The New Model Army secures King Charles and occupies London — the Eleven Members forced to flee from Parliament — the Putney Debates — King Charles signs the Engagement with the Scots
January
| 7 | The Westminster Assembly begins debating the biblical proof texts to support the new Confession of Faith. Source: WWA |
| 10 | The seventh Confederate General Assembly meets at Kilkenny (until 4 April). Archbishop Rinuccini consents to the release of members who had supported Ormond. TCW, HGCW4 |
| 14 | The Westminster Assembly begins preparing drafts for the Shorter and Larger Catechisms. CWA |
| 16 | The citizens of Dublin declare support for Rinuccini and refuse to support the army of the Marquis of Ormond. HGCW3 |
| The Scottish Parliament votes that the King should be transferred into the custody of the Westminster Parliament. RCRS | |
| 19 | Surrender of Holt Castle to Parliamentarian forces. HGCW3 |
| 26 | Parliamentary commissioners arrive in Newcastle to take charge of the King. HGCW3 |
| 30 | Parliament pays the first instalment of £100,000 to the Scots; the Scottish army marches out of Newcastle. HGCW3 |
February
| (February) The Scottish armies re-organised into a single force of five regular and two Highland regiments of infantry and a number of independent troops of horse. Source: SA | |
| 1 | Viscount Lisle finally sets out for Ireland to take up his appointment as Parliament's lord lieutenant with a force of 120 horse and 5,000 foot. ODNB |
| 2 | The Confederate General Assembly condemns the peace with Ormond. TCW |
| 3 | Second £100,000 instalment paid to the Scots. RCRS |
| King Charles sets out from Newcastle for Holmby House, under the guardianship of Parliamentary commissioners. HGCW3 | |
| A parliamentary committee appointed to supervise suppression of scandalous pamphlets and ballads. ION | |
| 6 | The Marquis of Ormond offers to surrender his office as lord lieutenant of Ireland to the English Parliament. HGCW3 |
| Parliament orders the demolition of selected fortifications throughout England. HGCW3 | |
| 12 | The last Scottish regiments leave England. TCW |
| 13 | General Fairfax meets King Charles at Nottingham. HGCW3 |
| 16 | King Charles arrives at Holmby (Holdenby) House, Northamptonshire, where he is held in semi-captivity. HGCW3 |
| 18 | Presbyterian MPs propose a scheme for the disbandment of the Army. HGCW3 |
| 28 | Surrender of Chirk Castle in Wales. HGCW3 |
March
| (March) Henrietta Maria's envoy Father George Leyburn begins his mission in Ireland. He attempts to negotiate a league between Ormond and Rinuccini in the interest of the Crown. Source: HGCW4, TCK | |
| (Early March) Viscount Lisle, Parliament's lord-lieutenant of Ireland, quarrels with Lord Inchiquin, lord-president of Munster, over command of troops in Munster. HGCW3 | |
| 4 | The House of Lords votes against continuing to raise taxes to pay the Army. HGCW3 |
| 6 | The House of Lords forbids Fairfax from quartering any troops in Eastern Association territory. HGCW3 |
| Fairfax writes to Parliament expressing his willingness to co-operate with Parliament's plans to form a new army to go to Ireland. HGCW3 | |
| 8 | The Confederate General Assembly at Kilkenny proclaims a second Oath of Association asserting full freedom of religion for Irish Catholics. TCK |
| 10 | Lieutenant-General David Leslie marches north against Royalists still in arms in Scotland. RCRS |
| 11 | Petitioners from Essex call for the disbandment of the Army. HGCW3 |
| 13 | Surrender of Harlech Castle in Wales — the last fortress still holding out for the King. HGCW3 |
| 15 | William Walwyn submits the "Large Petition" to Parliament, calling for the enactment of Leveller-inspired reforms and the release of John Lilburne from prison. HGCW3, ODNB |
| 17 | Fairfax orders the New Model Army to stay at least 25 miles outside London. HGCW3 |
| Presbyterian petitioners in the City of London call for the disbandment of the Army and for the King to take the Covenant. HGCW3 | |
| 19 | Supporters of the Large Petition Nicholas Tew and Major Tulidah arrested and imprisoned by order of the committee to which the petition had been referred. HGCW3 |
| 20 | Walwyn presents a second petition calling for the release of Tew and Tulidah and asking that the right to petition Parliament be recognised as essential to freedom. HGCW3, ODNB |
| 21 | A deputation of Parliamentary commissioners meets Fairfax and senior officers at Saffron Walden in Essex to discuss plans for disbandment and the formation of a new army to go to Ireland. HGCW3 |
| 22 | Army officers refuse to volunteer for service in Ireland without assurances from Parliament regarding: settlement of arrears; indemnity from prosecution for past service; details of which regiments were to remain in England; who was to command in Ireland. HGCW3 |
| 26 | Major Tulidah released on bail but Nicholas Tew remains in prison. HGCW3 |
| 27 | Parliament demands the suppression of a petition circulating amongst the soldiers setting out their grievances. HGCW3 |
