King Charles I was the only monarch of England ever to be tried in public by his own people. This book recounts in detail the events leading to that fateful day in January 1649, from the king's tribulations in the months before the trial, through the trial itself to the gruesome course and aftermath of the execution. It considers the aims and motives of his powerful enemies, men who were as certain in their own convictions as the king was in his. It explores the mysterious identities of the heavily disguised headsman and his assistant. It questions why the king had to die - a question still asked - and outlines what later became of those who shared responsibility for his death.