The “No Kings” protest across the nation added up to nearly 7 million people protesting President Donald Trump’s reign. Dissent is upon us, catching and spreading.

Shakespeare’s King Lear, King Charles I of England and King Louis XVI of France met fates that upended their eras. Two kings literally lost their heads. Here’s the deal, straight up: Rulers can’t run roughshod over the ruled, with no restraints.

The grand palace at Versailles did not need another ballroom.

Charles I and Louis XVI were so hated for their excesses that both were put on trial for treason. Each was guillotined, in 1649 and 1793, respectively — in public. The London and Paris populaces witnessed their final moments.

We are not living in those centuries of monarchy. Such a fate is not in store for Trump. History has progressed since then.

Impeached twice, Trump is a master of escape from punishment for his crimes and misdeeds. No other American political figure has his brazen talent for cold revenge.

Like Lear, a fictional king of England, Trump acts out rages that raise questions about a volatile state of mind. Lear had a stormy heath; he has the Oval to rant, rave and revel in a cabinet of sycophants. Lear goes insane by the last scene, losing what he loved most.

Cut to: Here in 2025, Chicago and Washington, San Francisco and Madison, Wisconsin; New York, Boston and Seattle, along with hundreds of small towns coast to coast, like Deer Isle, Maine.

Legions showed up in force to defend democracy in America. The peril is real, not far from front doors, kicked in by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

Let’s just say King Donald, who’s seized absolute power over Congress, the Supreme Court and the federal government, best not taunt this rising tide of anger nine months since he was sworn in.

Authoritarian Charles I started a civil war and clashed with Parliament over its rightful role in governing. That was ultimately his undoing. After his death, the fierce Puritan military leader Oliver Cromwell was set to succeed as “lord protector.”

A former member of Parliament, Cromwell ironically dissolved Parliament himself. The arts froze in London. At his death, King Charles II returned for the “Restoration” period.

This Republican Congress has not defied Trump, not once. The shutdown shadow has loomed over the land since Oct. 1. It’s almost as if they’re not there, just strutting and speaking words that signify nothing but extreme loyalty to Trump.

In past times of political crisis, the parties met to work something out through bargaining or compromise.

Perplexing to many, rookie Speaker Mike Johnson refuses to come to the table.

Right now, as medical premiums are about to jump this fall, Democrats in Congress hold on to that single issue hard. They feel time is on their side, and they’re not surrendering soon.

Finally, the French Revolution, bloody and messy, spelled death not only for the king but for the ancient feudal system.

A republic was being born. “With regret, I pronounce this fatal truth: Louis must die so that the nation may live,” one leader famously said.

So the Senate grapples with partisan combat in the Capitol as we the people yearn for rebirth, not death, for our democracy as we have known it.

Jamie Stiehm is a journalist and history buff. She can be reached at JamieStiehm.com.