Challenges to England's Monarchs
The first 50 years of the 17th century brought much change to England’s monarchy. Queen Elizabeth I
known by her loyal subjects as “Good Queen Bess”—died in 1603. At her death, many questions remained
concerning the exact relationship between the monarchy and the English Parliament. Direct conflict
between the queen and Parliament had been largely avoided. But as the Protestants in Parliament gained
strength, a serious confrontation seemed inevitable.
Having never married, Elizabeth had no direct heir. She was followed by a son of Mary Queen of
Scots (whom Elizabeth had ordered beheaded), a Scot named James I [ruled 1603–1625]. Already the king
of the Scots, James I knew little about ruling the English. He was also a very difficult man. James I was a
staunch believer in the theory of divine right according to which kings and queens ruled as God’s
representatives. Divine right gave monarchs across Europe power over all courts, Parliament, even English
law itself. This placed James I above the law, which he could alter, decree, or suspend at will.
Religiously, he also brought other problems to the monarchy. He was convinced that Calvinist
Protestantism would weaken the power of the state and vowed to drive it out of existence in England. Such
Protestants, commonly known as Puritans, were soon persecuted by the king’s troops. Some left England
entirely, such as the Pilgrims who sailed on the Mayflower to America in 1620. James I also persecuted
Catholics (although he first promised them religious toleration). This turned English Catholics against him.
A handful of Catholic fanatics, led by Guy Fawkes, plotted to assassinate the king replace him with his
daughter, third in the line of succession, Princess Elizabeth. The scheme, called the Gunpowder Plot,
because they planned to blow up Parliament on November 5, 1605,
a day when King James I was scheduled to speak before the session.
During a search of the House of Lords at about midnight on Nov 4
1605, Fawkes was discovered guarding 36 barrels of gunpowder
—enough to reduce the House of Lords to rubble hidden under piles
of firewood and coal. The plot was revealed to the authorities in an
anonymous letter sent to Baron William Parker, on October 26 1605
— the conspirators were arrested and punished. Guy Fawkes, was
convicted and sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered.
When James I died in 1625, his subjects did not mourn his death.
His son, Charles I [ruled 1625–1649] was no more popular than his father. He was a stubborn, willful, and
lazy king. Charles I had trouble from the beginning of his reign. Parliament tried to expand its influence at
the king’s expense. In 1628, Parliament passed the Petition of Right, which was intended to limit the power
of the king. The petition did not allow the king to levy taxes or to imprison anyone without a trial by jury.
In response to the act, Charles I dissolved Parliament, vowing he would not allow its members to meet
again for eleven years. To finance his kingdom, Charles levied and collected old, obsolete taxes.
An out-of date levy, called ship-money, was resurrected. While the old law had collected money from
coastal towns to help pay for the royal navy, Charles I required the tax to be paid by all towns, even those
hundreds of miles from the coast. All such moves were resented by his subjects and former Parliament
members. Time was running out for Charles. By the late 1630s, talk against the king was turning to open
rebellion. It began in Scotland where Charles ordered Calvinist churches to use the structures of the Church
of England. Riots soon broke out. Scots rose up in protest. Faced with the Scottish revolt, Charles I was
desperate for money. He turned to the only place he could—Parliament.
Directions: Answer all questions completely.
1) Why do you think Queen Elizabeth never married?
2) Why in England was James I above the law?
3) Why did Guy Fawkes try to kill King James?
4) Explain/Describe how Fawkes tried to kill King James I.
5) Explain how Ship-Money worked.
Civil War Comes to England
In April 1640, Charles I called Parliament back into session for the first time in eleven years. He was
in need of monies to put down the Scots and their rebellion against him. However, many of the body’s
leaders demanded reforms from Charles before they would approve taxes. Frustrated, Charles dissolved
this Short Parliament the very next month. However, with his money problems unresolved, the king
recalled Parliament again in August. Because this Parliament was not formally dissolved until March
1660, it became known as the Long Parliament. This Parliament was not going to cooperate with the king,
however. The House of Commons was dominated by men opposed to Charles I. Immediately, they began
creating legislation to limit the power of the king.
Also a rift developed between members of Parliament. Protestants known
as the Puritans dominated the Parliament’s membership. One
faction among them felt the king’s power had been adequately limited; the other wanted to continue
stripping the monarchy even more. Charles tried to take
advantage of the quarrel and went to Parliament himself,
accompanied by several hundred soldiers in January of 1642.
His intention was to arrest five leaders in the House of Commons
who were working to limit the king’s power. Since they knew
of the king’s purposes ahead of time, they were not present in the chamber that day. The king’s move was
a decisive one. Many members of the House of Commons believed the king had gone too far.
In August 1642, when Charles I called for his supporters to rally behind him against Parliament, the
House of Commons began preparing for war, calling for an army of 10,000 men. Soon English citizens
were taking sides. The nobility supported Charles. Those who were enlisted to his aid were called the
Cavaliers (because they wore their hair long, down to their shoulders). The Puritan supporters of
Parliament were known as the Roundheads, because they kept their hair cut short. Geographically, the
king drew support from western and northern England, while Parliament found allies in the south and east.