| 29 | Parliament summons Commissary-General Ireton, Colonels Lilburne and Hammond, and Lieutenant-Colonel Pride to answer accusations of forcibly obtaining signatures for the Army petition. HGCW3 |
| 30 | The two Houses of Parliament issue a Declaration in which supporters of the Army petition are condemned as "enemies of the state". HGCW3 |
April
| 1 | Lieutenant-Colonel Pride appears at the bar of the House of Commons and denies charges of obtaining signatures by threats; Pride and the incriminated officers are ordered back to their posts but tempers are running so high that Denzil Holles MP and Commissary-General Ireton must be ordered to refrain from fighting a duel. Source: HGCW3 |
| 9 | Colonel Michael Jones appointed governor of Dublin and commander of the Parliament's forces in Leinster. ODNB |
| 10 | The Confederate Leinster army marches into County Carlow: General Preston storms and captures Carlow Castle. TCK |
| 15 | The Earl of Warwick, Sir William Waller and Edward Massie head a Parliamentary deputation to Army headquarters at Saffron Walden to persuade soldiers to volunteer for service in Ireland. HGCW3 |
| The Westminster Assembly begins debating the drafts of the Catechisms. WWA | |
| Expiration of Viscount Lisle's commission as lord-lieutenant of Ireland. Having quarrelled with Lord Inchiquin, he returns immediately to England. His commission is not renewed. ODNB | |
| 16 | Parliament passes an ordinance granting the City of London powers to appoint a new Militia Committee to supervise the London Trained Bands; the Common Council nominates Presbyterians only to the committee. HGCW3 |
| 25 | Most of the soldiers who initially volunteered for Ireland return to their regiments. HGCW3 |
| 27 | Parliamentary commissioners report to the House of Commons on their failure to recruit more than a handful of soldiers for Ireland. HGCW3 |
| 151 Army officers sign a Vindication of their conduct in supporting the soldiers' grievances and the condemned petition. HGCW3 | |
| 28 | 16 Agitators ("Agents") representing eight cavalry regiments draw up letters addressed to generals Fairfax, Cromwell and Skippon outlining the soldiers' grievances. Three Agitators: Sexby, Allen and Shepherd, appointed to take the letter to London. HGCW3 |
| 29 | The Westminster Assembly presents to both Houses of Parliament the Confession of Faith with scriptural proofs cited in the margin. Parliament orders the printing of 600 copies. WWA |
| 30 | The Agitators appear at the bar of the House of Commons where the letter to the Generals and the officers' Vindication are read out. Unnerved at the scale of the unrest, MPs promise to bring forward an ordinance for soldiers' indemnity and to begin payment of arrears. Cromwell, Skippon, Ireton and Fleetwood appointed as military commissioners and sent to restore calm. HGCW3 |
May
| 4 | Parliament ratifies the appointment of Presbyterians to the Militia Committee. Independents excluded from service, giving the Presbyterians control of the London Trained Bands. Source: HGCW3 |
| 7 | Parliament's military commissioners meet Army officers at Saffron Walden church. The election of Agitators to represent every regiment proposed. HGCW3 |
| 12 | King Charles writes to Parliament offering to come to Westminster to give the royal assent to a modified version of the Newcastle Propositions. HGCW3 |
| 15 | After long conference with the Agitators, officers hold a second meeting with the military commissioners at Saffron Walden. HGCW3 |
| 16 | 223 officers sign a Representation of the Army setting out Army grievances for presentation to Parliament. HGCW3 |
| 17 | Cromwell and the military commissioners declare themselves satisfied with the Representation of the Army and return to London to report to Parliament. HGCW3 |
| 18 | The King's letter of 12 May read in Parliament. Presbyterian MPs and Scottish commissioners accept his offer as a basis for a settlement. Despite the Representation of the Army, the Presbyterians continue to plan the disbandment of the Army without settlement of grievances. HGCW3 |
| 19 | Agitators issue a circular letter warning soldiers against Parliament's plans for the Army. HGCW3 |
| 20 | The House of Lords proposes inviting the King to Oatlands, near London. HGCW3 |
| William Walwyn submits a petition calling for the release from prison of Nicholas Tew and asking for the right to present the Large Petition. Parliament orders the burning of all three Leveller petitions. HGCW3, ODNB | |
| 21 | Cromwell delivers the report of the military commissioners to Parliament, re-assuring MPs that the soldiers will remain loyal if fairly treated. HGCW3 |
| 23 | Presbyterian MPs begin discussions with the Scottish commissioners, proposing that the King be taken to Scotland and a Scottish army be brought into England. HGCW3 |
| 24 | The Marquis of Argyll and David Leslie join forces to defeat Alasdair MacColla at Rhunahoarine Point in Kintyre. MacColla flees to Ireland; his followers massacred. RCRS, SA |
| 25 | The House of Commons resolves to begin immediate disbandment of the Army. HGCW3 |
