5a.
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The National Archives
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Civil WarThe interactive parts of this resource no longer work, but it has been archived so you can continue using the rest of it.
A summary of Cromwell’s character by a royalist
(Earl of Clarendon, Edward Hyde: The History of the Great Rebellion, Vol. III, part 1, p.432, p.509. Published at Clarendon Printing House, 1767-1786)
These are two extracts from ‘The History of the Great Rebellion’ by the Earl of Clarendon, Edward Hyde (1609-1674).
His writings, published in the early 1700s, have proved to be a very useful source for historians.
Working out the viewpoint of this source is an interesting challenge for an historian. The writer had no reason to like Cromwell, but may also have had reason to dislike the royal family.
Machiavelli was an Italian political writer. He wrote a book called ‘The Prince’, which explained how rulers stayed in power.
He recommended that rulers should use every possible way to destroy their enemies. Even today we describe someone who uses cunning and dirty tricks as being Machiavellian.