CLASSIC: How Oliver Cromwell Got Executed Several Years After His Death

Summary

Ridiculous History: “CLASSIC: How Oliver Cromwell Got Executed Several Years After His Death”

Date: May 15, 2026
Podcast: Ridiculous History by iHeartPodcasts
Hosts: Ben Bowlin & Noel Brown

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Episode Overview

In this classic episode, Ben and Noel dive into the bizarre posthumous fate of Oliver Cromwell, the Lord Protector of England who dramatically shaped British history during and after the English Civil War. The hosts trace Cromwell’s rise to power, his controversial legacy, and, most notably, the peculiar episode of his being executed several years after his natural death. With their signature blend of historical insight, irreverent humor, and playful side tangents, the hosts unravel one of the strangest chapters in Britain’s already colorful past.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Who Was Oliver Cromwell?

• Cromwell’s Background and Rise
  • Initially a member of Parliament for Cambridge and with little military experience, Cromwell quickly rose to prominence as a Puritan leader during the English Civil War (1640) ([00:18]).
  • Quote (Ben, 05:10): "Some people will say he is the father of British democracy ... others will say, no way. He’s a war criminal."
  • Viewed by some as the hero who brought about a brief democratic experiment, and by others as a villainous ideologue and war criminal.

2. Cromwell’s Reign and Legacy

• Lord Protector of the Commonwealth

  • Cromwell played a major role in the overthrow and execution of King Charles I ([06:33]).
  • Assumed the role of Lord Protector in 1653, ruling over England, Scotland, and Ireland until his death in 1658.
  • Noted for both advocating religious “tolerance” (controversial at the time) and for harsh military campaigns, especially against Catholics ([07:20]).

• Controversial Religious Politics

  • Hated by Royalists for rejecting the divine right of kings and for his suppression of Catholicism ([08:35]).
  • Quote (Ben, 09:01): “Lord Protector is pretty much still a king. ... when Cromwell is done being Lord Protector, his son takes up the job.”

3. Cromwell’s Death and its Aftermath

• Cromwell’s Demise

  • Died September 3, 1658, most likely from illness at age 59 ([12:45]).
  • Suffered from illness with rapidly deteriorating health (“sharp bowel and back pains, ... insomnia, ... sweating, ... vomiting left and right”).

• Restoration of the Monarchy and Charles II’s Revenge

  • Cromwell’s son briefly took over, was quickly overthrown, and monarchy was restored under Charles II in 1660 ([16:56]).
  • Charles II pursued revenge on all those responsible for his father’s execution, specifically targeting all 59 signers of the death warrant ([17:19]).
    • Many were hunted down; several were hanged or imprisoned.

4. The Posthumous Execution

• Exhumation and Show Trial

  • Charles II ordered that even the deceased signatories, including Cromwell, be “executed” posthumously ([19:09]).
  • Cromwell’s corpse was exhumed on the 12th anniversary of Charles I’s death, along with other regicides’ bodies ([19:40]).
  • Quote (Ben, 20:07): “He [Cromwell] was dug up, exhumed for the purposes of ... re-executing him.”

• Brutal Spectacle

  • Cromwell’s body was hanged in chains at Tyburn, decapitated, and the head placed prominently on a 20-foot spike for public display ([21:15]).
  • Quote (Noel, 21:08): “Love a good head on a spike. It’s such a statement piece, you know?”
  • His head remained on display for 25 years, becoming a grisly tourist attraction ([23:21]).

5. What Happened to Cromwell’s Head?

• Passing Through Many Hands

  • Cromwell’s head passed through various private collections and owners for centuries, traded, displayed at parties, even possessed by “a failed actor ... rumored to be a relative of Cromwell himself" — Samuel Russell ([24:11]).
  • Bought eventually by James Cox, who sold it to the Hughes brothers for public exhibition ([25:40]).
  • The authenticity of the head was constantly questioned, adding to the legend’s mystique ([26:26]).
  • Quote (Ben, 23:34): “People would pass the head around. This thing was around for 25 years on that spike. Eventually, it’s taken down, and for the next 200 years, many different people take possession of this head.”

• Final Burial (Maybe)

  • Most commonly believed: Cromwell’s head was secretly buried in a chapel at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, in 1960 ([30:29]).
  • Multiple conflicting legends about its final fate abound, including wild rumors about secret societies and mistaken identities.

