Third Civil Ear And Protectorate Flashcards
How long was commonwealth
49-53
Rump Parliament
Nominated assembly
Protectorate of Cromwell
53-58
Instrument of gov First protectorate Parliament 54-55 Rule of major generals 55-56 Second protectorate56-58 Humble petition and advice 57-68
Protectorate of Richard Cromwell
58-59
Third protectorate
Restoration
1660
Interregnum
Execution of Charles I to restorated under Charles second
Commonwealth
England was declared a Republican Commonwealth and free state in May 1949, and the period 1649-53 is named after this
Scotland and iteland joined following 3rd civil war
Rump Parliament
Parliament purged by Pride 1649
Originally only 80mos
Other MPs returned following Charles execution bringing it up to 200
Nominated assembly
Assembly created after dissolution of rump 1643
Also known as Barebones Parliament, little Parliament and the parliament of saints
Protectorate
Period from 53-38 with Cromwell as lord protector
Instrument of government
A constitutional settlement drafters by lambert during autumn 1653
Adopted by council of officers when nominated assembly surrendered powers to Cromwell
Protectorate parliaments
Cromwell organised 2 protectorate parliaments in 54&56 and his son in 58
Rule by major emerald
15 month period of direct military government during Cromwell’s protectorate following failure of first protectorate
Humble petition and advice
Constitutional document drawn up by some MPs in 57 under which Cromwell was offered crown (he refused)
Restoration
Re establishment of the monarch - Charles ii 1660
Rupert as a threat to commonwealth 1649
Small royalist fleet lurking off coast Ireland
Rupert threatens to attack English shipping
His fleet could help Charles Stuart land in Ireland or Scotland but army small
Cam join up w Ireland Scot
Scotland’s proclamation of Charles Stuart as king as threat to commonwealth
Scotland declared Charles as king of England Ireland Scotland
Scot have powerful army, good generals and strong believe in righteousness a cause
Srs threat - could attack
Naval war with Dutch as threat to commonwealth 1649
Threat of naval war over trade
Yes- but doesn’t affect legitimacy of Parliament
Levellers as threat to commonwealth
Demand constitutional change
Loyal following in army - present
An agreement of people renegotiate peace
Quite threatening - influence in army and capital
Religious radicals as threat to commonwealth
Execution stirred up expectations of the second coming of Christ by groups like the fifth monarchists
Exaggerated minority
Foreign intervention by France of Spain as threat to commonwealth
Universal condemnation of regicide
Not one foreign state recognised commonwealth legitimacy
Irish rebellion as threat to commonwealth
Royalist army still exists in iteland - allied to catholicbatras
Could ally w Rupert and fellow Catholics
Royalist forces of reaction in England as threat to commonwealth
Royalist uprising fuelled by resentment over king dead
Srs
Unpopularity of the regime as threat to commonwealth
High levels of taxation and centralisation of gov alienated public
Normal civil processes threatened to grind to a haiku ws JP refused to acknowledge republics legitimacy
Revolution or reaction
Revolution
- franchise leveller
- independent tolerations
- 5 monarchists saints second coming of Christ
- diggers
Reaction
Rump Parliament of 300is MPS who eventually took their seats again 1649, only 43 sat in judgement of Charles and could he counted as revoltionary
-commonwealth needed a broader political base of it were to survive, espc from former sheriffs, jps, church wardens and deputy lieutenants
Demand gov lower taxes, demobilise army, abolish hated country committees and restore traditional local government
An agreement of the people
3 versions of this
- Oct 1647
- December 1648
- May 1649
Proposals included
- right to vote men over 21 apart from servant beggars and royalists
- annual elections to parliament w MPs serving 1 term onlyc
- abolition of military conscription
- Law in English
- no army officer, treasurer or lawyer could be an MP (to avoid conflict of interest)
- tax in proportion to real or personal property
- equal before law
Why were the levellers important early 1649
Only Regle with a plan
Accused Cromwell of betraying the revolution - agitation with the army
Why were the leveller demands considered too radical
Too big risk to large enfranchise
Parliament needed gentry support
Royalists or religious radicals could win
What did lulburne accuse the army of doing
Returning England to slavery
Failure to live up to the promises of a revolution
Why did the arms have the leveller leaders arrested
On a charge of sedition - encouraging people to rebel
Why did the bishop gate mutiny breakout over this
One of the bishops Lokyer was sentenced to death
Why did a larger mutiny break out in May at Banbury
Prospect of service in Ireland
NMA not paid fully yet
Why was Lilburnes attest embarrassing to Cromwell
Popular hero who idolised Cromwell
How did the rump solve the demands for pay
Sold the crown lands
Allocated crown lands and individual regiments to sell off and pay themselves from proceedings
Levellers 1649
After Charles execution
Feb
March
Grandees banned petitions to parliament by soldiers
March
8 leveller troopers went to the commander in chief of the NMA, Fairfax and demanded the restoration of the fight to petition
5 of them were cashiered out of the army
Levellers 1649
Arrest of leaders
Lilburne
Walwyn
Prince
Overton
Imprisoned Tower of London by council of state
They wrote an outline of the reforms the Levellers wanted while imprisoned, on a pamphlet called ‘an agreement of the free people of England’ (May 1649)
It includes reforms that have since been made laws in England such as the right to silence, and others that have not been such as an elected judiciary
Bishopgate mutiny
April 1649
300 Infantrymen of Hewson’s regiment who declared they would Not serve Ireland until the levellers programme had been realised, were cashiered without arrests of pay (the threat that had been used to quell the mutiny at cork bush field)
Later that month, in the bishopgate mutiny, soldiers of the regiment of Whaley made demands similar - ordered out of London
When refused to go, 15 soldiers arrested and court marriages. 6 sentenced to death. 5 later pardoned.
