The English Civil War (and the Glorious Revolution)

  • 1642-1647

  • Royalists against the Parlimantarians

Reasons for the English Civil War

  • In 1603, Elizabeth died. She never married so there was no heir to the Tudor Dynasty

  • Mary Stewart’s son, James I, became king

    • started the Stewart Dynasty

  • Queen Elizabeth recognized the importance of working with Parliament

  • James I did not; he believed in and absolute monarchy because of divine right; he didn’t listen to Parliament

    Major problems between Parliamentand the king over issues of authority, money, and religion

Problems between the King and Parliament

  • Authority: James I believed in divine right anf absolutism, Parliament felt the king should be limited by Parliament

    • Divine Right

      1. king has power to rule from people

      2. king has power to rule from congress

      3. king has power to rule from Parliament

      4. king has power to rule from God

  • Money: James I had to ask Parliament to finance government and lifestyle

  • Religion: Puritans were Anglican and wanted Catholic rituals removed. Puritains were active memebers of Parliment and angered when James I arranged marriage of Charles to a Catholic

  • When James I does in 1625, his son Charles I becomes king

    • “worse” than Charles

    • believed in divine right and absolute monarchy; refused to discuss ideas wth Parliament; only convened when he needed money

  • Parliament got fed up with him and refused to give him money until he signed the Petition of Rights in 1628

    • king couldn’t jail people without reason

    • king couldn’t make taxes without Parliament’s approval

    • king couldn’t keep soldiers in people’s homes and couldn’t use army to keep order during peacetime

  • Charles I was really mad at Parliament and refused to call on them for 11 years until he needed money to end revolts in Ireland and Scotland

  • Conflict between supporters of king (Royalists/Cavaliers) and Parliment grew so bad that a civil was was inevitable

  • War between Cavaliers (Royalists/ Vs. Roundheads(supporters of Parliament) lasted for 5 years

  • Roundheads has a strong leader in Oliver Cromwell

    • roundheads won and beheaded the king (first public execution of a king)

After the Civil War

  • After the war, a Commonwealth was created

    • no king, ruled by Parliament

  • Cromwell led the commonwealth as a military dictator, not as a democracy

  • Life in the commonwealth was harsh because of the rule of the Puritains and Cromwell

    • forced strict religious rules on the people of England

  • It was illegal to go to the theaters and sporting events; “merrymaking” and “amusement” were illegal

  • Citizens hated living this way and wanted a king back

The Restoration

  • People grew tired of the severe religious rule of Cromwell; many wated a king again

  • In 1660, Charles I’s son became King of England- Charles II becomes known as the merry monarch because he brought back theaters, sporting events, dancing, and he got along with Parliament

  • Charles II learned his lesson from his father and his grandfather

    • did not want try to rule by divine right

    • did not threaten Parliament’s authority

  • Passed the Habeas Corpus Law - everyone is guaranteed a trail after arrest; connot stay in jail forever

  • Anglicanism was the official religion, but treated Puritains and Catholics equally

  • During the Restoration, Parliament stregthened the Church of England

    • only Anglicans could attend universities, serve in Parliament, and be priests in the Anglican church

  • Parliament created Constitutional Monarchy based on Magna Carta and Petition of Right

    • guarenteed rights of people and limit king

  • There were problems

    • Charles II needed more money the Parliament was willing to give him, so he made a secret arragement with Louis XIV of France to convert to catholicism for money

  • Charles II had no children; when he died, his openly-Cathlolic brother James II will be king (Parliament’s worst fear)

Glorious Revolution

  • James ignoring Parliament’s religious laws, James appointed Catholics to government and university positions

  • Parliament was worried the throne would go to James II’s son who was raised a Catholic

  • Encouraged William of Orange (ruler of the Netherlands, married to James II’s daughter Mary) to invade and take over

  • James II fled to France when he realized he had little support from England

  • This peaceful transfer of power was called the Glorious Revolution

William and Mary

  • William and Mary swore an oath that they would govern the people of England

  • Parliament passed the Bill of Rights

    • made it clear that Parliament was in control

  • A commonwealth

    1. State ruled by a monarch (5%)

    2. State ruled by a hegemon (group of people) (0%)

    3. State ruled by a constitution (36%)

    4. State ruled by a state representative (59%)

  • A constitutional monarchy

    1. Monarch’s power limited by a contitution (82%)

    2. Monarch’s power not limited by a constitution (5%)

    3. Parliament is in control (5%)

    4. Parliament is not in control (9%)

  • Habeaus Corpus

    1. People have to be tired (0%)

    2. People canot be held in jail without just cause or without a trial (100%)

    3. People need to be read their miranda rights (0%)

    4. People have to have anattorney present at trial (0%)