| 28 | The House of Commons promises security of arrears and redress of grievances after the Army is disbanded. Agitators continue to warn soldiers to resist disbandment. HGCW3 |
| Mutiny of Colonel Rainsborough's regiment at Portsmouth. Agitators direct the mutineers to march for Oxford to secure the Army's train of artillery. Parliament orders Rainsborough to return to his regiment to quell the mutiny. HGCW3 | |
| 29 | General Fairfax calls a council of war which recommends that a general rendezvous of the Army be held at Newmarket. HGCW3 |
| 30 | Colonel Rainsborough joins his mutinous regiment at Abingdon and succeeds in halting its march to Oxford. HGCW3 |
| 31 | Parliamentary commissioners arrive at Chelmsford to begin disbanding Fairfax's regiment of foot. The soldiers mutiny and march for the rendezvous at Newmarket. HGCW3 |
| Parliament orders the artillery train to be removed from Oxford to London. HGCW3 | |
| At a meeting at Oliver Cromwell's house in London, Cornet George Joyce is ordered ride to Oxford to safeguard the train of artillery for the Army, and then to take a body of 500 horse to Holmby House and secure the King against any attempt by the Presbyterians to remove him to Scotland. HGCW3 | |
June
| 1 | Colonel Jackson attempts to halt the Army mutineers at Braintree but is rebuffed. Source: HGCW3 |
| Cornet Joyce arrives at Oxford to find the garrison determined to keep the artillery for the Army. Joyce sets out for Holmby. HGCW3 | |
| 2 | Parliament recalls the Commissioners for Disbandment to Westminster. HGCW3 |
| William Walwyn and the Levellers present a petition to Parliament demanding an investigation into the conduct of Presbyterian leaders, the dismissal of untrustworthy officials, the redress of Army grievances and the restoration of the old City Militia Committee. HGCW3, ODNB | |
| 3 | Cornet Joyce's troop arrives at Holmby House. HGCW3 |
| Parliament attempts to restore confidence by resolving to settle Army grievances. HGCW3 | |
| 4 | Suspicious that the Presbyterians may be planning a rescue attempt, Cornet Joyce removes the King from Holmby to the Army's headquarters at Newmarket. Not knowing of his removal, Fairfax sends Colonel Whalley's regiment to safeguard the King. HGCW3 |
| Army rendezvous at Kentford Heath near Newmarket. Agitators deliver a Humble Representation of the dissatisfactions of the Army to General Fairfax. HGCW3 | |
| Oliver Cromwell leaves London to avoid impeachment by Presbyterian MPs who suspect him of plotting the King's abduction. He rides to the Army rendezvous at Newmarket. HGCW3 | |
| 5 | Second Army rendezvous at Kentford Heath. The Solemn Engagement of the Army proposes the establishment of a Council of the Army to be composed of senior officers along with two commissioned officers and two private soldiers chosen by each regiment. HGCW3 |
| Fairfax sends two more regiments to reinforce Colonel Whalley, ordering him to intercept Joyce at Huntingdon and escort the King back to Holmby. HGCW3 | |
| 6 | Scottish commissioners in London issue a remonstrance protesting at the Army's abduction of the King. HGCW3 |
| The Presbyterian Edward Massie calls on the citizens of London to mobilise against the Army. Scottish Presbyterians send Lord Dunfermline to France where he asks Queen Henrietta Maria to send the Prince of Wales to head a Scottish invasion of England. HGCW3 | |
| King Charles refuses to return to Holmby. HGCW3 | |
| 7 | Parliamentary force of 2,000 troops under Colonel Michael Jones lands near Dublin. TCW |
| Fairfax, Cromwell and other senior officers ride out to meet the King at Childerley House near Cambridge. Charles asks to be allowed to continue his journey to Newmarket, to which Fairfax consents. HGCW3 | |
| Violent demonstration at Westminster by "Reformadoes" (unemployed soldiers disbanded before the formation of the New Model Army) demanding arrears of payment. The Reformadoes refuse to disperse until Parliament votes £10,000 for them. HGCW3 | |
| 8 | King Charles arrives at his house at Newmarket; villagers along the route greet the King with open demonstrations of loyalty. Soon after his arrival, the Marquis of Argyll offers to send a Scottish army to assist him, which Charles declines. HGCW3 |
| The House of Commons gives its assent to the levying of cavalry to augment the London Trained Bands. HGCW3 | |
| Parliamentary ordinance for the abolition of Holy Days and the establishment of Days of Recreation to replace them. AOI | |
| 10 | General Rendezvous of the New Model Army on Triploe Heath near Cambridge. The Council of the Army rejects Parliament's latest terms. A letter signed by Fairfax, Cromwell, Ireton and ten other officers sent to the City authorities outlining the soldiers' grievances. The Army marches to Royston. HGCW3 |
| 11 | Parliament appoints a new Committee of Safety to work with the City Militia Committee in mobilising an army in London to oppose the New Model. HGCW3, AOI |
| Parliament passes an ordinance banning church feasts and Holy Days (Christmas, Easter, etc.) and replaces them with Days of Recreation. AOI | |
