The Prince of Wales

[Rhyfelwyr]

Cromwell and the Commonwealth is not discussed much here. You mostly hear about him in Ireland, where obviously he is hated. On the other hand, there aren't really many English nationalists to defend him, since Puritanism and the associated political movements imploded in such a short space of time... they aren't part of the English national identity, unlike in Scotland where it is important, at least to some people. They don't really teach you about that period of history much, I hadn't even heard of the Covenanters until a couple of years ago, which on reflection beggars belief since they play such a pivotal role in so many aspects of the nations history... I think they don't teach us about it because it could worsen sectarianism etc, its easier to pretend it didn't exist and that Scotland has no history after William Wallace.

But back to Cromwell... I like to defend him because few other people do, even when some do they are modern English folk who focus purely on the political side of things.

Oh, and the thing with the Jews was due to end time prophecies, nobody would have suggested that England would be the New Jerusalem after the whole Anabaptist episode with that, but Cromwell did believe in starting to bring ethnic Israel together again.

[Adrian II]

I think they don't teach us about it because it could worsen sectarianism etc, its easier to pretend it didn't exist and that Scotland has no history after William Wallace.

I do hope they pick up five centuries later and teach you about the Scottish Enlightenment though. I mean, there was no English Enlightenment, it was almost purely Scottish, wasn't it? And there must be a connection with Puritanism...

[Rhyfelwyr]

I do hope they pick up five centuries later and teach you about the Scottish Enlightenment though. I mean, there was no English Enlightenment, it was almost purely Scottish, wasn't it? And there must be a connection with Puritanism...

I see you've still been following stuff here in your absence, its a while since I commented on that.

Look, I do not have a nationalist bone in my body, but... the fact is that there was an Enlightenment which was based heavily in Scotland, and one which bore a lot of fruit in proportion to other states at the time. Why it should happen in a poor backward country is hard to tell, but it did.

And yes, I think there is going to be a connection with religion, just as all the other factors working in society at the time will have played a role in shaping the nature and success of the Enlightenment.