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Tower Green execution memorial

Memorial to those executed on Tower Green. The vast majority of executions took place on Tower Hill. These were the "special cases" - just seven before 1603

William, Lord Hastings 1483

Queen Anne Boleyn 1536

Margaret, Countess of Salisbury 1541

Jane Viscountess Rochford 1542

Queen Katherine Howard 1542

Lady Jane Grey 1554

Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex 1601

 

and then

Highlander Farquhar Shaw 19 July 1743

Highlander Samuel Macpherson 19 July 1743

Highlander Malcolm Macpherson 19 July 1743

 

the last three reflect a lesser-known execution of three Black Watch soldiers. In 1743 the Highland regiment, en route to Scotland for leave, was summoned to London by the King. About 100 soldiers went absent from duty and were rounded up and marched to the tower on charges of mutiny.

All but three of the soldiers were eventually pardoned and on July 19 1743 Farquar Shaw together with brothers Samuel and Malcolm Macpherson were shot by a firing squad made up of their comrades. A large slab of black marble is set into the floor in the southwest corner of the Chapel, marking the spot where the three bodies lie. Now their names are also inscribed beside those of famous queens and nobles.

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Uploaded on October 30, 2011
Taken on November 24, 2007