January
| |
(January) Major-General Monck leads an attack on Burntisland in Fife but is driven back by strong resistance. Source: RCRS |
| |
(January) Edmund Ludlow arrives in Ireland to serve as Lieutenant-General to Ireton. He is accompanied by three parliamentary commissioners who are to organise the civil government of Ireland. HCP2 |
| 1 |
Charles II crowned King of Scots at Scone. CII |
| 7 |
The Commission of the Kirk warns ministers not to criticise the relaxing of religious qualifications to serve in the Scottish army, but already the moderate "Resolutioners" are under attack by the hardline "Protesters" and Remonstrants. RCRS |
| 12 |
Major-General John Middleton re-admitted to the KIrk after undergoing a public penance in sackcloth; Colonel Strachan excommunicated. HCP1 |
| 21 |
Captain John Lawson joins Vice-Admiral William Penn's squadron in the Azores. ODNB |
| 17 |
The Marquis of Argyll leaves King Charles' court and withdraws to the Highlands. HCP1 |
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February
| |
(February) Oliver Cromwell falls ill and suffers bouts of sickness through to July. Source: DNB |
| 11 |
Major-General George Monck besieges Tantallon Castle. TCG |
| 13 |
General-at-Sea Robert Blake receives the thanks of Parliament for breaking up Prince Rupert's piratical fleet. HCP1 |
| 14 |
Oliver St John and Walter Strickland instructed to go the Holland to negotiate an alliance with the States General. HCP1 |
| 18 |
A Parliamentary committee recommends that all cathedrals in England should be demolished or sold. HCP2 |
| |
The Assembly of Barbados refuses to submit to Parliament. HCP2 |
| 23 |
Tantallon Castle surrenders to Monck. TCG |
| 24 |
Charles II's representatives Lord Cottington and Sir Edward Hyde ordered to leave Madrid by King Philip IV, who wants to remain on friendly terms with the Commonwealth. HCP1 |
| 26 |
Stephen de Henin, ambassador of Charles, Duke of Lorraine, arrives to negotiate with the Confederates. Viscount Taafe meets the Duke's representatives in Brussels around the same time. TCW, CIR |
| |
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March
| 9 |
Arrest of John Birkenhead and other conspirators at Greenock; capture of correspondence regarding plans for widespread Royalist insurrections in England. Source: HCP2 |
| 13 |
A sermon before Parliament at Westminster by the radical preacher John Simpson causes uproar when Simpson champions lay preaching by soldiers and criticises the professional clergy. ODNB |
| |
The Scottish Parliament meets at Perth and resolves to ask the Kirk whether it is unlawful or sinful for Royalists and Engagers to be admitted to the Committee of Estates. A motion to abolish the Committee is rejected by the lairds and burgesses. RCRS |
| 14 |
Cardinal Mazarin's agent in London dismissed. The Council of State refuses to negotiate until France officially recognises the Commonwealth. HCP1 |
| 17 |
Commonwealth ambassadors harangued by Royalist exiles on their arrival at The Hague. HCP1 |
| 22 |
The Commission of the Kirk refuses to give a direct answer regarding membership of the Committee of Estates but declares that Royalists may be admitted to any committee established to manage the army. RCRS |
| 25 |
Opening of negotiations for an alliance between the Commonwealth and the States-General of Holland. HCP1 |
| 29 |
Arrest of Royalist conspirator Tom Coke. In exchange for his life, Coke reveals full details of Royalist plans and names the leaders of the conspiracy in England. Widespread arrests follow. HCP2 |
| |
Vice-Admiral Penn's squadron sails into the Mediterranean in pursuit of Prince Rupert and in search of prizes. ODNB |
| |
(Late March) Monck and Deane collaborate on an amphibious operation to besiege and capture Blackness Castle on the south side of the Firth of Forth. TCG |
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April
| 1 |
General-at-Sea Blake ordered to prepare for an attack on the Isles of Scilly. Ayscue's squadron diverted from the expedition to Barbados to assist. Source: HCP1 |
| 14 |
A Scottish force from Stirling raids the English position at Linlithgow; Scottish cavalry commanded by Colonel Montgomery probes into the south-west forcing the English to abandon Hamilton and Dumfries. ATKA, RCRS |
| 15 |
First publication of Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan. HCP2 |