6. The Fate of Cromwell’s Body

• The rest of his body: fate unknown. Most likely thrown into a communal pit, according to biographer John Morris ([32:12]).
• Quote (Noel, 32:12): “Head on a pike, body in a pit. Tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme.”

7. Bizarre Theories and Enduring Mysteries

• Samuel Pepys suggests possible grave-swapping, fueling rumors that Charles I’s body may have been mistakenly decapitated instead ([32:47]).
• Both hosts agree: the facts are already so strange they rival any fiction ([33:27]).
• Memorable moment (Ben, 33:23): “Let’s not let the facts get in the way of a good story.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Ben (05:10): “Some people will say he is the father of British democracy. ... Others will say, no way. He’s a war criminal.”
• Noel (21:08): “Love a good head on a spike. It’s such a statement piece, you know?”
• Ben (23:21): “And people would pass the head around. This thing was around for 25 years on that spike.”
• Noel (32:12): “Head on a pike, body in a pit. Tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme.”
• Ben (33:27): “This is a situation wherein the fact is stranger than the fiction.”

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | |---------------|------------------------------------------------------| | 00:00–05:00 | Introduction, context, Cromwell's reputation | | 05:10 | Cromwell’s controversial legacy | | 07:20 | Religion, Puritanism, reasons for Civil War | | 09:01 | Commonwealth, Cromwell as Lord Protector | | 12:44 | Cromwell's illness and death | | 16:56 | Monarchy restored, Charles II seeks revenge | | 19:09 | Exhumation of Cromwell and other regicides | | 21:08 | Display of Cromwell's head on a spike | | 23:21–24:11 | Cromwell’s head becomes a morbid curiosity | | 25:40 | The head’s passage to the Hughes brothers | | 30:07–30:29 | The fate and burial of Cromwell’s head | | 32:12 | The fate of Cromwell’s body, additional theories | | 33:21–33:27 | The enduring legend and strangeness of the story |

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Tone, Style, and Sidebars

• The episode delivers grisly history with irreverent humor, banter, and asides, e.g., arguments over historical semantics (“spike” vs. “pike”, [21:19]) and playful musings about checkbooks, side hustles, and the “disco era” ([34:11]).
• Occasional witty self-deprecation and friendly rivalry (“You just do it continuously because you’re better than me.” – Noel, [22:44]).
• Hosts continuously circle back to the spirit that “facts shouldn’t get in the way of a good story,” emphasizing the bizarre yet entertaining nature of Ridiculous History’s subject matter.

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Final Thoughts

Ben and Noel dissect the extraordinary and bizarre story of how Oliver Cromwell’s ghost continued to haunt British politics and folklore, well after his death. The episode draws a vivid portrait of history’s vindictiveness, the bizarre rituals of power, and the strange journeys artifacts can take long after their owners are gone. With engaging anecdotes, historical deep-dives, and offbeat humor, this episode stands as a classic example of Ridiculous History at its best.

Transcript

[A]

Fellow ridiculous historians. A few years back, we got interested in a guy named Oliver Cromwell.

[B]

One of the Pill. Not a nice fella.

[A]

Bit of a. Yeah, bit of a specific guy.

[B]

Not much sense of humor, that Oliver Cromwell.

[A]

He got in trouble. He was a Puritan, an ideologue, more so than a soldier. Had no military experience when the Civil War broke out in that part of the world in 1640.

[B]

Yep, and he quickly rose in prominence within the ranks and became the Lord Protector and ruled over Wales, Scotland and England. He did eventually pass away due to natural causes. But this one has a twist ending too. Ben.

[A]

Oh, that's right, because he was executed posthumously. What?

[B]

How? How, how, how, How. Let's roll the tape and find out.

[C]

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History is a production of iHeartRadio Ridiculous History is a production of iHeartRadio Foreign. Hello, and welcome to the show. Have you ever dreamed of toppling the status quo in your neck of the global woods? Have you. Have you ever thought of maybe starting a food fight in school or orchestrating a coup in another country? I feel like all of us have had these revolutionary or rebellious thoughts at some point, but how far does it go? You know, I've gone pretty far. My name is Ben.

[B]

We have come a long way, Ben, just the two of us, if we want to look at it on, like a micro level, but on a macro level. Yeah, I think the human species has come a long way. We certainly still. Oh, I'm Noel, by the way. We certainly still. You. Room to grow, but certainly not quite running up on the kind of insurgency that, let's say like a reign of terror, like a Robespierre situation during the French Revolution, or maybe more of a Oliver Cromwell kind of situation, like in the old uk.

