Regicide Regicide The broad definition of regicide ( "of king" + ' "killer" or ' "killing") is the deliberate killing of a monarch, or the person responsible for the killing of a person of royalty. In the British tradition, it refers to the judicial execution of a king after a trial, reflecting the historical precedent of the trial and execution of Charles I of England. More broadly, it can also refer to the killing of an emperor or any other reigning sovereign. Before the Tudor period, English kings had been murdered while imprisoned (for example Edward II or Edward V) or
John Cook (regicide) John Cook (regicide) John Cook (1608 – 16 October 1660) was the first Solicitor General of the English Commonwealth and led the prosecution of Charles I. Following the English Restoration, Cook was convicted of regicide and hanged, drawn and quartered on 16 October 1660. He is considered an international legal icon and progenitor of international criminal law for being the first lawyer to prosecute a head of state for crimes against his people. John Cook was the son of Leicestershire farmers Isaac and Elizabeth Cook whose farm was just outside Burbage. He was baptised on 18 September 1608 in the