From The Civil War To The Glorious Revolution

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English Civil War (1642-1647)

Oliver Cromwell

Charles I
Reasons for the English Civil War
• In 1603, Elizabeth
died. She never
married, so there
were no heirs to
continue the Tudor
Dynasty
• Mary Stuart’s son
James I became
the King of
England and
started Stuart
Dynasty in England
James I
Reasons for the English Civil War

• Authority—James I believed in divine


right and absolutism; Parliament felt
that the king should be limited by
Parliament
• Money—James I has to ask Parliament
for money to finance government and
life style
• Religion—Puritans were members of
the Anglican Church who wanted all
Catholic rituals removed; Puritans were
active members of Parliament.
Reasons for the English Civil War
• When James I died in 1625, his son
Charles I became king
• Like his father, Charles believed in
divine right and absolute monarchy
• He refused to discuss ideas with
Parliament and only summoned
Parliament when he needed money
• Parliament refused to give Charles I
money unless he signed the Petition
of Rights in 1628
The Petition of Rights (1628)
The King could not
•jail people without
a good reason
•levy taxes without
Parliament's
approval
•keep his soldiers in
peoples’ homes
•use army to The Petition of Rights (1628)
maintain order
during peacetime
Civil War

• Charles I was really angry with


Parliament and refused to call
another Parliament for 11 years
until he needed money to end
revolts in Ireland and Scotland
• The conflict between supporters
of King (Royalists/Cavaliers) and
Parliament grew so bad that
a civil war was inevitable
Civil War
• The war between
Cavaliers (Royalists)
vs Roundheads
(supporters of
Parliament) lasted
for 5 years
• Roundheads found a
strong leader in
Oliver Cromwell
Civil War

Cromwell and Roundheads won and


beheaded the king in 1649 (1st public
execution of a king)
After the Civil War

• After the Civil War, a Commonwealth


was created, a type of government with
no king and ruled by Parliament.
• Oliver Cromwell led the Commonwealth
and in 1653 was appointed Lord
Protector of England, Scotland and
Ireland. But he did not use democracy
and later he became a military dictator.
New Commonwealth

• Life in the
Commonwealth was
ruled according to
strict religious rules
• It was illegal to go to
theatres or sporting
events
The Restoration (1660)

Charles II
The Restoration
• People grew tired of the severe, religious rule of Oliver
Cromwell and the Puritans; many wanted a king again.

• When Cromwell died, in 1658, his son Richard ruled for


two years but his government was a failure.

• In 1660, the Houses of Parliament were restored and


Charles I’s son, who had lived in exile in France during
the republican age, was invited by Parliament to return
and become King of England

• Charles II was called the “Merry Monarch” because he


brought into England the typical French customs and
habits and made English cultural life flourish again
The Shape of England
1660 … England was exhausted by 20 years of
Civil War, the Black Plague (1665), and the Great
Fire of London (1666) which left 2/3 of citizens
homeless.

Oliver Cromwell The Great Fire


The Black Plague
Restoration

• Charles II did not try to rule by Divine


Right and did not threaten Parliament’s
authority
• Passed Habeas Corpus Law, which
guaranteed everyone a trial after
arrest; nobody could be held in jail
forever
• Anglicanism was the official religion,
but treated Puritans and Catholics
equally
Restoration

• During the Restoration, Parliament


strengthened the Church of England: only
Anglicans could attend universities, serve
in Parliament, be priests in Anglican
Church

• Parliament created Constitutional


Monarchy based on Magna Carta and
Petition of Rights (guaranteed rights of
people and limited king)
Restoration
BUT, there were problems:

• Charles II needed more


money than Parliament
was willing to give, so he
made a secret agreement
with Louis XIV of France to
convert to Catholicism in
exchange for money

• Charles II had no children;


when he died, his openly-
Catholic brother James II
became king James II
Restoration
• James was a widower and his
heirs were his two Protestant
daughters, Mary and Anne,
who were married to the rulers
of Holland and Denmark.
• James had remarried the
Catholic Mary of Modena, and
in 1688 he became the father of
Mary of Modena
a Catholic son and heir. 1658- 1718
The Glorious Revolution (1688)

• Ignoring Parliament’s religious laws, James II


appointed Catholics to government and university
positions.
• Parliament was worried the throne would go to
James II’s son who was to be raised Catholic.
• Parliament encouraged William of Orange (ruler of
the Netherlands who was married to James II’s
daughter Mary) to invade and take over.
The Glorious Revolution

• William crushed James


II’s supporters in
Scotland (traditionally William of Orange
loyal to the Stuarts) and
in catholic Ireland.
• James II fled to France
when he realized he had
little support from
England.
Mary II Stuart
The Glorious Revolution
• This peaceful transfer of power was called
the Glorious Revolution. William and Mary
swore an oath that they would govern the
people of England.

Joint monogram of
William and Mary
carved
onto Hampton
Court Palace

Joint monogram of
William and Mary
The Glorious Revolution
Bill of Rights (1689)
• In 1689 Parliament
passed the Bill of
Rights.
• This document stated
that the king ruled not
by “Divine Right “ but by
consent of Parliament
as representative of the
country, thus laying the
foundation of the
freedom from arbitrary
government.

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