The system of his foreign politics was bold but un wise ; had lie lived longer, he would probably have been the accessary means of accomplishing, a century sooner than it has happened, that conquest of the low countries by France, which has been since followed by the subjugation of Europe. Amidst this success and splendour, he was conscious of being secretly detested, and his situation became every clay more alarming. A conspiracy of the royalists, which Ormond came over to foment, was indeed detected, and Ormond was obliged to fly; hut the spirit of discontent was not eradicated by the punishment of those who were convicted. IlarrN=, Lambert, and the other discarded officers of the army, and the whole sect of the Millenarians, were cherishing plans for his destruction ; and Sindercome, who had un dertaken to assassinate him, was with difficulty con demned by a jury. IIe had not even domestic consola tion ; for his own family had so vehemently imbraccd republican principles, that they could not, without in dignation, behold him invested with despotism ; and Mrs Claypole, his favourite daughter, upbraided him on her death-bed with all the crimes of his ambition. A pamphlet, of uncommon eloquence, entitled, " Killing no Murder," was written by colonel Titus, to prove, that his assassination would be meritorious. The usurper read this spirited production, and it is said was never seen to smile afterwards. He was haunted with perpe tual fears of assassination; he wore armour under his clothes, and always kept pistols in his pocket. His as pect was clouded by a settled gloom, and he regarded every stranger with suspicion. Ile travelled with a nu merous guard, and with the hurry of alarm ; never re turned from any place by the road lie went, nor slept above three nights successively in the same chamber. At last he was delivered from this life of horror by a tertian ague, of which he died, September 3d, 1658, af te• having usurped the government nine years. A de putation from the council asked him, in his last moments, to name his successor, but his senses were gone, and a simple affirmation was, or seemed to be extorted from him, when they mentioned his son Richard. (For his character, sec CnOMWELL.) The council recognized the succession of Richard. Fleetwood, in whose favour it was supposed that Crom well had formerly made a will, renounced all pretension to the protectorship. Henry, Richard's brother, who governed Ireland with popularity, ensured him the obedience of that kingdom. Monk, who was powerful in Scotland, immediately proclaimed him Protector; the army and the fleet acknowledged his title ; the counties and corporations addressed him in tcrms of allegiance ; and lorcign ministers crowded to pay him compliments. Richard accepted an empire, which was so fairly tendered to him. A parliament being assem bled, the commons signed an engagement not to alter the present government ; but, in all their proceedings, there was so much opposition, as to alarm the partizans of the new protector. Dangers were arising also from other quarters. Fleetwood, and other republican leaders of the army, aided even by Dcsbrowe, the father-in-law of Richard, and Lambert, a dismissed officer of great influence, were forming cabals, and united into a fac tion, which, from the place of Fleetwood's abode, where it met, was called the party of Wallingford-house. The city militia were brought over to their designs. The parliament was no less alarmed at the military cabals than Richard, and passed a resolution against their meetings ; but the officers hastened to Richard, and •lemanded of him the dissolution of parliament. Richard complied ; and being thus effectually deposed, soon after signed his resignation.
The officers being thus left with authority supreme for the present, however unstable, recalled the Rump 'parliament, which had been expelled by Cromwell, whose numbers little exceeded 70 members. The first
use which this assembly made of its power, was to change and cashier some of the military leaders, who had ap pointed them. The officers immediately resolved to dis solve them. General Lambert drew up some chosen troops in the streets leading to Westminster Hall, and ordering the horses to be taken from the carriage of the Speaker, Lenthal, civilly conducted him home. A military government was now established, over which the officers appointed a committee of 23 to preside. Previous to this dissolution, the army under Lambert had suppressed, in concert with parliament, an insur rection of the royalists at Chester, where Booth, their leader, was routed and taken prisoner, with numbers of his undisciplined followers. The parliament, also, while it preserved its authority, mediated by force, and in unison with the Dutch republic, between the con quering king of Sweden and his enemies. Admiral Montague sailed to the Baltic, and Algernon Sidney, as ambassador, commanded the Swedish monarch to desist from the siege of Copenhagen, who exclaimed, with a vain indignation, at the interference of par ricides and pedlars ; so he chose to designate the British and Dutch.
Monk, who was in Scotland with 8000 veteran sol diers, no sooner heard of the forcible dissolution of par liament, than he protested against it ; and summoning a convention of estates in Scotland, received a seasona ble though small supply of money, which enabled him to march into England. Naturally reserved in his temper, and probably undecided himself what course he should pursue, he concealed those intentions which he cherished, beyond the mere support of parliament, with so much address, that when his own brother came to Scotland, to sound his intentions, he would not entrust him with his confidence. Fleetwood, w ho was nominally at the head of the army in England, was a weak super stitious man. Lambert, without the highest abilities, but active and ambitious, was really the first, with the name of the second in command ; but as the troops were every where revolting to parliament, he was unable to oppose the progress of Monk, and only treated with him as that wary general advanced to the south. The military government, in despair, summoned again that parliament which they had dismissed in contempt ; and the parliament, as before, acting in hostility to the military government, cashiered its officers. Unable, however, to overawe or resist Monk, they sent deputies to be spies upon him, under pretence of congratulations. Monk, in the mean time, proceeded with his army to London; the gentry, on his march, flocking round him with addresses, and expressing their desire of a new parliament : but the general still preserved his inflexible taciturnity, and arrived within a few miles of St Albans, without dispelling the suspense of the public mind res pecting his designs. From St Albans he sent a mes sage to the parliament, desiring them to remove such forces as remained in London to country quarters. Some of the regiments willingly obeyed this order, and such as did not, Monk turned out by force.; after which, he took up his quarters, with his army, in Westminster. The house voted him thanks for his services : he de sired them to call a free parliament, and this soon in spired the citizens to refuse submission to the parlia mentary government. They resolved to pay no taxes, till the members who had been excluded by colonel Pride should be replaced : for they were permitted to do this by Monk at the desire of parliament. He arrested eleven of the ruling common-councilmen, broke the gates and portcullises of the city, and returned in triumph to his quarters at Westminster. The next day, however, he made an apology for his conduct, and promised for the futu re to cooperate with the lord mayor and common council, in such schemes as they should approve.