Lord Protector

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Lord Protector

Lord Protector is a particular British title for Heads of State, with two meanings (and full styles) at different periods of history.

title of Lord Protector was originally used by royal princes or other nobles exercising an individual regency

Regent

A regent, from the Latin regens "reigning", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present or debilitated....
(i.e., not merely member of a collegial regency council) while the English monarch was still a minor

Minor (law)

In law, the term minor is used to refer to a person who is under the age in which one legally assumes adulthood and is legally granted rights afforded to adults in society....
or otherwise unable to rule.

Notable cases in England are:

Cases in Scotland:

Cromwellian republican Commonwealth
The Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland was the title of the head of state

Head of State

Head of state is the generic term for the individual or collective office that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchic or republican nation-state, federation, commonwealth or any other political state....
during the Interregnum

English Interregnum

The English Interregnum was the period of parliamentary and military rule under the Commonwealth of England after the English Civil War. It began with the regicide of Charles I of England in January 1649, and ended with the English Restoration of Charles II of England in 1660....
, following the first period of the Commonwealth

Commonwealth of England

The Commonwealth of England was the republic which ruled first Kingdom of England and Wales, and then Kingdom of Ireland and Kingdom of Scotland from 1649 to 1660....
under Council of State

English Council of State

The English Council of State, later also known as the Protector's Privy Council, was first appointed by the Rump Parliament on 14 February 1649 after the execution of King Charles I of England....
government.

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Encyclopedia

Lord Protector is a particular British title for Heads of State, with two meanings (and full styles) at different periods of history.

Feudal royal regent

The title of Lord Protector was originally used by royal princes or other nobles exercising an individual regency

Regent

Minor (law)

John, Duke of Bedford
John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford

John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford , also known as John Plantagenet, was the third surviving son of Henry IV of England of Kingdom of England by Mary de Bohun, and acted as Regent of France in the Middle Ages for his nephew, Henry VI of England....
and Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester
Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester

Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester , "son, brother and uncle of kings", was the fourth and youngest son of King Henry IV of England by his first wife, Mary de Bohun....
were (5 December 1422–6 November 1429) jointly Protectors for Henry VI
Henry VI of England

Henry VI was Kingdom of England 1422?1461 and then 1470?1471, and King of France as the de jure monarch from 1422 to 1429....
(1421–1471).
Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York
Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York

Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York was a member of the English royal family, who served in senior positions in France at the end of the Hundred Years' War, and in England during Henry VI of England's madness....
was twice (3 April 1454–February 1455 and 19 November 1455–25 February 1456) Protector for the same Henry VI.
Richard, Duke of Gloucester
Richard III of England

Richard III was List of the monarchs of the Kingdom of England of Kingdom of England from 1483 until his death. He was the last king from the House of York, and his defeat at the Battle of Bosworth Field marked the culmination of the Wars of the Roses and the end of the Plantagenet dynasty....
was 'Lord Protector of the Realm' (30 April 1483–26 June 1483), during the nominal reign of Edward V
Edward V of England

Edward V was King of England from 9 April 1483 until his deposition two months later. His reign was dominated by the influence of his uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who succeeded him as Richard III of England....
(one of the 'Princes in the Tower
Princes in the Tower

The Princes in the Tower, Edward V of England and his brother, Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York , were two sons of Edward IV of England and Elizabeth Woodville....
') before usurping
Usurper

class="dablink selfreference">"Usurp" redirects here. You might be also looking for...
the throne for himself.
Edward Seymour
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset

Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset was Lord Protector of England in the period between the death of Henry VIII of England in 1547 and his own indictment in 1549....
, Duke of Somerset
Duke of Somerset

The Duke of Somerset is a title in the peerage of England that has been created several times. Derived from Somerset, it is particularly associated with two families; the Beauforts who held the title from the creation of 1448 and the Seymours, from the creation of 1547 and in whose name the title is still held....
was Lord Protector during the early years of the reign of the young Edward VI
Edward VI of England

Edward VI became List of English monarchs and King of Ireland on 28 January 1547 and was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII of England and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first Protestantism ruler....
.

