Jan. 6, 2014 “Colonel” Thomas Blood, who stole the Crown Jewels of England in May, 1671. The theft of the Crown Jewels in 1671 was the crime of its age, but King Charles II inexplicably pardoned the motley gang and granted extensive lands in Ireland to the ringleader, Colonel Thomas Blood. by Robert Walsh London, May 1671. A motley group of conspirators was making its final preparations for a robbery that will become the most widely known crime of its age. As his accomplices ready themselves, self-appointed “Colonel” Thomas Blood, an Irish “adventurer,” offers a final prayer for his safety a ..read more