DISSOLUTION OF THE RUMP 1653
The Rump was never supposed to be a permanent body. In September 1651, they voted to disband
themselves by the end of 1654. Plans for a ‘new representative’ P had been produced. BUT the army council
thought that the Rump was manoeuvring to prevent a genuinely new P from being elected.
Rump offended 2 main groups:
1. Republicans – main spokesman was Colonel John Lambert
2. Fifth Monarchists – led by Colonel Thomas Harrison
April 1653, the Rump actually started to consider passing a bill that would have brought forward its
dissolution by over a year. BUT army feared that Rump was using this to hide the fact that the qualifications
being written into the bill would result in the new P being composed of the same members. However, the
only copy of the bill had been torn up by Cromwell when he dissolved P. He wasn’t angry because of the bill
itself but by the Rump’s members going back on a promise they’d previously given him that they’d suspend
their consideration of it.
20th April, Cromwell and his troops marched to Westminster, entered the Commons and threw out the MP’s.
A few MP’s protested but all did as they were told.
The end of the Rump was also accompanied by a forced dissolution of the Council of State. REMEMBER: from
the period of 1649-53, Cromwell had been loyal to P (as shown by letters/reports that he regularly sent during
the Irish and Scottish campaigns). He’d agonised over the decision to dissolve P and had to end up using force.
It’s true that after Pride’s Purge 1648, Rump had depended on the goodwill of the army BUT the military were
never a constant threat to P. The army rarely tried to impose its will directly onto the Commons.
One reason why the army acted w restraint was because of its preoccupation between 1649-52 w the
Scottish/Irish wars. Secondly, right up until he dissolved the Rump, Cromwell appeared to have wanted the
Rump to succeed. Despite being a religious radical, his social/political views were conservative. He dissolved
it because the Rump failed to live up to his expectations.
Cromwell accused the Rump of being more concerned by their own wealth and benefits rather than religion
and morality. The Rump’s productiveness had also decreased over the years.
The Rump was never supposed to be a permanent body. In September 1651, they voted to disband
themselves by the end of 1654. Plans for a ‘new representative’ P had been produced. BUT the army council
thought that the Rump was manoeuvring to prevent a genuinely new P from being elected.
Rump offended 2 main groups:
1. Republicans – main spokesman was Colonel John Lambert
2. Fifth Monarchists – led by Colonel Thomas Harrison
April 1653, the Rump actually started to consider passing a bill that would have brought forward its
dissolution by over a year. BUT army feared that Rump was using this to hide the fact that the qualifications
being written into the bill would result in the new P being composed of the same members. However, the
only copy of the bill had been torn up by Cromwell when he dissolved P. He wasn’t angry because of the bill
itself but by the Rump’s members going back on a promise they’d previously given him that they’d suspend
their consideration of it.
20th April, Cromwell and his troops marched to Westminster, entered the Commons and threw out the MP’s.
A few MP’s protested but all did as they were told.
The end of the Rump was also accompanied by a forced dissolution of the Council of State. REMEMBER: from
the period of 1649-53, Cromwell had been loyal to P (as shown by letters/reports that he regularly sent during
the Irish and Scottish campaigns). He’d agonised over the decision to dissolve P and had to end up using force.
It’s true that after Pride’s Purge 1648, Rump had depended on the goodwill of the army BUT the military were
never a constant threat to P. The army rarely tried to impose its will directly onto the Commons.
One reason why the army acted w restraint was because of its preoccupation between 1649-52 w the
Scottish/Irish wars. Secondly, right up until he dissolved the Rump, Cromwell appeared to have wanted the
Rump to succeed. Despite being a religious radical, his social/political views were conservative. He dissolved
it because the Rump failed to live up to his expectations.
Cromwell accused the Rump of being more concerned by their own wealth and benefits rather than religion
and morality. The Rump’s productiveness had also decreased over the years.
