The Political Career of Oliver St. John, 1637-1649

William Palmer

Jan 1993 · University of Delaware Press

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"The present study describes the political career of Oliver St. John (1598-1673), a pivotal figure in the English Revolution of 1640 to 1660. First as a member of Parliament, and then as its leader, St. John used his leadership abilities and political know-how to direct a parliamentary victory in the war." "The English Revolution was precipitated largely by a clash between King Charles I (1625-49) of England and a parliament that reacted violently against a number of Charles's fiscal and religious policies, and eventually stripped the monarchy of several of its principal powers. It was the first great clash between those defending the rights of representative assemblies and those defending the prerogatives of kings." "As a member of Parliament, Oliver St. John played a key role in the revolutionary events of the 1640s. His opposition to monarchical policies culminated in his speech supporting the execution of the King's most trusted servant, the earl of Strafford, when St. John described Strafford as "vermin" and claimed for Parliament the right to remove corrupting influences on the Crown two years before the first treatise on parliamentary sovereignty - Philip Hunton's Treatise on Monarchy - appeared." "Until 1643 Parliament's main leader was John Pym. Pym, however, died in 1643, and St. John advanced from being a stalwart defender of the constitution to a practical man of politics as he moved in the next two years into the power vacuum left by Pym. In 1642 civil war had broken out between King and Parliament, and by 1643 the war was going very badly for Parliament. St. John performed a vital service by luring the Scots into the war on Parliament's side without committing Parliament to the Presbyterian church structure favored by the Scots, but opposed by a majority in Parliament. St. John also succeeded in removing the stodgy earl of Essex as commander of the parliamentary army and replacing him with the more aggressive and resourceful Oliver Cromwell. With the appointment of Cromwell, St. John laid the groundwork for the formation of a new, better-funded fighting force, the New Model Army." "In the end the political skill of St. John would be overshadowed by the military genius of Cromwell - a genius well-suited to controlling the various agendas of postwar radical groups. Nevertheless, from 1643 to 1645, it was St. John's leadership and political abilities that delivered the military force responsible for winning the war for Parliament. Though he lost control of the revolution, then, St. John's revolutionary contributions demand recognition. William Palmer - in the first ever book-length study of the man's career - seeks to meet that demand."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved