22. Charles Stuart, King of England as Charles I
Regicide – the killing of a king – is a relatively common event in history, though nearly always controversial, none more so than the trial and execution of Charles I of Great Britain. The British prosecutors took pains to maintain an air of legality when they tried the king for treason. By the third day of his trial, Charles was not allowed to sit in the court which tried him, relegated to his cell while witnesses testified against him. On January 26, 1649, he was found guilty and sentenced to suffer the ultimate penalty, despite his continuing protestations that the court had no legal basis upon which to try him. He was beheaded in London less than a week later, on January 30, 1649, ending for a time the monarchy in Great Britain.
After his beheading Charles head was reattached to his body before he was buried at Westminster. Just over a decade later, the head of state in the form of a king was likewise restored, though absent the absolute power of a monarch. Whether Charles was exonerated of the crime for which he was executed depends on the political views of the assessor, to some he remains a martyr, to others he was a tyrant of criminal stature. He was described as a gracious prince by some, an incompetent monarch by others. The restoration of the monarchy led to the trial and execution of many of those who called for the killing of the king, including the exhumation of those who had already died, to be ceremonially hanged and beheaded.