Marcus Sarjeant
Encyclopedia
Marcus Simon Sarjeant is notable for firing six blank
shots at Queen Elizabeth II
as she rode down The Mall
to the Trooping the Colour
ceremony in 1981.
, near Folkestone
, Kent
, went to Astor Secondary School in Dover
. He was a member of the Scouts
, becoming local patrol leader before leaving to join the Air Training Corps
in 1978. In the ATC, Serjeant won a marksman's badge, and he owned an air rifle. After leaving school in May 1980 with seven CSE
passes, Serjeant applied to join the Royal Marines
but was unable to accept the discipline and left after three months, claiming that officers bullied him. He also tried to join the Army
but stayed only for two days of an induction course.
After failed applications to join the police and the fire service he worked at a zoo and at an arts centre in Folkestone. Under the Youth Training Scheme he worked at a youth centre in Hawkinge
. Friends reported that in October 1980 Sarjeant joined the Anti Royalist Movement. At the time of his attack on the Queen he was unemployed and living with his mother (his father was working abroad).
He tried unsuccessfully to find ammunition for his father's .455
revolver, and to get a gun licence of his own; he joined a local gun club. Through mail order he paid £66.90 for two blank-firing
replica Python
revolvers. In the run-up to the annual Trooping the Colour ceremony, Sarjeant sent letters to two magazines, one of which included a picture of him with his father's gun. He also sent a letter to Buckingham Palace
which read "Your Majesty. Don't go to the Trooping the Colour ceremony because there is an assassin set up to kill you, waiting just outside the palace". The letter arrived on June 16.
, Serjeant quickly fired six shots from his starting revolver. The horse was momentarily startled but the Queen brought her under control; she was unharmed. Lance Corporal Alex Galloway (Scots Guards
), Police Sergeant John Woodcock and John Heaseman (St John Ambulance) quickly reacted and subdued Serjeant, who told them "I wanted to be famous. I wanted to be a somebody".
The attack happened fifteen minutes after the Queen's departure from Buckingham Palace. Immediately, the Sovereign's Escort was ordered by the Gold Stick in Waiting to "close up" around Her Majesty. The Queen regained control of her mount, and continued to Horse Guards Parade.
of John Lennon
in December 1980, and the attempts on the life of President
Ronald Reagan
and Pope John Paul II
. In particular he noted the ease with which Mark David Chapman
had become famous after killing John Lennon. A friend said that at the time of John Hinckley, Jr.
's attempt on the life of President Reagan, Serjeant had said "I would like to be the first one to take a pot shot at the Queen". The police found that Serjeant had written "I am going to stun and mystify the world. I will become the most famous teenager in the world." Investigations by psychiatrists found that Serjeant did not have any abnormalities within the Mental Health Act.
, and was brought to trial before the Lord Chief Justice
, Lord Lane
, on September 14. He was charged with an offence under Section Two of the Treason Act
in that he "wilfully discharged at or near Her Majesty the Queen a gun with the intent to alarm or distress Her Majesty." Serjeant pleaded guilty, and Lord Lane, sentencing him to five years' imprisonment, said that "the public sense of outrage must be marked. You must be punished for the wicked thing you did". Serjeant appealed against the length of the sentence but the appeal was refused.
Blank (cartridge)
A blank is a type of cartridge for a firearm that contains gunpowder but no bullet or shot. When fired, the blank makes a flash and an explosive sound . Blanks are often used for simulation , training, and for signaling...
shots at Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
as she rode down The Mall
The Mall (London)
The Mall in central London is the road running from Buckingham Palace at its western end to Admiralty Arch and on to Trafalgar Square at its eastern end. It then crosses Spring Gardens, which was where the Metropolitan Board of Works and, for a number of years, the London County Council were...
to the Trooping the Colour
Trooping the Colour
Trooping the Colour is a ceremony performed by regiments of the British and the Commonwealth armies. It has been a tradition of British infantry regiments since the 17th century, although the roots go back much earlier. On battlefields, a regiment's colours, or flags, were used as rallying points...
ceremony in 1981.
Background
Sarjeant, who was from Capel-le-FerneCapel-le-Ferne
Capel-le-Ferne , the name of which derives from the phrase "Chapel in the Ferns", is a village situated near Folkestone, Kent. It has a population of approximately 2400...
, near Folkestone
Folkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, went to Astor Secondary School in Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
. He was a member of the Scouts
The Scout Association
The Scout Association is the World Organization of the Scout Movement recognised Scouting association in the United Kingdom. Scouting began in 1907 through the efforts of Robert Baden-Powell. The Scout Association was formed under its previous name, The Boy Scout Association, in 1910 by the grant...
, becoming local patrol leader before leaving to join the Air Training Corps
Air Training Corps
The Air Training Corps , commonly known as the Air Cadets, is a cadet organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is a voluntary youth group which is part of the Air Cadet Organisation and the Royal Air Force . It is supported by the Ministry of Defence, with a regular RAF Officer, currently Air...
in 1978. In the ATC, Serjeant won a marksman's badge, and he owned an air rifle. After leaving school in May 1980 with seven CSE
Certificate of Secondary Education
The Certificate of Secondary Education was a school leaving qualification awarded between 1965 and 1987 in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland....
passes, Serjeant applied to join the Royal Marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
but was unable to accept the discipline and left after three months, claiming that officers bullied him. He also tried to join the Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
but stayed only for two days of an induction course.
