17 Century Democratic England?

What if Cromwell dies before becoming Military dictator? Let's say they are able to beat back the monarchists. How does the world change with a Long Commonwealth.​
 
The Commonwealth was really more Fascist and fundamentalist Puritan then democratic. Reason it had a Rump Parliament.
 
The Commonwealth was really more Fascist and fundamentalist Puritan then democratic. Reason it had a Rump Parliament.

To elaborate, the "Parliament" that Cromwell dissolved was already the product of a military coup. After the second round of the ECW was over and King Charles was recaptured, many of the Army's leaders split with the Long Parliament over what to do with him: the prevailing opinion in the Army was that the King was incorrigible, and executing him and abolishing the monarchy was the only way to avoid endless civil war, but a majority in Parliament (including a number of outright Royalists who had sat in the Oxford Parliament during the war) wanted to try once more to negotiate a settlement.

The debate ended with Pride's Purge, where two Army regiments set up shop in from of the entrance of the House of Commons and turned away anyone they didn't consider reliable. In all, a bit more than half of the Long Parliament MPs got purged or walked out in protest. The remainder became known as the Rump Parliament.

Cromwell's dissolution of the Rump Parliament came five years later, after they'd gone back on an agreement to set a new constitution, dissolve, and hold new elections. Hence the best-remembered parts of Cromwell's speech: "You have sat too long for any good you have been doing lately" (13 years and counting since the last election, back before the first round of the Civil War) and "I say you are no Parliament" (asserting that the legitimate Parliament had ended with Pride's Purge). To his credit, Cromwell actually did (after a few false starts, most notably the Barebones Parliament) hold new elections under rules that were arguably the fairest and most democratic of any British parliamentary elections until after the Reform Acts.
 
Leveller elections

In OTL, the Grandees and the Levellers were quite seriously negotiating about the new constitution of England in December 1648, January 1649. It was only in the second half of February 1649 that the negotiations broke down, with publications of "New Chains" etc.

But suppose that the Grandees and Levellers do work out a compromise?

The terms worked out by mid-February and then dictated to the Rump. The Rump to pass the terms as Acts over end of February and start of March. Long Parliament dissolved in middle of March 1649. The Free Parliament meeting at end of April, start of May, 1649.

Considering the OTL negotiating proposals of Grandees and Levellers in January, start of February 1649, what could be the terms as to the franchise that they might agree on?

The election results would presumably be a surprise to both Grandees and Levellers. But what could they be?
 
Given what Monck did after the removal of Richard Cromwell, I can see him doing the same and replacing Cromwell as Lord Protector. He would keep the members of Parliament from going to far, and would I believe have proper (for the time) elections for a new parliment to replace the Rump / Long Parliament.
 
A better POD would be if Cromwell accepted most of the Humble Petition and Advice, leaving aside the monarchy and the abolition of the army.
 
What if Oliver Cromwell's son Oliver, who died from typhoid fever while serving as a military officer, survived? He was his father's selected heir, and by the accounts I've read, was much less of a pushover than Richard was. If Cromwell the Younger had managed to survive and take over after his father's death, that might have allowed the Commonwealth enough time to become a real, stable entity. That, in turn, would have eventually led to a truly democratic state, after the period of instability which required a dictator subsided.
 
Given what Monck did after the removal of Richard Cromwell, I can see him doing the same and replacing Cromwell as Lord Protector.
Monck fought for King 1642-1644, was captured and did time in Tower. It was only after 1646 that the Parliament released him and tried allowing him to fight, in Ireland at first. He did not command a major army till 1650 (when Cromwell left him to mop up Scotland).

Take Cromwell out before 1653. Who will be the major players on the Army side? Fleetwood? Lambert? (the OTL players in 1659). Who else?
 
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