A counselor to Henry VIII of England, More refused to support the king's split from the Catholic Church. For his trouble, he was arrested for treason and beheaded. [Read Execution Science: What's the Best Way to Kill a Person?]

 

But before all that, More was a good dad. He provided his three daughters the same classical education as his son, which was unusual for 16th-century England. During More's imprisonment for treason in the Tower of London, his oldest daughter Margaret Roper visited him frequently. After his death, Roper bribed the man who was supposed to throw her father's head into the Thames River, saving it for a decent burial instead.