[A]

Yes, yes, it's true. And by the way, shout out to our own personal Cromwell super producer, Casey

[B]

Pegram, Ben, he deserves better than that.

[A]

He does. He does. You know what? You deserve to be Casey Pegram with no comparisons, no equivocations. You okay with that, Casey?

[B]

I'm great with that, yeah. Because as it turns out, Cromwell, who was kind of like a Protestant Robespierre in many ways, was kind of a monster.

[A]

Well, his legacy is still a matter of hot takes and controversy here today in 2019. Some people will say he is the father of British democracy. He got rid of the monarchy, albeit briefly. And then others will say, no way. He's a war criminal. He hated the Catholics and he led vicious military campaigns. But regardless of whether you are pro or anti Cromwell, there is no denying that he changed the course of history in England, Scotland and Ireland. Let's learn a little bit about his life. What do you say before we get to. Before we get to his death? Spoiler. He's dead.

[B]

He's dead. Dead as a doornail. Dead as disco.

[A]

I always wondered where dead as a doornail comes from.

[B]

Isn't it from Dickens?

[A]

Yeah. But what made someone Say, you know what I think of when I think of death? Doornails.

[B]

I guess it's just because it's an inanimate object.

[A]

Yeah, but then you can say dead

[B]

is a table, but the alliteration is key.

[A]

Oh, dead as.

[B]

See?

[A]

Yeah, dead as a dumbbell.

[B]

That works. But doornails were much more prevalent in the days of Dickens.

[A]

Perhaps. So, yeah, originally all of the titles that Dickens used in his stories had had the phrase doornail in them.

[B]

Also true. So after fomenting the Parliamentarian uprising over the Royalists English Civil War, Cromwell became the Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England in 1653. That's also, of course, after executing Charles I, who was the king at the time. And he ruled over England, Scotland and Ireland. Just for in the grand scale of things, time being what it is, blip of time.

[A]

Right, right. Because he assumed, he assumed this status as lord protector in 1653. The monarchy itself was restored in 1660. So this is what, maybe seven years.

[B]

Why did Cromwell have such a beef with the Catholics, Ben?

[A]

What a great question, Noel. You see, Oliver Cromwell was born at the turn of the 17th century, and when he came into the world, England was a Protestant country ruled by a king who believed that he had divine rights, meaning he was king, because God had. Had purposely made him king.

[B]

This was kind of a thing with monarchs in those days, like the Sun King or, you know, I mean, like a lot of divine belief in that they were like the extension of God's power on earth.

[A]

It still is. I mean, how, how? Well, it's a very effective way to bully people into thinking that they have some sort of obligation to serve you. Right. So Cromwell converted to Puritanism in his late 20s and, and he thought that King Charles I was just too Catholic. He said, this king is far too Catholic for me. He's a Papist, which was a smear word at the time. Many of Charles First's policies, you see, such as levying taxes without the consent of Parliament, they made his subjects mistrust him. And they said, hey, you're not the kind of cultured monarch we like. You're one of those tyrannical absolute monarchs.

[B]

Let's not forget this is post Protestant reformat where the country was very much split. It became largely a Protestant country. And then the kings that would come into power, they would either be heavily Protestant or maybe not quite Protestant enough for some people, but it certainly wasn't as popular in general to be super Catholic. There was kind of like a divide between the Church of Rome and the Church of England.

[A]

Absolutely. So the stage was set for a civil war. A series of conflicts occur. King Charles is on the losing end of history. He's overthrown, he is executed. 59 people sign the death warrant for the King and one of them is Oliver Cromwell. And then they introduce the Commonwealth of England to replace the monarchy. I mean, quote, unquote, replace, replace, because Cromwell becomes Lord Protector, as we said. But Lord Protector is pretty much still a king. It's a monarch. You know, the best evidence for that is that when Cromwell is done being Lord Protector, his son takes up the job.

[B]

Just to jump in here real quick, I was being a little bit purposefully hyperbolic at the beginning of the show when I compared Oliver Cromwell to Robespierre, who is known for decapitating human people in the streets with the famous guillotine. Cromwell was a bit more known for his authoritarian, heavy handed rule than he was for bloody executions. But we will be getting some bloody executions in this story either way.

