01-10-23, 00:17
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#182
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re: ROYALS: Crumbling Malta Home Which Queen & Prince Philip Loved
The RUTHLESS Execution Of King Charles I
One of the most shocking and brutal executions in History was when the King of England and Scotland Charles I made his way to the executioner's scaffold in London.
BBC 1 OCT 2023
A c. 1649 painting showing the execution of Charles I of England (r. 1625-1649) in London on 30 January 1649. By Jan Weesop. (Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh)
As a King, Charles I was disastrous; as a man, he faced his death with courage and dignity. His trial and execution were the first of their kind.
Charles I only became heir when his brother Henry died in 1612. Charles had many admirable personal qualities, but he was painfully shy and insecure. He also lacked the charisma and vision essential for leadership. His stubborn refusal to compromise over power-sharing finally ignited civil war.
Seven years of fighting between Charles’ supporters and Oliver Cromwell’s Parliamentarians claimed the lives of thousands, and ultimately, of the King himself. Charles was convicted of treason and executed on 30 January 1649 outside the Banqueting House in Whitehall.
King Charles I had been responsible for the English Civil War, the deadliest conflict ever fought on English soil and he was a terrible King. He believed he was above the law and would regularly argue with Parliament, but following his loss in the civil war, Charles I would be condemned for treason.
Imprisonment
In 1646 Charles was imprisoned by Cromwell and put under house arrest in the old Tudor royal apartments at Hampton Court Palace (pictured), from where he famously escaped. He was soon recaptured and kept prisoner at Carisbrooke Castle on the Isle of Wight, where he was well-treated.
But despite many opportunities, Charles refused to repent and seek a negotiated peace. He stubbornly refused to accept defeat or submit to the republican authority.
Charles I on the 30th January 1649 was led onto the execution scaffold and he was confronted by an axeman and a very low block. After making a speech to the crowd, the King would make his final preparations before he gave the signal for the executioner to swing his axe.
It was the killing of a King, and an execution that is still felt around Britain today.
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