| 17 |
The Committee of Estates prorogues the meeting of the Scottish Parliament over fears that it would repeal the Act of Classes. RCRS |
| 18 |
Parliament passes an Act allowing the impressment of up to 10,000 men for service in Ireland. AOI |
| 23 |
Irish agents Sir Nicholas Plunket and Geoffrey Browne commissioned to negotiate for aid from the Duke of Lorraine. HCP2 |
| 30 |
Prince Rupert at Toulon; supported by the French he completes the refitting of his ships. MPRC |
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May
| 1 |
Henry Ireton issues an order forbidding further marriages between English soldiers and Irish girls. Source: HCP2 |
| 2 |
Arrest of several Presbyterian ministers suspected of plotting to aid the Royalists in England. Christopher Love selected for trial before the High Court of Justice. HCP2 |
| 6 |
Richard Deane appointed Major-General of the Commonwealth army in Scotland; George Monck appointed Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance. With Cromwell still ill, John Lambert is effectively in command. CG |
| 7 |
Prince Rupert's fleet of five warships evades General-at-Sea Penn and sails from the Mediterranean. MPRC |
| 10 |
Ireton calls a council of war at Clonmel to discuss the continuation of the campaign against COnnacht and Limerick. HCP2 |
| 16 |
The Portuguese ambassador in London dismissed after Portugal rejects Commonwealth demands for compensation over their sheltering of Prince Rupert and toleration of his piracy. HCP1 |
| 23 |
Sir John Grenville surrenders the Scilly Isles to Blake. HCP1 |
| |
The Scottish Parliament meets at Perth. TCW |
| |
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June
| |
(Early June) A new Scots-Royalist army begins to muster at Stirling. Source: HCP2 |
| |
(Early June) Sir Charles Coote marches into Connacht from the north and advances towards Athlone and Portumna. CIR |
| 1 |
General Ireton forces a passage over the River Shannon at O'Briensbridge, enabling him to establish forces on both sides of the river. HCP2 |
| 4 |
The Scottish Parliament repeals the Act of Classes, fully re-admitting Engagers and Royalists to civil and military appointments. The western Remonstrance denounced; those who refuse to renounce it to be prosecuted for sedition. TCW, RCRS |
| 9 |
George Fisher, Commonwealth envoy in Madrid, recalled in protest at Spain's reluctance to prosecute the murderers of Anthony Ascham. HCP1 |
| 14 |
The siege of Limerick reinstated. HCP2 |
| 18 |
English ambassadors St John and Strickland leave the Hague after the failure of negotiations for an alliance with the States General. HCP1 |
| |
Lord Dillon surrenders Athlone to Sir Charles Coote, who advances to Portumna. CIR |
| 20 |
Opening of the trial of Presbyterian minister Christopher Love, accused of plotting against the Commonwealth. HCP2 |
| 23 |
An amphibious assault on Limerick repulsed with heavy losses. Ireton abandons attempts to take the town by storm and prepares to blockade it into submission. HCP2, CIR |
| 25 |
Cromwell occupies his old position at Braid Hill near Edinburgh. HCP2 |
| |
Lord Howard of Escrick expelled from Parliament, fined and committed to the Tower for taking bribes from Royalists hoping to receive a reduction in the fines imposed upon them. HCP2 |
| 28 |
General Leslie deploys the Scottish army in an easily defensible position at Torwood in the hills south of Stirling. ATKA |
| 30 |
Cromwell marches towards Stirling, hoping to bring Leslie to battle. HCP2 |
| |
Ireton's proposals for the surrender of Limerick rejected. HCP2 |
| |
(Late June) The garrison at Portumna surrenders to Sir Charles Coote, who advances on Galway. CIR |
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July
| |
(Early July) Scottish outposts at Falkirk withdraw as the Commonwealth army advances. Source: HCP2 |
| 5 |
Presbyterian conspirator Christopher Love sentenced to death. HCP2 |
| 12 |
The battle of Knocknaclashy: Lord Broghill routs Lord Muskerry's Irish relief force marching for Limerick. CIR, HACD |
| 16 |
Parliament passes the Confiscation Act — the estates of 70 named Royalists to be sold for the benefit of the Commonwealth. HCP2 |
| |
The General Assembly of the Kirk meets at St Andrews with bitter arguments between the pro-Royalist Resolutioners and hardline Protesters. RCRS |
| 17 |
Cromwell sends Colonel Overton with a small force across the Firth of Forth to North Queensferry, intending to disrupt Scottish supply lines from Fife. CG, RCRS |
| 19 |
Major-General Lambert reinforces the Commonwealth troops in Fife. HCP2 |
| 20 |
Battle of Inverkeithing: Lambert defeats Sir John Browne, sent by Leslie to drive the English out of Fife. HCP2, TCW |
| 22 |
Presbyterian ministers appeal to Cromwell to intercede for Christopher Love. HCP2 |
| |
Viscount Taafe signs an agreement with the Duke of Lorraine for his intervention in the war against England, but Taafe grants greater concessions to the Duke than either King Charles or the Marquis of Clanricarde would consider acceptable. CIR |
| 23 |
Cromwell summons Major-General Harrison to a conference at Linlithgow. Harrison ordered to call up reinforcements from Nottingham to watch the borders. HCP2 |
| 24 |
Lieutenant-General Monck captures Inchgarvie in Fife. HCP2, ODNB |
| 25 |
Prince Rupert's fleet at a new base in the Azores. MPRC |
| 26 |
Cromwell reinforces his bridgehead in Fife. ATKA |
| 29 |
Monck captures Burntisland, securing Cromwell's base of operations in Fife. HCP2, ODNB |
| |
Vice-Admiral William Penn at Malta. ODNB |
| 31 |
Charles II and the Scottish army marches from Stirling towards the English border. The Marquis of Argyll and the Earl of Loudoun refuse to support the invasion and withdraw. RCRS, HCP2 |
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August
| 1 |
Cromwell advances on Perth, deliberately leaving the road to England open. HCP2 |
| 2 |
Perth surrenders to Cromwell's summons. TCW |
| 4 |
Cromwell returns across the Forth to Leith. Lieutenant-General George Monck ordered to reduce remaining Scottish strongholds. HCP2 |
| 5 |
Cromwell sends Major-General John Lambert with an advance guard of 3,000 horse to pursue the Royalist army. CG |
| |
Major-General Thomas Harrison musters his forces at Newcastle. HCP2 |
| |
General-at-Sea George Ayscue sets sail for Barbados. ODNB |
| |
The Council of State proposes the Navigation Act against Dutch trade competition. HCP2 |
| 6 |
Charles II leads the Scots-Royalist army across the border near Carlisle. Charles proclaimed sovereign of England, offering free pardon to all those who would now join him. ATKA, CII |
| |
Monck arrives at Stirling. The town surrenders but the castle continues to resist. HCP2 |
| 7 |
Cromwell sets off in pursuit of Charles with his main force. HCP2 |
| 11 |
Bombardment of Stirling Castle begins. CW |
| 12 |
Parliament passes an Act directing the trial by court martial of anyone in correspondence with Charles Stuart or anyone aiding his cause. AOI |
| 13 |
Harrison joins forces with Lambert at Preston. HCP2 |
| 14 |
Stirling Castle surrenders to Monck after a mutiny against the governor Colonel Cunningham. Monck marches for Dundee. CW |
| 16 |
Skirmish at Warrington Bridge. The combined force of Lambert and Harrison withdraws before the Royalist advance. HCP2 |
| 17 |
The Earl of Derby joins Charles and the Scots. HCP2 |
| 18 |
The Earl of Derby and Edward Massey at Warrington in an unsuccessful attempt to persuade the Lancashire Presbyterians to support Charles. HCP2 |
| 20 |
The Committee of Estates at Dundee calls upon all loyal Scots to rise up against the English invaders. RCRS |
| 22 |
Charles and the Scots-Royalist army occupies Worcester. HCP2 |
| |
Execution on Tower Hill of the Presbyterian conspirator Christopher Love. HCP2 |
| 23 |
Charles issues an order to all Englishmen to attend him at Worcester for the defence of the throne and the liberties of the country. HCP2 |
| 24 |
Cromwell, Lambert and Harrison join forces at Warwick. CG, HCP2 |
| |
The Committee of Estates flees from Dundee to Kirriemuir in Angus. RCRS |
| 25 |
The Earl of Derby and the Lancashire Royalists routed at Wigan by a regiment of horse under Colonel Robert Lilburne. ATKA |
| 26 |
Monck summons Dundee, but Sir Robert Lumsden is defiant. ODNB |
| 27 |
Cromwell at Evesham, fifteen miles from Charles' army at Worcester. HCP2 |
| 28 |
Lambert captures Upton Bridge on the outskirts of Worcester, allowing Cromwell's army to operate on both banks of the River Severn. ATKA |
| |
Monck sends Colonel Alured to raid Alyth near Dundee where he arrests most of the remaining members of the Committee of Estates. HCP2 |
| 30 |