Cases in Scotland:

John Stuart, Duke of Albany (c.1481–1586) was Governor and Protector of the Realm (12 July 1515–16 November 1524) for James V Stuart (1512–1542)
James Hamilton, Earl of Arran (c.1517–1575) (from 8 February 1548, Duke of Châtelherault) was Governor and Protector of the Kingdom (3 January 1543–12 April 1554) for Mary I
Mary I of Scotland

Mary I was Queen of Scots from 14 December 1542 to 24 July 1567.She was the only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scotland. She was only six days old when her father died and left her Queen of Scots....
"Mary Queen of Scots"

Cromwellian republican Commonwealth

The Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland was the title of the head of state

Head of State

English Interregnum

Commonwealth of England

The Commonwealth of England was the republic which ruled first Kingdom of England and Wales, and then Kingdom of Ireland and Kingdom of Scotland from 1649 to 1660....
under Council of State

English Council of State

Oliver Cromwell

Oliver Cromwell was an English people Military history of the United Kingdom and Politics of England leader best known for his involvement in making England into a republican Commonwealth and for his later role as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
(December 1653–September 1658) and his son and designated successor Richard Cromwell

Richard Cromwell

Richard Cromwell was the third son of Oliver Cromwell, and was the second Lord Protector#Cromwellian_republican_Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland, for just under nine months, from 3 September 1658 until 25 May 1659....
(September 1658–May 1659) during what is now known as The Protectorate

The Protectorate

In History of the British Isles, the Protectorate was the period 1653–1659 during which the Commonwealth of England was governed by a Lord Protector....
.

The 1653 Instrument of Government (republican constitution) stated that;

Oliver Cromwell, Captain-General of the forces of England, Scotland and Ireland, shall be, and is hereby declared to be, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland, and the dominions thereto belonging, for his life.

The replacement constitution of 1657, the pseudo-monarchical Humble Petition and Advice

Humble Petition and Advice

The Humble Petition and Advice was the second, and last, codified constitution of England after the Instrument of Government . It came about largely as a result of the rise of the New Cromwellians....
, gave ‘his Highness the Lord Protector’ the power to nominate his successor. Cromwell chose his eldest surviving son, the politically inexperienced Richard. This non-representative and de facto dynastic mode of succession, the royal connotations of both styles awarded, even a double invocation 16 December 1653 - 3 September 1658 "By the Grace of God
By the Grace of God

By the Grace of God, as well as the various equivalent phrases in other languages thus rendered in English language,is not a title in its own right, but a common introductory part of the full styles of many Monarchs, preceding the actual princely styles in chief of the specific realm and/or other principalities ....
and Republic Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland" and many other monarchic prerogatives, such as awarding knighthood, and the authoritarian traits of the whole militarized regime meant that the regicidal civil war, allegedly to uphold parliament against 'royal tyranny' and Protestantism against 'Stuart papacy', had in fact produced a repressive crowned republic

Crowned republic

In political science, a crowned republic is an informal term with two distinct meanings....
, fatally unable to bring peace and prosperity back.

The younger Cromwell, who succeeded on his father's death in September 1658, held the position for only eight months before resigning in May 1659, being followed by the second period of Commonwealth rule until the Restoration

English Restoration

The English Restoration, or simply The Restoration began in 1660 when the English monarchy, Scottish monarchy and Irish monarchy were restored under Charles II of England after the Interregnum that followed the English Civil War....
of the exiled heir to the Stuart throne Charles II

Charles II of England

Charles II was the Monarchy of Kingdom of England, Kingdom of Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland.His father Charles I of England Regicide#The regicide of Charles I of England at Palace of Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War....
in May 1660.

Since that Restoration the title has not been used in either above manner. George, Prince of Wales, appointed to the regency in 1811, was referred to as "His Royal Highness the Prince Regent

Prince Regent

A prince regent is a prince who rules a monarchy as Regent instead of a Monarch, e.g., due to the Sovereign's incapacity or absence .While the term itself can have the generic meaning and refer to any prince who fills the role of regent, historically it has mainly been used to describe a small number of individual Princes who were Regents....
". George exercised the powers of the monarchy just as medieval Lords Protectors had done, but the title's republican associations had rendered it distasteful. It is not considered likely to be revived in the foreseeable future. As the Lord Protector Cromwell was paid £100,000 a year.

