Charles II and the Scots invade England — the battle of Worcester — Charles escapes to France — the Navigation Act — death of Ireton
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 | |
| (January) At Toulon, Prince Rupert conducts an enquiry into the loss of his ships at Cartagena. Captain Burley dismissed from the Royalist fleet over the loss of the Henry; Captain Allin condemned for cowardice, but escapes to Jersey. PRA | |
| 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 |
| 17 | The Marquis of Argyll leaves King Charles' court and withdraws to the Highlands. HCP1 |
| 21 | Captain John Lawson joins Vice-Admiral William Penn's squadron in the Azores. ODNB |
February
| (Early February) English forces advance towards Stirling but are driven back by bad weather conditions. Source: ATKA | |
| (February) Oliver Cromwell falls ill and suffers bouts of sickness through to July. DNB | |
| 11 | Major-General George Monck besieges Tantallon Castle. TCG |
| 13 | General-at-Sea Robert Blake awarded £1,000 and 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 |
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 |
| 26 | The Council of State orders Major-General Disbrowe to hold hostage some of Sir John Grenville's relations in Cornwall until Grenville had released merchants taken prisoner by his privateers on the the Scilly Isles. DNB |
| 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 William Penn's squadron leaves Cadiz and sails into the Mediterranean in pursuit of Prince Rupert and in search of prizes. ODNB, CWS | |
| 30 | The Dutch admiral Maarten Tromp arrives off the Scilly Isles with a squadron of thirteen ships to secure the release of Dutch ships, crews and cargoes taken by Royalist privateers. CWS |
| (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 | |
April
| 1 | General-at-Sea Robert Blake ordered to prepare for an attack on the Scilly Isles. Sir George Ayscue's squadron diverted from the expedition to Barbados to assist. Source: HCP1 |
| Sir John Grenville releases twelve Dutch prisoners held on the Scillies to Lieutenant-Admiral Tromp. CWS | |
| 2 | Grenville releases a further twenty-two Dutch prisoners but is unable to comply with Tromp's demand for the return of captured ships because they have already been sold. Grenville's hostile attitude antagonizes Tromp who offers to co-operate with Blake in the reduction of the Scillies. CWS |
| 12 | Blake's squadron sails from Plymouth for the Isles of Scilly. CWS |
| 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 |
| The squadrons of Blake and Tromp make a combined show of strength off Hugh Town on St Mary's in an attempt to intimidate Sir John Grenville. CWS | |
| 17 | The Committee of Estates prorogues the meeting of the Scottish Parliament over fears that it would repeal the Act of Classes. RCRS |
| Parties of soldiers from Blake's squadron land with difficulty on small islands off Tresco. CWS | |
| 18 | Parliament passes an Act allowing the impressment of up to 10,000 men for service in Ireland. AOI |
| Blake's troops capture the islands of Tresco and Bryher; Sir John Grenville withdraws to St Mary's. CWS | |
| 23 | Irish agents Sir Nicholas Plunkett and Geoffrey Browne commissioned to negotiate for aid from the Duke of Lorraine. HCP2 |
| 25 | Blake summons Sir John Grenville to surrender. CWS |
| 27 | Grenville sends an envoy to negotiate terms with Blake. CWS |
| 30 | Prince Rupert completes the refitting of his ships at Toulon. MPRC |
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 |
| Commonwealth and Royalist commissioners meet on the island of Samson to negotiate a treaty for the surrender of the Scilly Isles but are unable to reach an agreement. Blake orders the bombardment of Royalist positions on St Mary's. CWS | |
| 5 | After hearing false rumours spread by Prince Rupert that he intends to sail for the eastern Meditterranean, Vice-Admiral Penn sails from Majorca to Sardinia. PRA |
| 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 squadron of five ships sails from Toulon for the Atlantic. 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 agrees to surrender the Scilly Isles after General-at-Sea Robert Blake offers generous term. HCP1 |
| The Scottish Parliament meets at Perth. TCW | |
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 |
| 3 | Commonwealth forces occupy the Scilly Isles. CWS |
| 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 |
| 8 | Prince Rupert's squadron sails for Madeira with two prizes taken in the Atlantic. PRA |
| 9 | George Fisher, Commonwealth envoy in Madrid, recalled in protest at Spain's reluctance to prosecute the murderers of Anthony Ascham. HCP1 |
| 13 | Colonel Edward Sexby court-martialled and cashiered at Edinburgh for a number of irregularities, including the execution of a soldier contrary to justice and the withholding of pay from troops under his command. RHCA2 |
