ABSTRACT
This chapter is concerned with the developing tension in Fleetwood's relationship with his ‘brother’ as part of the broader fracturing of the Cromwellian alliance around the debates on the offer of the crown to Cromwell. These tensions in the Cromwellian alliance, with Fleetwood opposing kingship, are viewed from the context of the kinship links between Fleetwood and Henry and their relationship with Cromwell, specifically how kinship shaped the communication between them but also how others viewed them and their relationships. Part of this involves a consideration of an approach to Fleetwood seeking to use his kinship bond with Cromwell as a means to try to persuade Cromwell to change the direction of the regime. These tensions are then explored when they emerged even more openly with Fleetwood and Disbrowe's removal of Richard Cromwell as Protector and Henry attempting to use the memory of his father to persuade Fleetwood to continue to support his brother.
