Political Radicalism - Dissolution of Rump + Nominated Assembly

Question 1

Who were the Levellers

Answer 1

Wanted a property-based franchise which gave the vote to all households who contributed to poor relief.

Feared the RUmp was aiming to become as equally as tyrannical as the King

Question 2

What opposition did the Leveller’s do to Rump?

Answer 2

‘England’s New Cjain’s Discovered’ (1649 Feb) - Lilburne accused the Army Grandees of returning England to slavery and having betrayed the cause of the war.

Lilburn appealed to the army, Londoners and others to reject the rule of the ‘new oppressor’. No change from king to parliament - a “mere change of persons”

The execution of Leveller leaders lead to a procession through London wearing red ribbons for leveler support

Question 3

What was the Rump’s response to the Leveller resistance?

Answer 3

Lilburn and other leading levellers arrested - charged with treason

Two leveller mutinies were crushed by Cromwell in May 1649n - leaders executed

Rump handed out arrears to soldiers which largely pacified the grass-roots group of Leveller support within army

Movement effectively over

Question 4

Who were the Diggers

Answer 4

Off-shoot of the Levellers (‘True levellers’)

Took the Leveller idea of equality and merged it with religious radicalism

April 1649 - community of True levellers founded in Surrey at St George’s Hill. Plots of common land “Work together. Eat bread Together”.

Question 5

Give examples of DIgger failure

Answer 5

The community at St Georges Hill shut within 6 months

Although Digger communities were established elsewhere, also quickly dispersed

Winstanley’s pamphlets ‘Law and Freedom’ -challenged Cromwell to bring about genuine reform. However, political influence minimal, and movement fleeted

Question 6

Why did the Levellers fail

Answer 6

Their approach for property caused anxiety among local landowners

Easy to attack them as disorderly as they went against social conventions

Question 7

Who were the Quakers

Answer 7

Started by George Fox

God spoke to every believer through an individual light

No need for designated ministers for the ceremony

Military service was wrong - only God had the right to end life (Rump’s survival propped up by military support)

Question 8

What happened to George Fox

Answer 8

One of the first radicals to be tried under the new Blashmpey Act - 6 months imprisonment in 1650

• Deep contradiction of the Liberty of conscious

Question 9

Give some successes of the Quaker movement

Answer 9

The movement grew rapidly - targeted wide audiences

Utilised the press to produce large numbers of pamphlets

By 1660, there were over 20,000 Quakers in England

Question 10

With regards to the Rump, give a fundamental reason why the Levellers and Diggers failed at creating godly society

Answer 10

Majority of the Rump Parliament were members of the gentry and therefore naturally conservative

Question 11

What was the Toleration Act of 1650

Answer 11

Removed the requirement for people to attend church as long as they took part in regular religious service each week

Question 12

How did the Rump utilise the media

Answer 12

Censorship of printed material introduced in order to limit radical pamphlets

Goverment newspaper ‘Mercisus Politicus’ was launched in order to defend Rump’s actions

Question 13

Give 4 actions passed by the Rump that contradicted Cromwell’s liberty of conscious

Answer 13

Nothing was done to remove church tithes, and in April 1652, the Rump declared that the collection would continue - members of radical groups were therefore expected to pay towards the upkeep of the church they would never attend

Blasphemy Act 1650 - aimed at restricting radical religious sects, who could be subject to severe penalties

Levellers + Diggers effectively repressed

Act for the Propagation of the Gospel in Northern England and Wales was passed - Controlled the appointment of the clergy so that only approved ministers were allowed to preach

Question 14

What was the Navigation Act 1651

Answer 14

Boosted national morale.

Even though it led to war with the Dutch Republic over commercial rivalry and fishing - it was popular because it brought England back onto the continental stage as a major player after a lull fo a decade

Opening stages of Anglo-Dutch war very much in England’s favour

Question 15

Give 4 reasons why the Rump was successful

Answer 15

Navigation Act 1651

Rump managed to maintain stability and order, even in the face of economic distress, religious radicalism, threat of invasion from Ireland, and actual invasion from Scotland

Careful handling of local circumstances prevented serious opposition from the localities. Royalists typically treated gently with minimal purges from office

Managed to raise enough money to finance the army

Question 16

Give 4 weaknesses of the Rump

Answer 16

The need to maintain a large standing army there were high taxes. Without reliable support from the nation, the army could not be dispensed, but as long as the army existed - the reliable support would not be forthcoming

Attendance of the RUmp was always low with only 70 active MP’s of 210

Rate of reform slowed. In 1649, 125 Acts were passed, reducing to just 51 by 1652

As time passed, Rump appeared more selfish and corrupt. Failed to dissolve itself despite promises to do so

Question 17

In order to pay for the construction of new warships, the monthly assessment was raised to £………..

This assessment alone now raised as much money as…………………………………………

Answer 17

£90,000

Charle’s entire annual revenue

Question 18

The rump was destined to fail because of the slow pace of……..

Answer 18

Reform

Question 19

Why did the Levellers and Rump split despite being previously closely aligned in the execution of Charles

Answer 19

King’s death exposed the fragility of the political alliance

Core problem was public opinion - gauging the nation’s mood wasn’t say despite the Levellers claiming to do so

Offering the vote to all male householders who contributed to poor relief was not an option for a parliament that needed the support of the gentry.

