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The Protector: a Vindication
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295 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1992
About the author
Jean-Henri Merle d'Aubigné
524 books16 followersJean-Henri Merle d'Aubigné (16 August 1794 – 21 October 1872) was a Swiss Protestant minister and historian of the Reformation.
D'Aubigné was born at Eaux Vives, a neighbourhood of Geneva. A street in the area is named after him. The ancestors of his father, Robert Merle d'Aubigné (1755–1799), were French Protestant refugees. The life Jean-Henri's parents chose for him was in commerce; but in college at the Académie de Genève, he instead decided on Christian ministry. He was profoundly influenced by Robert Haldane, the Scottish missionary and preacher who visited Geneva and became a leading light in Le Réveil, a conservative Protestant evangelical movement of spiritual revival.
When d'Aubigné went abroad to further his education in 1817, Germany was about to celebrate the tercentenary of the Reformation; and thus early he conceived the ambition to write the history of that great epoch. Studying at Berlin University for eight months 1817–1818, d'Aubigne received inspiration from teachers as diverse as J. A. W. Neander and W. M. L. de Wette.
In 1818, d'Aubigné took the post of pastor of the French Protestant church at Hamburg, where he served for five years. In 1823, he was called to become pastor of the Franco-German Brussels Protestant Church and preacher to the court of King William I of the Netherlands of the House of Orange-Nassau.
During the Belgian revolution of 1830, d'Aubigné thought it advisable to undertake pastoral work at home in Switzerland rather than accept an educational post in the family of the Dutch king. The Evangelical Society had been founded with the idea of promoting evangelical Christianity in Geneva and elsewhere, but a need arose for a theological seminary to train pastors. On his return to Switzerland, d'Aubigné was invited to become professor of church history in such a seminary, and he also continued to labor in the cause of evangelical Protestantism. In him the Evangelical Alliance found a hearty promoter. He frequently visited England, was made a D.C.L. v Oxford University, and received civic honours from the city of Edinburgh. He died suddenly in 1872.
The first portion of d'Aubigne's Histoire de la Reformation – History of the Reformation of the Sixteenth Century – which was devoted to the earlier period of the movement in Germany, i.e., Martin Luther's time, at once earned a foremost place among modern French ecclesiastical historians, and was translated into most European languages. The second portion, The History of the Reformation in Europe in the Time of Calvin, dealing with reform in the French Reformer's sphere, exhaustively treats the subject with the same scholarship as the earlier work, but the second volume did not meet with the same success.
Among minor treatises authored by d'Aubigné, the most important are his vindication of the character and the aims of Oliver Cromwell, and his sketch of the trends of the Church of Scotland.
(From Wikipedia)
D'Aubigné was born at Eaux Vives, a neighbourhood of Geneva. A street in the area is named after him. The ancestors of his father, Robert Merle d'Aubigné (1755–1799), were French Protestant refugees. The life Jean-Henri's parents chose for him was in commerce; but in college at the Académie de Genève, he instead decided on Christian ministry. He was profoundly influenced by Robert Haldane, the Scottish missionary and preacher who visited Geneva and became a leading light in Le Réveil, a conservative Protestant evangelical movement of spiritual revival.
When d'Aubigné went abroad to further his education in 1817, Germany was about to celebrate the tercentenary of the Reformation; and thus early he conceived the ambition to write the history of that great epoch. Studying at Berlin University for eight months 1817–1818, d'Aubigne received inspiration from teachers as diverse as J. A. W. Neander and W. M. L. de Wette.
In 1818, d'Aubigné took the post of pastor of the French Protestant church at Hamburg, where he served for five years. In 1823, he was called to become pastor of the Franco-German Brussels Protestant Church and preacher to the court of King William I of the Netherlands of the House of Orange-Nassau.
During the Belgian revolution of 1830, d'Aubigné thought it advisable to undertake pastoral work at home in Switzerland rather than accept an educational post in the family of the Dutch king. The Evangelical Society had been founded with the idea of promoting evangelical Christianity in Geneva and elsewhere, but a need arose for a theological seminary to train pastors. On his return to Switzerland, d'Aubigné was invited to become professor of church history in such a seminary, and he also continued to labor in the cause of evangelical Protestantism. In him the Evangelical Alliance found a hearty promoter. He frequently visited England, was made a D.C.L. v Oxford University, and received civic honours from the city of Edinburgh. He died suddenly in 1872.
The first portion of d'Aubigne's Histoire de la Reformation – History of the Reformation of the Sixteenth Century – which was devoted to the earlier period of the movement in Germany, i.e., Martin Luther's time, at once earned a foremost place among modern French ecclesiastical historians, and was translated into most European languages. The second portion, The History of the Reformation in Europe in the Time of Calvin, dealing with reform in the French Reformer's sphere, exhaustively treats the subject with the same scholarship as the earlier work, but the second volume did not meet with the same success.