| 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 |
| At the instigation of Thomas Harrison, Lord Howard of Escrick is 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 | |
| (Late June) The Ranter Abiezer Coppe released from Newgate gaol, having written a recantation of his blasphemous opinions. ODNB | |
July
| (Early July) Scottish outposts at Falkirk withdraw as the Commonwealth army advances. Source: HCP2 | |
| 1 | Prince Rupert's squadron sails from Madeira. PRA |
| 5 | Presbyterian conspirator Christopher Love sentenced to death. HCP2 |
| 7 | In consultation with his captains, Prince Rupert decides to station his squadron in the Azores. PRA |
| 12 | The battle of Knocknaclashy: Lord Broghill routs Viscount Muskerry's Irish relief force marching for Limerick. CIR, HACD |
| Confederate agents Plunkett and Browne sign a treaty with the Duke of Lorraine for his intervention in the war against England, but grant greater concessions to the Duke than either King Charles or the Marquis of Clanricarde would consider acceptable. CIR, ODNB | |
| 16 | Parliament passes the Confiscation Act: the estates of seventy 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 Major-General Holbourne and 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 |
| 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 squadron arrives at the island of St Michael in the Azores. MPRC, PRA |
| Vice-Admiral William Penn arrives at Malta where he learns that Rupert has tricked him and left the Mediterranean. RN2 | |
| 26 | Cromwell reinforces his bridgehead in Fife. ATKA |
| 29 | Monck captures Burntisland, securing Cromwell's base of operations in Fife. HCP2, 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 |
August
| 1 | Oliver 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 Sir 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 |
| 15 | The Earl of Derby lands in Lancashire from the Isle of Man with a force of 250 foot and 50 horse. LCW |
| 16 | Skirmish at Warrington Bridge. The combined force of Lambert and Harrison withdraws before the Royalist advance. HCP2 |
| Parliament finally rejects appeals for a reprieve for Christopher Love. TRP | |
| 17 | The Earl of Derby joins Charles and the Scots. HCP2 |
| 18 | The Earl of Derby and Edward Massie 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. Sir Thomas Tyldesley killed in the action. 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 |
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. The 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 | |
| Parliament resolves to reduce the size of the army, and hence the burden of taxation, by disbanding 4,000 horse and dragoons. TRP | |
| 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 |
| Parliament resumes discussion of parliamentary elections and the proposed act of oblivion. TRP | |
| 17 | Charles arrives at Colonel Wyndham's house at Trent near Sherborne in Dorset. ECSW |
| 20 | The Council of State commissions an expedition against Jersey, with Colonel James Heane commanding the land forces and General-at-Sea Robert Blake commanding the fleet. DNB, RHCA2 |
| 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 |
| Parliament appoints a committee to draft a bill for the calling of a new representative. TRP | |
| 30 | Prince Rupert's flagship the Constant Reformation wrecked in a storm off the Azores; Rupert narrowly escapes with his life. MPRC |
October
| (Early October) Parliament resolves to disband five regiments and thirty individual companies of foot. Source: TRP | |
| 1 | Court martial of the Earl of Derby and two of his officers at Chester on charges of aiding Charles Stuart's invasion. 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 |
| 8 | First reading in Parliament of the bill to elect a new representative. TRP |
| 9 | Parliament passes the first Navigation Act, introducing measures aimed at hampering Dutch trade. AOI |
| 10 | Second reading of the bill for a new representative. Parliament resolves to debate the bill in grand committee for two weeks but the debate continues into November owing to the reluctance of MPs to set a deadline for the dissolution of the present Parliament. TRP |
| 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 Sir George 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 II and Lord Wilmot land in France. ECSW |
| Cromwell secures the reprieve of the accomplices of the Presbyterian conspirator Christopher Love. TRP | |
| Captain Park seizes fourteen Dutch merchant ships at Carhele Bay in Barbados. CWS | |
| 17 | Sir George Ayscue summons Lord Willoughby of Parham to surrender Barbados to the Commonwealth. CWS |
| Blake and Heane's expedition sails from Weymouth for Jersey. CWS | |
| 19 | Charles II joins Henrietta Maria and James, Duke of York, in exile in Paris. HCP2 |