| 12 | The Army marches from Royston towards London. The Militia Committee orders the Trained Bands to mobilise, but only the Westminster regiment turns out in strength. HGCW3 |
| The Confederate army of Munster rejects the leadership of the Earl of Glamorgan. Viscount Muskerry briefly restored to command, then resigns in favour of Lord Taafe. TCK | |
| 13 | The Army at St. Albans where a deputation from the City meets Fairfax; their meeting is cordial. HGCW3 |
| 15 | The Representation of the Army presented in Parliament. Soldiers claim the right to speak for the people of England and demand that Members of Parliament who abuse their power should be called to account. HGCW3 |
| 16 | The Common Council of the City of London refuses to support the Committee of Safety in levying new troops and urges Parliament to pay the Army. HGCW3 |
| The Army presents charges of impeachment against the Eleven Members regarded as the leading Presbyterians in the House of Commons, accusing them of attempting to overthrow liberty and justice. HGCW3, PP | |
| 19 | The Marquis of Ormond surrenders Dublin to Colonel Jones. TCW |
| After a meeting with the Earl of Lauderdale, the King asks to move to Richmond near London, which Fairfax allows. HGCW3 | |
| 23 | The House of Commons refuses to discuss the constitutional proposals contained in the Representation of the Army and insists upon proof of the misconduct of the Eleven Members before considering an investigation. HGCW3 |
| The Humble Remonstrance issued by the Council of the Army insisting upon the suspension of the Eleven Members, the expulsion of Reformadoes from London and the disbandment of all troops recently levied by Parliament. The removal of the King to Richmond postponed. HGCW3 | |
| 24 | The Common Council of London supports the Army's demands for the expulsion of the Reformadoes and the disbandment of the new levies. The Council asks Parliament's permission to send a deputation to Fairfax. HGCW3 |
| 25 | The Army moves its headquarters to Uxbridge, ideally placed for cutting off supplies to London. HGCW3 |
| The House of Commons refuses to suspend the Eleven Members. HGCW3 | |
| 26 | After further menacing letters are received from the Army, the Eleven Members request permission to withdraw from the House. HGCW3 |
July
| 3 | The Army withdraws to Reading; the King taken to nearby Caversham. Source: HGCW3 |
| Agitators from Fairfax's army at work in Parliament's Northern Association army, commanded by Colonel-General Sydenham Poyntz. The soldiers are dissatisfied that their arrears have not been paid; Cromwell and his associates suspect that Poyntz is preparing to take the northern army over to the Scots in the event of an invasion. HGCW3 | |
| 5 | Agitators from the Northern Association request that Fairfax mediates with Parliament on their behalf. HGCW3 |
| 6 | Accusations against the Eleven Members presented in the House of Commons. HGCW3 |
| 8 | Soldiers at York arrest their commander Sydenham Poyntz as a traitor and send him to Fairfax. HGCW3 |
| 9 | Parliamentary ordinance orders the expulsion of the Reformadoes from London. AOI |
| 12 | Sir John Berkeley appointed mediator between the King and Army officers. HGCW3 |
| 13 | Demonstration by London apprentices calls for the restoration of the King and the disbandment of the Army. HGCW3 |
| 14 | The Committee of Estates in Edinburgh receives the advice of the Kirk, which denounces the Independents in England and urges military intervention to rescue the King and safeguard Presbyterianism. RCRS |
| 15 | Colonel-General Poyntz arrives as a prisoner of his own troops at Reading. Fairfax releases him but does not restore him to command. John Lambert re-appointed commander of the Northern Association. HGCW3 |
| General Preston captures the fortress of Naas near Dublin for the Confederates. HGCW4 | |
| King Charles visited by his children, Prince James, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Henry. HGCW3 | |
| 16 | Agitators at the Army Council call for a march on London unless Parliament responds to their demands. HGCW3 |
| 17 | Commissary-General Ireton presents his draft constitutional manifesto The Heads of the Proposals to the Army Council. Fairfax forms a committee of 12 officers and 12 Agitators to finalise it. HGCW3 |
| George Monck appointed commander of all Parliament's forces in Ulster with the exception of Monro's Covenanters. HGCW4, HLJ | |
| 19 | The House of Commons places all armed forces in their pay in England and Wales under Fairfax's command. HGCW3 |
| 20 | The Eleven Members granted leave to go abroad and to postpone final presentation of their defence for six months. PP |
| 21 | The Solemn Engagement of the City signed by apprentices, watermen, reformadoes and others in London, pledging to maintain the Covenant and calling for the restoration of the King. HGCW3 |
| 22 | Fairfax moves Army headquarters to Bedford. HGCW3 |
| King Charles meets the Earl of Lauderdale and secretly discusses the proposed Scottish invasion of England. HGCW3 | |
