In 1660, on this day Henry Cromwell was proclaimed the King of England upon the abdication of his elder brother Richard

The Royal House of Cromwell, Part 3 - Henry IX (1660-1688) by David AtwellKnown as Henry "The Wise", Henry IX was everything his father was & more. In doing so, he established the Henris Line of the Royal Family in the process of ruling Britain.

Prior to accepting the Throne, he was Governor-General to Ireland until rumours were heard that Charles Stuart was going to invade Britain. He immediately took over the Crown from his abdicating brother, Richard IV, rushed north with the New Model Army, the Corps of Welsh Guardsmen & his Irish Model Army, defeating Charles "The Pretender" in Scotland near Dunbar.

Charles escaped to France whilst his Scottish allies feared the retribution of Henry. Unlike his father Oliver I, however, Henry IX showed "Christian compassion to his wayward Scottish subjects". General Monck, though, an English turncoat was not as lucky & was executed for High Treason in 1661.

Following on from the "compassion" that Henry showed to the Scots, Henry followed his example of government policy in Ireland & established the policy of "Toleration" for all of Britain. Later in 1680, he defeated further attempts by the Stuarts (James Stuart this time) to retake the Throne of England & Scotland. In his final years, he transferred much power to Parliament in exchange for the Act of Union (1686), which established the United Kingdom of England, Scotland & Wales.

Ireland remained a separate political entity with its own Parliament & Governor-General. This arrangement would be successful & acted as a blueprint for future political arrangements throughout much of the future British Empire. Furthermore, Ireland would be somewhat independent & saw its own Parliament deal reasonably well in domestic matters, with little interference from the British Parliament at Westminster, or indeed by the various Cromwellian Monarchs.

The immediate result of Henry?s policy of "Toleration", however, witnessed two circumstances, which, even though appeared to offer little importance at the time, made in fact a major impact upon Britain & Ireland. The more immediate of the two permitted people to observe whichever religion that they wished to follow. This also included Catholicism, albeit with restrictions. The result was that much of the fuss involved with the English Civil Wars was negated overnight & the Stuarts found it harder to gain support, especially in Ireland.

The second circumstance, as a result of "Toleration", was protection given to the Jews. Although many of the general public still entertained anti-Semitic attitudes, many Jews, nevertheless, arrived in Britain to begin new lives under the protection of the Throne. These Jews soon established various businesses & flourished. They would become the cornerstone of the financial strength of the British economy over the next 25 years & contribute greatly to the development of the British Empire in the next century.