The
Rump Parliament was the name of the English Parliament after
Colonel PridePride’s Purge is an event in December 1648, during the Second English Civil War, when troops under the command of Colonel Thomas Pride forcibly removed from the Long Parliament all those who were not supporters of the Grandees in the New Model Army and the Independents...
purged the
Long ParliamentThe Long Parliament is the name of the English Parliament called by Charles I, on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its...
on 6 December 1648 of those members hostile to the
Grandees'Grandee is a word used either to render in English the Iberic high aristocratic title Grande, used by the Spanish, Portuguese and Brazilian peerage, or by analogy to refer to other people of a somewhat comparable, exalted position, roughly synonymous with magnate, and in particular by analogy to a...
intention to try King
Charles ICharles I, , the second son of James VI of Scotland and I of England, was King of England, Scotland and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution. Charles famously engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England...
for
high treasonHigh treason is criminal disloyalty to one's country. Participating in a war against one's country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps the...
.
"Rump" normally means the hind end of an animal; its use meaning "remnant" was first recorded in the above context. Since 1649, the term "rump parliament" has been used to refer to any parliament left over from the actual legitimate parliament.
Execution of Charles I and the abolition of the Monarchy
When it became apparent to the leaders of the
New Model ArmyThe New Model Army of Great Britain was formed in 1645 by the Parliamentarians in the English Civil War, and disbanded in 1660 after the Restoration. It differed from other armies in the same conflict in that it was intended as an army liable for service anywhere in the country, rather than being...
that the Parliament—then controlled by the Presbyterian faction—was ready to come to an agreement with the King that would restore him to his throne (though without effective power) and negate the power of the Army, they resolved to shatter the power of both King and Parliament.
Pride's PurgePride’s Purge is an event in December 1648, during the Second English Civil War, when troops under the command of Colonel Thomas Pride forcibly removed from the Long Parliament all those who were not supporters of the Grandees in the New Model Army and the Independents...
brought the Parliament to heel, under the direct control of the Army; the remaining Commons then on 13 December 1648 broke off negotiations with the King. Two days later, the Council of Officers of the
New Model ArmyThe New Model Army of Great Britain was formed in 1645 by the Parliamentarians in the English Civil War, and disbanded in 1660 after the Restoration. It differed from other armies in the same conflict in that it was intended as an army liable for service anywhere in the country, rather than being...
voted that the King be moved from the
Isle of WightThe Isle of Wight is an English island and a county, located 3-5 miles from the south coast of the mainland, in the English Channel. It is separated from mainland England by the Solent and is situated south of the county of Hampshire...
, where he was prisoner, to
WindsorWindsor is a suburban town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is best known as the site of Windsor Castle....
"...in order to the bringing of him speedily to justice". In the middle of December the King was moved from Windsor to London.
On 4 January 1649, the Commons passed an ordinance to set up a High Court of Justice to try Charles I for
high treasonHigh treason is criminal disloyalty to one's country. Participating in a war against one's country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps the...
in the name of the people of England. The Lords rejected it, and as it did not receive
Royal AssentThe granting of Royal Assent is the formal method by which a constitutional monarch completes the legislative process of lawmaking by formally assenting to an Act of Parliament. While the power to withhold Royal Assent was once exercised often, it is exceedingly rare in the modern, democratic...
, Charles asked at the start of his trial on 20 January in Westminster Hall "I would know by what power I am called hither. I would know by what authority, I mean lawful
authorityIn government, authority is often used interchangeably with the term "power". However, their meanings differ: while "power" is defined as "the ability to influence somebody to do something that he could not have done", "authority" refers to a claim of legitimacy, the justification and right to...
", to which there was no strong legal answer under the constitutional arrangements of the time.
He was convicted with
fifty-nine Commissioners (Judges) signing the death warrant.
The execution of Charles I was delayed to 30 January, so that the House of Commons could pass an emergency bill to make it an offence to proclaim a new King, and to declare the representatives of the people, the House of Commons, as the source of all just power. Parliament voted to abolish the
House of LordsThe House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is also commonly referred to as "the Lords". Parliament comprises the Sovereign, the House of Commons , and the Lords...
on 6 February and to abolish the monarchy on 7 February; an
act abolishing the kingshipThe act abolishing the kingship was an Act of the Rump Parliament that abolished the monarchy in England in the aftermath of the Second English Civil War....
was formally passed by Parliament on 17 March, followed by an act to abolish the House of Lords on 19 March. The establishment of a Council of State was approved on 14 February and on 19 May an Act Declaring England a Commonwealth was passed.
Commonwealth of England
During the time of the
Commonwealth of EnglandThe Commonwealth of England, from 1653-1659 the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland, was the republican government which ruled first England and Wales, and then Ireland and Scotland from 1649 to 1660. Some would call this government a "crowned" republican government...
(1649–1653), the Rump passed a number of acts in the areas of religion, law, and finance. Most of the members of the Rump wanted to promote "godliness", but also to restrict the more extreme puritan sects like the Quakers and the Ranters. An Adultery Act of May 1650 imposed the death penalty for incest and adultery and 3 months imprisonment for fornication; the Blasphemy Act of August 1650 was aimed at curbing extreme religious "enthusiasm". To stop extreme evangelicals from preaching, they formed a
Committee for the Propagation of the Gospel, which issued licenses to preach. To allow Puritans freedom of worship, they repealed the Elizabethan requirement of compulsory attendance at an Anglican Church. As lawyers were overrepresented in the Rump Parliament, the Rump did not respond to the popular requests made by the
LevellersThe Levellers were a political movement during the English Civil Wars which emphasised popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law, and religious tolerance, all of which were expressed in the manifesto "Agreement of the People". They were one of the largest factions on the...
to change the expensive legal system.
The Rump raised revenue through the sale of Crown lands and Church property, both of which were popular. However, revenue raised through excise levies and through an Assessment Tax on land were unpopular as they affected everyone who owned property. The proceeds from confiscated Royalist estates were a valuable source of income, but it was a two edged sword. It ingratiated Parliament to people like
John DownesJohn Downes was a commissioner who signed the death warrant of Charles I of England. After the English Restoration he was found guilty of regicide and was imprisoned until he died....
who were making a fortune from the business but it did nothing to heal the wounds of the Civil War.
Oliver Cromwell
In 1653, after learning that Parliament was attempting to stay in session despite an agreement to dissolve, and having failed to come up with a working constitution,
CromwellOliver Cromwell was an English military and political 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.He was one of the commanders of the New Model Army which defeated the royalists in...
’s patience ran out. On 20 April he attended a sitting of Parliament and listened to one or two speeches. Then he stood up and harangued the members of the Rump. This speech does not survive but has often been paraphrased, for instance in the
Book of Days:
You have sat too long for any good you have been doing lately ... Depart, I say; and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!
He then declared "
you are no Parliament" and called in a troop of soldiers, under the command of Major-General Thomas Harrison, ordering them to clear the chamber. According to Dickens and
BellocJoseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc was an Anglo-French writer and historian who became a naturalised British subject in 1902. He was one of the most prolific writers in England during the early twentieth century...
, he then turned to the
Speaker's MaceThe ceremonial mace is a highly ornamented staff of metal or wood, carried before a sovereign or other high official in civic ceremonies by a mace-bearer, intended to represent the official's authority. The mace as used today derives from the original mace used as a weapon...
, the symbol of Parliamentary power, declared it a "
fool's bauble", and ordered the troops "
here, carry it away".
A more detailed record of the event is recounted by Thomas Salmon in his
Chronological Historian (London, 1723, 106), thus:
"[Cromwell] commanded the Speaker to leave the Chair, and told them they had sat long enough, unless they had done more good, crying out
You are no longer a Parliament, I say you are no Parliament. He told Sir
Henry VaneHenry Vane may refer to:*Sir Henry Vane the Elder , English courtier, father of Henry Vane the Younger*Sir Henry Vane the Younger , statesman, Puritan, son of Henry Vane the Elder*Henry Vane, 1st Earl of Darlington PC Henry Vane may refer to:*Sir Henry Vane the Elder (1589–1655), English...
he was a Jugler [sic];
Henry MartinHenry Martin is an American cartoonist. He received the National Cartoonist Society Gag Cartoon Award for 1978 for his work. He is the father of popular children's author Ann M. Martin....
and Sir
Peter WentworthPeter Wentworth was the elder brother of Paul Wentworth, and like his brother was a prominent puritan leader in the Parliament of England, which he first entered as member for Barnstaple in 1571...
, that they were Whoremasters;
Thomas ChalonerThomas Chaloner may refer to:* Sir Thomas Chaloner , English statesman and poet* Sir Thomas Chaloner , English naturalist who introduced alum manufacturing to England...
, he was a Drunkard; and Allen the Goldsmith that he cheated the Publick: Then he bid one of his Soldiers take away that Fool's Bauble the mace and Thomas Harrison pulled the Speaker of the Chair; and in short Cromwell having turned them all out of the House, lock'd up the Doors and returned to Whitehall."
Salmon does not cite his own sources but the version is sufficiently detailed to suggest that he had access to descriptions of the event that were certainly current in his time, and were probably derived from eye-witness descriptions. It is therefore probably at least accurate in general tone, if not precise detail.
Within a month of the Rump's dismissal, Oliver Cromwell on the advice of Harrison and with the support of other officers in the Army, sent a request to Congregational churches in every county to nominate those they considered fit to take part in the new government. On 4 July a Nominated Assembly, nicknamed the "Assembly of Saints" or Barebone's Parliament (named after one of its members), took on the role of more traditional English Parliaments.
End of the Rump Parliament
Richard CromwellRichard Cromwell was the third son of Oliver Cromwell, and was the second Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland, for just under nine months, from 3 September 1658 until 25 May 1659....
