Charles I & Parliament (1625-42)

When did Charles I become king of England, Scotland and Ireland?

March 1625, after the death of his father, James I (James VI of Scotland).

What did Charles I believe about divine right?

Kings derived authority from God and were not accountable to subjects for their right to rule.

What was royal prerogative?

Customary powers exercised by the monarch without first securing a new Act of Parliament.

How did the Privy Council help Charles I govern?

Senior advisers administered policy and justice, although the king made key decisions.

What did 'King-in-Parliament' mean?

The monarch and Parliament acting together to enact statutes and authorise taxation.

Why did Charles need Parliament despite his prerogative?

Parliament voted extraordinary subsidies needed for expensive wars and could enact binding laws.

What was the Court's political importance?

Patronage, access and royal favourites influenced office, policy and the monarch's decisions.

Who was George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham?

Charles I's influential favourite and chief minister, blamed for diplomatic and military failures.

What happened on the 1623 'Spanish Match' journey?

Charles and Buckingham visited Madrid; the failed Infanta marriage scheme damaged relations with Spain.

Whom did Charles I marry in 1625?

Henrietta Maria, a French Catholic princess, increasing Protestant anxieties about court influence.

What were tonnage and poundage?

Customs duties on imports and exports, traditionally granted to monarchs for life by Parliament.

What was the 1625 Commons' position on tonnage and poundage?

It proposed a one-year grant instead of a lifetime grant; this did not become law.

Why did Charles continue collecting tonnage and poundage?

He considered customs essential royal revenue, provoking claims that he taxed without consent.

Why was Parliament dissatisfied with the 1625 war effort?

Money was spent on ineffective expeditions while MPs questioned Buckingham's competence.

What was the Mansfeld campaign?

A disastrous 1624–25 expedition intended to aid continental Protestants; disease and shortages wrecked it.

What happened at Cádiz in 1625?

An English attack on the Spanish port failed through poor planning, leadership and supply.

Why did the Cádiz expedition damage Buckingham?

He was associated with the failure, strengthening MPs' objections to further war subsidies.

What happened to the 1625 Parliament?

Charles dissolved it in August amid financial disputes and criticism of royal policy.

What was Parliament's main dispute in 1626?

MPs attempted to impeach Buckingham and resisted fresh funds without accountability.

Why did Charles dissolve the 1626 Parliament?

He wanted to protect Buckingham from parliamentary impeachment.

What was the Forced Loan of 1626–27?

Charles demanded compulsory loans without parliamentary authorisation to finance war.

Why did the Five Knights' Case matter (1627)?

Men jailed for refusing the Forced Loan challenged imprisonment without a stated lawful cause. A High Court Judge ruled in favour for the Knights, so Charles used his Star Chamber to overrule them.

Why was war against France unsuccessful in 1627?

Buckingham's Île de Ré expedition failed to aid the Huguenots near La Rochelle.

Who were the Huguenots?

French Protestants whose plight complicated Charles's relations with Catholic France.

What was the Petition of Right (1628)?

A parliamentary petition against taxation without consent, arbitrary imprisonment and certain abuses of power.

Did Charles I accept the Petition of Right?

Yes in 1628, but disputes remained over how far it restrained his royal authority.

Who assassinated Buckingham in August 1628?

John Felton, a disgruntled army officer.

What was the Three Resolutions crisis in March 1629?

MPs condemned religious innovation and unauthorised customs collection; Charles then dissolved Parliament.

What was significant about Charles's dissolution of Parliament in 1629?

It began eleven years of government without Parliament, later called the Personal Rule.

What years are called the Personal Rule?

1629–1640, when Charles governed without summoning an English Parliament.

Why did some contemporaries call the Personal Rule the 'Eleven Years' Tyranny'?

Critics objected to prerogative taxation, religious policies and restrictions on opposition.

How did Charles reduce government expenditure in the 1630s?

He made peace with France and Spain and avoided large-scale continental wars.

