Oliver Cromwell’s Letter To Corrupt Leaders
The Dissolution of the Long Parliament
“You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing.”
These famous words have been used to criticize those who misuse power to the detriment of their constituents for centuries. They continue to echo, and not just through the halls of Britain’s House of Commons.
They were first spoken on a fateful day in 1653, when Oliver Cromwell, then Prime Minister, unleashed his frustrations, lacerating an ineffective and indulgent “Long Parliament” (so called because it kept itself in power for twenty years between 1640–1660).
In 1940, nearly three hundred years later, the exact words were revived during a scathing critique of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain’s fateful appeasement of Nazi Germany. They are helpful in any situation in which power has been corrupted and to the detriment of constituents.
Here is the story behind this iconic quote.
On April 20, 1653, Oliver Cromwell entered the Commons Chambers with a party of armed guards and forcefully removed the remaining members of the Rump Parliament. He delivered a scathing speech reverberating through the centuries during this dramatic event. Most sources recognize that Cromwell expressed sentiments similar to the following:
“It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in this place, which you have dishonored by your contempt of all virtue and defiled by your practice of every vice.
You are a factious crew and enemies to all good government. You are a pack of mercenary wretches, willing, like Esau, to sell your country for a mess of pottage, and, like Judas, to betray your God for a few pieces of money.
You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing. Depart, I say, and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go.”
Cromwell referred to the “shining bauble” at the ceremonial mace, symbolizing parliamentary power, which rested on the House of Commons table during sessions. Following the dissolution of the Long Parliament, Cromwell established a short-lived Nominated Assembly, often referred to as the Barebones Parliament.
The phrase “in the name of God, go” was revived in the House of Commons in May 1940 during the Norway Debate. With Nazi Germany’s recent attack on Norway and Britain’s military involvement, Conservative backbencher Leo Amery delivered a speech critical of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. Amery’s concluding words echoed Cromwell’s:
“This is what Cromwell said to the Long Parliament when he thought it was no longer fit to conduct the affairs of the nation: ‘You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing. Depart, I say, and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go.’”
Amery is said to have whispered those final six words while pointing directly at Chamberlain.
Shortly after that, on May 10, 1940, Germany invaded France, leading to Chamberlain’s resignation as Prime Minister and the ascent of Winston Churchill as Britain’s wartime leader.
This historic phrase continues to remind us of moments when leaders are called to account, challenging the status quo and ushering in change during times of crisis.
