Book Chapter

The Political Wars, 1646–48 Part I: From the King’s Surrender to the Assault on Parliament

Gentles, Ian

2022

Overview

This chapter illustrates the New Model Army's religious and political character. It looks at the strife surrounding its creation and its early reputation for religious radicalism. Right from the start, the New Model had been called ‘the Independent Army’. The chapter also examines Colonel Edward Massie's Western Brigade, noting that there had long been friction between the brigade and the New Model. The superior discipline of the New Model proved to be a telling factor in the Commons' decision to preserve it at the expense of Massie's brigade. It then emphasizes that the survival of the New Model was due to the superior strength of the parliamentary Independents, against the Presbyterians led by Essex and Holles. As with most political victories, the triumph of the Independents over the party of Essex and Holles was not a clean one. The chapter discusses the imminent departure of the Scots, and the Presbyterian triumph in London. It also considers the imminent extinction of the New Model, and analyses the arguments over whether or when to invade London, how to treat with the king, and whether to impose a constitutional settlement on England.

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Subject: Essex / Holles / Independent Army / London / Military History / New Model Army / Presbyterian / religious radicalism / Scots / Western Brigade
• ISBN: 9780300226836, 0300226837