22. From Anti-Monarch, Blood Bounces Back to Pro-Monarchy
After subduing the Keeper of the Jewels, Colonel Blood used a mallet to flatten the crown so he could conceal it beneath his clerical robes, while his accomplices stuffed scepters and other jeweled items down their trousers. However, the Keeper managed to remove the gag and began screaming “Treason! Murder! The crown is stolen!” Blood and his accomplices fled, engaged in a running shootout with the guards. Eventually, he was cornered, and after a struggle, he and his accomplices were subdued and captured, and the crown jewels were recovered.
Unrepentant, Blood declared: “It was a gallant attempt, however unsuccessful! It was for a crown!” He refused to answer any questions except to the king, so he was taken in chains to the palace. Charles II, nicknamed “The Merry Monarch“, found the audacious scoundrel appealing. Especially when Blood declared that the Crown Jewels were worth 6000 pounds at most, not 100,000 pounds as widely reported. When Charles asked, “What if I should give you your life?” Blood replied, “I would endeavor to deserve it, Sire!” The king pardoned Blood, and granted him an estate worth an annual income of 500 pounds.