Revisiting the Origins of the ‘Roundhead’ in 1641

Abstract

Abstract This article revisits the contested origins of the political label ‘Roundhead’ during the English Revolution, challenging the conventional view that the term originated spontaneously during the Westminster tumults of December 1641. While historians have generally relied upon John Rushworth’s later account of David Hyde denouncing parliamentary crowds as ‘round-headed dogs’, this study demonstrates that the contemporary evidence is more ambiguous. It explores alternative formulations, particularly Hyde’s reported insult ‘Ram-headed rogues’, and situates both terms within a wider culture of anti-Puritan satire, theatrical caricature, and political mockery. Drawing upon pamphlets, dramatic literature, manuscript annotations, and print culture, the article argues that ‘Roundhead’ may already have circulated before December 1641, notably in Richard Brathwaite’s Mercurius Britannicus . The article therefore proposes a more complex genealogy for the term, showing how political identities emerged through the interaction of print, performance, satire, and popular mobilization rather than through a single moment of invention.

The authors' abstract, as published at the source. The Historical Journal, 2026 · DOI ↗