After failed applications to join the police and the fire service he worked at a zoo and at an arts centre in Folkestone. Under the Youth Training Scheme he worked at a youth centre in Hawkinge
Hawkinge
Hawkinge is a village and civil parish in the Shepway District of Kent, England. The original village of Hawkinge is actually just less than a mile due east of the present village centre ; the modern, much larger, village of Hawkinge was formed by the merging of Hawkinge and Uphill...
. Friends reported that in October 1980 Sarjeant joined the Anti Royalist Movement. At the time of his attack on the Queen he was unemployed and living with his mother (his father was working abroad).
He tried unsuccessfully to find ammunition for his father's .455
.455 Webley
.455 Webley is a British handgun cartridge, most commonly used in the Webley top break revolvers Marks I through VI.The .455 cartridge was a service revolver cartridge, featuring a rimmed cartridge firing a .45 bullet at the relatively low velocity of 650 ft/s...
revolver, and to get a gun licence of his own; he joined a local gun club. Through mail order he paid £66.90 for two blank-firing
Blank (cartridge)
A blank is a type of cartridge for a firearm that contains gunpowder but no bullet or shot. When fired, the blank makes a flash and an explosive sound . Blanks are often used for simulation , training, and for signaling...
replica Python
Colt Python
The Colt Python is a .357 Magnum caliber revolver formerly manufactured by Colt's Manufacturing Company of Hartford, Connecticut. It is sometimes referred to as a "Combat Magnum". It was first introduced in 1955, the same year as Smith & Wesson's M29 .44 Magnum. The now discontinued Colt Python...
revolvers. In the run-up to the annual Trooping the Colour ceremony, Sarjeant sent letters to two magazines, one of which included a picture of him with his father's gun. He also sent a letter to Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
which read "Your Majesty. Don't go to the Trooping the Colour ceremony because there is an assassin set up to kill you, waiting just outside the palace". The letter arrived on June 16.
Attack
On 13 June 1981, Sarjeant joined the crowds for Trooping the Colour, finding a spot near the junction between The Mall and Horseguards Avenue. When the Queen came past riding her 19-year-old horse BurmeseBurmese (horse)
Burmese , a black RCMP Police Service Horse mare, was given to Queen Elizabeth II by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and ridden by the queen for Trooping the Colour for eighteen consecutive years from 1969 to 1986.-Royal Service:...
, Serjeant quickly fired six shots from his starting revolver. The horse was momentarily startled but the Queen brought her under control; she was unharmed. Lance Corporal Alex Galloway (Scots Guards
Scots Guards
The Scots Guards is a regiment of the Guards Division of the British Army, whose origins lie in the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland...
), Police Sergeant John Woodcock and John Heaseman (St John Ambulance) quickly reacted and subdued Serjeant, who told them "I wanted to be famous. I wanted to be a somebody".
The attack happened fifteen minutes after the Queen's departure from Buckingham Palace. Immediately, the Sovereign's Escort was ordered by the Gold Stick in Waiting to "close up" around Her Majesty. The Queen regained control of her mount, and continued to Horse Guards Parade.
Investigation
In questioning, Serjeant said he had been inspired by the assassinationAssassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
of John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
in December 1980, and the attempts on the life of President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
. In particular he noted the ease with which Mark David Chapman
Mark David Chapman
Mark David Chapman is an American prison inmate who murdered former Beatles member John Lennon on December 8, 1980. He committed the crime as Lennon and Yoko Ono were outside of The Dakota apartment building in New York City. Chapman aimed five shots at Lennon, hitting him four times in his back...
had become famous after killing John Lennon. A friend said that at the time of John Hinckley, Jr.
John Hinckley, Jr.
John Warnock Hinckley, Jr., attempted to assassinate U.S. President Ronald Reagan in Washington, D.C., on March 30, 1981, as the culmination of an effort to impress teen actress Jodie Foster. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity and has remained under institutional psychiatric care since...
's attempt on the life of President Reagan, Serjeant had said "I would like to be the first one to take a pot shot at the Queen". The police found that Serjeant had written "I am going to stun and mystify the world. I will become the most famous teenager in the world." Investigations by psychiatrists found that Serjeant did not have any abnormalities within the Mental Health Act.
Trial
Sarjeant became the first person since 1966 to be prosecuted under the Treason Act 1842Treason Act 1842
The Treason Act 1842 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was passed early in the reign of Queen Victoria...
, and was brought to trial before the Lord Chief Justice
Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales
The Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary and President of the Courts of England and Wales. Historically, he was the second-highest judge of the Courts of England and Wales, after the Lord Chancellor, but that changed as a result of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005,...
, Lord Lane
Geoffrey Lane, Baron Lane
Geoffrey Dawson Lane, Baron Lane AFC PC QC was a British Judge who served as Lord Chief Justice of England from 1980 to 1992. The later part of his term was marred by a succession of disputed convictions...
, on September 14. He was charged with an offence under Section Two of the Treason Act
Treason Act
Treason Act or Treasons Act is a stock short title used for legislation in the United Kingdom and in the Republic of Ireland on the subject of treason and related offences...
in that he "wilfully discharged at or near Her Majesty the Queen a gun with the intent to alarm or distress Her Majesty." Serjeant pleaded guilty, and Lord Lane, sentencing him to five years' imprisonment, said that "the public sense of outrage must be marked. You must be punished for the wicked thing you did". Serjeant appealed against the length of the sentence but the appeal was refused.