Taking the King to Court, John Cooke

Summary:

Despite being born into poverty John Cooke attained an education as a lawyer. While practicing law he realized the unfairness of the current legal system and wrote about how it ought to be reformed to be a system where a crime is a crime no matter who commits it. After the English Civil War King Charles I was put on trial for his heinous crimes, Cooke was the only lawyer in London brave enough to prosecute the king of the country. Despite his obscurity, John Cooke was a remarkable figure who ultimately led to way in articulating why even heads of state should be answerable to the law.

Further Reading:

Radical Weirdness in the English Civil Wars, by Anthony Comegna & Caleb Brown

The English “Revolution,” or Civil Wars: Guizot’s Thirteenth Lecture

English Civil Wars, Encyclopedia of Libertarianism