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Born 1626, died 1712
Under the Humble Petition and Advice of May 1657, Oliver Cromwell was given the right to name his own successor – in effect, to create a dynasty. He started to groom his 31-year-old son Richard, who had been a member of Parliament and now joined the Council of State.
When the lord protector died some 15 months later, Richard's succession went remarkably smoothly. He received messages of consolation and congratulation from many heads of state, and it appears that his regime was widely recognised.
Richard had intelligence and charm, but also a fatal weakness: a lack of military experience. Unlike his father, he could not rely on the respect of the army, yet he was nominally its commander-in-chief.
Richard inherited an accumulated deficit of some £2 million, much of it arrears in army pay. He needed to raise revenue, and that meant going to Parliament. However, Parliament was at loggerheads with the army, mainly over arrears of pay. The new lord protector backed Parliament – it was the wrong move.
In April 1659, the army forced Richard to dismiss the existing Parliament and allow the Rump Parliament (the MPs elected in 1640 who had survived various purges and the king's execution) to reassemble itself, thus turning the constitutional clock back six years to before the Protectorate. The reign of 'Queen Dick' was effectively over.
Following the Restoration of Charles II, Richard – unlike his father – was not held accountable for the regicide of Charles I and escaped trial and execution. Instead he lived abroad and, after 1680, in England under the assumed name 'John Clarke', residing quietly until his death at the age of 86.
Richard Cromwell, Lord Protector, 1626-1712
www.british-civil-wars.co.uk/biog/
richard-cromwell.htm
Thorough biography of Oliver Cromwell's unfortunate son.
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