1658-1659 Richard Cromwell Flashcards
When did Richard Cromwell become the Lord Protector
September 1658, with the death of Oliver Cromwell
What immediate challenges did Richard Cromwell face
- Unlike Oliver, Richard did not have the immediate
loyalty of the army, he was not a genuine soldier - Richard had lived as a country squire, showing little
aptitude for either military or political affairs
-Immediately Richard was the outsider and had very little
experience in political diplomacy
-Cromwell had been able to balance the demands of the
army, religious radicals and the traditionalists , through
personal authority and power
-Consequently, Richard Cromwell inherited a power
vacuum of the army, republicans, presbyterians and the
radical sectaries
How did Richard Cromwell fare as Protectorer
- Richard had difficulty keeping any sort of relationship with the army
-The army urged Richard to give up position as
commander -in-chief, for which Richard refused
-there was still huge resentment over the debt to the
army, which totalled over 900 thousand
-Richard failed to keep any sort of balance of power, the
royalists attempted to gain the support of the army and
in response the Presbyterian MP’s attempted to
undermine the army’s power.
-With the army close to taking over, the Rump reassembled in May 1659
-Richard Cromwell resigned and withdrew from public
What were the three main reasons for Richard Cromwell’s resignation
-inability to fashion a government free from the control
of the army
-strength of the republican campaign against the army
-financial bankruptcy of his government
With the restored Rump in May 1659 how did radicalism develop
- Many viewed the Rump as simply too radical
- The Rump had previously tried to curb the influence of the army by deliberately putting the local militia in the hands of the extreme sectaries
- This exited the fears of a takeover by religious fanatics
- Even Rumours that the Levellers were re-organising
What role did John Lambert play in the dissolving of the Rump
-The crushing of Booth’s rising had been directed by
John Lambert
-Lambert demanded that the Rumps power be reduced
-The Rump interpreted this as a direct attempt by the
army to usurp political authority
-Lambert and his fellow petitioners were removed and
imprisoned
-In October regiments loyal to Lambert occupied London and forcibly dissolved the Rump
-England was now again under military rule
-A Committee of safety was set up in December 1659 as
a temporary solution until a new more permanent body
could be established
What role did Monck have in the restoration
-Monck protested at the dissolution of the Rump
-He negotiated with members of the expelled house,
who offered him the post of the Commander-In-Chief
and invited him to bring his army south to London
-Lamberts forces were no match and he was crushed
-Monck was made commander in chief of the recalled
Rump, then with its ineptitude recalled the long
parliament
- Monck insisted that secluded MP’s be permitted to
retake their seats in parliament
-This altered the political balance towards a restoration,
many had a direct constitutional link with 1642
-Monck was careful not to declare openly that he was working for an eventual restoration
-he presented himself as a moderate
-Monck overcame the Republican Military, he held
genuinely free elections to encourage the return of
members with royalist sympathies
-Charles restored to the throne
How did Moncks crushing of Lamberts forces lead to disturbances across the country
-Moncks protest at the Rump’s dissolution and his easy
victory over Lambert gave a considerable lift to the
forces opposed to army rule
-internal divisions grew in the army
-widespread disturbances occurred London, Portsmouth declared itself against the government
-People became prepared to openly challenge the government
-Protests poured into the Committee of Safety
What were the common themes people were angry about on Moncks quest south
Grim economic circumstances of the day
Tyranny of army rule
The need for a restoration of ancient liberties through a free parliament or monarchy
What issues did the recalled Rump have
-Rather than take advantage of its strong position the
recalled Rump appeared focused on settling old scores
-undertook a purge of the army
-corruption played a key part in the appointment of new
officers
-Quickly made it unpopular
- widespread refusal by traders and merchants to pay
parliamentary taxes
-Rump attempted to restrict the power of Monck which
created a huge number of issues
