Course:History 344 Nasty Families/Warfare/The New Model Army

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The New Model Army

The New Model Army was formed by Parliament for the protection of the English Citizens, minus Catholics, against the Royalist Army. The King was being fought for many reasons, some having to do with religion and his lack of regard for parliament. However this article is not about the Royalists or the causes of the wars, its about the New Model Army and its importance.

The New Model Army was created after a few major losses to the Royalist Army, mainly due to the frustrations that those leading the Parliamentarian troops had little experience and some were just bad at what they did. The New Model Army was formed from “22,000 men, besides officers: 14,400 foot, 1,000 dragoons and 6,600horse”[1] which is quite a fair number of people just to start off with. The training of this Army was to be by only experienced and skilled commanders with military experience, this is possibly the most important part to the New Model Army.

This important part of the New Model Army was called the Self-Denying Ordinance which made it a statement that Lords and other Office holders could not be commanders and officers in this army. “The Self-Denying Ordinance of 1644, by excluding aristocratic officers . . . established an officer corps based upon competence rather than birth”[2] this was basically the first time that skill had more influence than money status did in the military. Currently this type of system where skill is most important is expected in our military, but during the 1640s this caused a lot of anger as lords expected to have high positions in the army.

As for who supported the New Model Army it was as one would figure, “the common people – both the ‘middling sort’ and those without property” [3]. Another large group that would end up supporting and joining this new army was the Puritans, and their main reason was simply due to the Catholics being on the Royalist side.

References:

  1. ↑ Gentles, Ian. The English Revolution and the Wars in the Three Kingdoms 1638-1652. Great Britain: Pearson Education Limited, 2007. 251.
  2. ↑ Manning, Roger B. “Styles of Command in Seventeenth-Century English Armies”, Journal of Military History 71, no. 3 (2007): 682. Accessed on February 10, 2012. URL: http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/ehost/detail?vid=4&hid=110&sid=54ad1d4d-6c71-4d78-b060-b9d19daeea9e%40sessionmgr10&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN.
  3. ↑ Gentles, The English Revolution, 128.
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