Page:General History of Europe 1921.djvu/483

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Struggle in England between King and Parliament 359 612. Cromwell dissolves the Long Parliament (i653) and is made Lord Protector. Cromwell failed, however, to get along with Parliament much better than Charles I had done. The Rump Parliament had become very unpopular, for its members, in spite of their boasted piety, accepted bribes and were zealous in* the promotion of their relatives in the public service. At last Cromwell upbraided them angrily for their injustice and self-interest, which were injuring the public cause. On being interrupted by a member, he cried out, "Come, come, we have had enough of this. I'll put an end to this. It's not fit that you should sit here any longer," and calling in his soldiers he turned the members out of the House and sent them home. Having thus made an end of the Long Parliament (April, 1653), he summoned a Parliament of his own, made up of "God- fearing" men whom he and the officers of his army chose. This extraordinary body is known as Barebone's Parliament, from a distinguished member, a London merchant, with the charac- teristically Puritan name of Praisegod Barebone. Many of these godly men were, however, unpractical and hard to deal with. A minority of the more sensible ones got up early one winter morning (December, 1653) and, before their opponents had a chance to protest, declared Parliament dissolved and placed the supreme authority in the hands of Cromwell. 613. The Protector's Foreign Policy. For nearly five years Cromwell was, as Lord Protector, a title equivalent to that of Regent, practically king of England, although he refused ac- tually to accept the royal insignia. He did not succeed in per- manently organizing the government at home, but he showed remarkable ability in his foreign negotiations. He promptly formed an alliance with France, and English troops aided the French in winning a great victory over Spain. England gained thereby Dunkirk and the West Indian island of Jamaica. 614. Cromwell's Death, In May, 1658, Cromwell fell ill and died, and as a great storm passed over England at that time, the Cavaliers asserted that the devil had come to fetch home the soul of the usurper.