The influential historical figure, Oliver Cromwell, holds a fascinating title in history. Not only was he the only man to lead a successful revolt against the monarch of England, he was also the only man to be beheaded… three years after death. You read that right – his head was separated from his body on January 30, 1661, but he died from kidney failure in 1658 and was buried in Westminster Abbey with all honors. When he died, his son succeeded his rule, but, under serious pressure, quickly stepped down for the “rightful” king, Charles II. Charles wanted to show that traitors would not go unpunished, so he exhumed the body, and ritualistically (with an axeman and chopping block) beheaded it. He then mounted the head on a gate to proclaim his supremacy. Legend has it that the head was blown off in a storm and was kept by a passing soldier, who hid it in his chimney for years. It then is believed to have been donated to a local college, where it is buried in the underground crypt inside a biscuit tin.
