Thomas Blood Nearly Stole Regalia

In 1671, an Irish adventurer named Thomas Blood and his accomplices attempted to steal the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London. They attacked their keeper, flattened St. Edward's Crown, stuffed the Sovereign's Orb into Blood's breeches, and tried to saw the royal scepter in half before being caught. Blood demanded to speak directly to King Charles II, who found him so amusing that not only did he pardon him, but also grant him Irish lands producing GBP500 annually, after which the would-be thief became a familiar figure at court.

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