Charles Worsley

For the English cricketer, see Charles Worsley (cricketer).

Major General Charles Worsley
File:Major-General Charles Worsley (1622-1656).jpg Major-General Charles Worsley (1622–1656)
Born	(1622-06-24)24 June 1622
Died	St. James's, London
Resting place	Henry VII's chapel in Westminster Abbey
Nationality	English
Spouse(s)	Mary Booth (1644–1649) Dorothy Kenyonon (1652–1656)
Parent(s)	Ralph Worsley and Isabel nèe Massey

Charles Worsley (24 June 1622 – 1656) was an English soldier and politician. He was an ardent supporter of Oliver Cromwell and was an officer in the Parliamentary army during the English Civil War and the Commonwealth of England. He sat in the House of Commons in 1654 and governed a district during the Rule of the Major-Generals.

Biography

Worsley was the son of Ralph Worsley, of The Platt, Rusholme and his wife Isabel Massy, daughter of Edward Massy of Manchester. He was a parliamentary captain in Lancashire in 1644. By 1650 he was lieutenant colonel of regiment raised in Lancashire for Cromwell. In 1651 he was employed in reduction of Isle of Man. He commanded the detachment used in the expulsion of the Long Parliament in 1653 and took charge of the "bauble" when Cromwell ordered it to be removed.

In 1654, Worsley was elected the first Member of Parliament for Manchester in the First Protectorate Parliament. During the Rule of the Major-Generals, Worsley governed a district consisting of Cheshire, Lancashire and Staffordshire. He confiscated the property of Royalists, put Roman Catholics in jail, suppressed horse-racing, and promoted the public good according to his own ideals. He died suddenly in 1656 at the age of 33 and was buried in the Henry VII Chapel in Westminster Abbey.

References

Attribution

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain:  (see also main entry lxiii 32)
•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: 

Further reading

Parliament of England
Preceded by Newly enfranchised	Member of Parliament for Manchester 1654	Succeeded by Richard Radcliffe