[A]

So between 1653, 1658 or so, he's ruling the UK. He has the same powers as a monarch, but he's called Lord Protector and he technically doesn't have a crown. I don't mean this in some figurative sense. I don't mean that he lost any power you would get with metonymy or whatever. I mean that he didn't have the jewelry. And here he's risen to the apex of his life. In the beginning he was just a Member of Parliament for Cambridge, but he became a Puritan. And then later he becomes Lord Protector, helped in no small part by his brilliant military career. He was a tactician. He had fought decisive battles, so he wasn't out there doing mass executions. But war has no small measure of violence. And while he was Lord Protector, he was in a controversial, unsustainable place. Royalists hated him. The Royalists were a faction of people who believed in the divine right of the King. So if you believe that God has decreed a certain person to be the absolute ruler of a land, then you are going to equate the actions of anybody opposing that king to the actions of unchristian, nearly demonic forces. You know what I mean? So Cromwell was like a demon made flesh to these guys?

[B]

Totally. And even though Charles I was not popular because he had chosen to marry a French Catholic princess, he was still, to those royalists, the rightful monarch of the realm.

[A]

So in a sense he replaces this monarchical regime with a puritanical republic. But he puts in some ideas that seem very forward facing. Today and did not go over well at the time, which was he had this concept of being religiously tolerant and his contemporaries viewed that with suspicion, especially residents of Ireland and Scotland. What we're saying here, folks, is that even when he was alive, he was a controversial figure. And today's story really starts when he dies. Because the last few weeks of his life before he passes away in what was it? 1658? The 3rd of September. Right?

[B]

That's right.

[A]

So right before he passes away, he is having a terrible time. He's getting sharp bowel and back pains. He has insomnia. He's freezing cold sometimes and then just sweating, hot other times. His throat hurts, he's coughing, he's getting confused, he's vomiting left and right. He would get worse and then he would get better. So he kind of ebbed and flowed, you know, and his doctors were trying to figure out what was going on with him. They, they had no idea. One we have one quote where his attendants have the sad apprehension of danger. Fairly vague.

[B]

It really is. It's just a foreboding quality.

[A]

Yeah, they had the shining about it. They said that he might not get better at this point. This starts happening when he is almost 60. He's 59 years old and he dies suddenly on September 3rd. It happens to a lot of people. You may have a moment where you catch your passing reflection and notice your hairline is creeping back. This can be challenging for a lot of people, but. But the good news is HIMS makes it simple to do something about it.

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[A]

so he's died, right? Cromwell has died and his son inherits the position of Lord Protector for a very, very brief amount of time. Very brief, yes. A year later, his son is overthrown by the army. The monarchy is restored. So chalk one up for the royalists and Charles II becomes the new king. What does he do after he becomes king? Is it like a bygones be bygones situation?

[B]

No, that would have been a bummer, a real letdown if that was the case. No, we wanted some blood, Ben. We came here for blood. And boy, will there ever be some blood. No. He declared everyone involved with overthrowing and executing the previous king, enemies of the state, whatever you want to call it, and called for their immediate rounding up and execution.

[A]

Especially those 59 people who signed the death warrant.

[B]

Yeah, because, I mean, you know, their names are on a piece of paper, their identities are out there. So it wasn't too, too hard to get to rounding them up.

[A]

This makes me think of so off air. Before we started this episode, we were talking about a strange moment in a lot of people's financial history checks. We used to do that, too. We would put our names on pieces of paper. It's still so bizarre to think about it. Like, you don't even have check.

[B]

I don't have checks.

[A]

I have emergency checks hidden away in my lair. And Casey, you have some checks on the off chance you might ever need one, right? That is correct.

[B]

Yes. That's Casey on the case right there.

[A]

Yeah, Casey on the checks, Yep.

[F]

I would.

[A]

You know what? I would get some vanity, you know, vanity checks.

[B]

I had Superman ones.

[A]

Yeah, I had. I had a couple of. I had space ones. I believe I was very into space. And speaking of fantastic segues, back to the point. Yes. King Charles II wants especially to fine and punish these 59 people who have signed the death warrant for Charles I. He catches many. Several are hanged, some are put in jail for life.

[B]

Let's backtrack just slightly. He did just call for their trial, but I would imagine this is something along the lines of a kangaroo court situation where it wasn't like they were gonna, you know, walk away scot free.

