Oliver Cromwell
by Oliver Cromwell was born on 25 April 1599 and was to play a pivotal and controversial role in British politics and history. He might have died on three September 1658 yet few even now agree about his legacies.
Arguably it was providence and political instability was responsible for raising him from obscurity to Lord Protector. He was a man full of contradictions and paradox. This made him fascinating to contemporaries and generations of historians and students alike.
Without doubt Oliver Cromwell dominates thoughts and studies of the British civil wars and the English Revolution. His legacy, achievements and motivations are open to debate, particularly those who wish to attack or to defend his reputation.
Was he a promoter of liberty and toleration or a more powerful tyrant than the king (Charles I) he helped to defeat was?
Would the Irish who survived his bloody campaign vouch for his tolerance?
Smith notes ironically that although Cromwell remains such as an enigma there is a vast amount of evidence and documents by him, or about him. This evidence is quite widely available, although care needs to be taken with bias towards or against him. Historians are also susceptible to trends and arguments or views, which have frequently turned full circle.
Bibliography
Ashley, M. the English Civil War (1990) 2nd edition, Alan Sutton Publishing
Fraser, A. Cromwell Our Chief of Men(1973) Weidenfeld & Nicholson.
Hill C. the Century of Revolution 1603 – 17142nd edition (1980) Routledge.
Morrill, J. Oliver Cromwell and the English Revolution (1990) Longman
Schama, S. A History of Britain – The British Wars 1603-1776 (2001), BBC Worldwide, London.
Smith, D.L. Oliver Cromwell – Politics and Religion in the English Revolution, 1640 – 1658 (1991) Cambridge University Press.
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