Event organised in association with the college History society

Oliver Cromwell’s remarkable career coincided with the lives of two of England’s greatest poets: John Milton and Andrew Marvell. This talk will compare and contrast how these two poets perceived Cromwell during the revolutionary events of the 1640s and 1640s. Dr Smith will trace how Milton’s initial admiration for Cromwell gradually gave way to disillusionment and resentment, and conversely how Marvell’s early suspicions of Cromwell were steadily replaced by respect and even admiration. Extracts from the works of both writers will be examined throughout.

About Dr David Smith

Dr David L. Smith has been a Fellow of Selwyn College since 1988, and a College Associate Professor since 2024. He became a Director of Studies in History in 1992, and a Postgraduate Tutor in 2004. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society in 1992, and he has been an Affiliated Lecturer in the Cambridge History Faculty since 1995. Most recently, he was elected the vice-president of the Cromwell Association.

His books include Constitutional Royalism and the Search for Settlement, c. 1640-1649 (1994), A History of the Modern British Isles, 1603-1707: The Double Crown (1998), The Stuart Parliaments, 1603-1689 (1999), and (with Patrick Little) Parliaments and Politics during the Cromwellian Protectorate (2007). He has also co-edited two series of A-level textbooks for Cambridge University Press.

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Livestream

You can watch the livestream on our YouTube channel. Click the video above to visit the livestream page. You will not need to book a ticket for this.

Location and timing details

The event takes place at the Quarry Whitehouse Auditorium, Selwyn College, Grange Road, CB3 9DQ. It is pictured below, as seen from above from Grange Road.

The Quarry Whitehouse Auditorium is located on the corner of West Road and Grange Road and can be accessed via the gate to Ann’s Court on Grange Road. The Auditorium will be signposted —  but the Selwyn College Porters, located in the Lodge by the main entrance, will be more than happy to help direct you if you have trouble finding the auditorium.

Doors will open at 5:45pm. Please be seated by 5:55pm as the event will start promptly at 6:00pm. We expect to finish by 7:00pm at the latest.

If you are arriving by bike, you may lock your bicycles on the railings by the Quarry Whitehouse Auditorium.

Please note that photographs will be taken during this event and the audience may be visible at certain points on the livestream.