| 23 | General Preston captures the fortress of Maynooth for the Confederates then besieges Trim, in preparation for an attack on Dublin. HGCW4, CCW |
| The Heads of the Proposals placed with Sir John Berkeley to be unofficially communicated to the King. HGCW3 | |
| 24 | The Lords and Commons denounce the Solemn Engagement of the City. HGCW3 |
| 26 | Demonstrators in favour of peace and disbandment invade Parliament. The House of Lords forced to repeal their denunciation of the Solemn Engagement. The Commons forced to return control of the Militia Committee to the Presbyterians and pass a resolution to invite the King to London. HGCW3 |
| 27 | Fifty-eight Independent MPs and peers, including Ludlow, Hesilrige and the two Speakers Lenthall and Manchester, flee from Westminster and seek refuge with the Army. HGCW3, PP |
| 28 | The Common Council orders the strengthening of the City defences against the Army. HGCW3 |
| The Heads of the Proposals formally presented to the King; radical Army leaders angered at the King's arrogance towards them. HGCW3 | |
| The Marquis of Ormond surrenders the lord lieutenancy of Ireland to parliamentary commissioners at Dublin and sets sail for England. TCW | |
| 29 | Fairfax breaks camp at Bedford; the Army marches for London. HGCW3 |
| 30 | Presbyterian MPs recall the Eleven Members. A new Committee of Safety appointed; Edward Massie appointed commander of all the forces raised by the City. Fairfax ordered to keep the Army at least thirty miles outside London. HGCW3 |
| Fairfax sets up headquarters at Colnbrook, a few miles from the City. Army contingents sweep around to occupy Tilbury and Deptford. HGCW3 | |
| The Earl of Lauderdale arrives at Woburn Abbey for further secret discussions with the King regarding a Scottish invasion. HGCW3 | |
| 31 | Suspicious of Lauderdale, soldiers drive him from Woburn before he can see the King. HGCW3 |
| King Charles rejects The Heads of the Proposals.HGCW3 | |
| (End of July) General Preston besieges Trim in County Meath. IB | |
August
| 1 | Army leaders publish The Heads of the Proposals. Source: HGCW3 |
| Colonel Michael Jones marches out of Dublin against General Preston's Confederates. HGCW4 | |
| 2 | Pro-Independent demonstrators in London attacked by Presbyterian militia. HGCW3 |
| 3 | A deputation from the City meets Fairfax on Hounslow Heath and disclaims any desire to enter a new war; the Army declares its intention to march on London. HGCW3 |
| 4 | Supporters of the Army open the city gates; four regiments occupy Southwark. Fairfax receives a letter from the City announcing its intention to submit. HGCW3 |
| Colonel Jones joins with forces commanded by Sir Henry Tichborne, Parliamentary governor of Drogheda, and Colonel Moore from Dundalk. HGCW4, TCK | |
| 6 | The Army marches to Westminster. The Lord Mayor and aldermen welcome Fairfax at Hyde Park; the Common Council greets him at Charing Cross. The fugitive Independent MPs and peers reinstated. Fairfax appointed Constable of the Tower of London. HGCW3 |
| 7 | In a deliberate show of strength, the Army marches through London on the way to its new headquarters at Croydon. HGCW3 |
| 8 | Battle of Dungan's Hill: Colonel Jones defeats General Preston and the Confederate Leinster army. The siege of Trim lifted; the forts at Naas and Maynooth recovered for Parliament. CCW |
| 9 | The Marquis of Argyll speaks in the Committee of Estates against sending a Scottish army against England; the King should expect no help from Scotland unless he accepted Presbyterianism and the Covenant. HGCW3 |
| Fairfax takes possession of the Tower of London. Upon viewing the Great Charter (Magna Carta), he declares that this is what the civil war had been fought to defend. RHCA2 | |
| 10 | Colonel Jones sends his troops from Ulster back to their garrisons while he remains on campaign to clear eastern Leinster of Confederate forces. CIR |
| 12 | The King moved to Oatlands. HGCW3 |
| The Supreme Council at Kilkenny summons Owen Roe O'Neill from Ulster to strengthen the Confederates in Leinster. HGCW4 | |
| 13 | Argyll's rival the Duke of Hamilton arranges with the Committee of Estates to send the Earls of Loudoun and Lanark to join the Earl of Lauderdale as commissioners in England to negotiate with the King on the basis of granting Presbytery for three years. HGCW3 |
| 14 | Army Agitators call for a purge of hostile Presbyterian MPs. HGCW3 |
| 16 | Six of the Presbyterian Eleven Members flee abroad. HGCW3 |
| 17 | Vice-Admiral William Batten's ships intercept the escaping Presbyterians but Batten allows them to continue their journey. ODNB |
| Colonel Jones withdraws to Dublin. CIR | |
| 18 | Cromwell and the Army Council meeting at Kingston support the Agitators' proposal to purge Parliament, but Fairfax is against the proposal. HGCW3 |
| 20 | Cromwell stations a regiment of horse at Hyde Park and goes to Parliament under armed escort with other officers who are also MPs. The Null and Void Ordinance is passed, nullifying all Parliament's proceedings during the period when the two Speakers and Independent MPs had been driven from Westminster. The possibility of reprisals suggested in the ordinance persuades Presbyterian MPs to retreat from Parliament, leaving an Independent majority. HGCW3 |
