THE ENGLISH CIVIL WAR Mr. White’s World History

Objectives  After we finish this section, we should be able to:  Explain how the English Civil War limited the power of the English monarchy  Analyze English rights that were protected by the results of the English Civil War and their impact on the American Revolution

Prologue  Queen Elizabeth of England produced no children, so the crown of England passed to James I, a Stuart (Scottish)  Parliament was the government body made up of representatives who advised the king or queen on how to run the country  James would struggle with Parliament to take more power

James of Scotland  James asserted his authority over the government, and this led to conflict with Parliament  James believed in the principle of divine right – God made him king  He spent lavishly on his lifestyle, and ran up England’s expenses  Also ended a war with Spain that forced England to pay war reparations to Spain

James’ Religious Views  The Puritans were Christians who disagreed with the Anglican church and wanted to purify it of its Catholic traditions and rituals  James, who was Anglican, responded to the Puritans by threatening them – many Puritans fled to North America and settled in the English colonies  James has a group of scholars write a new translation of the Bible – King James Version

Charles I  After James, Charles I of England took over and behaved very badly  Marries a Catholic woman  Charles dissolved Parliament after they wouldn’t fund a war  Forced farmers to supply loans, or threw them in jail  He quartered troops in people’s homes and declared martial law in towns – military courts and rule

The Petition of Right  When Charles was desperate and called Parliament again, they forced Charles to sign the Petition of Right  Charles couldn’t collect taxes or force loans  No imprisonment without cause  No quartering of troops  No martial law  Charles dissolved Parliament and ignored the Petition of Right, even after he signed it

Parliament’s Power  Charles again recalled Parliament to fight a war against invading Scots  Parliament voiced its complaints  Charles dissolved them again  Charles, desperate for money, reconvened Parliament again  This new Parliament worked to decrease Charles’ power

Nineteen Propositions  Charles was at the mercy of Parliament  More Puritans were serving on Parliament, and they opposed Charles  An opposition royalist group began to form to support Charles  When Parliament sent the “Nineteen Propositions” to Charles to increase their power, Charles uses troops to arrest the leaders

English Civil War  A war began between those that supported Charles (Cavaliers) and those that supported Parliament (Roundheads)  Oliver Cromwell led the Roundheads to victory in 1646, when the Royalists surrender  Charles is put on trial and executed – this is shocking to just about everybody

The Commonwealth  The new government was a commonwealth, an elected government  It crushed opposition from Royalists in Ireland and Scotland, and also Levellers, who supported the vote for all men  Cromwell dismissed Parliament and placed England under Puritan military rule  When Cromwell dies, his son can’t maintain power

Charles II  Charles was known as the Merry Monarch because he strongly supported the arts, science, entertainment, etc.  Parliament settled England’s religious issues  The Church of England (Anglican) became the state religion  The Puritan clergy were removed from the churches

Constitutional Monarchy  England became a constitutional monarchy  Power of the monarch was limited by the English constitution, which was based on certain official documents and other legal traditions  This limitation of the monarch made many other European monarchs (who ruled by divine right or were at least absolute monarchs) feel threatened

The Succession of James  Charles was known as a philanderer and never produced any legitimate children by a married wife  After Charles died, his brother James took the throne  James attempted to re-establish the power of the monarchy and make it absolute again

James  James wanted absolute power, and claimed the divine right of kings  He felt that as king he had the right to suspend or ignore laws, regardless of Parliament  When Parliament opposed James, he eventually fled the country in what was known as the Glorious Revolution

William and Mary  Mary, who was Charles’ nephew, married William of Orange (Dutch Netherlands), and they ruled together as William and Mary  Swore to observe the rules of Parliament

Restriction of the Monarchy  Under the rule of William and Mary, Parliament passed a Bill of Rights restricting the powers of the English monarchy  King couldn’t raise taxes, maintain an army, or suspend laws without parliament  Parliament should have freedom of debate  Individual rights should be guaranteed, such as the right to a jury trial, and freedom from cruel and unusual punishments  Parliament had also previously passed a law preserving the right of habeas corpus – no one could be held without being accused of a crime