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Cromwell\u2019s Complicated Legacy <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nThe UK today is a constitutional monarchy, but it wasn\u2019t always so. Until the 17th century, English kings and queens held all the executive power in government. They ruled in an absolutist monarchy<\/a>, up until the reign of Charles I. <\/p>\n\n\n\nThat all came to an end when Cromwell became responsible for the first-ever trial and execution of a king for treason. But why did he execute Charles I?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To understand how Cromwell arrived at this history-making decision, we need to consider the time he lived in and the kind of person he was. On one hand, he was a devout Christian of the Puritan sect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the other, he was a ruthless battlefield commander who was feared by his enemies. English republicans look up to him as one of the fathers of their movement while the Irish and Scots consider his military actions against them as the mark of a villain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, which description suits Cromwell best? Was he a saint or a sinner? Cromwell was a man with many different facets to his personality. Pigeonholing him into a single category does not do his complicated legacy justice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If we want to form an opinion on Oliver Cromwell<\/a>, we will need to learn his whole story.<\/p>\n\n\n\nA Remarkable Man of Unremarkable Origin<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nIt\u2019s a tale that begins in a humble setting: the sleepy little town of Huntingdon near Cambridge. Cromwell was born at the turn of the 17th century, in 1599, into a family of landed gentry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even though Cromwell\u2019s family name could be traced back to an influential minister in the court of Henry VIII, by the time of Cromwell\u2019s birth, they held a title but not much in terms of material wealth. In Cromwell\u2019s own words, in his early years, he was \u201cby birth a gentleman, living neither in considerable height, nor yet in obscurity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a man who had such a considerable impact on British history, he spent the first few decades of his life in remarkable obscurity. Like many young landowner\u2019s children, he received a formal education at the Huntingdon Grammar School.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After this, he attended Sidney Sussex College in Cambridge. With its strong Puritan influences<\/a>, the college likely played a role in shaping Cromwell\u2019s own religious, social, and cultural views.<\/p>\n\n\n\nCromwell did not have the luxury of taking his education much further. Some historical sources state that he briefly attended Lincoln\u2019s Inn of Court in London to study law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But in 1617, he returned to Huntingdon after his father\u2019s death. As the eldest surviving son, he had the responsibility of caring for his widowed mother and unmarried sisters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During this period of domesticity, Cromwell married Elizabeth Bourchier, with whom he would eventually have nine children over the course of his life. Cromwell\u2019s new father-in-law was a wealthy London merchant whose connections certainly helped him ascend to the post of Cambridge\u2019s Member of Parliament in 1628. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This was where Cromwell would first establish himself as a Puritan firebrand, speaking out against Catholic bishops and clergy in England.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rising Through the Ranks: The English Civil Wars<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nWhile Cromwell was growing his influence in the Houses of Parliament, England\u2019s political arena was in a state of upheaval. Charles I\u2019s insistence that he held a divine right to rule was driving a wedge between Royalists and Parliamentarians, setting the stage for a civil war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That all came to an end when Cromwell became responsible for the first-ever trial and execution of a king for treason. But why did he execute Charles I?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To understand how Cromwell arrived at this history-making decision, we need to consider the time he lived in and the kind of person he was. On one hand, he was a devout Christian of the Puritan sect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the other, he was a ruthless battlefield commander who was feared by his enemies. English republicans look up to him as one of the fathers of their movement while the Irish and Scots consider his military actions against them as the mark of a villain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, which description suits Cromwell best? Was he a saint or a sinner? Cromwell was a man with many different facets to his personality. Pigeonholing him into a single category does not do his complicated legacy justice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If we want to form an opinion on Oliver Cromwell<\/a>, we will need to learn his whole story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s a tale that begins in a humble setting: the sleepy little town of Huntingdon near Cambridge. Cromwell was born at the turn of the 17th century, in 1599, into a family of landed gentry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though Cromwell\u2019s family name could be traced back to an influential minister in the court of Henry VIII, by the time of Cromwell\u2019s birth, they held a title but not much in terms of material wealth. In Cromwell\u2019s own words, in his early years, he was \u201cby birth a gentleman, living neither in considerable height, nor yet in obscurity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a man who had such a considerable impact on British history, he spent the first few decades of his life in remarkable obscurity. Like many young landowner\u2019s children, he received a formal education at the Huntingdon Grammar School.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After this, he attended Sidney Sussex College in Cambridge. With its strong Puritan influences<\/a>, the college likely played a role in shaping Cromwell\u2019s own religious, social, and cultural views.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cromwell did not have the luxury of taking his education much further. Some historical sources state that he briefly attended Lincoln\u2019s Inn of Court in London to study law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But in 1617, he returned to Huntingdon after his father\u2019s death. As the eldest surviving son, he had the responsibility of caring for his widowed mother and unmarried sisters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During this period of domesticity, Cromwell married Elizabeth Bourchier, with whom he would eventually have nine children over the course of his life. Cromwell\u2019s new father-in-law was a wealthy London merchant whose connections certainly helped him ascend to the post of Cambridge\u2019s Member of Parliament in 1628. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This was where Cromwell would first establish himself as a Puritan firebrand, speaking out against Catholic bishops and clergy in England.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While Cromwell was growing his influence in the Houses of Parliament, England\u2019s political arena was in a state of upheaval. Charles I\u2019s insistence that he held a divine right to rule was driving a wedge between Royalists and Parliamentarians, setting the stage for a civil war.<\/p>\n\n\n\nA Remarkable Man of Unremarkable Origin<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Rising Through the Ranks: The English Civil Wars<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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