Oliver Cromwell Biography

Oliver Cromwell was born on April 25, 1599, in Huntingdon, Huntingdonshire, Kingdom of England, to Robert Cromwell and Elizabeth Steward. He was a descendant of Katherine Cromwell, an elder sister of Tudor statesman Thomas Cromwell, a minister of Henry VIII.

He was baptized at ‘St John’s Church.’ He attended ‘Huntingdon Grammar School,’ and then studied at ‘Sidney Sussex College,’ Cambridge. Following his father’s death, he left college without a degree in 1617.

Cromwell became the Member of Parliament for Huntingdon in 1628. King Charles I had imposed a tax without parliamentary consent. The Parliament adopted a Petition of Right, and Charles I adjourned parliament.

He undertook treatment for depression. He sold his property, moved to St Ives, took up farming, and adopted Puritanism. In 1636, he inherited his uncle’s property and job as tithe collector for Ely Cathedral.

He returned as MP for Cambridge in 1640 when Charles summoned the Short Parliament because of money shortage during the ‘Bishops’ War.’ It was dissolved when MPs refused to grant him subsidies for war.

A bankrupt king called for the Long Parliament after the ‘Bishops’ War’ ended. 1641’s ‘Triennial Act’ guaranteed that parliament would be called once every three years. Cromwell once again returned as a member of Cambridge.

Issues between the parliament and the king could not be resolved, resulting in an armed conflict in 1642. Cromwell recruited cavalry for the parliamentary forces in Cambridgeshire after blocking shipment meant for the king.

Commissioned as Captain of Horses, Cromwell raised a cavalry troop, and fought in the indecisive ‘Battle of Edgehill.’ He was promoted to Colonel of Horses in 1643.

He was elevated to the position of Lieutenant General of Horses and made Governor of Ely. He helped secure victory for the parliamentary forces at Marston Moor, but could not destroy the king’s forces.

In 1644, he defeated the Royalists in the ‘Second Battle of Newbury’ without gaining a strategic advantage. He presented his complaint on the leadership of Manchester and Earl of Essex to the House of Commons.

In 1645, the Parliament passed the ‘Self-Denying Ordinance,’ requiring members of the House of Commons and the Lords to choose between civil office and military command. Cromwell chose military command.

At the ‘Battle of Naseby’ in 1645, the ‘New Model Army’ crushed the king’s army. Appointed as Lieutenant-General, Cromwell’s cavalry routed the Royalist cavalry. He then besieged Basing House, the Catholic fortress.

Charles surrendered to the Scots in 1646. They handed him over to the Parliamentarians and withdrew from England. Oxford surrendered, ending the ‘Civil War.’ Cromwell fell ill and was inactive for a month.

Cornet George Joyce took control of Charles I. The ‘New Model Army’ was angry with the parliamentarians for the Presbyterian Church settlement, and raised troops. Cromwell supported the ‘New Model Army.’

In Putney, he put forward a proposal to check the powers of the executives. He also proposed to set up regularly elected parliaments and restore a non-compulsory Episcopalian settlement. The Levellers wanted complete political equality.

Meanwhile, Charles I escaped from Hampton Court and tried to work out a deal with the Scots to invade England. This gave rise to the second ‘English Civil War’ in 1648.

MPs, who negotiated with the king, were prevented from sitting for parliament. With the remaining MPs agreeing, Charles was tried for treason, and executed. The death warrant was signed by 59 members, including Cromwell.

The Scots and the Irish wanted Charles’ son as the king. From 1649 to 1651, Cromwell fought a bloody war with Scottish and Irish forces. Charles II fled to Holland, and the second ‘English Civil War’ ended.

Cromwell became the most powerful man in England and replaced the Rump Parliament with members appointed by the Church. After General Lambert dissolved it, he presented a new constitution.

In 1653, he became the Lord Protector and headed an executive council defined by a paper constitution. The Protectorate Parliament was dissolved the following year. The appointment of major generals proved to be unpopular.

He formed a second Protectorate Parliament. In 1657, his supporters presented a constitution, reducing the power of the Council and recommending that he be made the king. He declined the Crown but accepted the remaining petition.

In 1658, when parliament was convened, he faced opposition from Republicans and segments of the Army. He then dissolved the parliament. Around the same time, his health declined and he died probably from malaria. His body was buried in Westminster Abbey.

In 1641, Cromwell introduced the second reading of the Annual Parliaments Bill and drafted the Root and Branch Bill for the abolition of episcopacy. The House of Commons drew the ‘Protestation Oath’ against the popery.

He put down the Royalist uprising in South Wales. He achieved a brilliant victory in the ‘Battle of Preston’ in 1648, putting down the Scottish Royalist's Army, and ending the second ‘English Civil War.’

In 1620, Oliver Cromwell married Elizabeth Bourchier, daughter of Sir James Bourchier, a wealthy leather merchant from Essex. They had nine children.

Cromwell died at Whitehall on September 3, 1658. The cause of his death is believed to be septicemia, caused by a urinary infection. His body was buried at Westminster Abbey.

Oliver Cromwell is known for banning Christmas celebrations in England during his time as Lord Protector, believing it was a pagan festival that distracted from religious observance.

Cromwell famously refused the title of king when offered by Parliament, preferring to be known as Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland.