Pride's Purge
House of Commons, Houses of Pa
Pride's Purge is the name commonly given to an event that took place on 6 December 1648, when soldiers prevented members of Parliament considered hostile to the New Model Army from entering the House of Commons of England. Despite defeat in the First English Civil War, Charles I retained significant political power. This allowed him to create an alliance with Scots Covenanters and Parliamentarian moderates to restore him to the English throne. The result was the 1648 Second English Civil War, in which he was defeated once again. Convinced only his removal could end the conflict, senior commanders of the New Model Army took control of London on 5 December. Next day, soldiers commanded by Colonel Thomas Pride forcibly excluded from the Long Parliament those MPs viewed as their opponents, and arrested 45. The purge cleared the way for the execution of Charles in January 1649, and establishment of the Protectorate in 1653; it is considered the only recorded military coup d'état in English history.
