John Dean (convict)

John Dean (c. 1620 – c.  23 February 1629) was an 8- or 9-year-old English boy who was hanged during the reign of Charles I. He is likely the youngest person ever to be executed in England. Dean was accused of setting fire to two barns or houses in the nearby town of Windsor, and was subsequently indicted, arraigned, and convicted on the same day, and was "hanged accordingly". It is unknown if anyone was harmed in the alleged acts of arson, but the judge presiding Dean's conviction said that Dean showed signs of "malice, revenge, craft, and cunning". The evidence for Dean's guilt in the alleged crimes has never been recovered. Even for the time, it was unusual and frowned upon by society in England for minors to be executed, but Dean was nevertheless sentenced to death and executed soon after.