When the Parliamentary forces in which Cromwell is a cavalry officer proved ineffective, he, along with Sir Thomas Fairfax, sets up the New Model Army and soon turns the tide against the king. The army's discipline, training, and numbers secure victory and Cromwell's cavalry proves to be the deciding factor, though his son is killed in battle. With his army defeated, Charles goes so far as to call on help from Catholic nations, which disgusts his Protestant supporters. He is finally defeated but, a brave man in his own way, he still refuses to give in to the demands of Cromwell and his associates for a system of government in which Parliament will have as much say in the running of the country as the king.