[178] A series of pamphlets known as the Coffin Handbills[179] accused him of having murdered 18 white men, including the soldiers he had executed for desertion and alleging that he stabbed a man in the back with his cane.[180][181] They stated that he had intentionally massacred Native American women and children at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, ate the bodies of Native Americans he killed in battle,[182][183] and threatened to cut off the ears of congressmen who questioned his behavior during the First Seminole War.[184]
Jackson and Rachel were accused of adultery for living together before her divorce was finalized,[185] and Rachel heard about the accusation.[186] She had been under stress throughout the election, and just as Jackson was preparing to head to Washington for his inauguration, she fell ill.[187] She did not live to see her husband become president, dying of a stroke or heart attack a few days later, and was buried on Christmas Eve.[186] Jackson believed that the abuse from Adams' supporters had hastened her death, stating at her funeral: "May God Almighty forgive her murderers, as I know she forgave them. I never can.