Charles and the Oak
Preserved but no longer current.
When Charles II fled from the Parliamentary army after the battle of Worcester, he took refuge in Boscobel House; but it being unsafe to remain there, he concealed himself in an oak (September 3rd, 1651). Dr. Stukeley says that this tree "stood just by a horse-track passing through the wood, and the king, with Colonel Carlos, climbed into it by means of the hen-roost ladder. The family reached them victuals with a nut-hook.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Charles and the Oak” mean?
When Charles II fled from the Parliamentary army after the battle of Worcester, he took refuge in Boscobel House; but it being unsafe to remain there, he concealed himself in an oak (September 3rd, 1651). Dr. Stukeley says that this tree "stood just by a horse-track passing through the wood, and the king, with Colonel Carlos, climbed into it by means of the hen-roost ladder. The family reached them victuals with a nut-hook.
Is “Charles and the Oak” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.