Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658) was an English military man, who made history by ruling England as Lord Protector from 1650 until his death in 1658. A man of battle and conquest, he bloodily crushed rebellions in Ireland and Scotland, massacring entire towns and killing thousands of Irish.
Oliver Cromwell – Public domain
Oliver Cromwell was born on April 25, 1599 in Huntigdon, England. He grew up in a middle-class family, directly descended from the Tudors and Thomas Cromwell. A few years later, Cromwell entered the prestigious University of Cambridge, and discovered the Puritan movement.
By 1620, he was married to Élisabeth Bourchier, and interested in English politics. He won a seat in Parliament in 1628, but lost it the following year when it was dissolved. From then on, Cromwell managed the family fortune, and was appointed Deputy of Cambridge University to the Long Parliament in 1640. A staunch anti-papist, Cromwell soon came to prominence for his allegations against the Pope.
When the Civil War broke out in January 1642, Cromwell himself mounted an army, representing the armed wing of Parliament. He was renowned for his courage and mastery of the arts of war, but also for his violence and propensity for cruelty. From then on, Cromwell was a major figure in the troubled political landscape of the time.
Charles I of England – Public domain
In 1643, Cromwell formed a cavalry regime made up of Protestant Puritans, which came to be known as the “Iron Ribs” (Ironsides). On July 2, 1644, he took part in the battle of Marston Moor, followed by Newbury in October of the same year. His successive victories earned him the title of “Lieutenant General of the Cavalry” by the British Parliament.
Very quickly, the climate in the Kingdom of England deteriorated: the country was exhausted by more than 11 years of tyranny led by King Charles I, a fervent Protestant who declared open war on the Puritans. Cromwell therefore decided to rise up against the king, with a view to a forthcoming English revolution (1642 – 1649). Cromwell was uncompromising and effective in most battles against the King’s supporters. Faced with so many defeats, Charles I finally fled to the Isle of Wight in 1648, but was eventually captured and repatriated to London. A trial was organized and the king was executed by axe on January 30, 1649. Cromwell then proclaimed the hour of the Republic (or Commonwealth).
With Charles I now dead and buried, Cromwell decided to turn his attention to Ireland and Scotland, 2 countries torn apart by rebellions. The Irish and Scots intend to free themselves from the English yoke, and since 1641 have been fighting in the name of the Irish Confederate Wars (1641-1653).
In August 1649, Cromwell went to Ireland with an army of 12,000 men. In a hurry to do battle, he sacked many towns, murdering Irish Catholics at every turn, women, children and men alike. For over 3 years, Cromwell purged Ireland, reducing the population from 1,466,000 to 616,000. The losses were enormous, and the damage considerable: the towns of Drogheda, Wexford, Clonmel, Limerick, Waterford and Galway were besieged, partially destroyed and the population almost entirely decimated.
Cromwell left Ireland for Scotland, leaving behind a bloodless Ireland, where Catholics were subjected to severe political and religious oppression through discriminatory penal laws. British Protestant settlers flocked to the area, asserting their supremacy over the Irish… The wealth gap widens relentlessly, plunging the Irish into poverty and famine…
Satisfied that he had put down the Irish rebellions, Cromwell went to Scotland, crushing the Presbyterian rebellions and revolts and uniting Scotland with England by force.
With so many victories to his credit, he was appointed“Lord Protector of the Republic of England, Scotland and Ireland” in 1653.
Cromwell now rules the kingdom, imposing an unprecedented Puritan despotism. Always at war with Catholics, he led major Catholic discrimination campaigns. In 1656, Cromwell created a First Parliament, which he dissolved 10 days later. He recreated one in 1658, which, heavily purified, came to ask Cromwell to become King of England. The latter refused, but simply asked for the right to appoint his own successor: his son Richard Cromwell. Following this appointment, Parliament was once again dissolved.
Despite this, Cromwell retained full power over England and held the kingdom in his iron grip. However, he died the same year, on September 3, 1658 in London, of malaria (or poisoning: theories abound, but have not been verified). His son succeeded him, but the General and Governor of Scotland George Monck fomented a rebellion, wishing to re-establish the monarchy in England. In February 1660, Monck took London, dissolved Parliament and had Charles II crowned on April 23, 1661.
Embittered and wishing to avenge the death of his father Charles I, Charles II demanded the exhumation of Oliver Cromwell’s body from Westminster Abbey, and had his body thrown into a well, with the exception of his head, which, decapitated, was displayed on a stake in front of Westminster Abbey until 1685.
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