The English campaign of 1645 ended in the complete overthrow of the
king. Throughout the war, his enemies had been continually improving
in discipline, in conduct, and in that enthusiasm which animated them
so largely; while the Royalists had become, out of a mere principle of
opposition, so extremely licentious, as to be rather a terror to their
friends than to their enemies. The new-modeling of the Parliamentary
army, which took place early in 1645, had also added much to the
effectiveness of the troops, who were now nominally commanded by Sir
Thomas Fairfax, but in reality by Oliver Cromwell, who bore the rank
of lieutenant-general. The consequence was that, in a pitched battle
at Naseby (June 14), the king was so completely beaten, that he and
his party could no longer keep the field. He had no resource but to
retire into Oxford, a town zealously affected to his cause, and well
fortified.
He endeavored, from this forlorn position, to renew the negotiations
for a peace; but every attempt of that kind was frustrated by the
Independents, who, though a minority in the House of Commons,
possessed great power through the army, and, as already mentioned,
were desirous of effecting greater changes in church and state than
those for which the war was originally undertaken. Dreading the
influence of this body, Charles retired privately from Oxford (May
1646) on the approach of the Parliamentary forces, and put himself
under the protection of the Scottish army at Newark.
As the views of the Scotch throughout the war had been steadily
confined to the security of the Presbyterian religion, along with the
safety of the king’s person and the establishment of a limited
monarchy, they received him with great respect at their camp, and
entered into negotiations for effecting their grand object. If Charles
would have acceded to their views, he might have immediately resumed a
great part of his former power; and the agitations of many subsequent
years, as well as his own life, might have been spared. But this was
forbidden, not only by his strong prepossession in favor of the
Episcopal forms of worship, but also by his conviction, that the
Episcopal form of church government was alone compatible with the
existence of monarchy. He therefore disagreed with the Presbyterians
on the very point which they considered the most vital and important.
From the time when Charles first threw himself into the Scottish camp,
the English Parliament had made repeated and strenuous demands for the
surrender of his person into their hands. The Scots, however, though
acting partly as a mercenary army, asserted their right, as an
independent nation under the authority of the king, to retain and
protect him. At length, despairing of inducing him to sanction the
Presbyterian forms, and tempted by the sum of £400,000, which was
given to them as a compensation for their arrears of pay, they
consented to deliver up their monarch, but certainly without any
apprehension of his life being in danger, and, indeed, to a party
quite different from that by which he afterwards suffered. The
Scottish army then retired (January 1647) to their native country, and
were there disbanded.
The king was now placed in Holdenby Castle, and negotiations were
opened for restoring him to power, under certain restrictions. While
these were pending, the Parliament deemed it unnecessary to keep up
the army, more especially as its spirit was plainly observed to be of
a dangerous character. On attempting, however, to dismiss this
powerful force, the English Commons found that their late servants
were become their masters. The troops began to hold something like a
Parliament in their own camp; a party of them, under Cornet Joyce,
seized the king’s person, and brought him to Hampton Court. Cromwell,
who was at the bottom of their machinations, received from them the
chief command; and at his instigation they retorted upon the
Parliament with a demand for the dismissal of the leaders of the
Presbyterian party, and a general right of new-modeling the government
and settling the nation. The House of Commons, supported by the city
of London, made a bold opposition to these demands, but was ultimately
obliged to yield to a force which it had no means of resisting. From
that time military violence exercised an almost uncontrolled mastery
over England.