Oliver Cromwell (April 25, 1599-September 3, 1658) was the Lord-Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1653-58. He was offered the title of King of England by the Parliament, but declined. A strong supporter of religious freedom, he had at one time considered emigrating to the Puritan Colony in America.
A minor landowner, he rose to leadership in Parliament during the early days of the English Civil War. He formed and was commander of the “Ironsides” cavalry regiment, renown as the most powerful and best drilled regiment in England. Largely responsible for the victory at Marston Moor, 1644, he became lieutenant general of the New Model Army. His troops were victorious at Naseby and Langport in 1645. Cromwell chose soldiers for their religious enthusiasm as well as for there military forcefulness, and never lost a battle.
Oliver Cromwell initially desired to negotiate with Charles I, but became infuriated at the king’s untrustworthiness, later insisting on the king’s trial and execution. As lord lieutenant of Ireland, he led a campaign there in 1649, and as captain general and commander-in-chief he defeated the Scots at Dunbar in 1650. He dissolved the Rump Parliament in 1653, and was offered the crown and title of King of England in 1657, but refused. His son Richard, who became lord protector of England after Oliver’s death, was deposed in 1659 by a military coup, and in 1660 the monarchy was restored with Charles II taking the throne.
The persecuted Christian movement known as the Society of Friends, or Quakers, grew rapidly in England during Cromwell’s rule; even William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, became a Quaker. George Fox, founder of the Society of Friends, befriended Cromwell. When the Puritan movement within the Anglican Church split into the Presbyterian and Independent, Cromwell became an Independent.
On August 3, 1650, in his Letter to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, Oliver Cromwell wrote:
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On September 12, 1654, in a message to Parliament, Cromwell asserted:
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Oliver Cromwell prayed:
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American Quotations by William J. Federer, 2024, All Rights Reserved, Permission granted to use with acknowledgement.
Endnotes:
1599OC001. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Oliver Cromwell, August 3, 1650, spoken before his defeat of the Royalist Scots at the Battle of Dunbar, September 3, 1650. John Bartlett, Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1855, 1980), p. 272.
1599OC002. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Oliver Cromwell, September 12, 1654, in a message to Parliament. John Bartlett, Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1855, 1980), p. 272.
1599OC003. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Oliver Cromwell. Hood’s Cromwell, Chap. 17, p. 223. Knight’s England, Vol. IV, p. 215. Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, OR: American Heritage Ministries, 1987; Mantle Ministries, 228 Still Ridge, Bulverde, Texas), p. 104.
This post originally appeared at https://americanminute.com/blogs/todays-american-minute/oliver-cromwell-april-25-1599-september-3-1658