Lockyer - former leveller agitator - Hunt April 1649
Banbury mutiny
Mutiny by soldiers I the english new model army- didn’t achieve all aims and some leaders executed shortly after in May
Over pay and political demands.
Pay was diffused by Cromwell acknowledging the justice of soldiers financial grievances and securing 100,000 towards payment of arrears from Parliament
400 troops under captain Thompson who were sympathetic to levellers set off from Banbury where they were billeted, to speak w other regiments at Salisbury about their political demands
Cromwell and Fairfax sent major white to mediate Thompson’s troops and say force would not be used
13 May force used
Several mutineers killed
Thompson escapes but killed later in diggers community
After being inprisoned, three other leaders shot: James Thompson, Perkins and church - May
Destroyed leveller power base in NMA
Lilburne trial
Oct 1649
Treason
Exiled on orders of rump and whenche soufht to return he was rearrested despite promises of good behaviour
Levellers and women
The humble petition of women
Wasn’t successful
Make levellers didn’t support
Why levellers failed
Politically flaw
Influence never beyond London
Leadership
Never a movement - just like minded people
Disagreed of things
When economy improved after 1649- toleration
Dream shared by too few
Asked for too much and too little
Who were diggers
The diggers called themselves true levellers
Most radical of sects
Called for restructuring of land ownership
Overthrow monarchy and declaration of free commonwealth 1649- seen as first step towards abolition of private property rights in favour of communal ownership of land
Diggers
Origins and publications
Communities were established to cultivate waste and common land
Hoped begin process of restoring land to rightful owners, the commo people rather than those incpower
1648 Dec ‘light shining in Buckinghamshire’ published by levellers - active in anti-enclosure riots in the county from 47-4
Called to overthrow nobility and equalisation of wealth
A sequel ‘more light shining in Buckinghamshire’ 1649 appealed to NMA for support
Diggers
George’s Hill and Cobham health
Similar ideas were arising spontaneously around country
49-50 a number of digger communities occupied waste common land which they attempted to cultivate on a communal basis
Diggers
Other settlements
During spring 1650, emissaries send from winstanleys settlement on Cobham Health to make contact with other Digger communities and groups of sympathisers incthe Home Counties and midlands
34 places names inc
Buckinghamshire
Bedfordshire
Bosworth I leicester
The defeat of the diggers
Rapid spread caused fierce reaction
Surrey diggers persecuted by local gentry with legal action, economic boycott and violence
April 1650, diggers shelter were burned down and crops destroyed
Other communities met similar fate and movement was suppressed by end of 1650
In 1652, winstanley published The Law of Freedom in which he proposed the introduction of his utopian commonwealth by state action
Though dedicated to Cromwell, Winstanleys championing of the Rights ofnhe common man over the rights of landowners had little influence during commonwealth and protectorate
Fifth monarchists origins and beliefs
Physical return Jesus as king
Old order has to be overthrows
Civil wars vital prelude to millennium
Movement central London and spread south eng - congregations in places like Cornwall
Fifth monarchists in north wales from ministries of the millenarian preachers Powell
Movement didnnot spread north apart from Liverpool etc
Where did 5th monarchists draw support from
Army and navy
-several 5 monarchists ministers had served as officers or army chaplains
Urban tradesmen and craftsmen
With a high proportion of cloth workers, whose trade was adversely affected by civil wars.