| 24 | The King moved to Hampton Court. HGCW3 |
| 26 | Army headquarters established at Putney, halfway between Westminster and Hampton Court. HGCW3 |
| 27 | The King refuses to compromise in his rejection of The Heads of the Proposals. HGCW3 |
| Parliament revives the Newcastle Propositions as a basis for negotiation with the King — partly to pacify the Scots and partly to make The Heads of the Proposals seem more attractive by comparison. HGCW3 | |
| The General Assembly of the Church of Scotland approves the completed Confession of Faith. WWA | |
September
| 4 | Lord Inchiquin storms the Confederate garrison at the fortress-cathedral of St. Patrick on the Rock of Cashel, Munster. Inchiquin's forces slaughter the defenders as well as priests and civilians, then desecrate the church. Source: HGCW4 |
| The House of Commons orders the MPs who have fled abroad to return and answer the charges against them. HGCW3 | |
| Publication of the first issue of the Royalist newsbook Mercurius Melancholius. ION | |
| 5 | George Monck arrives at Dublin to take command of Parliament's forces in Ulster. ODNB |
| 6 | Cromwell visits John Lilburne in the Tower but Lilburne denounces him as a hypocrite. HGCW3 |
| 7 | Slightly amended version of the Newcastle Propositions presented to the King. HGCW3 |
| 8 | Two of the Eleven Members who remained at Westminster, John Glyn and Sir John Maynard, expelled and imprisoned for their part in the disturbances of late July. Seven peers who had continued to sit after the departure of the Speakers impeached. HGCW3 |
| 9 | The Army Council discusses terms for the King's restoration; Major White expelled from the Army Council for maintaining that the Army should rule as the dominant power in the land. HGCW3, WTUD |
| The King announces his preference for the Heads of the Proposals over the Newcastle Propositions as a basis for a settlement. HGCW3 | |
| The House of Commons appoints several new admiralty commissioners, including radicals Sir Henry Vane, Henry Marten and Thomas Rainsborough. CN, HCJ | |
| 16 | The Leveller Richard Overton released from prison. ODNB |
| 17 | Vice-Admiral William Batten summoned by the Admiralty Commissioners to explain his conduct in allowing the six Presbyterian MPs to escape. He agrees to resign his commission as vice-admiral rather than face charges. CN, ODNB |
| 21 | Divisions in Parliament over how to proceed with the King; Cromwell's attempts at mediation condemned by radicals. HGCW3 |
| Publication of the first issue of the Royalist newsbook Mercurius Pragmaticus, under the editorship of Marchamont Nedham. ION | |
| 24 | The Army Council re-publishes The Heads of the Proposals. HGCW3 |
| 25 | Impeachment of the Lord Mayor and five Presbyterian aldermen of London who had supported raising forces against the Army in July. HGCW3 |
| 28 | The Independent Alderman Warner chosen as Lord Mayor of London. HGCW3 |
October
| 2 | Colonel Michael Jones marches from Dublin against the Confederates. Source: HGCW4 |
| 5 | Jones joins forces with Colonel Monck to form a combined Parliamentarian army in Ireland of 6,000 foot and 1,600 horse. During October, Jones campaigns against O'Neill and clears northern Leinster of Confederate strongholds. HGCW4, TCW |
| 6 | The Army Council resolves to open new negotiations with the King, offering him more lenient terms than those offered by Parliament. HGCW3 |
| 7 | The Army Council allows the King to form a council of Royalist noblemen at Hampton Court in preparation for the proposed discussions. HGCW3 |
| Colonel Jones storms Portlester; the garrison massacred. CIR | |
| Parliament orders the Stationers' Company to discover the author and printer of the Royalist newsbook Mercurius Pragmaticus. ION | |
| 8 | The House of Commons nominates Colonel Rainsborough to replace Batten as vice-admiral of the fleet. HGCW3 |
| 9 | The Case of the Armie Truly Stated issued. Influenced by Lilburne and his followers, it was prepared by newly-elected Agitators (the "New Agents") from five of the most radical regiments. HGCW3 |
| 11 | The King refuses to negotiate with the Army; the Royal council dismissed. HGCW3 |
| 13 | Parliament votes that Presbyterianism should remain in force. HGCW3 |
| 14 | Parliament refuses to grant toleration to Catholics and proscribes the Book of Common Payer. HGCW3 |
| The Army Council abandons its attempts to negotiate with the King. HGCW3 | |
| 15 | By a single vote, the Committee of Estates agrees that the Scottish army should remain under arms until the next meeting of the full Scottish Parliament in March 1648. RCRS |
| 16 | London printer Richard Lowndes imprisoned for printing and selling the Royalist newsbook Mercurius Pragmaticus. ION |
| 18 | The Case of the Armie Truly Stated presented to General Fairfax. HGCW3 |
| 19 | Colonel Jones returns to Dublin. |
| The printer of Mercurius Melancholicus fined by Parliament and his press destroyed. ION | |