Literature

In 1659, the royalist Anglican theologian (later bishop of Rochester) Thomas Sprat

Thomas Sprat

Thomas Sprat , England divine, was born at Beaminster, Dorset, and educated at Wadham College, Oxford, where he held a fellowship from 1657 to 1670....
made his witty and literary reputation with his satirical poem To the Happie Memory of the most Renowned Prince Oliver, Lord Protector, clearly mocking Cromwell's regal status.

In Prince Caspian
Prince Caspian

Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia is a novel for children by C. S. Lewis, written in late 1949 and first published in 1951 in literature....
, the second book in C. S. Lewis

C. S. Lewis

Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as Jack, was an academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist....
's fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia
The Chronicles of Narnia

The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of seven fantasy novels for children written by C. S. Lewis. It is considered a classic of children's literature and is the author's best-known work, having sold over 120 million copies in 41 languages....
, the usurper Miraz

Miraz

Miraz is a fictional character from C. S. Lewis's fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. He is a prominent character in the second book Prince Caspian, and is the uncle of the book's protagonist....
begins his reign calling himself "Lord Protector".

In Orson Scott Card

Orson Scott Card

Orson Scott Card is an United States author, critic and public speaking. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction....
's series of fantasy

Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of Plot , Theme , and/or Setting . Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of technological and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three ....
novel

Novel

File:2009 stapelweise Neuerscheinungen im Buchladen.JPGA novel is today a long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern Romance and in the tradition of the novella....
s The Tales of Alvin Maker
The Tales of Alvin Maker

The Tales of Alvin Maker is a series of novels by Orson Scott Card that revolve around the experiences of a young man, Alvin Miller, who discovers he has incredible powers for creating and shaping things around him....
, set in an alternate early 19th century America, England continues to be ruled by the Cromwells as Lords Protector, while the Stuarts rule the "Crown Colonies" (roughly equivalent to the states

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 state of the United States that share sovereignty with the federal government of the United States . Because of this shared sovereignty, an United States is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of Domicile ....
from Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia is an United States U.S. state on the East Coast of the United States of the Southern United States. The state is known as the "Old Dominion" and sometimes as "Mother of Presidents", because it is the birthplace of Lists of United States Presidents by place of birth#By state....
to Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a U.S. state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against United Kingdom rule in the American Revolution....
) from "Camelot" (Charleston

Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston is a city in Charleston County, South Carolina in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is the largest city and county seat of Charleston County....
). The references especially come into play in Heartfire
Heartfire

Heartfire is an alternate history/fantasy novel by Orson Scott Card. It is the fifth book in Card's The Tales of Alvin Maker series and is about Alvin Miller, the Seventh son of a seventh son....
, the fifth book in the series, where much of the story occurs in Camelot.

In the 1992 novel Anno Dracula
Anno Dracula (novel)

Anno Dracula is a 1992 novel by British writer Kim Newman, the first in the Anno Dracula series. It is an alternate history using characters from multiple sources....
, Dracula

Dracula

Dracula is an 1897 in literature novel by Irish people author Bram Stoker, featuring as its primary antagonist the vampire Count Dracula.Dracula has been attributed to many literary genres including vampire literature, horror fiction, the gothic novel and invasion literature....
takes the title of Lord Protector upon marrying Queen Victoria and becoming Prince Consort

Prince consort

A prince consort, generally speaking, is a common term for the husband of a queen regnant, unless he himself also is a Monarchy in his own right....
.

In the 2007 Transformers film universe, the Prequel comic book states that before the Cybertronian Civil War over control of the All Spark

Allspark

The AllSpark is a term for two different objects within the Transformers media franchise:* In the Beast Machines television series, it is a term for the Transformers' afterlife....
, Optimus Prime

Optimus Prime

Optimus Prime is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Transformers universes. He is the Prime of the heroic Autobots. Optimus Prime was voiced in English by Peter Cullen in the original The Transformers cartoon, and has become the most well-known character of the series....
and Megatron

Megatron

Megatron is a character from the Transformers . He is the evil leader of the Decepticons and the primary antagonist of the series....
shared power, with Optimus Prime seemingly the political leader of the Cybertronians, and Megatron filling the role of the Lord Protector, the executor of Cybertronian law and order. They are described as "one fair, the other firm".

