a parliamentarian commander in the Civil War, best known as one of the Regicides of King Charles I and as the instigator of "Pride's Purge". At the beginning of the Civil War he served as a captain in the New Model Army under Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex and was eventually promoted to the rank of colonel. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Preston in 1648 and with his regiment took part in the military occupation of London in December 1648, which was the first step towards bringing to trial of King Charles I (1625-1649).
