IRETON, HENRY English parliamentary general, eldest son of German Ireton of Attenborough, Notting hamshire, was baptized on Nov. 3, 1611, became a gentleman commoner of Trinity College, Oxford, in 1626, graduated and entered the Middle Temple in 1629. On the outbreak of the Civil War he joined the parliamentary army, fought at Edgehill (1642) and at Gainsborough (1643), was made by Cromwell deputy governor of the Isle of Ely, and next year served under Manches ter, afterwards supporting Cromwell in his accusations of incom petency against the general. On the night before the battle of Naseby, in June 1645, he surprised the Royalist army and cap tured many prisoners, and next day was made commissary-gen eral and appointed to the command of the left wing, Cromwell himself commanding the right. The wing under Ireton was broken by the charge of Rupert, and Ireton was wounded and taken prisoner, but after Cromwell's rout of the enemy he escaped. He took an active part in the campaign which resulted in the overthrow of the royal cause. On Oct. 3o, 1645 Ireton entered parliament as member for Appleby, and while occupied with the siege of Oxford he was, on June 15, 1646, married to Bridget, Cromwell's daughter. He was opposed to the destructive schemes of the extreme party, disliked especially the abstract and unprac tical theories of the Republicans and the Levellers, and desired, while modifying their mutual powers, to retain the constitution. of King, Lords and Commons. He urged these views in the ne gotiations of the army with .the parliament, and in the conferences with the king, being chiefly entrusted with the drawing up of the army proposals. He endeavoured to prevent the breach between the army and the parliament, but when the division became in evitable took the army side. He aroused great suspicion by sup
porting the negotiations with the king. But becoming at length convinced of the hopelessness of dealing with Charles, after the king's flight to the Isle of Wight he urged the parliament to es tablish an administration without him. Ireton served under Fair fax in the second civil war in the campaigns in Kent and Essex, and was responsible for the executions of Lucas and Lisle at Col chester. After the rejection by the king of the last offers of the army, he showed special zeal in bringing about his trial, was one of the chief promoters of "Pride's Purge," attended the court regularly, and signed the death-warrant. Ireton accompanied Cromwell in his Irish campaign, and was appointed major-general: on the recall of his chief to take the command in Scotland, he re mained as lord-deputy to complete Cromwell's work of reduction and replantation. He was rapidly bringing his task to a close, when he died on Nov. 26, 1651 of fever after the capture of Limerick. His loss "struck a great sadness into Cromwell," for while he possessed high abilities as a soldier, and great political insight, he resembled in stern unflinchingness of purpose the pro tector himself. Ireton left one son and three daughters.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.-Article by C. H. Firth in Dict. of Nat. Biog. with authorities there quoted; Wood's Ath. Oxon. iii. 298, and Fasti, i. 451; Cornelius Brown's Lives of Notts Worthies, 181; Clarke Papers pub lished by Camden Society ; Gardiner's History of the Civil War and of the Commonwealth.