1681

Execution of Oliver Plunkett

On July 1, 1681, Oliver Plunkett, the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, was executed in Tyburn, London. He was falsely accused of treason during the Popish Plot, a fabricated conspiracy against King Charles II. Plunkett was the last Catholic martyr to be hanged, drawn, and quartered in England. His execution became a symbol of religious persecution and he was later canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church in 1975.