Many citizens did not support either side, with whole counties and towns declaring themselves neutral.
Parliament had several advantages upon entering into civil war against Charles I. Most of the people
of London supported them, as did the coastal towns and the navy. Charles made serious mistakes from the
beginning of the conflict. He failed to march on London quickly, giving his opponents time to organize
and defeat his army. Among the Puritan military leaders, Oliver Cromwell (1599 –1658) brought
discipline and order to the Parliamentary army, creating the New Model Army of 20,000 men. These men
were well paid, loyal to Cromwell, and sang hymns when marching into battle. The Roundheads defeated
the Cavaliers at Marston Moor (1644) and at Naseby (1645). Hostilities continued for several more years,
as Parliamentary troops whittled away at Cavalier support for Charles I. Despite desperate attempts to
negotiate with the Puritans, Charles was captured and tried in a Parliamentary court. The king of England
was found guilty and was beheaded on January 30, 1649.
Following the beheading of King Charles I, Parliament established a government ruled by a civilian, a
Puritan named Oliver Cromwell. Oliver Cromwell administered the English republic as Lord Protector
for the next eleven years, a period referred to as the Inter-Regnum (1649–1660), meaning “period
between reigns.” Trying to rule England without the power of a king (much of common law was based
on royal rule) was difficult for Cromwell. Many of his policies were unpopular, including his Puritan
closing of English theaters. After he died in 1658, Cromwell’s son, Richard, became Lord Protector.
Incompetent, he resigned in 1660. This opened the way for a needed change in England. Finally, in
1660, pressure mounted across England to reestablish the monarchy. The son of Charles I (Charles II)
who was living in France in exile, agreed to return to England to rule.
6)
7)
8)
9)
Why did the King try to arrest Puritan members of Parliament?
Explain who were the Cavaliers and Roundheads?
What mistakes did King Charles make in the Civil War?
Who was put in charge of the Civilian Government?
England’s Constitutional Monarchy
The period of reestablishment of the English monarchy was called the Restoration and was greeted
with great joy in England. Before the 1660s came to an end, London experienced an outbreak of the
Bubonic Plague (1665) and a fire (1666), which destroyed the center of the city. Despite such challenges,
Charles II proved to be a capable monarch in the face of difficult times. Upon the death of Charles II, his
brother James II came to the throne in 1685. James II did not work out, so the leaders of the Tories and
Whigs offered the throne to the king of the Netherlands, William of Orange (his wife, Mary, was the
daughter of James II). When William agreed, Parliament officially offered both him and Mary the crown.
William of Orange came to the English throne as William III [1688 –1702], along with his wife Mary,
through a bloodless revolution. This marked the second time during the 1600s that the English threw off
their monarch and replaced him. In an age when the rulers of other European states lived by the creed
of Absolutism,
England’s royal ruled as constitutional monarchs. During William & Mary’s
first year
on the throne, Parliament passed an act known as the 1689 Bill of Rights.
This act
was held jointly by the monarchy, the House of Lords, and the House of
Commons. Under this declared structure, the crown could not raise an
army without the approval of the Houses of Lords and Commons. He
or she could not make laws or order new taxes.
The theory behind these acts was not new to England’s royal
history. The Magna Carta, signed by King John in 1215, had
limited the power of the monarchy. This decision by Parliament
simply expanded the limitations of kings and queens. In addition to the Bill of Rights, Parliament also
passed a much needed law called the Toleration Act of 1689. Officially, this declaration brought all
religious persecution to an end in England. (However, while Catholic persecution ended, Catholics did not
receive equal civil rights with Protestants until the 19th century.)
For six years (until Mary’s death),William and Mary ruled jointly. While William was not an
outstanding king, he faced problems head on. He fought pro–James II forces in Ireland in 1690. He fought
a long war with France on behalf of the Netherlands (where he was still king). William also reformed
England’s finances, allowing for the creation of the Bank of England in 1694. When William died in 1702
after falling off his horse, his heir had already been determined. Since William and Mary were childless,
Parliament passed (in 1701) the Act of Succession which granted the right of the throne to Mary’s sister
Anne, who became queen. Queen Anne [1702 –1714] (the younger daughter of James II) was not an
inspired or inspiring woman. She was very large and suffered from poor eyesight. Anne faced many
problems during her reign. She was forced to put down a revolution in Scotland in 1708.
During Anne’s reign, Parliament created the United Kingdom. This change brought England and
Scotland together under one monarchy. The parliamentary act was known as the Act of Union (1707).
Anne’s years on the throne were marred by a continuing animosity between Catholics and Protestants.
The queen was a faithful Anglican. Upon her death, the throne passed to George I of Hanover [1714 –
1727]. The great-grandson of James I, George was born in Germany. In fact, he never bothered to learn
English. He was the first British monarch of the House of Windsor, the family which occupies the throne
of Great Britain today.
10)
11)
12)
13)
What was the Reformation?
What restrictions did the 1689 Bill of Rights put on the Monarchs?
Why is England also called the United Kingdom?
What language did the English King George I of the Winsor family speak?