On the Royal Martyr King Charles the I of ever blessed Memory

Letterpress frost-fair broadside ballad entitled 'On the Royal Martyr King Charles the I of ever blessed Memory'. The three verse ballad was printed on the frozen River Thames on January 30th 1683 by 'the loyal young printers E and A Milbourn S Hinch and J Mason.' The pro-royalty text refers to the Whigs whose opposition to Charles II is compared to the monstrous wickedness 35 years before when they beheaded Charles I.

Winter frost fairs were held annually on the frozen Thames from the late 16th century. In the frost fair of 1683-1684 at which this was printed there was a street of booths, puppet shows, bull-baiting, horse racing and ox-roasting. John Evelyn recorded in his diaries that 'ladyes took a fancy to have their names printed, and the day and the yeare set down when printed on the Thames'.
This is probably the first reference to printing presses at the fair but they soon became a standard feature of the annual fairs. Printers set up names and messages to order in pre-set decorative borders printing them on the ice for a few pennies. By 1814 there were up to ten printing presses operating at the fair printing not only mementoes and keepsakes but also cards and leaflets.