| 20 | Delayed by storms, the Commonwealth expedition arrives off St Ouen on Jersey. CWS |
| 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 | |
| 21 | Sir George Carteret refuses Blake's summons to surrender Jersey. CWS |
| 22 | Jersey Royalists routed by the Commonwealth invasion force under Colonel Heane. Sir George Carteret besieged in Elizabeth Castle. CWS |
| 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 | |
| 25 | Surrender of the Royalist garrison at Mount Orgueil on Jersey to Colonel Heane. CWS |
| 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 |
| 29 | Bombardment of Elizabeth Castle on Jersey begins. CWS |
| 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 |
November
| (Early November) The Marquis 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 |
| 2 | Six more guns and three mortars added to the Commonwealth battery bombarding Elizabeth Castle on Jersey. CWS |
| 7 | Royalists on Barbados hold a day of thanksgiving after receiving false reports that Charles II had won the battle of Worcester. CWS |
| 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. TCG |
| Sir George Ayscue sends a printed report of Cromwell's victory at Worcester to Lord Willoughby, but the Royalists still refuse to surrender Barbados. CWS | |
| 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 |
| 14 | Cromwell makes a long speech urging Parliament to set a date for its dissolution and to call an election. TRP |
| 18 | The Rump Parliament resolves not to sit beyond 3 November 1654, which would be the fourteenth anniversary of the calling of the Long Parliament. TRP |
| 21 | The Earl of Huntly surrenders to Commonwealth forces at Aberdeen. RCRS |
| At St Michael in the Azores, Prince Rupert consults his captains regarding the future employment of the Royalist squadron. All agree to sail to the West Indies except Captain Chester of the Swallow, who asks to leave the squadron. PRA | |
| 22 | Captain Morris leads an attack on a Royalist fort at The Hole (Jamestown) on Barbados and succeeds in spiking the guns and taking thirty prisoners. CWS |
| 26 | Death of Henry Ireton at Limerick. ODNB |
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. Source: ODNB | |
| 1 | Sir George Ayscue temporarily reinforced by the arrival at Barbados of the annual Virginia fleet from England. CWS |
| 2 | Edmund Ludlow appointed provisional commander in Ireland in Ireton's place. HCP2 |
| 3 | Lord Balcarres surrenders to Commonwealth forces at Elgin. RCRS |
| 7 | Captain Morris captures a Royalist fort at Speight's Bay on Barbados. CWS |
| Prince Rupert sails from the Azores with his three remaining ships. PRA | |
| 8 | Sir George Carteret agrees to open negotiations for the surrender of Jersey. CWS |
| 10 | Oliver Cromwell summons a conference of army officers and lawyer MPs to discuss the settlement of the nation. The lawyers, headed by Oliver St John, favour a limited monarchy and propose that the young Henry, Duke of Gloucester, should be made king rather than his elder brothers Charles or James. HCP2, TRP |
| 12 | Surrender of Elizabeth Castle on Jersey to General-at-Sea Robert Blake and Colonel James 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 Islands. HCP2 |
| 26 | Parliament appoints a committee to prepare an investigation into reform of the law. PP, HCJ |
| 29 | Surrender of Dumbarton Castle. TCW |
| 30 | Prince Rupert's squadron arrives at Cape Blanco on the coast of west Africa to make repairs before setting sail for the West Indies. PRA |
| 31 | Stand-off on Barbados between Lord Willoughby's Royalist forces and the militia commanded by Colonel Thomas Modyford, who has been in secret negotiations with Sir George Ayscue. CWS |
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)
CWS: Cromwell's Wars at Sea, John Barratt (Barnsley 2006)
DNB: Dictionary of National Biography
ECSW: The Escape of Charles Stuart after Worcester, Chris Modd (Orders of the day, Volume 33, Issue 4, 2001)
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)
LCW: Leaders of the Civil Wars, 1642-48, Geoffrey Ridsdill Smith & Margaret Toynbee (Kineton 1977)
MPRC: Memoirs of Prince Rupert and the Cavaliers vol iii Eliot Warburton (London 1849)
ODNB: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
PP: Pride's Purge, David Underdown (Oxford 1971)
PRA: Prince Rupert, admiral and general-at-sea, Frank Kitson (London 1998)
RCRS: Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Scotland 1644-1651, David Stevenson (Newton Abbott 1977)
RHCA2: The Regimental History of Cromwell's Army vol.ii, C.H. Firth & G. Davies (Oxford 1940)
RN2: The Royal Navy: a history from the earliest times to the present, vol.ii Sir William Laird Clowes (London 1898)
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)
TRP: The Rump Parliament, Blair Worden (Cambridge 1974)
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