Question 20

Who led one of the mutinies in response to Leveller leading being imprisoned

Answer 20

One of the troopers - Roger Lockyer - was scented to death

Cromwell tried to spare him but overruled by Fairfax

Differing religious aims

Question 21

What 3 developments enhanced Cromwell’s personal importance by 1652

Answer 21

1. His victories aginst the irish and Scottish confirmed him as one of the greatest generals pf his time
2. Resignation of Fairfax in 1650 and death of Ireton in 1651 strengthened Cromwell’s authority within the army
3. Cromwell gained a unique insight into the opinions, beliefs, interests and fears of all 3 kingdoms. by 1653, Cromwell had a more direct knowledge of the British Isles than any monarch had ever had

Question 22

Give 3 reasons why the army was losing patience with the rump

Answer 22

Failure to provide pensions for war widows and wounded soldiers

Failure to implement legal and social reform

The army didn’t understand that new elections could return a parliament hostile to the commonwealth

High taxation

Question 23

What was the Act of Oblivion and was it successful

Answer 23

1651 - aimed at reconciling former royalists to the Commonwealth - but so many exceptions that largely failed

Question 24

Fear of religious radicalism fueled increased………..amongst the rump and a lack of significant……….reform along the lines needed to create a………society - aggravating Cromwell

Answer 24

Conservatism

Religious

Godly

Question 25

Give a piece of evidence that Cronwell’s ambitions was always to become king

Answer 25

Conversation with Bulstrode Whitelock

“What if a man should take upon him to be king”

However - Whitelock writing during the 1660s after the restoration. Could have manipulated the conversation in order to appear a man of moderation and escape persecution form, Charles II

Question 26

When did Cromwell dissolve the Rump and what over

Answer 26

20 April 1653

A bill being hurriedly rushed through parliament

Question 27

What was the Bill Cromwell prevented from occurring

Answer 27

Unkown as destroyed by Cromwell

However, most historians agree that the Bill provided fro a general election but that the Rump MP’s would judge the sustainability of the incoming MP’s and exclude any they thought unsuitable

This would explain Cromwell’s anger

Question 28

How did Cromwell suspend the Rump?

Answer 28

Entered the commons chamber and lectured the MP’s at how poorly they’d performed

Then ordered the soldiers to forcibly dissolve the parliament

Question 29

How was the Nominated Assembly set up

Answer 29

140 members were selected by Cromwell and officers

Cromwell avoided taking a seat in the Assembly as sensitive to the use of military intervention in civilian affairs

Question 30

Give 4 reasons that suggest the Nominated Assembly wasn’t set up to fail

Answer 30

Chosen by Army Council

Cromwell avoided taking a seat

Passed significant reform - over half would sit in protectorate parliament

Majority not religious radicals

Question 31

Give some evidence to suggest that the Nominated Assembly/Barebones Parliament wasn’t just group of religious zealots

Answer 31

Only 13 were 5th Monarchists

At least 80% considered themselves members of the gentry

117 were JP’s

Question 32

Give some initial successes of the Nominated Assembly

Answer 32

Attendance record was exemplary - sat 6 days a week compared to the RUmp’s 12 hours

Directly addressed the reforms the rump had avoided including poor relied, religion, leal reform and tithes

Passed over 30 states in its 5-month existence

Question 33

Why did the Nominated Assembly fail

Answer 33

Rift between the moderates and radicals

Radicals wanted an end to tithes, a national church and common law

Moderates wanted a national church to lead by example + preserve common law

Question 34

What forced Cromwell’s hand to intervene in foreign policy

Answer 34

Foreign policy

Nominated Assembly with no experience of foreign policy or time to give it thought was paralysed by indecision for the end of the anglo-dutch war

Assembly couldn’t speak for England as along as Cromwell and the army refused to wield executive power

Question 35

How was Cromwell installed as Lord Protector?

Answer 35

10 December - moderates narrowly defeated on their religious proposal to maintain tithes

12 Dec - moderates assembled early and voted to abdicate power and hand it back to Cromwell whilst the radicles were absent

Cromwell was able to accept power through the coup whilst plausibly denying any knowledge of it

Question 36

We should guard against the temptation to assume that the Nominated Assembly’s failure was……………..

Just as we should guard against the temptation to see the commonwealth as nothing more than an episode before Cromwell took……….

Cromwell didn’t behave as if he’d thought the Commonwealth was………..from the…………

Answer 36

Inevitable

Power

Doomed

Start

Question 37

More likely that the Assembly was shut down because its……………………..threatened to bring the cause of………..reform into disrepute

Answer 37

Chaotic proceedings

Radical

Question 38

Give an action the Nominated Assembly passed which caused it to run into trouble and the effects

Answer 38

• Passed measure to carry out a purge of JP’s to remove men who’d been conservative members of the Rump.

Caused dismay among the localities because it cut across regional sensibilities

• Religious moderates were scared by the efficient organisation of the radical sectarians within barebones and the army officers were threatened by proposals to stop their pay for a year

Question 39

Give 4 reasons that suggest the N.A was set up to fail

Answer 39

No experience of foreign policy at the time of an Anglo-Dutch war

Cromwell’s personal power ambitions (Bulstrode conversation)

Religious divisions (radicals vs moderates)

“Pack of weak senseless fellows” - Clarendon

Question 40

Give 4 reasons that suggest the N.A WASN’T set up to fail

Answer 40

Cromwell didn’t take a seat so perhaps wasn’t motivated by personal power ambitions

Significant reforms - 30 statues in 3 months

Wide representation of people, majority cam from normal MP background

Half would go on to sit in the Parliament of the protectorate - capable and worthy men