Engagers

The Engagers in Scottish history were a moderate faction of the Covenanter movement, who ruled Scotland during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. The Covenanters had fought on the side of the English Parliament in the first English Civil War, but after the Parliament's victory they feared being sidelined - especially by the more radical "independent" faction that had come to the fore in England, under Oliver Cromwell. As a result, they signed a secret treaty with Charles I in 1647, known as the engagement which promised that Charles would support the establishment of Presbyterianism in return for a military alliance. The Engagers sent an army to England to try and enfore this deal, but were routed by Cromwell at the battle of Preston in 1648. This defeat discredited the Engager party. The more radical Covenanters, known as the Kirk Party, insisted that any future deal with the King or other would have to include the public endorsment of their demands and not the secret promise of concessions in the future. Charles agreed to their demands in the Treaty of Breda (1650), but his defeat at the hands of Oliver Cromwell negated any agreements he had made with the Covenanters.

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Covenanter: The Covenanters were a radical Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland, and to a lesser extent in that of England, during the 17th century....

Scotland: :For other uses, see Scotland (disambiguation). See also British Isles (terminology)....

Wars of the Three Kingdoms: The Wars of the Three Kingdoms were an intertwined series of conflicts that took place in Scotland, Ireland, and England between 1639 and 1651 at a time when these countries had come under the personal rule of the same monarch, also called English Civil War. The wars were the outcome of tensions be...