[A]

Right, right. And the thing is that, as we mentioned, not all 59 people on that list were still alive when Charles II came into power. So he had this weird pickle, you know, do we prosecute the dead? Do we let bygones be bygones? No, he says, no, we do not. And so he orders the bodies of several of the people who've signed these death warrants to be exhumed.

[B]

So on the 12th anniversary of the death of King Charles I, our buddy Oliver Cromwell, Master Protector, whatever you call it. Master and commander, Lord Protector. Yeah, whatever was dug up, exhumed for the purposes of, you know, making a show out of kind of re. Executing him. It reminds me of that there was a Pope story we did where they dug up a Pope and propped him up with his bones in the papal robes.

[A]

Exactly, exactly. The cadaverous Synod right after the death of John viii. Formosis. That's right. So, yeah. So Charles II has a lot of these people dug up and their bodies are exhumed, and for the less egregious offenders, they're just buried in communal burial pits. So they lose the honor of being buried on their lonesome. Right. But Oliver Cromwell, along with three other people, get awarded death sentences despite the fact that Oliver Cromwell, John Bradshaw, Henry Ireton and Robert Blake are all dead. They're dead men given death sentences. So as you said, Noel, they. They chain the guy up, they hang him in chains at Tyburn, and in the afternoon, they hang him there for like a day. And then as the afternoon winds on, they take him down, they cut off his head, and they put it on a spike.

[B]

Love a good head on a spike. It's such a statement piece, you know?

[A]

Yeah, it's a real power move.

[B]

Yes, very much so.

[A]

So they put this head on a 20 foot tall wooden spike.

[B]

Question, is there a difference between a spike and a pike?

[A]

That is a good question. A spike and a pike. Let's do a little quick Internet search here. Pike is to attack, prod, or injure someone with a pike, while spike is to fix on a spike. Oh, because pike and spike are both verbs as well.

[B]

So I'm thinking a pike would be part of some sort of turret, like a fence or something like that. And a spike is just more like a hole, like a stick in the ground. I don't know.

[A]

Yeah, A pike can also be a pole, like a long pole that you use in infantry. Right. And then there are turnpikes. And turnpike comes from my car knowledge is coming out here. Turnpike comes from the days of private roads when a log would be physically placed across the road and you had to pay someone to turn the pike or the long pole.

[B]

Interesting. And I think spike is maybe just a little more of a generic term. And also, as we're going down this Google rabbit hole, which may or may not be interesting to you, a spike was an old English term for an ear of corn.

[A]

Oh, and corned beef is just salted beef because they would describe the units of salt used as corns.

[B]

I thought that was peppercorns.

[A]

Corned beef. Pretty. Pretty sure it's salt. Of course, you can put pepper on it if you want.

[B]

Well, Ben, through the magic of editing and time travel podcasting, you have once again proven me wrong.

[A]

I'm not. I'm not out trained.

[B]

Oh, I know. You're not out to. You're not out to. You just do it continuously because you're better than me.

[A]

No, no, no. No one's better. We are both. We're both on the quest for the truth. It's true. And no one is perfect. But, you know, one huge statement in favor of our character Our collective character is that we've never dug someone up, knocked off their head, and hung it on a spike or pike. How long did they leave it up there, Noel?

[B]

Way longer than seemed humane. Not that any of this seems particularly humane in the first place, but this one stuck around as a tourist trap for, like decades.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. And people would pass the head around. This thing was around for 25 years on that spike. Eventually it's taken down, and for the next 200 years, many different people take possession of this head.

[B]

When I first read got passed around, I pictured people passing it around in a circle, like a hot potato game

[A]

or something like that.

[B]

It was a much larger scale version of hot potato like that, where it kind of changed hands a lot. I believe for a time it was in the possession of a failed actor who was also a kind of the town drunk and was rumored to have been a relative of Cromwell himself. This man's name was Samuel Russell. This comes from a fantastic AV Club article about the subject that you can look up. And Russell was not a particularly good steward of this artifact, let's call it. Yeah, right.

[A]

You can see some of the blow by blow, or should we say pass by pass of this in article on Atlas Obscura, the morbid journey of Cromwell's traveling head. As you were saying, Noel, the guy who possessed the head, Samuel Russell, not the best guy. He was poor. He was considerably in debt. He had a serious drinking problem. He would literally pass the head around at parties. Sam, bring out the head. And he refused to part with the head. People would offer him money for it, but instead of that, he would just borrow money from people and multiple folks for one reason or another. Said, we have got to get this head away from this drunk guy. So they continued offering him money. Eventually, a prominent goldsmith and clockmaker named James Cox enters the story.

