ABSTRACT
On 1 February 1624, Bishop William Laud stood behind Prince Charles at dinner. Charles was, Laud noted in his diary, exceedingly merry, talking about a wide range of subjects, including the choice of a career. It would, of course, be absurd to suggest that just because Prince Charles told Laud he could never compromise, King Charles inevitably had to suffer martydom – the ultimate act of resistance. Most children’s consciousness of their family dates back to their earliest memories: mother, father, elder brothers and sisters are something that have always been there. During the traumatic winter of 1611 and spring of 1612 Charles’s household arrangements were painfully disturbed. Charles’s father was equally useless in bolstering the boy’s self-confidence. In most respects Laud was right. In life there had been little greatness about the king.
