Penruddock uprising

Penruddock Uprising
Colonel John Penruddock
Date 11 to 14 March 1655 Location West Country Result Government victory
Belligerents
Commonwealth of England	Royalists
Commanders and leaders
Captain Unton Croke	Colonel John Penruddock; Sir Joseph Wagstaffe
Strength
60	300 to 400
Casualties and losses
8 wounded	Minimal [1]

The Penruddock Uprising was a Royalist revolt launched on 11 March 1655, intending to restore Charles II to the throne of England. It was led by John Penruddock, a Wiltshire landowner who fought for Charles I in the First English Civil War; intended as one of a number of co-ordinated risings, the others failed to take place and it was easily suppressed.

Often described as planned by the Sealed Knot, a small group of senior Royalist conspirators, the organisers actually belonged to a loose network sometimes referred to as the 'Action Party'.^[2] They counted on support from Presbyterian opponents of the Protectorate, disillusioned Leveller radicals and disaffected elements within the New Model Army, including its former commander Thomas Fairfax. These hopes proved unfounded, while the Protectorate was aware of the preparations well in advance.

A series of uprisings was planned throughout England on 8 March, most of which failed to take place. Three days later, Penruddock and Joseph Wagstaffe attacked Salisbury but without support elsewhere retreated into North Devon. On 14 March, a troop of New Model cavalry under Captain Unton Croke attacked the rebels in South Molton, and they quickly surrendered.

Despite its failure, the Rising demonstrated the lack of support for the Protectorate and its reliance on the army. Although Penruddock and 11 others were executed, the majority received minimal punishment, while senior legal officers argued they were not guilty of treason, since it only applied to acts against the king. Shortly after Cromwell instituted the Rule of the Major-Generals, which dramatically increased the unpopularity of the regime.