💾 Archived View for dimension.sh › ~kelly › history › hastings.txt captured on 2022-07-16 at 16:43:20.
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on 13th june 1483, the duke of gloucester summoned the council to meet at the innermost chambers of the white tower. around 9:00 am, the duke entered the room, smiling amiably, an act put on to lure his victims into a false sense of security. after some time, the duke left the chamber leaving the council to discuss the coronation. after an hour, the duke returned frowning, fretting and gnawing on his lips. he sat for a while and later asked hastings what men who plotted his destruction, him being so near to the blood of the king and being the protector of his royal person, deserve. lord hastings astonishingly replied that if they have done such a heinous crime, they certainly deserve a heinous punishment. the duke rose up and snarled at the lord that he had plotted such an atrocity against his person and openly called him a traitor. the duke went on to accuse morton, rotherham, stanly and oliver king of plotting with the queen and elizabeth shore against his life. although crimes against the protector weren't treachery, the duke wasn't concerned with such niceties. the duke cried out that an ambush had been prepared for him and the councillors had come with hidden arms to assassinate him. the council couldn't react quickly to his accusations. the duke had placed armed men in the adjoining arm although it is supposed that they were the men of the earl of buckingham. shortly after the duke banged the table, an armed man cried, "treason!" and rushed into the room. a violent scuffle ensued which resulted in their arrests. richard told hastings to confess to a priest because he'd not dine until his head's chopped off. as dinner was usually held at 11 am, hastings knew that his death was imminent. although the magna carta ruled that magnates of the realm had to be tried by their peers within a fortnight, gloucester couldn't afford to wait that long as hastings knew too much of his plan to usurp the throne. it was a blatantly tyrannical act that heralded a new phase in the protectorate, that of rule by terror, a tyrannical despot. gloucester put buckingham in charge of his execution, refusing to pay any heed to hastings' pleas for mercy. a priest was summoned but no time was allowed for a lengthy confession. then an usher dragged hastings to the spot and had him lay on a timber and struck his head off. it is believed the king was actually aware of the execution, for his royal apartment faced the site of the execution.