William Laud (1573-1645) Archbishop of Canterbury -beheaded in 1645

William was born during the reign of Elizabeth 1 (1558-1603) and beheaded during the reign of Charles 1 (1625-1649).

William was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by Charles 1 in 1633. and was a key advocate of his religious reforms. He was a highly effective parliamentarian
and a key adviser ad policy-maker.

He was bishop of Bath and Wells, then London before becoming Archbishop of Canterbury i in 1633
He was a firm believer in episcopalianism -the rule by bishops.* Laudianism refers to liturgical practices designed to enforce uniformity within the C of E as outlined by Charles 1.

He was accused of Arminianism - favouring doctrines of the historic church prior to the Reformation. He was opposed to Calvinism.

The Long Parliament of 1640 accused Laud of treason. Impeached in the the Grand Remonstrance of 1641 and was imprisonment in the Tower of London.
In 1644 he was brought to trial which ended without a verdict.
Parliament took up the issue and eventually passed a bill of attainder , under which Laud was beheaded on Tower Hill on 10 th of January 1645. He was buried in the chapel of St. John’s College, Oxford. This was towards the end of the First English Civil War (1642-6)

Charles 1 towards the end of his life admitted he had put too much trust in William and warned his son not to rely on anyone else’s judgment.

William was born in Reading, Berkshire.

Source
Wikipedia.