Cromwell's Panegyrick is a printed English broadside ballad composed in 1647. Copies of it are in collections including the British Library, Society of Antiquaries, The National Archives, Huntington Library, and the National Library of Scotland.[1] Online facsimiles of the ballad are available online for public consumption.[2] Though the ballad's title claims to be a panegyric (a poem praising Cromwell for his military and political accomplishments), it quickly becomes a mock-panegyric, taking the theme of praise and turning it on its head. In this way, the ballad becomes more of a satire as opposed to a true panegyric. For instance, though it describes in part Cromwell's role in the Second English Civil War, which broke out officially in 1648,[3] it also mentions how large and bulbous Cromwell's nose was: "Well may his Nose, that is dominicall, / Take pepper int." The ballad undercuts all of Cromwell's accomplishments in the military, and goes so far as to claim – as many did of Cromwell in the 1640s and 50s[4] – that he was an individual motivated purely by a desire for power and kingship, thus painting him in a Machiavellian light.
As stated above, this ballad is a mock-panegyric and takes themes of praise and turns them into insults. While the ballad's first line teases a glorification of Cromwell, "Shall Presbyterian bells ring Cromwels praise", we can see that the ballad ends with Cromwell not only dead, but buried with no headstone, which in early modern England indicated that the person in question either lacked the funds to afford a headstone or was of such ill-repute that he was deemed unworthy of such a posthumous marker: "And on his Grave since there must be no Stone, / Shall stand this Epitaph; That he has none."
^English Short Title Catalogue. "Cromwells Panegyrick". estc.bl.uk. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
^EBBA. "Album Facsimile of Cromwell's Panegyrick". ebba.english.ucsb.edu. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
^Gentles, Ian (2011). Oliver Cromwell: God's Warrior and the English Revolution (British History in Perspective). Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 130–135. ISBN978-0333688977.
^John Morrill, (1990). "The Making of Oliver Cromwell", in Morrill, ed., Oliver Cromwell and the English Revolution (Longman), ISBN0-582-01675-4, p. 263-264
Further readingedit
Weisner-Hanks, Marry E. (2013). Early Modern Europe, 1450-1789 (Cambridge History of Europe). Cambridge University Press. ISBN978-1107643574.
Hill, Christopher (1997). God's Englishman: Oliver Cromwell. Penguin Books. ISBN0140137114.
Cunningham, John (2010). "Oliver Cromwell and the 'Cromwellian' Settlement of Ireland". The Historical Journal. 53 (4). Cambridge University Press: 919–937. doi:10.1017/s0018246x10000427. JSTOR 40930363. S2CID 159495632.
cromwell, panegyrick, printed, english, broadside, ballad, composed, 1647, copies, collections, including, british, library, society, antiquaries, national, archives, huntington, library, national, library, scotland, online, facsimiles, ballad, available, onli. Cromwell s Panegyrick is a printed English broadside ballad composed in 1647 Copies of it are in collections including the British Library Society of Antiquaries The National Archives Huntington Library and the National Library of Scotland 1 Online facsimiles of the ballad are available online for public consumption 2 Though the ballad s title claims to be a panegyric a poem praising Cromwell for his military and political accomplishments it quickly becomes a mock panegyric taking the theme of praise and turning it on its head In this way the ballad becomes more of a satire as opposed to a true panegyric For instance though it describes in part Cromwell s role in the Second English Civil War which broke out officially in 1648 3 it also mentions how large and bulbous Cromwell s nose was Well may his Nose that is dominicall Take pepper int The ballad undercuts all of Cromwell s accomplishments in the military and goes so far as to claim as many did of Cromwell in the 1640s and 50s 4 that he was an individual motivated purely by a desire for power and kingship thus painting him in a Machiavellian light Contents 1 Synopsis 2 Form 3 References 4 Further reading 5 External linksSynopsis editAs stated above this ballad is a mock panegyric and takes themes of praise and turns them into insults While the ballad s first line teases a glorification of Cromwell Shall Presbyterian bells ring Cromwels praise we can see that the ballad ends with Cromwell not only dead but buried with no headstone which in early modern England indicated that the person in question either lacked the funds to afford a headstone or was of such ill repute that he was deemed unworthy of such a posthumous marker And on his Grave since there must be no Stone Shall stand this Epitaph That he has none Form editThe ballad consists of two long stanzas of rhyming couplets and is in primarily iambic pentameter References edit English Short Title Catalogue Cromwells Panegyrick estc bl uk Retrieved 12 September 2014 EBBA Album Facsimile of Cromwell s Panegyrick ebba english ucsb edu Retrieved 12 September 2014 Gentles Ian 2011 Oliver Cromwell God s Warrior and the English Revolution British History in Perspective Palgrave Macmillan pp 130 135 ISBN 978 0333688977 John Morrill 1990 The Making of Oliver Cromwell in Morrill ed Oliver Cromwell and the English Revolution Longman ISBN 0 582 01675 4 p 263 264Further reading editWeisner Hanks Marry E 2013 Early Modern Europe 1450 1789 Cambridge History of Europe Cambridge University Press ISBN 978 1107643574 Hill Christopher 1997 God s Englishman Oliver Cromwell Penguin Books ISBN 0140137114 Cunningham John 2010 Oliver Cromwell and the Cromwellian Settlement of Ireland The Historical Journal 53 4 Cambridge University Press 919 937 doi 10 1017 s0018246x10000427 JSTOR 40930363 S2CID 159495632 External links editText transcription of the English broadside ballad Cromwells Panegyrick at the English Broadside Ballad Archive of UC Santa Barbara Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Cromwell 27s Panegyrick amp oldid 1140082609, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