Bombardment of Dundee begins. CW |
| |
Surrender of St Andrews to English troops. TCW |
| 31 |
The Earl of Balcarres meets Royalist members of the Committee of Estates at Aberdeen where they attempt to consolidate Scottish resistance to the invaders. RCRS |
| |
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September
| 1 |
Monck storms Dundee; his troops massacre up to 800 soldiers of the garrison and plunder the town. Source: HCP2 |
| 3 |
Battle of Worcester: Cromwell defeats Charles II and the Scots. Last major battle of the civil wars. HCP2 |
| 4 |
Charles escapes to White Ladies Priory near Boscobel in Staffordshire. ECSW |
| 5 |
Lieutenant-General Monck falls seriously ill. ODNB |
| |
The Earl of Loudoun, Lord Chancellor of Scotland, summons all remaining members of the Committee of Estates to meet at Killin in Perthshire. Lord Balcarres refuses to attend, suggesting that Loudoun should join him in the north-east instead. RCRS |
| 6 |
Unable to escape into Wales, Charles returns to Boscobel House where he hides from Roundhead soldiers in an oak tree. ECSW |
| 7 |
Aberdeen occupied by English troops. TCW |
| 8 |
Charles joins Lord Wilmot at Moseley Hall. ECSW |
| 9 |
Leslie, Middleton and other Scottish officers captured by Colonel Birch at Blackstone Edge in Yorkshire. ODNB |
| |
Vice-Admiral Penn's squadron at Gibraltar expecting to intercept Prince Rupert's return to the Mediterranean. ODNB |
| 10 |
Parliament offers £1,000 reward for the capture of Charles Stuart. HCJ |
| |
Charles travels towards Bristol disguised as the servant of Jane Lane. ECSW |
| |
In response to Loudoun's summons, a skeleton Committee of Estates meets at Killin, comprising seven nobles (including Argyll), three lairds and three burgesses. RCRS |
| 11 |
Parliament selects for trial nine of Charles' leading supporters. HCP2 |
| 12-15 |
Charles and his companions at Abbotsleigh near Bristol where unsuccessful attempts are made to secure a ship from Bristol to the Continent. ECSW |
| 16 |
Oliver Cromwell receives the formal thanks of Parliament for his victories over the Scots and Royalists. HCP2 |
| 17 |
Charles arrives at Colonel Wyndham's house at Trent near Sherborne in Dorset. ECSW |
| 20 |
General-at-Sea Robert Blake ordered to assist Colonel Heane in the reduction of Jersey. DNB |
| 22 |
Charles and Wilmot fail in an attempt to escape by sea from Charmouth in Dorset. ECSW |
| 24 |
Charles returns to Trent House while his friends try to find him a safe passage to France. ECSW |
| 25 |
The Committee of Estates meets at Dumbarton but adjourns itself at the approach of English forces. RCRS |
| 30 |
Prince Rupert's flagship the Constant Reformation wrecked in a storm off the Azores; Rupert narrowly escapes with his life. MPRC |
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October
| 1 |
Court martial of the Earl of Derby and two of his officers at Chester on charges of aiding Charles Stuart's invasion. Source: HCP2 |
| 6 |
Charles leaves Trent House for Mrs Hyde's house at Heale between Salisbury and Amesbury. ECSW |
| 7 |
The Duke of Lorraine offers to intervene on behalf of the Irish Catholics if he is granted the title of Royal Protector of Ireland. HCP2 |
| 9 |
Parliament passes the first Navigation Act, introducing measures aimed at hampering Dutch trade. AOI |
| 11 |
The Earl of Derby appeals against his death sentence. His petition is supported by Cromwell but rejected by Parliament. HCP2 |
| 12 |
Charles and Wilmot at Thomas Symonds' house at Hambledon in Hampshire. ECSW |
| 13 |
The Council of State issues provisional proposals for the incorporation of Scotland with England. CW |
| 14 |
Charles at Brighthelmstone (Brighton) in Sussex. ECSW |
| 15 |
Charles sails for France from Shoreham near Brighton in Captain Tattershall's coal boat the Surprise. ECSW |
| |
The Earl of Derby executed at Bolton. HCP2 |
| |
A Fifth Monarchist manifesto: A Model of a New Representative recommends the calling of a new Parliament elected by godly congregations. HCP2 |
| |
General-at-Sea Ayscue arrives at Barbados in the West Indies. HCP2 |
| |
A greatly reduced Committee of Estates meets at Rothesay on the isle of Bute. The Committee summons a parliament to meet at Finlarig near Killan in Perthshire then dissolves itself. RCRS |
| 16 |
Charles and Lord Wilmot land in France. ECSW |
| 19 |
