Charles II and the Oak Tree

Note for teachers, parents andcarers: please show or explain to your child how to turn to the next the page. S/he needs to find the object or person mentioned in the red text, and then click on that in the picture.

Background to the story
After his defeat by the Parliamentarianforces at the Battle of Worcester in 1651 Charles's life was in terrible danger. Descriptions of him were circulated; he was very tall and dark which made him very conspicuous. Soldiers were ordered to hunt for him; there was a reward of £1000for his capture. Charles survived through the bravery of a small number of his loyal subjects who risked their own lives to help him.

Immediately after the battle the five Penderell brothers assisted him. They disguised him as a woodcutter, dressing him in old clothes. During the day he hid in an oak tree, accompanied by Major Carless. There Charles, exhausted, fell asleep while Major Carless held him, terrified that the soldiers below searching the woods would look up and see them. Slowly, by night, they moved Charles from one safehouse to another. He accompanied a brave young woman, Jane Lane, to the coast as her servant, calling himself 'Will Jackson'. There he eventually found a boat to take him to safety in France. It was nearly ten years before he was able to come back and reclaimhis rightful throne.

Background to the paintings
King Charles II loved to tell the story of his escape. He therefore commissioned a set of paintingto show the key moments in his adventure. Oddly, in these paintings, Charles is shown not at the age that he was when the events tookplace but as he looked when the pictures were painted.

And now, let's begin...