A guide to the key names from the Oliver Cromwell podcast episode:
The Protectorate
Oliver Cromwell – the Protector! (but not a king, however nicely you may ask)
Richard Cromwell – Oliver’s eldest son and short-lived successor.
Royal Family (until they are abolished)
Charles I – the King (until he is beheaded) who goes to war with his own Parliament.
Charles II – the future King, son of Charles I who is recognised as king in Scotland and Ireland but unable to oust Cromwell.
The Roundheads/Parliamentarians
Earl of Manchester (Edward Montague, 2nd Earl) – At one stage in command of the Roundhead armies but came into conflict with Cromwell for not fighting hard enough and was removed from his command.
Sir Thomas Fairfax – Commander of the New Model Army and strong ally of Cromwell during the civil war (in and off the battlefield) but disapproved of the decision to execute the king.
Admiral Robert Blake – Supreme naval commander who probably warrants more attention than he is here given!
Religious Sects
Levellers – radical group calling for the abolition of the monarchy, freedom of conscience and full male suffrage.
Diggers – proto-Communist commune who sought to live off the land in their own community free from the evils of property ownership.
Quakers – society established by George Fox advocating individual relationship with God over organised religion
Rex Factor 