Figure 1.--"The Last King" (2004) is about the reign of King Charles II one of Britain's Stuart dynasty. The chief boy character is King Charles's illegitimate son, the Duke of Monmouth. The film shows him at about the age of 11 being presented with his mother's ring while Charles is still in exile in the Low Countries.

The Movie

"The Last King" (2004) is about the reign of King Charles II one of Britain's Stuart dynasty. The chief boy character is King Charles's illegitimate son, the Duke of Monmouth. The film shows him at about the age of 11 being presented with his mother's ring while Charles is still in exile in the Low Countries. Later he is depicted at the age of 14 in London after his father has been restored to the throne. The film was directed by Joe Wright. Rufus Sewell plays Charles II. Diana Rigg plays the Queen Mother, Henrietta Maria (widow of Charles I). The image here shows James Scott bemore he has been made the Duke of Monmoth (figure 1). He is played by a child actor, but i do not know his name. Christian Coulson plays the Duke of Monmouth as a teenager. I am not sure yet about the historical accuracy of the film. It seems reasonably accurate.

Duke of Monmouth

James Scott, Duke of Monmouth and Buccleuch (1649-1685), was the illegitimate son of Charles II by Lucy Walter. The king arranged his son's upbringing by placing him in the care of Lord Crofts. In 1663, after Charles had been restored to his throne in England, he created his son Duke of Monmouth. Not long afterward Scott married the wealthy heiress Ann, Countess of Buccleuch, and took the title of Duke of Monmouth and Buccleuch, joining his wife's title to his own. Lacking political skills, Scott allowed himself to be manipulated by others in various court intrigues. He also lived a somewhat dissolute life in the notoriously lubricious court of his father (the king) who tended to indulge his son's indiscretions because of his fondness for the boy. Getting himself involved in the Rye House Plot, Monmouth was forced to flee the country. When he was dying in 1685, Charles II confessed that he was secretly a Roman Catholic, the religion of the Queen Mother, although he had been restored to the throne after Cromwell on condition that he be a loyal supporter of the Church of England. Since Charles had no legitimate children, his brother James, Duke of York (the future James II), was the obvious successor, and James II eventually took the throne as an open Roman Catholic. But the ambitious Monmouth, an Anglican Protestant, was persuaded by followers such as the unscrupulous Earl of Shaftsbury, that he should claim the throne himself, and in June 1685 he landed in England from the Continent with an army of 4,000 men. He foolishly expected the English population to rise in his support, but the people, reluctant to get involved in another civil war, failed to back him and Monmouth was easily defeated by the King's army at Sedgemoor. He was captured, condemned to death for treason, and beheaded at the age of 36. I am not sure what images exist of Monmouth. One equestrian portrait shows him fighting at Maastrict (in Holland) during 1673.

Created: April 17, 2004
Last updated: April 17, 2004