Why did Charles I go to the Isle of Wight?

He fled Hampton Court in November 1647 and hoped the island's governor, Colonel Robert Hammond, would protect him. Hammond reported his arrival to Parliament instead, and Charles went from guest to prisoner at Carisbrooke Castle.

How did Charles I try to escape from Carisbrooke Castle?

Twice in 1648. On 20 March he tried to squeeze through his bedroom window on a silk cord but got stuck between the bar and the frame. In late May a second plan used a hacksaw and nitric acid to cut a window bar, but bribed guards had given it away, and Hammond walked in while the king was at work on the bar.

Can you see Charles I's window at Carisbrooke Castle?

Yes. English Heritage says the window from which he planned to escape in May 1648 is still in the castle's north wall. The castle museum also has Charles I memorabilia.

How long was Charles I held on the Isle of Wight?

About a year. He arrived in mid-November 1647 and was moved to Hurst Castle on the mainland on 1 December 1648. He was executed in London on 30 January 1649.

Was Charles I Imprisoned on the Isle of Wight? Yes, 1647

Q: What happened to Charles I's children at Carisbrooke?

After his execution, two of his children, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Henry, were sent to Carisbrooke. Elizabeth died there on 8 September 1650, aged 14, and is buried in St Thomas's Church (Newport Minster), where Queen Victoria paid for a marble memorial in the 1850s.

Yes. King Charles I was a prisoner at Carisbrooke Castle, just outside Newport, from November 1647 until September 1648, and he stayed under guard on the island until 1 December 1648. He made two failed escape attempts from the castle in 1648. A few weeks after leaving the island he was tried in London, and he was executed on 30 January 1649. Carisbrooke is now run by English Heritage, and you can still see the window he planned to escape through.

How Charles I ended up on the Isle of WightSection titled How Charles I ended up on the Isle of Wight

By 1647 Charles had lost the First Civil War and was in the hands of the Army at Hampton Court. In November 1647 he slipped away at night and made for Titchfield, on the Hampshire coast, home of the Earl of Southampton. His companions, John Ashburnham and John Berkeley, crossed to the island to fetch its governor, Colonel Robert Hammond, who they believed would be sympathetic.

It was a misjudgement. Hammond reported the king's arrival to Parliament, and Charles went from a refugee to a prisoner again. English Heritage dates the start of his captivity at Carisbrooke to 13 November 1647.

Life at Carisbrooke CastleSection titled Life at Carisbrooke Castle

At first the king had a fair amount of freedom. Talks with Parliament's commissioners carried on, and in December 1647 Charles secretly signed the Engagement with the Scots, who promised to fight for him in return for religious reform.

In January 1648 a small royalist rising in Newport was quickly put down. After that, Charles was confined to the castle, cut off from private visitors and letters, his household reduced to 30 and his chaplains dismissed. A bowling green was laid out in the castle's outer ward so he could exercise.

The escape attemptsSection titled The escape attempts

20 March 1648: stuck in the windowSection titled 20 March 1648: stuck in the window

The first plan, organised with Henry Firebrace, one of his attendants, was simple. Charles would climb out of his bedroom window on a silk cord and get down into the courtyard, where Firebrace would be waiting. He got stuck between the iron bar and the window frame, went back inside and lit a candle to tell Firebrace the attempt had failed.

May 1648: the hacksaw and the acidSection titled May 1648: the hacksaw and the acid

The second plan was more ambitious. Supporters, among them Jane Whorwood, smuggled in a hacksaw and nitric acid to cut through a window bar, with a ship and horses arranged for the getaway. But the plot leaked. Parliament's Derby House committee knew of it by 15 April, Hammond moved Charles to more secure rooms, and Ashburnham was arrested at Netley Abbey on 19 May. On 29 May Charles began work on the bar, but two sentries who had been bribed to help had betrayed him, and Hammond walked in. According to English Heritage he told the king he had come "to take leave of your Majesty, for I hear you are going away."

The Treaty of Newport and the road to executionSection titled The Treaty of Newport and the road to execution

Over the summer of 1648 the Second Civil War went badly for the king's side. The Scots, keeping their side of the Engagement, marched south in July and were beaten at Preston in August.

Parliament reopened talks anyway. On 15 September 1648 Charles left Carisbrooke for Newport, lodging in a house in the town. The negotiations, known as the Treaty of Newport, ran from mid-September to 27 November 1648. They are traditionally said to have taken place in the long room of Newport's old grammar school, built in 1614 on the corner of Lugley Street and Lower St James's Street. Even then, Jane Whorwood was in Newport with the means for an escape, but Charles chose not to try.

The talks failed. On 1 December 1648 the Army moved him to Hurst Castle, on the mainland across the Solent. He was tried in Westminster Hall and beheaded at Whitehall on 30 January 1649.

His children at CarisbrookeSection titled His children at Carisbrooke

The island's link with the king did not end with him. After his execution, two of his children, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Henry, were sent to Carisbrooke. Elizabeth died there on 8 September 1650, aged 14, and was buried in St Thomas's Church in Newport. When the church was rebuilt in the 1850s, Queen Victoria commissioned a marble memorial to her from the sculptor Carlo Marochetti. It was put up in December 1856 and is still in the church, now Newport Minster.

Visiting Carisbrooke Castle todaySection titled Visiting Carisbrooke Castle today

Carisbrooke Castle is cared for by English Heritage, about 1¼ miles south-west of Newport (Castle Hill, Newport, PO30 1XY).

Charles I's story: the window he planned to escape through in May 1648 is still in the north wall, and the castle museum, run by an independent trust, has Charles I memorabilia. Entry to the museum is included with castle admission, but it keeps its own, shorter hours.
Other things to see: the Norman shell keep on its mound, a walk around the walls, the donkeys that still work the treadwheel in the well house, the chapel and the Princess Beatrice Garden.
Opening and tickets: when we checked in October 2026, English Heritage listed the castle as open daily, 10am to 5pm with last entry at 4pm. Opening days change through the year, so check before you go. Tickets are cheaper booked online by midnight the day before (up to 15% off), and English Heritage members go free.
Getting there: by car, follow signs to Carisbrooke village and then the castle. By bus, Southern Vectis routes stop in Carisbrooke High Street and on Cedar Hill. The walk up from the High Street takes about 10 minutes, but it is steep and mostly has no pavement.

Pair it with a wander round Newport, where the minster with Princess Elizabeth's memorial and the old grammar school building are both in the town centre. For more of the island's past, see our museums and history guide.

Not the island's only famous prisonersSection titled Not the island's only famous prisoners

Charles I was held in a castle, not a prison. The island's working prisons, Parkhurst and Albany, came much later, just north of Newport. Our guide to the three prisons on the Isle of Wight covers them. For other things visitors ask, see our Isle of Wight questions.

Was Charles I Imprisoned on the Isle of Wight? Yes, 1647–48