In the Emberverse series

The Emberverse series

The Emberverse series, or the Change World, is set of alternate history, post-apocalyptic books written by S. M. Stirling. The novels focus on the events after something called "The Change", which caused electricity, guns, explosives, internal combustion engines and steam power to stop working....
book series, the character Norman Arminger takes the role of Lord Protector in his neo-feudalistic kingdom of Portland.

Television

Alan B'Stard on the final episode of UK sitcom The New Statesman

The New Statesman

The New Statesman was an award-winning United Kingdom sitcom of the late 1980s and early 1990s satirising the Conservative Party government of the time....
, suggested, seeking alternatives in case he was not made Prime Minister

Prime minister

A prime minister is the most senior minister of Cabinet in the Executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. The position is usually held by, but need not always be held by, a politician....
, that he might proclaim himself Lord Protector of England.

In the Star Trek Voyager episode "Blink of an Eye" during which Voyager is trapped in orbit above a planet experiencing a rapid passage of time

Time

Time is a component of the measurement used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify the motions of objects....
, the first attempt shown by the people to contact Voyager was made during the planet's medieval period by a Lord Protector. By the end of the episode, the planet's technologically-advanced society was governed by the Central Protectorate, hinting that the planet's head of state was still called Lord Protector.

In the Stargate Atlantis

Stargate Atlantis

Stargate Atlantis is an United States-Canada science fiction television program, part of the Stargate owned by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Developed by producers Brad Wright and Robert C....
episode "The Tower" (Season 2, Episode 15) the team come across a planet ruled by a Lord Protector from a city with the same dimensions as Atlantis.

Video games

In the Microprose

MicroProse

MicroProse, as a corporation and brand name, has been owned by several entities since its original founding by Sid Meier and Bill Stealey in 1982 in video gaming, as Microprose Software....
videogame Sid Meier
Sid Meier

Sidney K. Meier is a Canadian game programmer and game designer of several popular video game strategy games who has won accolades for his contributions to the video game industry....
's Civilization II
Civilization II

Sid Meier's Civilization II, a.k.a. Civ II, is a turn-based strategy computer game designed by Brian Reynolds, Douglas Caspian-Kaufman and Jeff Briggs....
, the term Lord Protector (or its corresponding female form Lady Protector) is applied to the leader of the English civilization under the Fundamentalist

Fundamentalism

Fundamentalism refers to a belief in, and strict adherence to a set of basic principles , a reaction to perceived doctrine compromises with Modernism and political life....
type of government.

Also, in the Sony MMORPG "Everquest" Paladins who attain the 65th level are given the title of "Lord Protector"

In Europa Universalis III

Europa Universalis III

Europa Universalis III is a Grand strategy strategy game computer game by Paradox Interactive. The game and its expansion were later ported to Mac OS X by Virtual Programming....
by Paradox Interactive

Paradox Interactive

Paradox Interactive is a Sweden video game developer based in Stockholm that is known for producing history strategy computer games. It is also a video game publisher, publishing its own games as well as others through traditional retail channels as well as digital distribution services, such as #GamersGate....
, Lord/Lady Protector is applied to a country's head of state under the Republican Dictatorship form of government.

Other use

Lord Protector has also been used as a rendering of the Latin Advocatus in the sense of a temporal Lord (such as a Monarch) who acted as the protector of the (mainly secular) interests of (a part of) the church; compare vidame

Vidame

Vidame, a French corruption of the official Latin term vicedominus , was a feudal title in France. The vidame was originally, like the avou? , a secular official chosen by the bishop of the diocese, with the consent of the count, to perform functions in the church's earthly interest, canonically incompatible with the clerical state, o...
.

Sources and references

(incomplete)*