“The world turned upside down”, explain how much you think Britain underwent a revolution in the period 1642 to 1660

After the execution of Charles I, things in radically changed. With no monarch, England had now become a republic called the Commonwealth, something the people of England had never experienced. This left many people frightened due to the extreme change, however, some embraced their freedom and began doing in what they believed in, such as forming new religious groups/cults, something they had been unable to do in the past. Many historians believe that this period was very important in British history as for the first time a monarchy was not in charge and a ‘revolution’ had taken place. In this essay I will explain why Britain underwent a revolution.
Firstly, the most important change was the absence of the monarchy. After Charles I’s execution, there was no monarchy and Cromwell and the army took control over England. Also, the Rump parliament had been dismissed when Cromwell had enough of their control. This left poor stability in England, as without a leader, people didn’t know who to listen to. Cromwell became Lord Protector and didn’t rule like a usual monarch. Firstly, he rejected the crown as he didn’t believe in monarchies, Jews (which had been expelled in the 1200’s) were allowed back into England and finally, although a strict Puritan, he was tolerant to many new groups and the beliefs of others e.g. the Quakers. This showed how much Britain itself had changed, people believed in what they wanted and ordinary people felt free united republic, showing there was no real revolution as it ended so quickly. Also, there was still persecution and hatred towards different beliefs. The Diggers, who believed that all land was equal and must be shared, were suppressed. Additionally, many Levellers were imprisoned and killed and the Ranters, who believed that they could do ‘no wrong’ were thought to be made up. This shows that the ‘revolution’ was not very different to the rule of a monarch and that
In conclusion,