24. From Fighting For the Monarchy, to Becoming an Avowed Anti-Monarch
Thomas Blood prospered after the monarchy was overthrown, but unfortunately for him, the monarchy was restored in 1660, and the beheaded Charles I’s son was crowned as king Charles II. Blood lost all his lands, and fearing reprisals, he fled to Ireland with his family. Understandably unhappy with this reversal of fortunes, Blood became an avowed enemy of the monarchy.
He plotted to kidnap the royal governor of Ireland and hold him for ransom, but the plot failed. Blood’s brother, a co-conspirator, was captured and executed for treason, while Blood fled to Holland with a price on his head. He returned in 1670 and hatched another plot to kidnap the governor of Ireland. It failed. At that point, desperately short of funds, Blood decided to go for a daring score: steal the Crown Jewels of England, which were kept in a basement in the Tower of London, beneath the floor of the Keeper of the Jewels’ apartment.