Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview
  • Killers of the King

  • The Men Who Dared to Execute Charles I
  • By: Charles Spencer
  • Narrated by: Richard Trinder
  • Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (67 ratings)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Killers of the King

By: Charles Spencer
Narrated by: Richard Trinder
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

Bloomsbury presents Killers of the King by Charles Spencer, read by Richard Trinder.

Charles Spencer tells the shocking stories and fascinating fates of the men who signed Charles I’s death warrant in this Sunday Times bestseller

'Seamless, pacy and riveting ... exceptional' ALISON WEIR
'The virtues of a thriller and of scholarship are potently combined' TOM HOLLAND
'Outstanding: a thrilling tale of retribution and bloody sacrifice' JESSIE CHILDS
__________________
January, 1649. After seven years of fighting in the bloodiest war in Britain’s history, Parliament faced a problem: what to do with a defeated king, a king who refused to surrender?

Parliamentarians resolved to do the unthinkable, to disregard the Divine Right of Kings and hold Charles I to account for the appalling suffering and slaughter endured by his people. On an icy winter’s day on a scaffold outside Whitehall, the King of England was executed.

When the dead king’s son, Charles II, was restored to the throne, he set about enacting a deadly wave of retribution against all those – the lawyers, the judges, the officers on the scaffold – responsible for his father’s death.

Bestselling historian Charles Spencer explores this violent clash of ideals through the individuals whose fates were determined by that one, momentous decision. A powerful tale of revenge from the dark heart of royal history and a fascinating insight into the dangers of political and religious allegiance in Stuart England, these are the shocking stories of the men who dared to kill a king.

©2014 Charles Spencer (P)2021 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2
activate_samplebutton_t1

Listeners also enjoyed...

The White Ship cover art
The History of the Ancient World cover art
For Liberty and Glory cover art
A Brief History of Britain 1066-1485 cover art
Marie Antoinette's Darkest Days cover art
On the Road cover art
In Search of the Dark Ages cover art
Lancaster and York cover art
Bertie: A Life of Edward VII cover art
Mortal Monarchs cover art
Mary Queen of Scots: A Life from Beginning to End cover art
Foxe's Book of Martyrs cover art
The Turbulent Crown cover art
The New World cover art
Imprudent King cover art

What listeners say about Killers of the King

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    41
  • 4 Stars
    16
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    37
  • 4 Stars
    14
  • 3 Stars
    5
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    38
  • 4 Stars
    14
  • 3 Stars
    5
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

even better 2nd time round

this is my 2nd time listening, it made me go back read the history..
Well written
Well narrated
Well done

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Dramatic story drily told

Like many I came to this from Robert Harris’s ‘Act of Oblivion’. While this book does what it says on the cover and has a lot of detail, it doesn’t quite capture the tension and excitement of such a dramatic period of history.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Entertaining summary and account of the Cromwell regime

This is a great work to introduce people to the Cromwell regime and to understand what happened to the regicides after his death.
There is a great deal of detail about the lives of those men who sat in judgment of Charles I, and who signed his death warrant. From those who chose to stand and die a martyr’s death, those who collaborated, to those who chose to flee either to Europe or the New World.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely cracking

If like me you’ve had this recommendation on your Audible list and put off reading it can I heartily recommend that you give it a go. A fascinating and brilliantly read look at the aftermath of the death of Charles 1.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent book with great narration

Fancinating insight into the Regicides of Charles I and leaves you wanting to explore other avenues of this topic. The narration by Richard Trinder is really listenable and easy on the ears. Overall, great book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A fabulous read

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The story gives a full account from the Civil War through King Charles I’s flight around the country, to his trial and then on to the hunt for the regicides ten or so years later. It is beautifully written and read, and absolutely gripping. Thank you Charles Spencer for a very fulfilling, if somewhat terrifying, experience.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating book ….

I was always fascinated by the story of how Charles II revenged all those who condemned his father Charles I
This book is incredibly well researched and fascinating IF you like history and won’t get bored by dates, facts and details! It took me a while until I was used to the narrator but once you get used to him you simply can’t stop listening as the book is fascinating!!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Really Interesting Listen

As someone who is doing my family history it is wise I have discovered to learn of what my ancestors did at the time. I already purchased a book of Earl Spencer's, and found this not just a delight to listen to but learn things of the period I had not learned before.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Hadley

I visited Hadley graveyard and found the grave of the man who ‘sheltered the regicides’. It’s an enthralling story we’ll rehearsed in this book of what might have beens!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Real English history as thrilling as a novel

I came to this book after listening to the superb ‘Act of Oblivion’ by Robert Harris (as it is one of the books credited by Harris as a research source). It didn’t disappoint. Loved every minute. If you think history is dull, this book will change your mind. Fascinating detail and colour, heroism, intrigue, revenge, sadism - it’s all here. Highly recommended.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful