Murdered
Murdered is in Murder.
978 Murder of King Edward the Martyr
1170 Murder of Thomas a Becket
1271 Murder of Henry of Almain
1305 Robert "The Bruce" murders John "Red" Comyn
1369 Death of Peter I King Castile
1397 Murder of Thomas of Woodstock
In 661 Sigeberht the Good II King Essex was murdered by Swithhelm King of Essex and Swinfrith of Essex. Swithhelm King of Essex succeeded King Essex.
Before 679 Ansegisel (age 77) was murdered.
On 25 Jul 759 Oswulf King of Northumbria was murdered by his servants.
On 23 Sep 788 Ælfwald I King of Northumbria was murdered. He was buried at Hexham Abbey [Map]. Osred King of Northumbria succeeded King Northumbria.
On 28 Jan 891 Muhammed ibn Abd Allah Umayyad (age 27) was murdered by his brother al Mutarrif Umayyad.
On 26 May 946 King Edmund I of England (age 25) was murdered by Leofa, an exiled thief, whilst attending mass at Pucklechurch, Gloucestershire. He was buried at Glastonbury Abbey [Map]. His brother King Eadred I of England succeeded I King England.
On 18 Mar 978 King Edward "Martyr" I of England (age 16) was murdered at Corfe Castle, Dorset [Map] when visiting his younger half-brother Æthelred (age 12) and his [Æthelred's] mother Aelfthryth (age 33). He was buried in Wareham, Dorset [Map] without ceremony. His half brother King Æthelred "Unready" II of England (age 12) succeeded II King England.
In 1006 Aelfhelm Northumbria was murdered by Earldorman Eadric "Streona aka Acquisitive" Mercia.
In 1016 Uchtred "The Bold" Earldorman of Northumbria and forty of his men were murdered by Thurbrand The Hold starting a blood feud between the two families that lasted generations and the murder of scores of people.
In or before 1038 Thurbrand The Hold was murdered by Ealdred Northumbria Earl Bernicia avenging Thurbrand's murder of his father Uchtred "The Bold" Earldorman of Northumbria.
In 1038 Ealdred Northumbria Earl Bernicia was murdered by Carl son of Thurbrand in revenge for Ealdred Northumbria Earl Bernicia the murder of their respective fathers Uchtred "The Bold" Earldorman of Northumbria and Thurbrand The Hold.
In 1040 Geoffrey Chateaudun I Count Perche (age 45) was murdered at Chartres [Map].
On 13 Jan 1049 Dirk Gerulfing IV Count Holland (age 24) was murdered. His brother Floris Gerulfing I Count Holland (age 24) succeeded I Count Holland.
On 02 Dec 1079 Mabel Belleme was murdered.
On 05 Dec 1082 Ramon Berenguer "Towhead" Barcelona II Count Barcelona (age 29) was murdered by his twin brother Berenguer Ramon "Fratricide" Barcelona I Count Barcelona (age 29). His son Raymond Berenguer Barcelona III Count Barcelona succeeded III Count Barcelona.
In 1115 Benoît Canhiart Bishop Nantes was murdered.
On 02 Mar 1127 Charles Estrigen I Count Flanders (age 43) was murdered at Church of St Donatian. His second cousin William Clito Normandy Count Flanders (age 24) succeeded Count Flanders. Sibylla Anjou Countess Essex and Flanders (age 15) by marriage Countess Flanders.
On 26 Oct 1132 Floris "The Black" Gerulfing I Count Holland (age 17) was murdered. He was buried at Rijnsburg Abbey.
On 29 Dec 1170 Archbishop Thomas Becket (age 51) was murdered at Canterbury Cathedral [Map] by four knights on behalf of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England (age 37). Whether the ordered the murder, or whether the four knights were acting without orders, is a matter of conjecture.
Around 25 Dec 1175, Christmas, William de Braose 4th Baron Bramber (age 31) invited the local Welsh nobles to his Christmas court at Abergavenny Castle [Map] as an act of reconciliation. Seisyll ap Dyfnwal Gwent and his elder son Geoffrey Gwent were murdered. William de Braose 4th Baron Bramber (age 31) and his men then rode to Seisyll's home. There his younger son Cadwalladr Gwent (age 7) was murdered and his wife captured.
In 1192 Albert of Louvain Bishop Liege (age 26) was murdered by three knights of Baldwin Flanders V Count Hainault (age 42) who opposed Alberts' appointment.
On 13 Jan 1200 Otto Hohenstaufen I Count Burgundy (age 29) was murdered.
In 1203 Arthur Plantagenet 3rd Duke Brittany (age 16) was murdered at Rouen, France [Map]. His half sister Alix Thouars Duchess of Brittany (age 1) succeeded 5th Countess Richmond. Her half-sister Eleanor "Fair Maid of Britanny" 4th Countess of Richmond (age 19), who was imprisoned from 1202 to her death, also used the title Countess of Richmond.
In 1213 Gertrude Andechs was murdered.
Before 1215 Alice Béthune Countess Pembroke was murdered.
On 15 Sep 1231 Louis Wittelsbach I Duke Bavaria (age 57) was murdered. His son Otto "Illustrious" Wittelsbach II Duke Bavaria (age 25) succeeded II Duke Bavaria.
On 13 Mar 1271 Henry "Almain" Cornwall (age 35) was murdered while attending mass at the Chiesa di San Silvestro Viterbo Lazio by his cousins Simon "Younger" Montfort and Guy Montfort Count Nola (age 27) in revenge for the deaths of their father Simon and older brother Henry at the Battle of Evesham.
The murder was carried out in the presence of the Cardinals, who were conducting a papal Election, King Philip III of France (age 25), and King Charles of Sicily (age 43). The Montfort brothers were excommunicated
The deed is mentioned by Dante Alighieri some forty years after in the Divine Comedy who placed Guy de Montfort in the seventh circle of hell. Henry "Almain" Cornwall (age 35) was buried in Hailes Abbey [Map].
On 10 Feb 1305 John Comyn 3rd Lord Baddenoch (age 36) was murdered by Robert the Bruce (age 30), future King of Scotland, before the High Altar of the Greyfriars Monastery Chapel [Map]. Robert Comyn, John's uncle, was killed by Christopher Seton (age 27). Christopher's brother John Seton (age 27) was also present.
Murder, in a church, in front of the altar, regarded as a terrible crime. The act gave King Edward "Longshanks" I of England (age 65) cause to invade Scotland. Robert the Bruce was ex-communicated by the Pope for his actions.
King Edward "Longshanks" I of England (age 65) charged Bishop David de Moravia as being complicit in the murder.
On 01 May 1308 Albert Habsburg I Duke Austria (age 52) was murdered by his nephew John "Parricide" Habsburg (age 18) who he had deprived of his inheritance when Albert Habsburg I Duke Austria (age 52) forced John's (age 18) eleven year old father Rudolf Habsburg II Duke Austria to waive his rights to the Habsburg duchies of Austria and Styria as part of the Treaty of Rheinfelden.
On 21 Sep 1327 King Edward II of England (age 43) was murdered at Berkeley Castle [Map]. There is speculation as to the manner of his death, and as to whether he died at all. Some believe he may have lived the rest of his life in Europe.
On 06 Jun 1333 William Donn Burgh 3rd Earl Ulster (age 20) was murdered by Richard de Mandeville in revenge for the murder of Richard's wife's brother Walter Liath de Burgh the year before. Baron Burgh extinct.
In Sep 1337 Philip Dampierre III Marquis Namur (age 18) was murdered by the people of Famagusta after he and his companions caused trouble of some kind. He was buried in the Franciscan church in Famagusta. His brother William Dampierre I Count Namur (age 13) succeeded I Count Namur.
On 29 Oct 1339 Aleksandr Mikhailovich of Tver (age 38) was murdered.
On 25 Jan 1350 John Douglas of Lothian (age 47) was murdered.
On 07 Jan 1355 Inês Castro (age 30) was murdered on the orders of her husband's (age 34) father Alfonso "Brave" IV King Portugal (age 63) who didn't approve of their marriage, or relationship. He, Peter, subsequently captured two of the murderers and had them executed.
In 1358 John Barcelona (age 27) was murdered.
On 29 May 1358 Fadrique Alfonso Ivrea (age 24) was murdered at Seville on behalf of his brother Peter "Cruel" I King Castile (age 23).
On 23 Mar 1369 Peter "Cruel" I King Castile (age 34) was murdered by his half-brother Henry "Fratricide" II King Castile (age 35) outside the wall of the castle of Montiel, La Mancha. His half brother Henry "Fratricide" II King Castile (age 35) succeeded II King Castile.
In 1375 Ralph Dacre 3rd Baron Dacre Gilsland (age 54) was murdered. His brother Hugh Dacre 4th Baron Dacre Gilsland (age 40) succeeded 4th Baron Dacre Gilsland.
Before 18 Feb 1383 John Dynham (age 64) was murdered by robbers including John Broun.
In May 1385 Ralph Stafford (age 18) was murdered by John Holland 1st Duke Exeter (age 33). He was buried at King's Langley Priory, Hertfordshire [Map].
Around 08 Sep 1397 Thomas of Woodstock 1st Duke of Gloucester (age 42) was murdered in Calais [Map] for his role as leader of the Lords Appellant. Duke Albemarle aka Aumale, Duke Gloucester, Earl Essex forfeit. His son Humphrey Plantagenet 2nd Earl Buckingham (age 16) succeeded 2nd Earl Buckingham.
Walter Clopton was part of the inquiry into his death the outcome of which is not known. A John Hall was executed for the murder.
On 23 Nov 1407 Louis Valois Duke Touraine I Duke Orléans (age 35) was murdered on the orders of John "Fearless" Valois Duke Burgundy (age 36) at Paris [Map]. His son Charles Valois Duke Orléans (age 12) succeeded Duke Orléans.
On 25 Jan 1431 Alison May was murdered.
On 29 Jun 1450 Bishop William Ayscough (age 55) was murdered at Edington, Wiltshire by an angry mob.
On 22 Feb 1452 William Douglas 8th Earl Douglas 2nd Earl Avondale (age 27) was murdered by King James II of Scotland (age 21) at Edinburgh Castle [Map] for refusing to desist from conspiring with Tiger Earl 4th Earl Crawford (age 29). His brother James Douglas 9th Earl Douglas 3rd Earl Avondale (age 26) succeeded 9th Earl Douglas, 3rd Earl Avondale.
On 21 Jul 1457 Henry Pierrepont (age 49) was murdered at Papplewick Moor Sherwood.
On 20 Jul 1460 Thomas Scales 7th Baron Scales (age 63) was murdered by boatmen whilst travelling from the Tower of London [Map] to Sanctuary, Westminster Abbey [Map]. His daughter Elizabeth Scales Countess Rivers succeeded 8th Baroness Scales. She was, or had been married to, Henry Bourchier (the year of his death may been 1458). She was in 1466 married to Anthony Woodville 2nd Earl Rivers (age 20), brother of King Edward IV's (age 18) wife Elizabeth Woodville Queen Consort England (age 23); an example of the Woodville family marrying rich heiresses.
On 26 Dec 1476 Galeazzo Maria Sforza 5th Duke Milan (age 32) was murdered. Supported by about thirty friends, the three men waited in the church for the duke to arrive for mass. When Galeazzo Sforza arrived, Lampugnani knelt before him; after some words were exchanged, Lampugnani rose suddenly and stabbed Sforza in the groin and breast. Olgiati and Visconti soon joined in, as did a servant of Lampugnani's. Sforza was dead within a matter of seconds. All the assassins quickly escaped in the ensuing mayhem save for Lampugnani, who became entangled in some of the church's cloth and was killed by a guard. His body soon fell into the hands of a mob, which dragged the corpse through the streets, slashing and beating at it; finally, they hung the body upside-down outside Lampugnani's house. The beheaded corpse was cut down the next day and, in an act of symbolism, the "sinning" right hand was removed, burnt and put on display. His son Gian Galeazzo Sforza 6th Duke Milan (age 7) succeeded 6th Duke Milan.
On 30 Aug 1482 Louis Bourbon (age 44) was murdered.
On 07 Dec 1487 James Fitzgerald 8th Earl Desmond (age 28) was murdered by John Murtagh at the instigation of his brother John Fitzgerald 12th Earl Desmond at Rathkeale, County Limerick. His brother Maurice Fitzgerald 9th Earl Desmond succeeded 9th Earl Desmond.
On 17 Jul 1497 James Ormond was murdered by Piers "Red" Butler 8th Earl Ormonde 1st Earl Ossory (age 30).
On 01 Jan 1534 Henry Longford was murdered during the attack by Thomas Foljambe and his followers during a service in Chesterfield church on New Year's Day 1434, killing two of his companions - Henry Longford and William Bradshaw - and mutilating Pierrepont by cutting off the fingers of his right-hand.
On 08 Jun 1547 James Stewart of Beath (age 41) was murdered at Dunblane, Perth.
Before 28 Jan 1557 William Hartgill and John Hartgill were murdered by Charles Stourton 8th Baron Stourton (age 37).
On 09 Mar 1566 at eight o'clock in the evening David Rizzio (age 33) was murdered in the presence of the six months pregnant Mary Queen of Scots (age 23) and her half-sister Jean Stewart Countess Argyll (age 33) at Holyrood Palace [Map] by rebels led by Patrick Ruthven 3rd Lord Ruthven. Rizzio was dragged through the bed chamber into the adjacent Audience Chamber and stabbed an alleged 57 times. Mary's husband Henry "Lord Darnley" Stewart (age 20) was suspected of being one of the murderers.
