The alliance between the English and Scottish opposition to Charles I, agreed in the Solemn League and Covenant of 1643, had broken down in the aftermath of the First English Civil War, when a group known as the 'Engagers' turned away from the increasingly radical English Parliamentarians to join Charles I. After the King was executed in January 1649, Charles II claimed the throne for himself, and sought to win disaffected Scots, angry at the way Presbyterianism was being sidelined in the English Commonwealth, to his cause. In the Treaty of Breda, Charles II agreed to swear the Oath of the Covenant to secure their support. In August 1651, therefore, Charles invaded England with a Scottish army. They failed to stir up the popular Royalist sentiment they had anticipated, and the campaign…
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