SPEAKER LENTHALL On 4th January 1642, Charles I became the last monarch ever to cross the bar of the Commons while it was sitting, when he attempted to arrest five members for treason. Although the MPs had already fled, the Speaker at the time, William Lenthall, responded by falling to his knees and defying the King, claiming that he was the servant of the Commons, and not the King. Lenthall's action on that day is celebrated as the moment in history when the Commons permanently established its absolute independence from the crown.