What made the New Model Army good?

The New Model Army of England was formed in 1645 by the Parliamentarians in theEnglish Civil War, and disbanded in 1660 after the Restoration. It differed from other armies in the same conflict in that it was intended as an army liable for service anywhere in the country, rather than being tied to a single area or garrison. Itssoldiers became full-time professionals, rather thanpart-time militia. To establish a professional officer corps, the men were prohibited from having seats in either the Houses of Lords or Commons. This was to encourage their separation from the political or religious factions among the Parliamentarians.

The New Model Army was raised partly from among veteran soldiers who already had deeply-held Puritanreligious convictions, and partly from conscripts, who brought with them many commonly-held beliefs about religion or society. Its common soldiers held Dissentingor radical views unique among English armies. Although the Army's senior officers did not share many of their soldiers' political opinions, their independence from Parliament led to the Army's willingness to contribute to the overthrow of both the Crown and Parliament's authority, and to establish a short-lived "Commonwealth", which included a period of direct military rule. Ultimately, the Army's Generals (particularly Oliver Cromwell) could rely both on the Army's internal discipline and its religious zeal and innate support for the "Good Old Cause" to maintain an essentially dictatorial rule.