Heads With a Life of Their Own

Sir Walter Raleigh

SIR WALTER RALEIGH was a favorite of Queen Elizabeth I, but he ended up on the chopping block courtesy of her not-so-friendly successor King James I. (Raleigh made time for one last quip, fingering the executioner's axe and saying "This is sharp medicine, but it is a physician for all diseases.") After the blade did its work, Raleigh's body was buried but his head was given to his wife Elizabeth, who was just a teensy bit quirky about it. According to Shepherd of the Ocean, a Raleigh bio by J.H. Adamson and H.F. Holland, "She had [the head] embalmed and kept it by her side, frequently inquiring of visitors if they would like to see Sir Walter." Many sources say that Bess lugged the head around with her at all times until her own death 29 years later. Finally, Raleigh's well-travelled noggin was interred with his body at St. Margaret's church near Westminster Abbey.