| 20 | In a speech in Parliament, Cromwell dissociates the Army leadership from the demands of the Levellers and speaks in support of Monarchy. HGCW3 |
| 22 | Scottish commissioners the Earls of Loudoun, Lauderdale and Lanark visit the King at Hampton Court and declare that Scotland is ready to help him regain his throne if he will agree to make concessions to Presbyterianism. HGCW4 |
| The Westminster Assembly sends the completed Larger Catechism to both Houses of Parliament. WWA | |
| 23 | Scottish commissioners urge Charles to escape. HGCW4 |
| 27 | John Wildman and other civilian Levellers meet army Agitators to discuss the Agreement of the People. HHAP |
| 28 | Beginning of the Putney Debates under the presidency of Cromwell. The Council of the Army meets in Putney church to discuss the The Case of the Armie and the Agreement of the People. John Wildman and other civilian Levellers admitted. HGCW3 |
| 31 | Colonel Whalley reinforces the guard at Hampton Court after Charles refuses to renew his parole. HGCW4 |
November
| (November) Owen Roe O'Neill marches into Leinster but his campaign is ineffective owing to bad weather and a shortage of supplies. Source: CIR | |
| 1 | The King's attendants, including John Ashburnham and Sir John Berkeley ordered to leave Hampton Court. HGCW4 |
| Cromwell intervenes when Army radicals at Putney call for the overthrow of the Monarchy. HGCW4 | |
| 2 | Parliamentary ordinance empowers Colonel Monck to execute martial law in Ulster. AOI |
| 3 | The Army Council proposes that Fairfax request Parliament to postpone its Propositions to the King until the Army has made its own recommendations. HGCW4 |
| Publication of An Agreement of the People. HHAP | |
| 4 | The Army Council votes in support of manhood suffrage (all men given the right to vote), excluding beggars and servants. HGCW4 |
| 5 | Colonel Rainsborough proposes that Parliament should make no further approaches to the King. The Army Council votes to hold a general rendezvous of the Army. HGCW4 |
| Scottish commissioners assure King Charles of their support. HGCW4 | |
| Publication of the first issue of the Royalist newsbook Mercurius Elenticus, edited by George Wharton. ION | |
| 6 | Parliament resolves to force its Propositions on the King without negotiation. HGCW4 |
| Cromwell agrees that the Army Council should discuss the King's authority. HGCW4 | |
| 7 | The King's attendants Sir John Berkeley, John Ashburnham and Will Legge make plans for his escape from Hampton Court. HGCW4 |
| 8 | Cromwell declares against the Leveller proposal for manhood suffrage as tending "very much to anarchy". Officers and Agitators sent back to their regiments to prepare for the rendezvous. HGCW4 |
| John Ashburnham suggests the Isle of Wight as a suitable refuge for the King. HGCW4 | |
| 9 | The House of Commons denounces the Agreement of the People as destructive to the government of the nation and orders Fairfax to investigate its authorship. HHAP, HCJ |
| A new Army Council appointed, consisting of officers only. Three separate smaller Army reviews to be held instead of a mass rendezvous. HGCW4 | |
| Anxious to maintain Army discipline, Fairfax requests that Church lands be sold to provide for the soldiers' pay. HGCW4 | |
| John Lilburne released on bail from the Tower. ODNB | |
| Believing that Agitators and Levellers plan to murder him, King Charles prepares to escape. HGCW4 | |
| 11 | The King escapes from Hampton Court attended by Berkeley, Ashburnham and Legge. HGCW4 |
| Major Harrison denounces King Charles as the "man of blood" and calls for his prosecution. HGCW4 | |
| 12 | King Charles at Titchfield, Hampshire. Berkeley and Ashburnham cross the Solent to ask Colonel Hammond, governor of the Isle of Wight, to protect the King. HGCW4 |
| Eighth Confederate General Assembly meets at Kilkenny (until 24 December). TCK | |
| 13 | The King arrives on the Isle of Wight. Colonel Hammond conducts him to lodgings in Carisbrooke Castle. HGCW4 |
| Battle of Knocknanuss: Lord Inchiquin defeats the Confederate army of Viscount Taaffe and Alasdair MacColla in Munster. Confederate survivors of the battle slaughtered; MacColla murdered by one of Inchiquin's officers while negotiating for a surrender. TCW | |
| 14 | Army officers prepare a modified manifesto — A Remonstrance from his Excellency Sir Thomas Fairfax — to replace the Levellers' Agreement. HGCW4 |
| 15 | Partial rendezvous on Corkbush Field, near Ware, Hertfordshire. Two unauthorised regiments threaten to mutiny. Fairfax and Cromwell personally confront the troops; three ringleaders are arrested. Private Richard Arnold shot as an example. HGCW4 |
| 24 | Cromwell turns against the King when a letter is intercepted in which Charles tells the Queen his plans to negotiate with the Scottish Presbyterians rather than the Army (the "saddle letter"). HGCW4 |
| 25 | The Westminster Assembly sends the completed Shorter Catechism to the House of Commons for approval. WWA |
| 27 | Parliament proposes the Four Bills as preconditions before any settlement with the King. HGCW4 |
