Self-denying Ordinance
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| Self-denying Ordinance | |
|---|---|
 Sodacan · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source | |
| Name | Self-denying Ordinance |
| Enacted | 1645 |
| Enactment by | Long Parliament |
| Repealed | 1649 (de facto) |
| Jurisdiction | Kingdom of England |
| Related legislation | Militia Ordinance 1642, Ordinance for the Trial of Charles I, New Model Army |
Self-denying Ordinance The Self-denying Ordinance was a 1645 measure passed by the Long Parliament during the English Civil War that required members of the House of Commons and the House of Lords to resign military commissions, reshaping the command of the Parliamentarian New Model Army and affecting leading figures such as Oliver Cromwell, Thomas Fairfax, Sir William Waller, Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex, and Philip Skippon. The measure intersected with debates involving the Army Committee, the Committee of Both Kingdoms, and political factions including the Independents and the Presbyterians, influencing subsequent events like the Battle of Naseby and the rise of the New Model Army as a political force.
Background and Origins
Political and military exigencies in the mid-1640s brought together crises involving the Bishops' Wars, the Irish Rebellion of 1641, and the mobilization conflicts around the Militia Ordinance 1642 and the Commissions of Array. Leading commanders such as Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex and William Waller had varying fortunes against Royalist commanders like Prince Rupert of the Rhine, King Charles I, and Lord Goring, prompting pressure from parliamentary leaders including John Pym, Denzil Holles, Henry Vane the Younger, and Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester to professionalize command. Debates in the Long Parliament and interactions with the Scottish Covenanters and the Committee of Both Kingdoms produced proposals to separate civil and military office, influenced by pamphleteers such as John Lilburne and polemicists like William Prynne.
Text and Provisions
The ordinance's formal wording instructed that members of both houses holding military commissions should resign those commissions within a specified time, leading to resignations of several peers and MPs; hardline passages echoed language debated by the Army Committee, Sir Thomas Fairfax, and lawyers convened by the House of Commons. It provided no absolute ban on future appointments but required relinquishment of active commissions unless retained by explicit parliamentary exception, affecting officers such as Oliver Cromwell—who obtained a special allowance—and Sir Thomas Fairfax—who emerged as commander of the reorganized forces. Legal framings drew on precedents from the English constitution debates, touches of Common Law reasoning, and parliamentary procedure shaped by figures like Henry Ireton and Bulstrode Whitelocke.
Political Context and Debates
Supporters included the Presbyterian majority in the Long Parliament, the parliamentary leadership around John Pym, and moderates anxious about aristocratic private armies; opponents comprised sections of the Independents, radical officers in the New Model Army, and some Royalist sympathizers who feared consolidation of power. Controversy involved tactical considerations before engagements such as the Siege of Oxford and strategic concerns debated alongside the Solemn League and Covenant and the alliance with the Scottish Covenanters. Key interlocutors included Oliver Cromwell, Thomas Fairfax, Henry Ireton, Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester, and parliamentary orators like Denzil Holles and William Strode.
Implementation and Enforcement
Parliament moved to enforce resignations through committees including the Committee of Both Kingdoms and the Army Committee, with enforcement actions coordinated by clerks and marshals under direction from the Long Parliament and liaison with Scottish commissioners such as Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven. Some officers complied, while others—most notably Oliver Cromwell—were reappointed in different capacities following petitions from figures like Sir Thomas Fairfax and endorsements by the Council of War. Administrative details involved returns recorded by parliamentary clerks, orders transmitted from Westminster to field commanders like Philip Skippon and Robert Blake, and logistical adjustments implemented in the reorganized New Model Army.
Consequences and Impact
Short-term effects included consolidation of professional command in the New Model Army, contributing to victories at battles including Naseby, Langport, and operations around Worcester and Taunton. The ordinance altered patronage networks that had supported commanders such as Essex and Waller, accelerating the decline of regional factionalism represented by the Eastern Association and the County committees. Politically, it intensified tensions between Parliament and the army leadership, feeding into later crises like the Putney Debates and the trial and execution sequences leading to the Regicide of Charles I and the establishment of the Commonwealth of England.
Historical Assessments and Legacy
Historians and commentators including S. R. Gardiner, C. V. Wedgwood, Christopher Hill, John Morrill, and David Underdown have debated whether the ordinance was a principled reform to curb conflicts of interest or a political maneuver that empowered military radicals. It has been reassessed in studies connecting parliamentary reform to later constitutional developments such as the Instrument of Government and the transformation of officeholding practices observed in the Restoration of 1660. The ordinance's legacy appears in discussions of civil-military relations involving institutions like the Long Parliament, the New Model Army, and later models in European states influenced by the English Revolution and early modern constitutional change.