Oliver Cromwell dissolved Parliament ordering that they " Take away that bauble "

Cromwell became Lord Protector of the Commonwealth with a Council of State to advise him. Parliament was to meet at least once in three years and could not be dismissed until it had sat for five months. All rights of legislation and taxation were to be in its hands; but the Protector was to appoint the Executive, and was given a fixed revenue for national purposes.

Those who framed this Constitution were trying to divide the government between Protector and Parliament, but they failed. In the elections a hundred Republicans were returned, and Cromwell prevented these from attending Parliament. In spite of himself he was being forced to become as intolerant as Charles or Strafford had been; and as Parliament and he could not agree, he dismissed it at the end of five lunar months.