On 15 Mar 1566 Mary Queen of Scots (age 23) writes to Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland (age 32):
As first hes takin our houss slane our maist [most] speciall servand (age 33) in our awin [own] presence & thaireftir haldin our propper personis captive tressonneblie, quhairby [whereby] we war constrainit to escaipe straitlie about midnyght out of our palice of halliruidhouss [Map] to the place quhair [where] we ar for the present, in the grittest danger feir of our lywis & ewill [ill] estate that evir princes on earth stuid [stood] in.
We thotht to have writtin to you this letter with oure awin [own] hand, that therby ye myght have better onestand all our meaning & takin mair [more] familliarlie therewit. Bot of trewt [truth] we ar so tyrit [tired] & ewill [ill] at eass [ease], quhat [what] throw rydding of twenty millis [miles] in v [5] horis [hours] of the nyght as wit the frequent seikness & weill dispositioun be th'occasioun of our child/that we could not at this tyme as we was willing to have done…
Your richt [right] gud sister and cusignes [cousin] Marie R.
Jean Stewart Countess Argyll:
Around 1533 she was born illegitimately to King James V of Scotland and Elizabeth Bethune. She a great granddaughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland.
In 1553 Archibald Campbell 5th Earl Argyll and she were married. She by marriage Countess Argyll. She the illegitmate daughter of King James V of Scotland and Elizabeth Bethune. He the son of Archibald Campbell 4th Earl Argyll and Helen Hamilton Countess Argyll. They were third cousins. She a great granddaughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland.
On 07 Jan 1588 Jean Stewart Countess Argyll died.
Patrick Ruthven 3rd Lord Ruthven: he was born to William Ruthven 2nd Lord Ruthven and Janet Halyburton Lady Dirletoun. Before 1551 Patrick Ruthven 3rd Lord Ruthven and Janet Douglas were married. She the illegitmate daughter of Archibald Douglas 6th Earl Angus. After 1551 Patrick Ruthven 3rd Lord Ruthven and Janet Stewart were married. His second marriage, her fourth. She the daughter of John Stewart 2nd Earl Atholl and Janet Campbell Countess Atholl. She a great x 4 granddaughter of King Edward III of England. On 13 May 1566 Patrick Ruthven 3rd Lord Ruthven died.
On 10 Feb 1567 Henry "Lord Darnley" Stewart (age 21) was murdered at Kirk O Field. Around two in the morning two barrels of gunpowder exploded beneath his room. His body and that of his valet William Taylor were found outside, surrounded by a cloak, a dagger, a chair, and a coat. Darnley was dressed only in his nightshirt. There were no visible marks on the body. He was buried at Holyrood Abbey, Holyrood.
In Feb 1592 John Campbell (age 52) was murdered in Knipoch House, Knipoch.
On 07 Feb 1592 James "The Bonnie Earl" Stewart 2nd Earl Moray (age 27) was murdered. His son James Stewart 3rd Earl Moray (age 1) succeeded 3rd Earl Moray.
Moray, in expectation of a summons to the court, had arrived at Donibristle, a house on the Fife coast owned by his mother Margaret Campbell (deceased). The house was suddenly beset by the followers of George Gordon 1st Marquess Huntly (age 30), who called on him to surrender. He declined to do so, and the house was set on fire. Moray escaped but was subsequently killed.
The next day, the corpses of the earl and of Dunbar, Sheriff of Moray, who had also been killed in the attack, were brought to Leith by the earl's mother Margaret Campbell (deceased). She intended to confront King James VI (age 25) and demand that Huntly (age 30) be brought to justice. The body displayed in the St Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh; a 'vendetta portrait' showing his wounds was commissioned.
The body remained on display for five years. He was eventually buried on the orders of King James (age 25)
James Stewart 3rd Earl Moray:
Before 1591 he was born to James "The Bonnie Earl" Stewart 2nd Earl Moray and Elizabeth Stewart 2nd Countess Moray. He a great x 3 grandson of King Henry VII of England and Ireland.
On 02 Oct 1607 James Stewart 3rd Earl Moray and Anne Gordon Countess Moray were married. She by marriage Countess Moray. She the daughter of George Gordon 1st Marquess Huntly and Henrietta Stewart Marchioness Huntly. He the son of James "The Bonnie Earl" Stewart 2nd Earl Moray and Elizabeth Stewart 2nd Countess Moray. They were half third cousin once removed. He a great x 3 grandson of King Henry VII of England and Ireland. 
