Archbishop Dr. William Juxon was Bishop of London when King Charles I. was brought to trial, condemned, and executed.
Throughout the civil wars, Juxon had resided at Fulham, and although his steady adherence and loyalty to the King were well known, the prelate's meek and inoffensive behaviour and his many charitable works had gained him the respect of even the most violent of the Puritan and Republican parties.
When the trial of the Royal martyr commenced, Charles, who early foresaw its result, especially requested the attendance of Bishop Juxon; and the ministrations of this good man and truly Christian divine soothed the unhappy monarch during the terrible hours of his last days on earth.
Juxon was unwearied in his devotion to his Royal master. He attended the unhappy monarch on the scaffold; he received the last commissions, he alone heard the sufferer's last words.
When all was over, the Bishop, at considerable personal risk, took charge of the mortal remains and conveyed them to Windsor. When there, however, in spite of urgent remonstrances and earnest entreaties, he was refused permission by the then Governor, Colonel Whichcote, to perform the final sad offices over the Royal corpse.
On his return to London, Juxon was thrown into prison for refusing to divulge the particulars of his conversations with the King; but his imprisonment was not of long duration, and, when released, he returned to Fulham Palace, where he was allowed to pass several months in peace.
The following year, however, he was deprived of his bishopric. He then retired to his own property in Gloucestershire, where he resided in much privacy until the Restoration. He was then made Archbishop of Canterbury, and had the satisfaction of placing the crown upon the head of Charles II.
The Archbishop died in 1663. Few men have left this world more universally beloved than this excellent prelate; but few men have equalled him in having consistently led a life as blameless as it was self-denying—a life made beautiful by exceeding humility, gentleness, and charity.
He was succeeded in the archbishopric by Gilbert Sheldon, in 1677. This prelate had formerly been Clerk of the Closet to Charles I., and had ever adhered faithfully to the King during the troubles of the Rebellion and the trials of the Royalists during the Commonwealth. At the Restoration he was made Bishop of London, and subsequently became Archbishop of Canterbury.
Dr. Sheldon was a man of great learning and of an excellent life. His charities were numerous and magnificent, and he has also immortalised his memory by building the famous theatre at Oxford that bears his name.