres, Leopold's brother wouldhad became king. But still not really great idea send whole royal family to frontlines.

Erdogan's plane could have be shot down while he was flying back from Marmaris during the failed coup 2016

Perhaps we avoid current politics?
 
Chiang Kai-shek was kidnapped by his own generals during the Xi'an Incident, where his subordinates wanted him to focus on fighting the Japanese instead of the Communists. Perhaps in an ATL he gets killed instead. Not quite the same as dying on the battlefront, but close.
 
Chiang Kai-shek was kidnapped by his own generals during the Xi'an Incident, where his subordinates wanted him to focus on fighting the Japanese instead of the Communists. Perhaps in an ATL he gets killed instead. Not quite the same as dying on the battlefront, but close.

I don't think that being killed by own soldiers is countd even during war. By that logic you would count anyone head of state who died during war.
 
Since we're on royals, for the British royal families, Prince Andrew was a pilot in the Falklands, Prince Philip visited troops in Iraq and Prince Harry served in Afghanistan.
I'm sure they were kept away from the worst dangers, but serving in (and visiting) a combat zone is never completely risk free.
 
Since we're on royals, for the British royal families, Prince Andrew was a pilot in the Falklands, Prince Philip visited troops in Iraq and Prince Harry served in Afghanistan.
I'm sure they were kept away from the worst dangers, but serving in (and visiting) a combat zone is never completely risk free.
Andrew was a naval helicopter pilot whose role included towing flares to try decoying heat-seeking missiles away from the ships: It's easy enough to imagine one of the missiles trying to reach the flare through his helicopter.
And Harry was an Apache gunship pilot.
 
Andrew was a naval helicopter pilot whose role included towing flares to try decoying heat-seeking missiles away from the ships: It's easy enough to imagine one of the missiles trying to reach the flare through his helicopter.
And Harry was an Apache gunship pilot.
Neither of those were head of state though. The only royal I would count is the current reigning monarch otherwise we would spread this so wide as to be mean anyone of high status.
 
Question: Did kaiser Wilhelm II ever visited on frontlines? He was pretty much military guy so I wouldn'th have big problems imaginate him to be killed by a stray bullet.

More than once. last time was on a observation/inspection tour during the final grand offensive of 1918. he spent a couple hours in a elevated observation post watching the assault battalions from a couple kilometers to the rear.
 
Even earlier, James Madison escaped the White House just before the British arrived and would take personal command of an artillery unit.

That would have been at the Battle of Bladensburg. A couple days before Washington burned. The President, Secretary of War, the equivalent of the Army Chief of Staff, and a Congressman or two showed up to help. The poor general actually in charge suffered from so much assistance he lost the battle & was kicked aside to a minor post. A few weeks later he appeared in the defense of Baltimore, in charge of a brigade covering a section of swampland along the shore of a side river. The retreat from the battle became referred to by some participants as the Bladensburg Races
 
Neither of those were head of state though. The only royal I would count is the current reigning monarch otherwise we would spread this so wide as to be mean anyone of high status.
Prince Philip as spouse of a monarch is pretty high ranking.
The OP does allow a bit of flexibility though you are right that it's easy to spread the net a bit too wide.
 
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