BOOK I.

September 1654-June 1657.

History:—­Oliver’s first protectorate continued.

Biography:—­Milton’s life and secretaryship through the first
protectorate continued.

Chap.  I. Section I. Oliver and his First Parliament:  Sept. 3, 1654-Jan. 22, 1654-5.—­Meeting of the First Parliament of the Protectorate:  Its Composition:  Anti-Oliverians numerous in it:  Their Four Days’ Debate in challenge of Cromwell’s Powers:  Debate stopped by Cromwell:  His Speech in the Painted Chamber:  Secession of some from the Parliament:  Acquiescence of the rest by Adoption of The Recognition:  Spirit and Proceedings of the Parliament still mainly Anti-Oliverian:  Their Four Months’ Work in Revision of the Protectoral Constitution:  Chief Debates in those Four Months:  Question of the Protector’s Negatives:  Other Incidental Work of the Parliament:  Question of Religious Toleration and of the Suppression of Heresies and Blasphemies:  Committee and Sub-Committee on this Subject:  Baxter’s Participation:  Tendency to a Limited Toleration only, and Vote against the Protector’s Prerogative of more:  Case of John Biddle, the Socinian.—­Insufficiency now of our former Synopsis of English Sects and Heresies:  New Sects and Denominations:  The Fifth-Monarchy Men:  The Ranters:  The Muggletonians and other Stray Fanatics:  Bochmenists and other Mystics:  The Quakers or Friends:  Account of George Fox, and Sketch of the History of the Quakers to the year 1654.—­Policy of the Parliament with their Bill for a New Constitution:  Parliament outwitted by Cromwell and dissolved:  No Result.

Chap.  I. Section II.  Between the Parliaments, or the Time of Arbitrariness:  Jan. 22, 1654-55—­Sept. 17, 1656.—­Avowed “Arbitrariness” of this Stage of the Protectorate, and Reasons for it.—­First Meeting of Cromwell and his Council after the Dissolution:  Major-General Overton in Custody:  Other Arrests:  Suppression of a wide Republican Conspiracy and of Royalist Risings in Yorkshire and the West:  Revenue Ordinance and Mr. Cony’s Opposition at Law:  Deference of Foreign Governments:  Blake in the Mediterranean:  Massacre of the Piedmontese Protestants:  Details of the Story and of Cromwell’s Proceedings in consequence:  Penn in the Spanish West Indies:  His Repulse from Hispaniola and Landing in Jamaica:  Declaration of War with Spain and Alliance with France:  Scheme of the Government of England by Major-Generals:  List of them and Summary of their Police-System:  Decimation Tax on the Royalists, and other Measures in terrorem:  Consolidation of the London Newspaper Press:  Proceedings of the Commission of Ejectors and of the Commission of Triers:  View of Cromwell’s Established Church of England, with Enumeration of its various Components:  Extent