[B]

Yeah, he was a smart fellow because he was playing the long game, because he kept trying to buy the head off of him, off of Russell, knowing that even though he was turned down in exchange for loans, he was eventually gonna come to the point where Russell could not pay him back the loans. And then he would have the upper hand to say, hey, I'll absolve your debt, you poor unfortunate bastard, if you just give me the head. And that's exactly what happened.

[A]

Yeah, give me the head.

[B]

He was able to flip it for like three times what he had invested. Was it twice? I think it was quite a nice profit.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. He sold Cox, that is, sold the head in 1799 for 230 British pounds to three brothers with the last name of Hughes. They wanted to start their own public display, so they got the head as part of other Cromwell related items. They made a bunch of posters for the event. But then they found themselves in a bit of a pickle because they wondered whether the head was actually the head of Cromwell. And when they wrote to Cox to ask for, I guess, chain of custody, you know what I mean? Cox was kind of evasive and so they thought, is this guy selling us a counterfeit head? I mean, we've all been there, right, Casey? Casey was just telling me about something like this the other day.

[B]

Yeah, I'm not at liberty to discuss that matter. It's an ongoing situation investigation. You know, you recuse yourself. Yeah, I got.

[A]

You've been. You've been advised by your legal team.

[B]

Okay. This has not been Casey on the case.

[A]

No, this. This is. Yeah, this is officially.

[B]

Well, the case is pending, so that's fair.

[A]

That's. That's a different sound.

[B]

Casey is a man of many side hustles, let's put it that way.

[A]

That's true, that's true. I mean, we live in the gig economy.

[B]

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[D]

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[F]

seems like AI agents are just about everywhere you turn every field and every function. But without identity, you can't trust they'll serve your business instead of jeopardizing it. Fortunately, Okta helps you get identity right by securing your AI agents identities, giving you a single layer of control, a single standard of trust. So whether an AI agent supports a single user or your entire enterprise, with Okta you'll turn risk into opportunity. Opportunity. Secure every agent. Secure any agent. Okta secures AI hey everyone, it's Kal Penn.

[E]

I'm the host of Irsay The Audible and iHeart Audiobook Club. This week on the podcast, I am sitting down with Ray Porter, the narrator of Andy Weir's audiobook project, Hail Mary, massive sci fi adventure about survival and science. And what happens happens when you wake up alone, very far from Earth.

[F]

I really had to make a decision because I caught myself getting that frog in my throat and starting to get teary as I'm narrating some of these sections. And it's like, okay, yo, yo, yo, is this indulgent? And I really thought about it. I was like, no. At this point it would kind of be betraying the trust the author and the listener have in telling this story if I don't go through it. But there's places in this book that that deeply, emotionally affected me and I left it on the mic.

[E]

That's great.

[F]

Cause it served the story. People will say like, oh my God, I cried at the end. It's like, yeah dude, me too.

[E]

Listen to Irsay the Audible and iHeart audiobook club on the iHeartradio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[A]

So what happens to Cromwell's head?

[B]

Well, here's the thing. There's a lot of conflicting tales as to what happened. There's some versions of the story that say the head itself was given a proper burial by loyalists to Cromwell, or at least those that sympathize with his cause. There's another version that says the head kind of disappeared, right?

[A]

It's commonly accepted that the head was given a dignified burial in a secret place, secret location, Sidney Sussex College in Cambridge in 1960. But the story is too good to let the facts distract from the possibilities, right? Because as you said, there are people who argue multiple other things about it. One of the craziest stories I heard was that it was secretly taken by a fraternal society.

[B]

I have a question too, Ben. At this time, where there wasn't any, obviously any DNA or any lab science at all, how could you confirm the veracity of a rotted, shrunken head leathered

[A]

up like beef jerky would. You know, you know, you know, you

[B]

just feel it in your heart.

[A]

Yeah, you just feel it in your heart.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Have you ever been in that situation?

[B]

I guess not.

[A]

Well, we are about to have an amazing weekend.

[B]

I'm excited, so.

[A]

What an ignoble end. This is not what the lord Protector thought was in store for him. He was separated from his grave first, then he was separated from his body. And hopefully finally, Cromwell, divisive character that he is, has come to some sort of rest, According to the head's latest owner, one Horace Wilkinson. He's the one who talked about the secret burial in 1960. The head is still there today, and he announced that he had buried it in this location in 1962.

