England faced a civil war between the years 1642 and 1646. It was a war over three main issues, the power of Parliament vs. the King, and the friction between the Puritans and the Anglicans and Catholics, and the inequalities among the various social classes. The King of England, Charles I, was even executed in 1649.
All sorts of "groups" came out of the woodwork to exert their beliefs. If the world was turned upside down with the civil war, and the execution of the King, now was a chance for them to have their say.
There were the Levellers, whose ideas included the levelling of social differences....
and what about the Ranters and Seekers, who questioned everything in society.
The Quakers were another group that emerged during this time.
But my favorite group were the Diggers, who insisted on no private ownership of land. They were fed up with the large noble estates and wanted a more equitable land distribution.
Many of these groups had ideas that are termed "Christian Communism."
All these groups were a headache for Cromwell and he became the "tyrant" to control the government. He became the very thing he detested.
