12 Social divisions

The Levellers, Diggers, Fifth monarchists

Who were the levellers?

a radical group based in London who sought political, economic and social reform?

What caused the development of the leveller movement?

the economic distress caused by the civil war in a time of political and religious uncertainty

Who was one of the main leaders of the levellers?

John Lilburne

How did the levellers promote their ideas? (4)

petitions, processions, pamphlets, newspapers

What was the newspaper the levellers published their ideas in called?

The Moderate

How many pamphlets did the levellers produce between 1645 and 1649?

250

How did the levellers get the support of lower ranks of the NMA? (2)

they exploited their fears that their officers might sell them short when negotiating the heads of proposals with Charles, denounced the leading army officers

When did new soldiers representatives with links to the levellers appear in some regiments of the NMA?

October 1647

What was the leveller pamphlet which circulated within the army called?

The Case of the Army Truly Stated

What was in the pamphlet, 'The Case of the Army Truly Stated'?

attacked the NMA leadership for continuing to try to negotiate a settlement with Charles

What was the Levellers' written manifesto which worried NMA leaders called?

the Agreement of the People

What were the two conferences that the NMA leaders had with the levellers?

Putney debates and Whitehall debates

When were the Putney debates?

October and November 1647

What did the Putney debates focus on?

the levellers' idea for the extension of the franchise

What was the franchise?

Those with the right to vote

What did the levellers believe about the franchise?

it should be extended so that all men could vote

When was the first Agreement of the People?

October 1647

What were the main proposals in the Agreement of the People? (3)

MPs should be elected in proportion of the population of their constituencies, parliaments should be elected biennially, parliament should consist of one chamber or house

What did the levellers achieve in the short term at the Putney debates?

succeeded in emphasising to Ireton that he needed to keep their demands in mind when negotiating with parliament and the king

How was the fact that the Putney debates had been held revolutionary?

in the 1630s, such civilian groups would not have been heard of considered by those with political power

When did the Putney Debates end?

5 November 1647

Why did the Putney Debates end?

there was a clash between Ireton and leveller sympathiser Rainsborough over the army leaders' attempts to settle with Charles

What event undermined everything that Ireton and Cromwell had argued for at the Putney debates?

Charles' escape from Hampton court

How did Cromwell and Ireton reinforce their power over the NMA?

payment to the troops at the outbreak of the second civil war

How successful was the Levellers' influence on army leaders?

influence was limited and was overall not successful

When were the Whitehall debates?

December 1648 - January 1649

What was the levellers demand at the Whitehall debates?

they wanted the first Agreement of the People to form a new constitutional framework after the regicide

When was the levellers' second Agreement of the People created?

December 1648

When was the Officers' Agreement created?

20 January 1649

How did the levellers' second Agreement of the People and the Officer's Agreement differ? (2)

differed on the extent of religious freedom that should be allowed, levellers denounced the Rump Parliament

When were the levellers arrested?

March 1649

When was the Levellers Third Agreement?

1649

What was in the Levellers Third Agreement?

an attempt to inspire army mutiny

When was the leveller campaign effectively over?

September 1649

Who created the Diggers?

Gerrard Winstanley

What was the leveller movement in reaction to?

the upheaval of the years 1647 - 48

When was the Digger movement most prominent?

1649

What did the Diggers see as a solution to social inequalities?

communes

How influential was the Digger movement?

had limited influence

What were the Diggers' beliefs about equality?

believed in total social and political equality

What did the Diggers refer to themselves as?

the 'True Levellers'

What was the first Digger pamphlet called?

The True Levellers' Standard Advanced

How long did the Digger commune last?

only a year

Where was the Digger commune?

outside London

Who destroyed the Digger commune?

troops led by Fairfax

What were the Diggers' central ideas? (4)

direct action, communism, liberation technology, environmentalism

In what way were the Diggers communist?

through the establishment of communes (example of communism in action)

What was the Diggers' liberation theology?

wanted to eliminate poverty and injustice

How were the Diggers the forerunners of the environmentalism movement? (2)

through the establishment of communes and the idea of living in harmony with nature

When did a group of Diggers occupy waste ground at St George's Hill?

March 1649

Where did the Diggers occupy waste ground in March 1649?

St George's Hill

Who led the Diggers in occupying waste ground at St George's Hill in March 1649?

William Everard

Why did the Diggers ultimately fail in occupying waste ground at St George's Hill?

was due to the hostility of those who owned the land

How long did the Digger community at St George's Hill last?

about a year

What was Millenarianism?

a key strand in English Puritanism

Who were the Fifth Monarchists?

a more formal emergence of millenarianism

When did the Fifth Monarchists originate?

1650

Where was the influence of the Fifth Monarchists most significant?

in the troops of the NMA

Who was a key Millenarian?

Colonel Thomas Harrison