Financial policies of Personal Rule 1629-40

What was the impact of the Petition of Right 1628 on Charles?

-Limits his prerogative by defining his powers and making it harder for him to exercise them

-curb his right to impose martial law/ billet troops on private households, right to raise arbitrary taxation

Who imposed the petition of right 1628?

House of Commons

What was the impact of the murder of Buckingham 1628 on Charles?

The English rejoyced on streets at the news while Charles mourned, alienating him from his subjects

Why is Charles turning to his wife Heneritta Maria a cause of concern for the parliament?

She is French so her advice tends to be in favour of ruling without the parliament

What did new members of the council like Weston and Cottington have that made Parliament weary in 1628?

Catholic sympathies, lack of commitment to a parliamentary government

What did Charles continue to collect in 1629 that caused falling out with the parliament?

Tonnage and Poundage, impositions

What happens when merchants refuse to pay tonnage and poundage, impositions, and what is the view of Parliament on that?

They were arrested, Parliament deems it as illegal

What influence in the church is the parliament concerned about in 1628, and what are the tirade over these disputes?

Arminian, neither Charles nor MPs were willing to compromise

What was the trigger point for Charles to dissolve the parliament in 1629?

The 3 resolutions

How did Charles take his revenge on the 1628 Parliament in 1629?

Arrest leading MPs for sedition

What does Charles believe about the positives of ruling without a parliament?

It could heal factionalism as sessions of parliament merely lead to increased divisions among ruling classes

What was Charles’ declaration in 1629 about?

Expecting subjects to yield to royal prerogative

Petition of right doesn’t equal to lawless liberty

What is rent from crown lands?

Income from land rented out, increased to combat inflation

Inflation ate away real value of rent which are at fixed rates when Elizabeth sold off lands in 1550s

What is purveyance?

Crown’s right to purchase food and other necessities below market price which can be paid in livestock and produce

People resisted it

What is wardship?

Crown’s right to administer estates of children of dead landowners until they become adults

Often accused of exploiting vulnerable estates

Cottington raised revenue from wardships to £62k by 1637, nearly triple of 1613

What is Tonnage and Poundage?

Custom duties on imports and exports

Trade revived after wars with Spain and France so value of custom duties rose quickly

No agreement from parliament for continued levying of it

What are monopolies?

Selling corporations the sole right to produce, import and sell products

In 1624 it cannot be held by individuals yet still granted to big corporations

They put up prices

What is the distraint of knighthood?

Men who own estates worth more than £40 per year were expected to be present to be knighted at coronation, those who didn’t were fined by Charles

Men often summoned at impossibly short notice and fined when they weren’t on time

A practice not sued for many ears

What is the revival of forest laws?

medieval royal forests grounds researched in order to fine landowners whose estates intrude on ancient bounds

Tax fell on the rich and powerful like Earl of Salisbury who is fined £20k

What are fines for breaching building regulations?

Ancient laws to prevent chartered towns spilling behind city walls revived to fine property developers

Since 1603, over 60k houses were built outside the wall of capital of London

What are enclosure fines?

Fines imposed on landowners for fencing off open fields for instance converting arable land to pasture land

Seen as penalty to landowners for improving their estates

Only enforced sporadically before, now systematically by commissioners who tortured counties and imposed fines and who’s how no interest in removing fences so counties can be fined when they return in a few years

What is ship money 1635-8?

Ancient tax on coastal counties and ports to build ships to protect trade, levied on an hourly basis

How did ship money expand 1635-6?

By 1635 the levy extend to inland counties with the excuse that the kingdom benefits from a strong navy

Further levies imposed beyond 1636

Why was ship money so unpopular?

The only precedent of raising the levy from inner counties was during the 1588 Armanda Crisis, and there is no war emergency right now

There is no precedent of raising it as an annual and permanent tax

Why were groups that were supposed to support Charles alienated by his financial policies?

Roman Catholics forced to pay more recusancy fines

Landowners paying more in wardships and in rent

Why were Charles financial policies so unpopular?

No parliamentarian agreement for levying tonnage and poundage

People thought Charles was only interested in fining those who didn’t abide by laws rather than enforcing laws

What are the instances where landowners were fined under Charles’ financial policies?

Earl of Salisbury fined £20k—compounded and paid only a fraction like many who were fined

How is the district of knighthoods put in action?

Crown is legally entitled to fine for knighthoods with heavy taxes ranging from £10 to £70

Tax squeezed from JPs, privy council

Who opposed the distraint of knighthood and how?

Sir Foulis attempted to rally gentry opinion in Yorkshire to go against the fine

How are granted monopolies used to reconcile mercantile option?

1634 Merchant’s adventurer’s monopoly restored to gather crown revenue

1635 East India company

How did the king justify ship money?

Said it was his right to command subjects to pay ship money when the kingdom is in danger and that he is the sole judge of danger

Charles won the case for ship money

How did others oppose ship money?

St John states that the country isn’t at war so plenty of time to call the parliament

5 judges sided with Hampden in the case against ship money although Charles won

Dozens of petitions against it