Engagers
The Engagers were a faction of the Scottish Covenanters, who made "The Engagement" with King Charles I in December 1647 while he was imprisoned in Carisbrooke Castle by the English Parliamentarians after his defeat in the First Civil War.
For the engagement with the English parliament of 1649, see Engagement controversy.
The Engagers
Aftermath[edit]
Defeat at Preston led to the collapse of the Engager regime; the Kirk Party took control of Edinburgh and although repulsed at Stirling in September, a new civil war seemed imminent. However, with Cromwell's support, Argyll took control and expelled his Engager opponents, with English troops being withdrawn.[13]
The 1649 Act of Classes banned Engagers and Royalists from holding political or military office and established the Kirk Party as the government of Scotland. However, the execution of Charles in January 1649 was viewed by Covenanters as an offence against God; they proclaimed his son Charles II King of Scotland and Great Britain. In the 1650 Treaty of Breda, they agreed to restore Charles to the English throne; in return he accepted the Covenant. Defeats at Dunbar and Worcester resulted with Scotland being incorporated into the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland in 1654.[14]