[B]

Yeah, secret burial, mine, rear end.

[A]

Yeah, right.

[B]

What about the rest of his body, though, Ben? What of that?

[A]

No one knows. Not for sure. There are some good ideas out there.

[B]

Yeah, it's true. No one is entirely sure about what happened. But the most likely story, according to John Morris, who is a Cromwell biographer, is the same thing that would have happened to the bodies of a lot of folks who were executed en masse like this. And that they were just thrown into a pit. Head on a pike, body in a pit. Tale as old as time, Song as old as rhyme. That too. Some other versions of the story include the idea that it was chucked into the Thames. And then there's a bonker story that comes from a man by the name of Samuel Pepys in 1664.

[A]

Pepys.

[B]

Pepys.

[A]

Okay, Pepys.

[B]

P E P Y S. I just

[A]

thought it was fun to say.

[B]

I will say it again. Pepes. What did he say? Ben, this is. I love this story. I want to hear it from the mouth of Ben.

[A]

Very well. Samuel Pepys in 1664 claimed that Cromwell had swapped bodies of various dead kings from one grave to another with another story, raising the possibility that it wasn't his corpse that was decapitated after all, but that of Charles I. Dun, dun, dun. But Charles I already lost his head the first time around.

[B]

Ah, man. I want to believe this version of the story.

[A]

Let's not let the facts get in the way of a good story.

[B]

We never do.

[A]

This is a situation wherein the fact is stranger than the fiction. It's a bit morbid. But we hope that you found the story of Cromwell's posthumous execution as strange as we found it. Stay tuned for our upcoming episode where we get even more morbid and grisly.

[B]

Morbider.

[A]

Morbider.

[B]

Yeah. Oh, it's bad.

[A]

It's peak morbidity.

[B]

We're going to have to do a trigger warning on that one. It's probably the grossest ridiculous history we have ever done so far. So far. Let's just say this. It involves very crude surgery during a very. A very specific period. Which one was it again, Ben?

[A]

It was the disco era.

[B]

Yes. AKA the late 1700s.

[A]

Right. Early 1800s. The first disco era.

[B]

That's right. It was the crossover.

[A]

A lot of people think of the Disco era as like the 1970s, but that is actually the fifth disco era. These are facts. Thanks so much to our super producer, Casey Pegram, always.

[B]

And thanks to our research associate, Gabe Lussier for a job well done, as per usual. Thanks to Christopher Haciotes, who's just. We like him. He's a pal. We're gonna have him back very soon. Thanks to Alex Williams, who composed our theme.

[A]

And thanks to you, Noel. Thanks to. Thanks to everyone who took decent care of Oliver Cromwell's head. Yep.

[B]

See you next time, folks. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. I'm U.S. transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. We all seem to be in a rush these days, from work to driving our kids around. But when you're behind the wheel, please do not speed. A few minutes saved by going faster is never worth the risk. So follow the speed limit, enjoy the drive, maybe bring some snacks for the kids. And know that along the way you're getting quality time with your family. Paid for by nhtsa.

[C]

This is Sophia Donner from OK Storytime this summer, find your next obsession on Prime Video and listen. We're not saying you need another obsession, but there could be a lot worse ones. Steamy romance, addictive love stories, and the book to screen favorites you've already read twice. So why not watch them a third time off campus? Elle, the Love Hypothesis and more. Slow Burns, Second chances chemistry you can feel through the screen and it makes you wish you were actually in that movie. We've got binge worthy series, can't miss movies. Perfect for when you're ignoring your own problems or procrastinating as one does, your next obsession is waiting. Watch only on prime these days it

[F]

seems like AI agents are just about everywhere you turn, every field and every function. But without identity, you can't trust they'll serve your business instead of jeopardizing it. Fortunately, Okta helps you get identity right by securing your AI agents identities, giving you a single layer of control, a single standard of trust. So whether an AI agent supports a single user or your entire enterprise, with Okta you'll turn risk into opportunity. Secure every agent, secure any agent. Okta secures AI if you work in

[B]

university maintenance, Grainger considers you an MVP because your playbook ensures your arena is always ready for tip off. And Grainger is your trusted partner, offering the products you need all in one place, from H Vac and plumbing supplies to lighting and more. And all delivered with plenty of time left on the clock. So your team always gets the win. Call 1-800-granger. Visit granger.com or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done.

[C]

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.