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The
English Civil War started in 1642, when the King tried to
take over parliament by force. He was unsuccessful, and
Oliver Cromwell built up the strength of the Parliamentary
forces into a disciplined and faithful organisation known
as the New Model Army. The King surrendered, early in 1646.
But though many in the Parliament wanted a new freedom for
all and even a kind of Socialism, the main landowners were
violently against these ideas and were even plotting with
the King.
In 1648
Charles resumed the war, but was captured by the Scots.
He was brought to London, actually being taken in by one
of the leading Leveller soldiers; The King was Executed
in January 1649. Cromwell then turned to deal with the Left-wing
Idealists known as the Diggers and the Levellers.
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Who
were the Levellers?
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The Levellers
were small yeomen farmers and 'copyholders', tradesmen who
worked in clothing manufacture, small business men - in
fact skilled workers and peasants and the 'petty bourgeoisie'.
A great number of them had fought in the New Model Army.
Cromwell had encouraged his soldiers to be a committed,
thinking force with intelligent discipline, but also with
intelligent belief in God and in the new England they fought
for. Discussion, argument and the printing and circulation
of leaflets and tracts were encouraged.
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It was
this thinking and faith that brought Cromwell's army to
victory over the Royalist army of foreign Mercenaries and
estate Servants, pressed into service by their Lords and
Landowners. The discussions continued during the lull, in
1647, between the two phases of the Civil War. There were
perhaps as many civilian Levellers as military men, especially
in London, where the leadership (Lilburne, Price, Walwyn
and others) were based.
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What
did the Levellers believe in?
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were radical idealists, and could be called early socialists,
but of course they had no concept of the workings of emergent
capitalism. Their idea was that William the Conqueror had
brought the 'Norman Yoke'. This had taken the land from the
Democratic, Egalitarian society they believed had existed
in Anglo-Saxon times. God had created all men and women equal,
and the land should be used by all people as a right. |
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programme was worked out by a committee, including John Lilburne.
It was called the "Agreement
of the People". A form of shop stewardmanship grew
up, with 'agitators' who represented the men in the debates
with the high officers in the great Army Council. The subject
was the future of a new, King-less commonwealth. |
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great meeting of the commonwealth armies was called at Newmarket
in June 1647, to gain support of the rank and file of the
army for the declaration. |
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