Roundheads were the supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War (1642–1651). Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I of England and his supporters, known as the Cavaliers or Royalists, who claimed rule by absolute monarchy and the principle of the divine right of kings. The goal of the Roundhead party was to give the Parliament supreme control over executive administration of the country/kingdom.
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 1599 – 3 September 1658) was an English general and statesman who, first as a subordinate and later as Commander-in-Chief, led armies of the Parliament of England against King Charles I during the English Civil War, subsequently ruling the British Isles as Lord Protector from 1653 until his death in 1658. He acted simultaneously as head of state and head of government of the new republican commonwealth.
Cromwell was born into the landed gentry to a family descended from the sister of Henry VIII’s minister Thomas Cromwell (his great-great-granduncle). Little is known of the first 40 years of his life, as only four of his personal letters survive, along with a summary of a speech that he delivered in 1628. He became an Independent Puritan after undergoing a religious conversion in the 1630s, taking a generally tolerant view towards the many Protestant sects of the time; an intensely religious man, Cromwell fervently
believed in God guiding him to victory.
Cromwell was elected Member of Parliament for Huntingdon in 1628, and for Cambridge in the Short (1640) and Long (1640–1649) Parliaments. He entered the English Civil Wars on the side of the “Roundheads”, or Parliamentarians, and gained the nickname “Old Ironsides”. Cromwell demonstrated his ability as a commander and was quickly promoted from leading a single cavalry troop to being one of the principal commanders of the New Model Army, playing an important role under General Sir Thomas Fairfax in the defeat of the Royalist (“Cavalier”) forces.
Wallingford Castle fell into decay in the 15th century and building materials were taken to be used at Windsor Castle. King Charles I refortified the castle during the Civil War. Parliament tried unsuccessfully to capture the castle in 1645, and returned in 1646 for a 16-week siege that eventually forced the garrison to surrender.
Unfortunately, Wallingford Castle was demolished on the orders of Oliver Cromwell in 1652, but a lot of it remains and is being rebuilt. Have a look at the Wallingford Museum site here for more history and reconstructions.
Cromwell was one of the signatories of Charles I’s death warrant in 1649, and dominated the short-lived Commonwealth of England as a member of the Rump Parliament (1649–1653).
The execution of Charles I by beheading occurred on Tuesday, 30th January 1649 outside the Banqueting House in Whitehall. The execution was the culmination of political and military conflicts between the royalists and the parliamentarians in England during the English Civil War, leading to the capture and trial of Charles I. On Saturday 27 January 1649, the parliamentarian High Court of Justice had declared Charles guilty of attempting to “uphold in himself an unlimited and tyrannical power to rule according to his will, and to overthrow the rights and liberties of the people” and he was sentenced to death.
Cromwell died of natural causes on 3rd September 1658 due to complications of malaria and kidney disease. He was aged 59.
Cromwell was born into the landed gentry to a family descended from the sister of Henry VIII’s minister Thomas Cromwell (his great-great-granduncle). Little is known of the first 40 years of his life, as only four of his personal letters survive, along with a summary of a speech that he delivered in 1628. He became an Independent Puritan after undergoing a religious conversion in the 1630s, taking a generally tolerant view towards the many Protestant sects of the time; an intensely religious man, Cromwell fervently
