THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF BRITAIN

Charles I was dead, Oliver Cromwell was on the rise, and a nation was grappling with a strange new reality - one without a monarchy. Anna Keay tells the story of the 1650s, through the eyes of three of the people who helped shape Britain's republican decade

- Anna Keay

On 5 March 1650, early in the life of the new Commonwealth of England, a state funeral was held. There was a stellar turn-out for Roland Wilson, army officer, and politician. Almost the whole of the new political establishment was there: the head of the victorious New Model Army, Lord Fairfax; the lord mayor of London; and a host of MPs who had just taken up executive authority in the young republic.

As the cavalcade swayed solemnly through the city streets, the crowds built. The mood was subdued at first, until one of the “rabble” spotted in the midst of the politicians and soldiers the 46-year-old Cheshire lawyer John Bradshaw, who had presided at the trial of Charles I in January 1649. They cried aloud: “Here is the rogue that judged the king, kill him, kill him. Let us tear him in pieces.” Bradshaw was petrified as they clamoured towards him, brandishing sticks and clubs. He clutched the arm of the lawyer who walked beside him, begging him not to abandon him, before darting down a narrow side street to give the murderous mob the slip.

It was little wonder the crowd was angry. The nation had divided during the years of civil war, with some backing Charles I and others the parliamentary leaders who challenged his policies. Yet the fight had never been about monarchy versus republicanism and both sides claimed to be fighting in the king's name. It was only once the parliamentarians had won, and a radical cabal backed by the army imprisoned many MPs, that Charles I had been tried and executed.