On May fourteenth Karen, Laura, Ray, Sam and I went on a trip to Guilford. We went to Whitfield Museum that used to be owned by Henry Whitfield. It is the oldest house in CT. While there, we learned many things about Guilford colony and about New Haven. We also heard a few stories, one about King Charles the First. We found a lot of information in that story, so we would like to share it with you.
King Charles the First became king in 1625.

Nobody liked him though. Here's why:

In the next four years, after he was crowned king, he called three Parliaments and dissolved each one because members wouldn't submit to his demands. But, he did accept the Petition of Right drawn up by the third Parliament. He then violated that law by raising money unlawfully. From the year 1629 to 1640 King Charles ruled without Parliaments. He tried to get Scotland to use English forms of worship but they rebelled in 1639. King Charles had to call Parliament to get the money he needed to buy troops so he could defend from the Scotland Rebels. He dismissed the first Parliament in twenty-one days! But soon had to summon another one, the long Parliament. The Long Parliament met with Charles from 1640 to 1653 and held its last session in 1660. In 1642 the king tried to seize five Parliament leaders. Civil war broke out! King Charles had most of the nobility, gentry and clergy. The merchant class and Puritans, (Pilgrims), supported the Parliaments. A man named Oliver Cromwell became the general of the Puritans. That man won very important battles in 1644 in Marston Moore and in 1645 he won in Naseby. The war ended in the year, 1646. But, soon afterward Scottish leaders turned Charles over to the Parliaments. And later the army captured Charles, but he escaped and he secretly made an agreement with the Scots. In January 1648, a second civil war began, but it only lasted about seven months. The army again seized King Charles. He was convicted for treason and three judges, Goffe, Dixwell and Whalley made a warrant that allowed King Charles to be beheaded, and he was in 1649.

Another Mistake by King Charles

King Charles was invited to Scotland. Before the ceremony took place, King Charles got so annoyed with the bagpipe music (which he hated) that he ordered all his procession and all the jewels from England to be put aboard the ship to return to England immediately. In the crew's rush to please the impatient king, they loaded the ship carelessly. As soon as they got out into deep water the ship sank, all the people were rescued by another ship, but the jewels sank to the bottom. And everybody in England was furious at the king for what he did.

King Charles the Second: Revenge

After King Charles was murdered eight years there was still no King for England. Then, on the ninth year, King Charles's son, Charles, came into power. Now in order to execute King Charles the First they had to get a warrant of signatures, plus three judges to be able to get him killed. And since everybody knew that King Charles's son was in power that had been put on that list should run for dear life. King Charles the Second's first command was to find that warrant and kill everybody that signed it the way that they had killed him, cut off their arms, legs and head. Now, aren't you glad you didn't sign that!? Anyway there were 68 signatures on the warrant, no more, no less. Charles killed several of the men that signed but three, the Three Judges, Goffe, Dixwell and Whalley were not found by the king. Now the people of CT knew that the judges were in town and they respected and liked them more. So, they tried to hide the Judges from the king so he could not kill them. They succeeded, and here's how. They hid in a man's basement for a while, ( his name was Leetes) until someone told them of a really nifty hiding cave, and they stayed there with the help of the New Haven people until the King gave up.