The Walls of John Fowke

London in the English Civil Wars, 1642-1648

John Fowke’s portrait

It was a dramatic scene by design. On the fateful day in January 1642 that King Charles I swept into Parliament expecting to arrest his enemies, he was embarrassed by their absence. Instead of the more famous John Pym, Denzil Holles, John Hampden, Arthur Haselrig, and William Strode, Charles found an older and even more dedicated op…