Ashley Tonge
Biography
In 2013 I graduated with a BA in English and History from Dublin Business School, before starting the MPhil in Early Modern History at TCD.
Research
'Searching for a scapegoat in Restoration England'
My research focuses on the life of Hugh Peters, chaplain of Oliver Cromwell's New Model Army. I will examine Peters' career during the Civil War and Interregnum to uncover why Peters became one of the most reviled men in England when the new Stuart king returned and why he was deemed punishable by death when so many others were absolved. I will draw mainly on Peters' own work and the work of his most vocal detractors to illustrate Peters' role as a scapegoat in the turbulent year of 1660.