Summary (by AI): I enjoyed visiting Oliver Cromwell's house in Ely and felt intrigued by the fascinating historical details I learned about his life and the power of the monarchy.
Blog: Much to my frustration these days, I’ve realized that my grasp of English history is pretty poor. I didn’t study it at all at university; in fact, the last time I really sat down with a history book was before my O-levels—as they were called in my day.
I like history, or at least I like the idea of it. As we’ve been traveling on this ABC tour, I keep stumbling across these incredibly interesting bits of the past. The problem is that I’m not actually that "okay" with the details. When I started researching Oliver Cromwell recently, I realized—and I’m slightly embarrassed to admit this—that I hadn't fully grasped the weight of his story.
Of course, I knew he was a key figure in the rebellion against King Charles I, but I don’t think I quite realized that he eventually became Lord Protector. By the late 1600s, after the Civil War had ended, he was effectively serving as both the head of Parliament and the "king" of the time. It’s a bit of a gap in my knowledge, but hey—that’s exactly why I’m doing this research now.
Our journey took us to Ely, where Cromwell grew up after being born in Huntingdon. We visited his house, which is situated right next to that magnificent, absolutely tremendous cathedral. The building itself dates back to the 13th century and was originally a tithe house for the cathedral. Cromwell inherited it from his uncle in 1636, along with the position of local tax collector. It turns out he came from a relatively wealthy family of farmers and landowners, so he had a very solid start in life.
He eventually became the MP for Cambridge (or Cambridgeshire, I should say), which is how he find himself in Parliament right as these massive revolts and historical shifts began to take hold. At the time, King Charles I was clamping down on the country. He actually stopped Parliament from sitting for something like six or seven years. Apparently, he even clamped down on Christmas and Easter—they simply weren't "a thing" back then.
Eventually, the pressure broke. There was a war, the King was captured, and he was beheaded. Oliver Cromwell was one of the fifty-odd people—I think the number was fifty-three—who signed the King’s death warrant.
Fast forward past Cromwell’s rule to the Restoration, when the monarchy was finally brought back. The first thing King Charles II did was look at those fifty-three men and decide they were in serious trouble. By that point, Cromwell was already dead and buried, but that didn't stop them. They actually exhumed his body just so they could behead him and stick his head on Traitor’s Gate, right alongside the others who had signed that original declaration.
I suppose the lesson there is to be a little bit careful about where you think things might go when you're in a position of power. The monarchy was a force to be reckoned with back then. I’m fairly certain that sort of thing isn't going to happen now, though. I can’t imagine Prince William is the type of person to start beheading people!
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