A poll tax pushed medieval England's poorest into open revolt against the crown

In 1381, a hated poll tax and simmering resentment from the Black Death's aftermath drove thousands of commoners, led by Wat Tyler, to march on London, storm the Tower, and execute royal officials. The 14-year-old King Richard II met the rebels and promised reforms — then had Tyler killed at the negotiation and the revolt crushed within weeks.

— Juliet Barker, 1381: The Year of the Peasants' Revolt — Harvard University Press, 2014
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