Oliver's Lords can have had little more to do than meet and look at each other.
* * * * * There was to be no Parliament more while Cromwell lived.

For seven months onwards from Feb.

4, 1657-8, he was to govern, one may say, more alone than ever, more as a sovereign, and with all his energies in performance of the sovereignty more tremendously on the strain.
There was still, of course, the Council, now essentially a Privy Council, meeting twice or thrice a week, or sometimes on special summons, and with this novelty in the public style and title of the councillors, that those of them who had been in the Upper House of the late Parliament retained the name of "Lords." Lord President Lawrence, Lord Richard Cromwell, Lord Fleetwood, Lord Montague, Lord Commissioner Fiennes, Lord Desborough, Lord Viscount Lisle, the Earl of Mulgrave, Lord Rous, Lord Skippon, Lord Pickering (_alias_ "The Lord Chamberlain"), Lord Strickland, Lord Wolseley, Lord Sydenham, Lord Jones (_alias_ "Mr.Comptroller"), and Mr.
Secretary Thurloe: such would have been the minute of a complete _sederunt_ of the Council when, it resumed duty after the dissolution of the Parliament.

There never was such a complete _sederunt:_ ten out of the sixteen was the average attendance, rising sometimes to twelve.

Occasionally Cromwell came to one of their meetings; but generally they transacted business among themselves to his order, and communicated with him privately.