On 06 Aug 1638 James Stewart 3rd Earl Moray died. His son James Stewart 4th Earl Moray succeeded 4th Earl Moray.
Margaret Campbell:
In 1544 she was born to Archibald Campbell 4th Earl Argyll and Margaret Graham Countess Argyll.
On 10 Jan 1563 James Stewart 1st Lord Doune and she were married. There was a masque involving courtiers and musicians dressed in white taffeta as shepherds. She the daughter of Archibald Campbell 4th Earl Argyll and Margaret Graham Countess Argyll. They were half third cousin once removed.
In Feb 1592 Margaret Campbell died.
On 23 Jun 1605 Arthur Pole (age 30) was murdered.
On 19 Mar 1609 Maud Babington (age 38) was murdered. A servant, Honora ny Caffry, was burned at the stake for the petty treason of the murder of a mistress. Another, a man, later confessed to the murder.
On 14 May 1610 Henry IV King France (age 56) was murdered in Paris [Map]. His son Louis XIII King France (age 8) succeeded XIII King France: Capet Valois Bourbon.
On or before 07 Jan 1619 Geoffrey Pole (age 42) was murdered in Rome.
On 23 Aug 1628 George Villiers 1st Duke of Buckingham (age 35) was murdered at Greyhound Pub, Portsmouth by a disgruntled soldier John Felton (age 33). He was buried at Westminster Abbey [Map]. His son George Villiers 2nd Duke of Buckingham succeeded 2nd Duke of Buckingham, 2nd Marquess of Buckingham, 2nd Earl Buckingham.
Felton was considered a hero by many who blamed Buckingham for the failures of the 1625 Cádiz Expedition and 1627 Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré. Felton was subsequently hanged.
In Jan 1635 Rowland Holt was murdered by muggers in Clerkenwell Fields. The identity is not certain but likely.
On 11 Apr 1646 Edward Sackville was murdered by Parliamentary forces at Chawley Cumnor, Oxfordshire.
On 05 Jun 1677 Robert Perceval (age 20) was murdered by an unknown person at the Strand [Map].
On 12 Oct 1679 Edmund Berry Godfrey (age 57) was murdered. He was found dead in a ditch at Primrose Hill lying face down on his own sword. The investigation concluded he had been strangled and subsequently moved.
In 1692 Andrew Clench was murdered between nine and eleven o'clock on the night of Monday by Henry Harrison who was subequently convicted of the murder. On 15 Apr 1692 Henry Harrison was hanged.
Around Sep 1694 Grace Moorwood was murdered by a butcher and his apprentice who had broken into her house.
In 1700 Andrew Slanning 2nd Baronet (age 26) was murdered during a drunken brawl in the Rose Tavern by John Cowland. Baronet Slanning of Maristow extinct.
On 20 Aug 1711 Richard Thornhill was murdered at Turnham Green Chiswick by two men who allegedly invoked the name of Cholmley Dering 4th Baronet, who Thornhill had killed in a duel three months before, as they killed him
On 05 May 1840 William Russell (age 72) was murdered.
In Aug 1895 Reverend George William Atlay was murdered by by a party of Ngoni people whilst attached to the Universities' Mission to Central Africa.
On 05 Nov 2004 Anthony Ashley-Cooper 10th Earl of Shaftesbury (age 66) was murdered by the brother, Mohammed M'Barek, of his wife Jamila Ben M'Barek Countess of Shaftesbury (age 43) on her behalf. On 07 Apr 2005 the remains of Anthony Ashley-Cooper 10th Earl of Shaftesbury (age 66) were discovered in a valley at Théoule-sur-Mer, Alpes-Maritimes on the outskirts of Cannes. His son Anthony Ashley-Cooper 11th Earl of Shaftesbury (age 27) succeeded 11th Earl Shaftesbury, 11th Baron Ashley of Wimborne St Giles, 12th Baronet Cooper of Rockbourne in Southampton. He died six months later, six weeks after assuming the title.
On 07 Apr 2021 Richard Lexington Sutton 9th Baronet (age 83) was murdered at his Dorset home. His net worth was estimated at £301 million in May 2020 which included the Sheraton Grand Hotel on Park Lane and the Athenaeum in Mayfair, and thousands of acres of land across the country, including estates in Lincolnshire, Dorset, and Aberdeenshire. His son David has yet to claim the Baronet Sutton of Norwood Park in Nottinghamshire title.
Robert Belleme was murdered.
Robert Frankland was murdered at India.