Among minor treatises authored by d'Aubigné, the most important are his vindication of the character and the aims of Oliver Cromwell, and his sketch of the trends of the Church of Scotland.
(From Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 16, 2025
A punchy, bold vindication of the life and works of Oliver Cromwell. Merle d'Aubigné treats the Protector exactly how a historian should; with careful consideration of his spiritual life. Unlike his critics and skeptic historical revisionists, the author follows the well-documented theological journeys which led Cromwell's controversial actions. Whereas many presentations of the Civil War period are content to settle for myths, mischaracterizations, and outright lies about Cromwell and the Puritans, this book goes out of the way to clear aside the dredge using the subjects' own words, his actions, and those of his contemporaries.
The author is unashamed about his beliefs and has no qualms presenting history with his own analysis. As a result, reading this brazen Swiss Protestant minister may prove hard if you are a Catholic. Yet the Counter-Reformation was truly a dark period for Europe. One from which we can learn. And it serves no one to view history through the fog of sectarian half-truths.
The author is unashamed about his beliefs and has no qualms presenting history with his own analysis. As a result, reading this brazen Swiss Protestant minister may prove hard if you are a Catholic. Yet the Counter-Reformation was truly a dark period for Europe. One from which we can learn. And it serves no one to view history through the fog of sectarian half-truths.
October 26, 2013
I’ve gone back and forth in my appraisal of Cromwell for over a decade. His military genius cannot be denied, nor his spirituality. While one can make a sound case for the execution of Charles I, it still feels “off.” Many Cromwell supporters have praised D’Aubigne’s biography on Cromwell. I critically differ. It is worth reading. It is pastorally warm and soul-stirring, but D’Aubigne woefully misreads some key details. Further, I think D’Aubigne’s own analysis is blatantly self-contradictory, as I will demonstrate below.
While D’Aubigne does a fine job with Cromwell’s spirituality and family life, he is very critical of Cromwell’s military life. Without any argumentation beyond a simplistic appeal to the Sermon on the Mount, D’Aubigne says Cromwell was wrong to resist the king because that is not what Jesus would have done, or something like that. (D’Aubigne makes the same criticism of Zwingli; cf William Cunningham for a rebuttal).
I was critical of D’Aubigne’s approach to Cromwell when I first began the biography. I still think my criticisms of MD are justified. But here are some wonderful snippets from his biography that are worthy of reflection (and imitation!).
Speaking of Cromwell’s opposition to Turkish Islamism:
He sailed right into the harbor, and though the shore was planted with heavy guns, he burnt nine of the Turkish vessels, and brought the tyrant to reason. But he did not confine himself to this mission: he spread the terror of the English name over all of Italy, even to Rome itself (211).
Cromwell himself reflects on his army,
I raised such men as had the fear of God before them, as made some conscience of what they did; and from that day forward, I must say to you, they were never beaten, and wherever they engaged the enemy, they beat continually (240-241).
D’Aubigne concludes:
Without Cromwell, humanly speaking, liberty would have been lost not only to England, but to Europe (278).
Contradictions:
It is logically impossible for D’Aubigne to say (1) Cromwell was wrong as a Christian for going to war but (2) Cromwell is right for bringing liberty to Europe. Precisely, one may ask, how did Cromwell bring liberty to Europe? Further, D’Aubigne’s gloss on Matthew 5 effectively guts the whole Christian just-war tradition.
While D’Aubigne does a fine job with Cromwell’s spirituality and family life, he is very critical of Cromwell’s military life. Without any argumentation beyond a simplistic appeal to the Sermon on the Mount, D’Aubigne says Cromwell was wrong to resist the king because that is not what Jesus would have done, or something like that. (D’Aubigne makes the same criticism of Zwingli; cf William Cunningham for a rebuttal).
I was critical of D’Aubigne’s approach to Cromwell when I first began the biography. I still think my criticisms of MD are justified. But here are some wonderful snippets from his biography that are worthy of reflection (and imitation!).
Speaking of Cromwell’s opposition to Turkish Islamism:
He sailed right into the harbor, and though the shore was planted with heavy guns, he burnt nine of the Turkish vessels, and brought the tyrant to reason. But he did not confine himself to this mission: he spread the terror of the English name over all of Italy, even to Rome itself (211).
Cromwell himself reflects on his army,
I raised such men as had the fear of God before them, as made some conscience of what they did; and from that day forward, I must say to you, they were never beaten, and wherever they engaged the enemy, they beat continually (240-241).
D’Aubigne concludes:
Without Cromwell, humanly speaking, liberty would have been lost not only to England, but to Europe (278).
Contradictions:
It is logically impossible for D’Aubigne to say (1) Cromwell was wrong as a Christian for going to war but (2) Cromwell is right for bringing liberty to Europe. Precisely, one may ask, how did Cromwell bring liberty to Europe? Further, D’Aubigne’s gloss on Matthew 5 effectively guts the whole Christian just-war tradition.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews