1657
Events
January–March
* January 8 – Miles Sindercombe and his group of disaffected Levellers are betrayed, in their attempt to assassinate Oliver Cromwell, by blowing up the Palace of Whitehall in London, and arrested.
* Febru ...
in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
Incumbents
*
Lord Protector
Lord Protector (plural: ''Lords Protector'') was a title that has been used in British constitutional law for the head of state. It was also a particular title for the British heads of state in respect to the established church. It was sometimes ...
–
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
*
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
Miles Sindercombe
Miles Sindercombe (died 13 February 1657) was the leader of a group that tried to assassinate Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell during the period of the Protectorate in 1657.
Early military career
Sindercombe was born in Kent and was apprenticed to ...
and his group of disaffected
Levellers
The Levellers were a political movement active during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms who were committed to popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law and religious tolerance. The hallmark of Leveller thought was its populis ...
are betrayed in their attempt to assassinate
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
by blowing up the
Palace of Whitehall
The Palace of Whitehall (also spelt White Hall) at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures, except notably Inigo Jones's Banqueting House of 1622, were destroyed by fire. H ...
in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
and arrested.
* 4 February –
resettlement of the Jews in England
The resettlement of the Jews in England was an informal arrangement during the Commonwealth of England in the mid-1650s, which allowed Jews to practise their faith openly. It forms a prominent part of the history of the Jews in England. It h ...
:
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
gives
Antonio Fernandez Carvajal
Antonio Fernandez Carvajal (c. 1590November 10, 1659)—in pt, António Fernandes Carvalhal—was a Portuguese-Jewish merchant, who became the first endenizened English Jew. Carvajal and Simon de Caceres, together with other prominent members ...
the assurance of the right of Jews to remain in England. This year the country's first Jewish cemetery in modern times is opened in London.
* 23 February –
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
is offered the Crown by the ''
Humble Petition and Advice
The Humble Petition and Advice was the second and last codified constitution of England after the Instrument of Government.
On 23 February 1657, during a sitting of the Second Protectorate Parliament, Sir Christopher Packe (politician), Christop ...
''.
* 13 March –
Anglo-Spanish War (1654–1660)
The Anglo-Spanish War was a conflict between the English Protectorate under Oliver Cromwell, and Spain, between 1654 and 1660. It was caused by commercial rivalry. Each side attacked the other's commercial and colonial interests in various wa ...
: With the Treaty of Paris,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and England form an alliance against
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
Spanish treasure fleet
The Spanish treasure fleet, or West Indies Fleet ( es, Flota de Indias, also called silver fleet or plate fleet; from the es, label=Spanish, plata meaning "silver"), was a convoy system of sea routes organized by the Spanish Empire from 1566 to ...
under heavy fire at
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz de Tenerife, commonly abbreviated as Santa Cruz (), is a city, the capital of the island of Tenerife, Province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and capital of the Canary Islands. Santa Cruz has a population of 206,593 (2013) within its admi ...
.
* 8 May – Cromwell formally rejects the offer to become King.
* 9 June – act establishes the office of
Postmaster General
A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. The practice of having a government official respons ...
.
* 17 August – Admiral Blake dies of old wounds at sea off
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
Queen's House
Queen's House is a former royal residence built between 1616 and 1635 near Greenwich Palace, a few miles down-river from the City of London and now in the London Borough of Greenwich. It presently forms a central focus of what is now the Old Ro ...
,
Greenwich
Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross.
Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...
and a full
state funeral
A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of Etiquette, protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive ...
in Cromwell's presence, and he becomes one of the first commoners to be honoured by burial in
Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...
(although reinterred after the Restoration).
* 26 June
** Cromwell is installed as
Lord Protector
Lord Protector (plural: ''Lords Protector'') was a title that has been used in British constitutional law for the head of state. It was also a particular title for the British heads of state in respect to the established church. It was sometimes ...
for the second time at a ceremony at
Westminster
Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster.
The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...
.
** Parliament reinforces the "Oath of
Abjuration
Abjuration is the solemn repudiation, abandonment, or renunciation by or upon oath, often the renunciation of citizenship or some other right or privilege. The term comes from the Latin ''abjurare'', "to forswear".
Abjuration of the realm
Abj ...
": anyone refusing to swear an oath to renounce the
Pope
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
's supremacy is to be "adjudged a
Papist
The words Popery (adjective Popish) and Papism (adjective Papist, also used to refer to an individual) are mainly historical pejorative words in the English language for Roman Catholicism, once frequently used by Protestants and Eastern Orthodox ...
" and suffer confiscation of two-thirds of their property.