, the third (and eldest surviving) son of Oliver Cromwell, was appointed
Lord ProtectorLord Protector is a title used in British constitutional law for certain heads of states at different periods of history. It is also a particular title for the British Heads of State in respect to the established church...
after his father's death. He called the
Third Protectorate ParliamentThe Third Protectorate Parliament sat for one session, from 27 January 1659 until 22 April 1659, with Chaloner Chute and Thomas Bampfylde as the Speakers of the House of the Commons...
in 1659. However, along with the Army, it was unable to form a stable government and after seven months the Army removed him. On 6 May, 1659, it reinstalled the Rump Parliament. The Rump Parliament issued a declaration establishing a "Commonwealth without a king, single person, or house of lords". However after a few months divisions in the Commonwealth were settled by force of arms. On 12 October the Rump voted to declare the seven commissioners' responsibility for the Army void and appointed
Charles FleetwoodCharles Fleetwood , was an English Parliamentary soldier and politician, Lord Deputy of Ireland from 1652-55, where he enforced the Cromwellian Settlement. At the Restoration he was included in the Act of Indemnity as among the twenty liable to penalties other than capital, and was finally...
commander-in-chief under the Speaker of the House. The next day on 13 October 1659 the Army in London under the command of
John LambertGeneral John Lambert served as an English Parliamentary general in the English Civil War.-Early life:Lambert, born at Calton Hall, Kirkby Malham, near Skipton in the West Riding of Yorkshire, of a long-established family, studied law at the Inns of Court in London...
assisted by
Charles FleetwoodCharles Fleetwood , was an English Parliamentary soldier and politician, Lord Deputy of Ireland from 1652-55, where he enforced the Cromwellian Settlement. At the Restoration he was included in the Act of Indemnity as among the twenty liable to penalties other than capital, and was finally...
excluded the Rump from Parliament by locking the doors to the
Palace of WestminsterThe Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament, is the seat of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
and stationing armed guards outside. Lambert and Fleetwood created a 23 member
Committee of SafetyThe Committee of Safety, established by the Parliamentarians in July 1642, was the first of a number of successive committees set up to oversee the English Civil War against King Charles. It was made up of fifteen Members of Parliament....
to govern the country in place of the Rump with General Fleetwood and Lambert directly under him, commander of the Army in England and Scotland.
Sir
Arthur HaselrigSir Arthur Haselrig, 2nd Baronet , was an English Parliamentarian and soldier in the 17th century. He is best remembered as being one of the five Members of Parliament whom King Charles I tried to arrest in 1642, an event that led to the start of the English Civil War.-Life:Sir Arthur Haselrig was...
appealed to other Army generals to support the Rump against Fleetwood and Lambert. Fearing anarchy, General George Monck, commander-in-chief of the English army in Scotland, declared that he was ready to uphold Parliament's authority and march at the head of his army to London. Lambert marched north against Monck in November 1659, but Lambert's army began to melt away, and he was kept in suspense by Monck till his whole army deserted and he returned to London almost alone. On 24 December 1659 the chastened Fleetwood approached the Speaker, William Lenthal, asking him to recall the Rump. The same day Lenthall took possession of the Tower and appointed commissioners for its government. The Rump met again on 26 December 1659. Parliament declared Monck commander-in-chief in England as well as Scotland.
In January 1660, Monck marched into England, as Lambert's supporters in the Army were cashiered and his authority crumbled. When Sir Thomas Fairfax emerged from retirement to declare his support for Monck, Army support for Monck became almost unanimous. Monck entered London in February 1660 and he allowed the Presbyterian members, 'secluded' in
Pride's PurgePride’s Purge is an event in December 1648, during the Second English Civil War, when troops under the command of Colonel Thomas Pride forcibly removed from the Long Parliament all those who were not supporters of the Grandees in the New Model Army and the Independents...
of 1648, to re-enter parliament on 21 February 1660. The
Long Parliament dissolved itself on 16 March, 1660 after preparing legislation for the
Convention ParliamentThe term Convention Parliament has been applied to three different English Parliaments, of 1399, 1660 and 1689.The definition of the term convention parliament is generally taken to be:...
that formally invited King
Charles IICharles II was the King of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father King Charles I was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War. The English Parliament did not proclaim Charles II king at this time. Instead they passed a statute making such a...
to be the English monarch in what has become known as the
RestorationThe English Restoration, often shortened to the Restoration, began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Commonwealth of England that followed the English Civil War...
.
Links and references
- British Civil Wars: Rump Parliament
- Chambers' Book of Days:20 April With a censored version of Cromwell's speech.
- http://castorblog.com/archives/000275.html with an uncensored version of Cromwell's speech.
- Full text of the Act erecting a High Court of Justice for the Trial of Charles I 6 January 1649
- Full text of the Sentence of the High Court of Justice upon the King, 27 January, 1649
- Full text of The Death Warrant of Charles I, 29 January, 1649
- Full text of the Act appointing a Council of State, 13 February, 1649
- Full text of the Act abolishing the Office of King, 17 March, 1649
- Full text of the Act abolishing the House of Lords, 19 March, 1649
- Full text of the Act declaring England to be a Commonwealth, 19 May, 1649
- Full text of the Act declaring what Offences shall he adjudged Treason under the Commonwealth, 17 July, 1649
- Full text of the Declaration by Oliver Cromwell and the Council of Officers after putting an End to the Long Parliament, 22 April, 1653