| Parliament appoints a committee to suppress Royalist newsbooks and pamphlets and to prosecute their authors, printers and publishers. ION | |
| 28 | Sir John Berkeley appears before the Army Council at Windsor with a proposal that the Army supports the King against Parliament. Fairfax rejects the proposal. HGCW4 |
| 29 | Cromwell tells Berkeley that he has given up hope of reaching a settlement with the King. HGCW4 |
| The King writes to the Scottish commissioners, whose advice he had previously ignored, proposing to resume negotiations. RCRS | |
December
| 1 | London Presbyterians petition Parliament asking that the Army might be removed to a greater distance from the city and the Covenant fully observed. Independents in the House of Commons reject the petition. Source: HGCW4 |
| 7 | The Scottish commissioners send the Earl of Traquair to Carisbrooke to persuade King Charles to make concessions regarding a religious settlement in exchange for military aid. HGCW4 |
| 14 | Parliament's propositions to the King passed as the Four Bills. A committee appointed to take them to Carisbrooke. HGCW4 |
| 15 | The King sends the Scottish commissioners a draft of the terms he is now willing to accept. HGCW4 |
| 22 | The Army holds an all-day prayer meeting at Windsor and closes ranks in the face of the threat from Scotland. The Army Council recommends that Parliament confirms Colonel Rainsborough's appointment to the office of vice-admiral. Officers and men awaiting trial as mutineers pardoned on promises of submission. HGCW4 |
| 24 | Parliamentary commissioners present Parliament's Four Bills to the King. HGCW4 |
| Scottish commissioners Lauderdale, Loudoun and Lanark arrive at Carisbrooke to urge further concessions from the King. HGCW4 | |
| Alarmed at Colonel Rainsborough's Leveller sympathies, the House of Lords objects to his appointment as vice-admiral. HGCW4 | |
| Both Houses vote to raise money to pay the Army; all supernumerary troops to be disbanded. HGCW4 | |
| 25 | Riots in Ipswich and Canterbury against Parliament's suppression of Christmas celebrations. Disturbances in London suppressed by the personal intervention of the Lord Mayor. HGCW4 |
| 26 | King Charles signs the Engagement with the Scottish commissioners. HGCW4 |
| 27 | The Scottish commissioners at Carisbrooke sign the Engagement, provisionally promising a Scottish army to invade England. HGCW4 |
| Pro-Royalist rioters at Canterbury drive the Mayor, several magistrates and clergymen from the city; the Kent County Committee calls out the Trained Bands to restore order. HGCW4 | |
| 28 | The King rejects Parliament's Four Bills. HGCW4 |
| Colonel Hammond strengthens security arrangements at Carisbrooke Castle; the King is now a prisoner. HGCW4 | |
| 29 | Officers assure parliamentary commissioners at Windsor of the Army's loyalty to Parliament. HGCW4 |
| The King's attendants Ashburnham, Berkeley and Legge ordered to leave Carisbrooke. HGCW4 | |
| 30 | The House of Commons confirms Fairfax's appointment of Sir Arthur Hesilrige as governor of the strategically important city of Newcastle. HGCW4 |
| Fairfax sends another three officers to the Isle of Wight to support Hammond. HGCW4 | |
| 31 | Both Houses resolve that the King should be held in custody at Carisbrooke Castle. HGCW4 |
| Rioters attack soldiers and excisemen at Chippenham in Wiltshire. PP | |
| (Late December) Under an assumed name, John Wildman publishes Putney Projects in which he accuses Cromwell of hypocrisy and self-interest in shifting his allegiance from the King. ODNB | |
Sources:
AOI: Acts and Ordinances of the Interregnum C.H. Firth and R.S. Raitt (eds), 1911
CCW: Confederate Catholics at War 1641-49, Pádraig Lenihan (Cork 2001)
CIR: Cromwell in Ireland, James Scott Wheeler (New York 1999)
CN: Cromwell's Navy, Bernard Capp (Oxford 1989)
CWA: Catechisms of the Westminster Assembly John Murray, (The Presbyterian Guardian 1943)
HCJ: House of Commons Journal www.british-history.ac.uk
HGCW3: History of the Great Civil War vol. iii, S.R. Gardiner (London 1889)
HGCW4: History of the Great Civil War vol. iv, S.R. Gardiner (London 1894)
HHAP: History and Histriography of the Agreements of the People, E. Vernon & P. Baker (Palgrave 2012)
HLJ: House of Lords Journal www.british-history.ac.uk
IB: Irish Battles, G.A. Hayes-MacCoy (London 1969)
ION: The Invention of the Newspaper: English newsbooks, 1641-1649, Joad Raymond (Oxford 2005)
ODNB: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
PP: Pride's Purge, David Underdown (Oxford 1971)
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)
SA: Scots Armies of the English Civil Wars, Stuart Reid (Osprey 1999)
TCK: The Confederation of Kilkenny C.P. Meehan (Dublin 1846)
TCW: The Civil Wars, a military history of England, Scotland & Ireland 1638-60, Kenyon and Ohlmeyer eds) (Oxford 1998)
WTUD: The World Turned Upside Down, Christopher Hill (London 1975)
WWA: The Work of the Westminster Assembly John Murray, (The Presbyterian Guardian 1942)
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