Charles I’s execution site

Outside the Banqueting House, on the pavement of Whitehall, is the site of Charles I's execution on 30 January 1649.

A scaffold was erected in front of the Banqueting House at first-floor level, high above the thousands of spectators. It gave them a clear view of the grisly execution of their King.

Earlier that morning, Charles was escorted by guards from his former bedchamber through Whitehall Palace and across the Banqueting Hall. It must have been painful for him to see for the last time the magnificent paintings by Rubens above his head, celebrating the achievements of his father, James I.

An eye witness records that 'there was a passage broken through the wall, by which the King passed unto the scaffold'. It is thought that the passage, or hole, in the wall was in the old staircase turret, which was replaced by the current entrance building.