BattlefieldsNorthern Rising — execution of the Earl of Northumberland 1572
Tudor

Northern Rising — execution of the Earl of Northumberland 1572

1572
Northumberland, England
Also known as: Beheading of Northumberland 1572 · Thomas Percy execution
Era
Tudor
Battle Type
Skirmish
Location
Northumberland, England
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
Thomas Percy, 7th Earl of Northumberland
Forces
Earl of Northumberland; judicial execution.
VS
Victor
Crown (Elizabeth I)
Forces
Crown executioners
Outcome
Percy, sold by the Scots to England, beheaded at York; last major act of suppression of the Northern Rising
The Battle

History & Significance

The execution of the 7th Earl of Northumberland in 1572 — sold back to England by the Scottish regent Morton for a large sum of money — was the final act of Elizabeth I's response to the Northern Rising. Percy was beheaded at York rather than London, deliberately emphasising crown control over the north. The Percy family, the greatest magnate dynasty of northern England for four centuries, was stripped of its earldom and never recovered its former power. Elizabeth had permanently broken the power of the old northern nobility.

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