English Civil War – Cromwell is invited to name his successor The Humble Petition and Advice presented unto His Highness the Lord Protector by the Knights, Citizens and Burgesses assembled at the Parliament... together with His Highness Consent unto the said petitions. 1657, folio 30pp unbound, good condition. It was in this year that Parliament offered Cromwell the Crown of England, which he refused. Had he done so, there would have been an in-built mechanism for the succession passing to his first born son. However, it was obvious that some sort of continuity of leadership was required, and by this petition Parliament was making it clear to Cromwell that he needed to name someone who would take over the reigns of power on his death. By this petition, Parliament set out various principles for the governance of the country – and in particular ensuring that the Monarchy would not be restored, nor any influence from Papists would be allowed. In the event, Cromwell’s grip on power was only to last another year, and the succession was passed disastrously to his second son Richard.