What was Ship Money originally?

A levy traditionally associated with naval defence, especially on coastal communities in emergencies.

How did Charles expand Ship Money during the 1630s?

He levied it more widely, including inland counties, as a recurring source of revenue.

Why did John Hampden's Ship Money case matter (1637–38)?

Judges narrowly found for the Crown, but the case exposed deep opposition to the levy.

What were distraint of knighthood fines?

Fines on landowners who had failed to take knighthood when required by the Crown.

How did forest fines raise resentment?

Charles revived old forest boundaries and demanded payments for alleged encroachments.

Why were monopolies politically sensitive in the 1630s?

The Crown used licences and exclusive trading rights for revenue, provoking complaints of arbitrary privilege.

Who was Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford?

A key royal adviser associated with forceful administration, especially in Ireland.

What did Strafford mean by 'Thorough'?

A determined programme of strengthening royal authority and efficient administration.

Who was William Laud?

Archbishop of Canterbury from 1633, associated with ceremonial worship and enforced church uniformity.

Why did Laud's religious reforms provoke Puritan opposition?

Ceremonies and altar arrangements appeared 'popish' to critics and were enforced through authority.

How did religious policy in Scotland backfire in 1637?

The attempted imposition of a new prayer book provoked fierce protest against royal control.

What was the Scottish National Covenant (1638)?

A pledge to resist religious innovations seen as threatening Scotland's Presbyterian church.

What were the Bishops' Wars?

Conflicts between Charles and Scottish Covenanters in 1639 and 1640 over religious policy.

Why did the Bishops' Wars undermine the Personal Rule?

War costs and military failure forced Charles to recall Parliament for funds.

What was the Short Parliament?

A Parliament called in April 1640 and dissolved in May after disputes over grievances and subsidies.

What happened at Newburn in August 1640?

Scottish Covenanters defeated English forces and occupied parts of northern England.

What was the Treaty of Ripon (1640)?

A truce requiring Charles to pay the occupying Scottish army, worsening royal finances.

When did the Long Parliament begin?

November 1640, after Charles could no longer govern financially without parliamentary support.

What happened to Strafford in 1641?

Parliament secured an attainder; Charles assented and Strafford was executed in May.

Why was the abolition of Star Chamber important (1641)?

Parliament removed a prerogative court associated with arbitrary royal justice.

What did the Triennial Act of 1641 aim to achieve?

Regular Parliaments, preventing another long period of government without one.

What did the 1641 law against dissolving the Long Parliament do?

It prevented Charles from dissolving that Parliament without its consent.

Why did the Irish Rebellion of 1641 intensify conflict?

Fear over who would command troops raised distrust between the king and Parliament.

What was the Grand Remonstrance (1641)?

A long statement of royal grievances, passed narrowly by the Commons, exposing division.

Why did the Grand Remonstrance divide Parliament?

Some MPs feared the king's policies; others feared Parliament was undermining monarchy.

What happened when Charles tried to arrest five MPs in January 1642?

His attempted seizure in the Commons failed and helped destroy political trust.

What was the Militia Ordinance (1642)?

Parliament's attempt to control the militia without the king's formal assent.

What were the Nineteen Propositions (June 1642)?

Parliamentary demands to control appointments, militia and aspects of royal household government.

Why did Charles reject the Nineteen Propositions?

He regarded them as reducing monarchy to dependence on Parliament.

When did Charles raise the royal standard at Nottingham?

August 1642, marking the conventional start of the English Civil War.

What three issues chiefly undermined Charles–Parliament relations by 1642?

Disputes over money, religion and control of armed force, intensified by mutual distrust.

How could financial conflict be linked to constitutional conflict?

Taxes without parliamentary consent raised the issue of whether prerogative overrode traditional liberties.

Why was the failure to compromise more than a dispute about personality?

Conflicting beliefs about sovereignty, religion and the militia made concessions risky for each side.