William Howard Russell witnessed the final re-capture of Lucknow (1858). In 1861 Russell went to Washington, returning to England in 1863. In July 1865 he sailed on the "Great Eastern" to document the laying of the Atlantic Cable and wrote a book about the voyage with color illustrations by Robert Dudley. He published diaries of his time in India, the American Civil War and the Franco-Prussian War, where he describes the warm welcome given him by English-speaking Prussian generals such as Leonhard Graf von Blumenthal. Russell later accused fellow war correspondent Nicholas Woods of the "Morning Herald" of lying in his articles about
William Russell, Lord Russell Fields. The execution was said to have been conducted quite poorly by Ketch, who later wrote a letter of apology. Russell was exonerated by reversal of his attainder under William III of England. Russell did not confess, in fact, he pleaded that he knew of no plot to execute the king and was not party to any conspiracy to do so. He is recorded as having admitted conspiring to levy a war. Such a mini-invasion ultimately took place and was successful; simply put, Russell did not time his meetings correctly. He resigned himself rapidly to accept his fate with dignity