Wat Tyler

Wat Tyler, born either in 1341 or approximately 1320 and killed June 15, 1381, emerged as the principal leader of the 1381 Peasants' Revolt in England, one of the most significant popular uprisings in medieval English history. He commanded a large force of rebels who marched from Canterbury to London to protest the collection of an oppressive poll tax and to demand sweeping economic and social reforms that challenged the fundamental structures of feudal society. Although the rebellion initially achieved remarkable success, seizing control of London and forcing negotiations with King Richard II himself, Tyler was killed by royal officers during a confrontation at Smithfield, London, abruptly ending the uprising and leading to its eventual suppression. Despite the revolt's failure and Tyler's violent death, his leadership of this dramatic challenge to royal and aristocratic authority secured his place in English popular memory as a symbol of resistance against oppression and injustice.