35.
OLIVER CROMWELL.
Born 1599. Lord Protector 1653. Died 1658.
By CLARENDON.
Crumwell (though the greatest Dissembler livinge) alwayes made his hypocrisy of singular use and benefitt to him, and never did any thinge, how ungratious or imprudent soever it seemed to be, but what was necessary to the designe; even his roughnesse and unpolishednesse which in the beginninge of the Parliament he affected, contrary to the smoothnesse and complacency which his Cozen and bosome frende M’r Hambden practiced towards all men, was necessary, and his first publique declaration in the beginninge of the Warr, to his troope when it was first mustered,—that he would not deceave or cozen them by the perplexed and involved exspressions in his Commissyon to fight for Kinge and Parliament, and therfore told them that if the Kinge chanced to be in the body of the enimy that he was to charge, he woulde as soone discharge his pistoll upon him, as at any other private person, and if ther conscience would not permitt them to do the like, he advized them not to list themselves in his troope or under his commaunde,—which was generally looked upon, as imprudent and malicious, and might by the professyons the Parliament then made, have prooved daungerous to him, yett served his turne, and severed and united all the furious and incensed men against the goverment, whether Ecclesiasticall or Civill, to looke upon him as a man for ther turne, and upon whome they might depende, as one who would go through his worke that he undertooke; and his stricte and unsociable humour in not keepinge company with the other officers of the Army in ther jollityes and excesses, to which most of the superiour officers under the Earle of Essex were inclined, and by which he often made himselfe ridiculous or contemptible, drew all those of the like sowre or reserved natures to his society and conversation, and gave him opportunity to forme ther understandings, inclinations, and resolutions to his owne modell; and by this he grew to have a wounderfull interest in the Common souldyers, out of which, as his authority increased, he made all