The Civil War The Restoration The Glorious Revolution After the death of Elizabeth I in 1603 James I became king of England. James had been king of Scotland and believed in absolute monarchy and the divine right of kings. This did not go over well with Parliament. Parliament consisted of two houses- the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The main role of Parliament was to control the country’s purse strings. The king required Parliament’s approval to increase spending.

James I did not see the need for Parliament to approve of his desire for more money and so sought ways to raise funds without going through Parliament. Naturally this angered many members of the two houses. James also made enemies because he supported the ‘traditional’ Church of England, and despised Puritans. James survived but his son, Charles I, was not so fortunate. When Charles supported an attempt to push the Church of England on the Scots, they rebelled.

Money was needed to put down the Scots and so Charles I summoned Parliament for the first time since 1640- eleven years. Parliament refused to deal with Charles so he dissolved it and called for new elections. Unfortunately for him the same people were elected. As a result Charles I ignored Parliament, and since the same group were elected from 1640-1660 it is known as the ‘Long Parliament’. Eventually- after Charles tried to have his most prominent Parliamentary opponents arrested- tensions erupted into open warfare.

England was divided between forces loyal to Parliament, the Roundheads, and those loyal to the king, the Cavaliers. Thanks to strong leadership and the use of a well organized, innovative army- the New Model Army, the Roundheads were able to defeat the Cavaliers. Under the leadership of Thomas Cromwell the revolutionaries pushed for the execution of the king. They intimidated members of Parliament into either going along with the plan or fleeing for their lives.

Charles I was executed in 1649. Cromwell took over as a dictator, using the title “Lord Protector” of the newly established republic. Cromwell crushed all opposition in England and turned his New Model Army against Scotland and Ireland. Ireland was brutally supressed with the Catholic Church being driven underground, priests being murdered and thousands of Irish civilians killed. It was at this time that Protestant landlords were put in charge of most Irish lands. The English experiences of colonizing the ‘savage Irish’ would directly affect their approach to settling America.

Cromwell`s England was puritanical and all but the most fervent Puritans found it a strict, unforgiving, often pleasure less place to live.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqMKiWC EkBM After Cromwell`s death in 1658, his son took over and was so bad that in 1660 England brought back the monarchy in the form of Charles II (Charles I`s son) with nearly universal approval. The act of bringing back the monarchy is known as the Restoration. For the most part Charles II did not try to antagonize Parliament or anyone else. However some suspected that he was secretly pro- Catholic and pro-French.

Members of Parliament who were suspicious of the king became known as Whigs, and those who were loyal to the king were called Tories. Terms that have remained in the political vocabulary. Tensions increased when Charles II`s brother James II became king in 1685. James was a practicing Catholic and began to appoint Catholics to prominent offices, something that had been made illegal by Parliament. When James II`s newborn son was baptized as a Catholic things came to a head.

Whigs and Tories agreed that a Catholic dynasty could not be allowed so they offered the throne to his adult daughter Mary. Mary was the wife of William of Orange (the Netherlands). William and Mary reached an understanding with the leaders of Parliament in which William invade England to overthrow James II, but there would be no resistance to the invasion. William invaded and James fled. William and Mary were named co-rulers of England and Scotland.

William and Mary agreed to abide by the newly passed Bill of Rights and recognized the power and place of Parliament in government. This was the beginning of Constitutional Monarchy and is referred to as the Glorious Revolution.http://www.nationalarchives.gov.u k/pathways/citizenship/rise_parliament/maki ng_history_rise.htm