Journeymen and apprentices were often found among the most volatile congregations
Most prominent fifth monarchists solider
Major general Harrison
John Carew
Rich
Henry vane the younger
Significance of fifth monarchists
Cromwell dissolves Parliament 1653, fifth monarchists hailed him as second Moses
Political influence reached peak when Nokibayed Assembly (barebones Parliament) governed commonwealth 6 months 1653
Abrupt dissolution of nominated assembly and establishment of cromwells protectorate Dec 1653 was seen as betrayel by fifth monarchists
Simpson imprisoned after denouncing Cromwell
Harrison dismissed from army and loads of fifth monarchists officers resigned their commissions
However, sect continued to agitate against the protectorate with pamphlets and petitions throughout the 1650sb
Also frequent rumpurs of 5th monarchist plots to subvert the army and overthrow gov
Fifth monarchists and the protectorate
1657, a fifth monarchist plot for an uprising against Cromwell was discovered and the ringleader Venner imprisoned until protectorate ended 1659
During political turmoil that followed the fall of the protectorate, rumours of imminent fifth monarchist uprising contributed to sense of instability in nation and to belief there could be no settled order until king returned
Impact of radicalism
Rump expected - radical changed in church but few concessions made
Steps taken to curb excess of millnarians and ranters. With the disappearance of old Church courts, moral offences were made into secular crimes
Adultry Act 1650- death penalty for adultryctjo never applied
Boashphemy Act 1650- curbing extreme religious enthusiasm
Cencoship imposes - limit millenarian pamphlets and the first gov journal giving official version of events was published
Observance of sabbath was enforced
Concessions towards freedom of worship by rump
Statue that required compulsory attendance at church repealed in sept 1650 toleration Act
Dated back to Elizabeth first - mainstay of power of Anglican bishops
Cromwell in Ireland
Problem
Catholic Irish had rebelled and massacered Protestant settlers in 1641
About 4000 Protestants has been killed but parliament but a figure near 200,000
So Cromwell who thought catholic beliefs were wronf went to work against them
What did Cromwell do in Ireland
Spent 9 months
Captured Drogheda in September 1649
His troops massacred nearly 3500 people including 2700 royalist soldiers, all the men in yowncwoth weapons and probably some civilians prisoners and priests
At the siege of Wexford October 1649, 2000 Irish soldiers and perhaps 1500 civilians were killed
What did people accuse Cromwell of doing in Ireland
- Slaughtering civilians as well as soldiers
- Transporting many irish catholic’s as slaves to West Indies
- Giving catholic’s land to Protestant settlers and exiling the Irish go poor land in Connacht in the west of Ireland
Others argue
•Cromwell ordered men not to kill civilians and hanged those who did
•little evidence ever sent slaves to West Indies
•Cromwell refused to shoe mercy to people of Drogheda as the laws of war allowesbat the time, because they refused to surrender. He wrote later that he gave the order only to stop bloodshed in the long run
Did Cromwell massacre innocent civilians at Drogheda
Drogheda was 1 of best fortified towns in Ireland
2 districts of it
Connected by drawbridge across river
Town protected by circuit of walls 4-6 weeks wide and twenty feet high that were punctuated by a number of guard towers
Sir Arthur Aston boasted that anyone who could take Drogheda could capture hell itself
The Marquis of Ormand hopes Aston would gain time for the royalists by a prolonged defence that would weaken the parliamentarian army through disease and attrition
Cromwell was also aware of this possibility and was determined to storm town quickly
Ireland
The assault
Summons to surrender 10 sept - Aston rejected
Bombardment hahah as soon as Aston had rejected Cromwell’s summons. By noon 11 September, the heavy siege guns had blasted breaches in the southerncand eastern walls and demolished the seeple of st Mary’s Church
Around 5.00 that evening, Cromwell ordered storming to begin
Regiments was of colonel castle and colonel ewer attacked the southern break while colonel Hewsons regiment crossed the ravine and attacked the east
Sir Arthur Aston and about 300 of his men fell back on Mill Mount
Cromwell ordered no quater was to be given.
Mill Mount was protected by a bank and ditch and a timber palisade but these defences were soon broken down and royalist put to the sword
Aston was bludgeoned to death by own wooden leg - parliamentarian soldiers believed to be filled with gold coins
The rest of the garrison fled across the Boyne into the northern part of the town, pursued closely by Venables troops who prevented the royalists from raising the drawbridge behind them
Can Cromwell’s actions be justified
According to 17 century warfare, a besieged city that refused a summons to surrender - expect mocmercy
Cromwell said yes and catholic’s slaughtered Protestants. Many prot would share this view
Cromwell - warning to other garrisons in iteland to surrender and not risk same fate
Not clear how many acc does
3552 dead - 2800 soldiers. 700-800 civilians
Only surviving account - Bernard - royalist Protestant
He says 30 of parishioners sheltering in his house. Parlvtroops fled through windows killing one and injuring another
Stopped from killing when officer known to Bernard identified them as Protestants
Catholic’s prob experiences worse
Week after Drogheda- Royalist press in England claimined 2000-3000 dead civilians
A theme that was taken up both in English royalist and in Irish Catholic accounts.
Irish clerical sources in 1660s claimed 4000 died at Drogheda
Treachery