* 13 July – following his refusal to take the oath of allegiance to
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
, English army leader
John Lambert John Lambert may refer to:
*John Lambert (martyr) (died 1538), English Protestant martyred during the reign of Henry VIII
*John Lambert (general) (1619–1684), Parliamentary general in the English Civil War
* John Lambert of Creg Clare (''fl.'' c. ...
is ordered to resign his commissions.
* Undated – England's first chocolate house is opened in London, together with the
Rainbow Coffee House
The Rainbow Coffee House was a famous coffee house located at 15 Fleet Street, London. It was opened by James Farr in 1657, becoming London's second coffee house.
The Rainbow provided a meeting place for freemasons and French refugee Huguenots wh ...
, the city's second such establishment; while tobacconist and coffee house owner Thomas Garway is the first person to introduce tea in England.
Publications
*
Thomas Middleton
Thomas Middleton (baptised 18 April 1580 – July 1627; also spelt ''Midleton'') was an English Jacobean playwright and poet. He, with John Fletcher and Ben Jonson, was among the most successful and prolific of playwrights at work in the Jac ...
's tragedy ''
Women Beware Women
''Women Beware Women'' is a Jacobean tragedy written by Thomas Middleton, and first published in 1657.
Date
The date of authorship of the play is deeply uncertain. Scholars have estimated its origin anywhere from 1612 to 1627; 1623–24 has be ...
'' (posthumous).
Births
* 26 January –
William Wake
William Wake (26 January 165724 January 1737) was a priest in the Church of England and Archbishop of Canterbury from 1716 until his death in 1737.
Life
Wake was born in Blandford Forum, Dorset, and educated at Christ Church, Oxford. He took ...
,
Archbishop of Canterbury
The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...
James Craggs the Elder
James Craggs the Elder (1657 – 16 March 1721), of Jermyn Street, Westminster and Charlton, Lewisham, Kent, was an English financier and Whig politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1702 to 1713.
Life
Craggs was ba ...
, politician (died 1721)
* 26 November –
William Derham
William Derham FRS (26 November 16575 April 1735)Smolenaars, Marja.Derham, William (1657–1735), ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004. Accessed 26 May 2007. was an English clergyman, natural theologian, na ...
, minister and writer (died 1735)
* 14 December – Edmund Dunch, Member of Parliament (died 1719)
* ''approx. date''
**
Charles FitzCharles, 1st Earl of Plymouth
Charles FitzCharles, 1st Earl of Plymouth (1657 – 17 October 1680) was the illegitimate son of King Charles II of England, by Catherine Pegge. He had a sister called Catherine FitzCharles who is believed to have become a nun. His mother went o ...
, Royal bastard (died on active service 1680)
**
Elizabeth Villiers
{{Infobox noble
, name = Elizabeth Hamilton
, title = Countess of Orkney
, image = Elizbeth Villiers.jpg
, caption = Elizabeth Villiers
, alt =
, CoA =
, more ...
, Royal mistress (died 1733)
Deaths
* 13 February –
Miles Sindercombe
Miles Sindercombe (died 13 February 1657) was the leader of a group that tried to assassinate Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell during the period of the Protectorate in 1657.
Early military career
Sindercombe was born in Kent and was apprenticed to ...
, failed assassin of
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
(year of birth unknown) (suicide by poisoning while awaiting execution)
* ? April – Richard Lovelace, Cavalier poet (born 1617)
* May – George Radcliffe, politician (born 1599)
* 3 June –
William Harvey
William Harvey (1 April 1578 – 3 June 1657) was an English physician who made influential contributions in anatomy and physiology. He was the first known physician to describe completely, and in detail, the systemic circulation and proper ...
, physician (born 1578)
* 17 August –
Robert Blake Robert Blake may refer to:
Sportspeople
* Bob Blake (American football) (1885–1962), American football player
* Robbie Blake (born 1976), English footballer
* Bob Blake (ice hockey) (1914–2008), American ice hockey player
* Rob Blake (born 19 ...
, admiral (born 1598)
* 29 August –
John Lilburne
John Lilburne (c. 161429 August 1657), also known as Freeborn John, was an English people, English political Leveller before, during and after the English Civil Wars 1642–1650. He coined the term "''freeborn, freeborn rights''", defining them ...
, dissenter (born c. 1614)
* November – John French, physician and chemist (born c. 1616)
* 20 November –
Sir Hugh Cholmeley, 1st Baronet
Sir Hugh Cholmeley, 1st Baronet (22 July 1600 – 20 November 1657) was an English landowner and Member of Parliament who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1624 and 1643. He was initially a Parliamentarian but later a Royalist ...
, Member of Parliament (born 1600)
* 5 December – drowned in shipwreck on the
Goodwin Sands
Goodwin Sands is a sandbank at the southern end of the North Sea lying off the Deal coast in Kent, England. The area consists of a layer of approximately depth of fine sand resting on an Upper Chalk platform belonging to the same geologi ...