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Oliver Cromwell would like a word: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Civil_War https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Civil_War (There have been plenty
by pmyteh 8y ago
Oliver Cromwell would like a word: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Civil_War https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Civil_War
(There have been plenty of other revolutions and uprisings, though most were either elite coups or unsuccessful).
- pjc50 8y agoHe's half-right; Cromwell was not a popular uprising, and was so unpopular during his rule that the UK returned to monarchy afterwards. I think the crucial thing is that since the eras of Rights of Man and Human Rights we've not had enough of a catastrophe to completely ground-up rebuild the principles of government.
- pmyteh 8y agoNot primarily a popular uprising, but definitively a revolution and not a mere palace coup. The wars went on for many years, large numbers fought on both sides and there were significant social and political changes as a result. And yes, Cromwell as Lord Protector was not popular at the end. But then, neither was Charles I. We definitely avoided a ground -up rebuilding after the enlightenment, but I'm not entirely sure one is necessary, if you are willing to move incrementally rather than to try to enforce an ancien regime. In almost all senses Britain is an ordinary modern democracy, even if a new liberal order has been built on the back of the old.