Roundhead

Quick Facts: Who was Roundhead?

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Roundhead

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Supporters of Parliament during the English Civil War (1642–1651).

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Origins & Early Life

The Parliamentarians, commonly called Roundheads by their enemies and in modern historiography, were the supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War (1642–1651). They fought against King Charles I of England and his supporters, known as the Cavaliers or Royalists, who claimed rule by absolute monarchy and the principle of the divine right of kings. The goal of the Roundheads was to give to Parliament the supreme control over executive administration of England. Most Roundheads sought constitutional monarchy in place of the absolute monarchy sought by Charles; however, at the end of the English Civil War in 1649, public antipathy towards the king was high enough to allow republican leaders such as Oliver Cromwell to abolish the monarchy completely and establish the Commonwealth of England. The Roundhead commander-in-chief of the first Civil War, Thomas Fairfax, remained a supporter of constitutional monarchy, as did many other Roundhead leaders such as Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester, and Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex; however, this party was outmanoeuvred by the more politically adept Cromwell and his radicals, who had the backing of the New Model Army and took advantage of Charles' perceived betrayal of England in his alliance with the Scottish against Parliament.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

England's many Puritans and Presbyterians were almost invariably Roundhead supporters, as were many smaller religious groups such as the Independents (although in the English territory of the Somers Isles, or Bermuda, Episcopalians and Presbyterians united as Royalists against the Independents). However, a number of Roundheads were members of the Church of England, as were most Cavaliers. Roundhead political factions included the proto-anarchist/socialist Diggers, the diverse group known as the Levellers and the apocalyptic Christian movement of the Fifth Monarchists. Some Puritans (but by no means all of them) wore their hair closely cropped round the head or flat. This created an obvious contrast between them and the men of courtly fashion, who wore long ringlets.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

During the war and for a time afterwards, Roundhead was a term of derision, and in the New Model Army it was a punishable offence to call a fellow soldier a Roundhead. This contrasted with Cavalier, a word used to describe supporters of the Royalist cause, but which also started out as a pejorative term. The first proponents used it to compare members of the Royalist party with Spanish Caballeros who had abused Dutch Protestants during the reign of Elizabeth I. However, unlike Roundhead, Cavalier was later embraced by those who were the target of the epithet and used by them to describe themselves. "Roundheads" appears to have been first used as a term of derision toward the end of 1641, when the debates in Parliament in the Clergy Act 1640 were causing riots at Westminster. The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition quotes a contemporary authority's description of the crowd that gathered there: "They had the hair of their heads very few of them longer than their ears, whereupon it came to pass that those who usually with their cries attended at Westminster were by a nickname called Roundheads".

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1641: 1641 Milestone — "Roundheads" appears to have been first used as a term of derision toward the end of 1641, when the debates in Parliament in the Clergy Act 1640 were causing riots at Westminster.
2. 1642: 1642 Milestone — The Parliamentarians, commonly called Roundheads by their enemies and in modern historiography, were the supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War (1642–1651).
3. 1649: 1649 Milestone — Most Roundheads sought constitutional monarchy in place of the absolute monarchy sought by Charles; however, at the end of the English Civil War in 1649, public antipathy towards the king was high enough to allow republican leaders such as Oliver Cromwell to abolish the monarchy completely and establish the Commonwealth of England.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Roundhead

True or False: “The term 'Cavalier' was initially used by its supporters to describe themselves.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): Initially, 'Cavalier' was a pejorative term comparing Royalists to Spanish Caballeros who had abused Dutch Protestants.

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