Charles joins Henrietta Maria and James, Duke of York, in exile in Paris. HCP2 |
| 20 |
General-at-Sea Robert Blake arrives off St Ouen on Jersey. ODNB |
| |
The Marquis of Clanricarde rejects the Duke of Lorraine's offer to intervene against the English in Ireland because the Irish delegates had exceeded their mandate. HCP2, CIR |
| 22 |
Jersey Royalists routed by the Commonwealth invasion force. Sir George Carteret besieged in Elizabeth Castle. ODNB |
| 23 |
Parliament appoints eight commissioners to supervise the settlement of Scotland: Oliver St. John, Sir Henry Vane, John Lambert, Richard Deane, Robert Tichborne, George Monck, Richard Salwey and George Fenwick. HCJ |
| |
At Limerick, Colonel Fennell leads a mutiny against Hugh Dubh O'Neill and demands that he negotiate terms with Ireton. CIR |
| 27 |
Surrender of Limerick to General Ireton. HCP2 |
| 28 |
Parliament issues a declaration for the incorporation of Scotland into a single Commonwealth with England. HCJ |
| 30 |
Execution of leaders of the defenders of Limerick. HCP2 |
| 31 |
Royalist garrison on the Isle of Man surrenders to a Commonwealth expedition led by Colonel Duckenfield. HCP2 |
| |
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November
| |
(Early November) The Marqus of Clanricarde calls a meeting of the Confederate Assembly at Jamestown in County Leitrim. Source: CIR |
| 1 |
Hugh Dubh O'Neill pardoned for his part in the resistance at Limerick. HCP2 |
| 9 |
A direct hit by a mortar shell blows up the powder magazine and a large quantity of stores at the siege of Elizabeth Castle on Jersey. TCG |
| 11 |
Clanricarde dismisses the few delegates who attended the Confederate Assembly. CIR |
| 12 |
Only four Scottish nobles arrive at Finlarig for the meeting of the proposed Scottish Parliament (Lords Loudoun, Callander, Home and Cardros). RCRS |
| 18 |
The Purged Parliament sets the date for its dissolution as 3 November 1654. HCP2 |
| 21 |
The Earl of Huntly surrenders to English forces at Aberdeen. RCRS |
| 26 |
Death of Henry Ireton at Limerick. ODNB |
| |
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December
| |
(December) Radical preachers John Simpson and Christopher Feake hold a meeting at the Church of All Hallows-the-Great in London to rally support for the millenarian cause. The beginning of the Fifth Monarchist movement. ODNB |
| 2 |
Edmund Ludlow appointed provisional commander in Ireland in Ireton's place. HCP2 |
| 3 |
Lord Balcarres surrenders to English forces at Elgin. RCRS |
| 10 |
Cromwell summons a conference of army officers and lawyer MPs to discuss the settlement of the nation. HCP2 |
| 12 |
Surrender of Elizabeth Castle on Jersey to Blake and Colonel Heane. HCP2 |
| 15 |
Dutch ambassadors arrive in England hoping to negotiate a repeal of the Navigation Act. HCP2 |
| 17 |
The surrender of Castle Cornet on Guernsey completes Blake and Heane's conquest of the Channel Isles. HCP2 |
| 29 |
Surrender of Dumbarton Castle. TCW |
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| |
|
Sources:
AOI: Acts and Ordinances of the Interregnum, C.H. Firth and R.S. Raitt (eds), 1911
ATKA: All the King's Armies, Stuart Reid (Staplehurst 1998)
CG: Cromwell's Generals, Maurice Ashley (Oxford 1954)
CII: Charles II, King of England, Scotland and Ireland, Ronald Hutton (Oxford 1989)
CIR: Cromwell in Ireland, James Scott Wheeler (New York 1999)
CW: Civil War, Wars of the Three Kingdoms 1638-60, Trevor Royle (London 2004)
DNB: Dictionary of National Biography
ECSW: The Escape of Charles Stuart after Worcester, Chris Modd, Sealed Knot Knowledge Base
HACD: History and Antiquities of the City of Dublin,
Walter Harris (Dublin 1766) www.chaptersofdublin.com
HCJ: House of Commons Journal www.british-history.ac.uk
HCP1: History of the Commonwealth and Protectorate vol. i, S.R. Gardiner (London 1903)
HCP2: History of the Commonwealth and Protectorate vol. ii, S.R. Gardiner (London 1903)
MPRC: Memoirs of Prince Rupert and the Cavaliers vol iii, Eliot Warburton (London 1849)
ODNB: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
RCRS: Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Scotland 1644-1651, David Stevenson (Newton Abbott 1977)
TCG: The Cromwellian Gazetteer, Peter Gaunt (Stroud 1987)
TCW: The Civil Wars, a military history of England, Scotland & Ireland 1638-60, Kenyon and Ohlmeyer (eds) (Oxford 1998)
