charles 2nd Flashcards
when was parliament restored
the convention parliament in april 1660. was an informal, unofficial parliament but had a HOC + HOL
what did the convention parliament do
CofE was reestablished
bishops resumed their seats in the HOL (after the exclusion bill of 1642)
Crown and church lands were restored to their former owners
gentry and and aristocracy resumed as governors of localities.
clarendon general info
Edward Hyde
Chief Advisor - affairs of the state were left to him
Moderate for CofE
intended to recreate the political and religious system that was in place in 1641. he was assisted by bishops and members of the cavalier parliament who were eager to stamp out religious dissent and political radicalism.
why could charles have been so politically aware
he remembers the regicide so just aims to stay in power.
when was the declaration of breda
april 4 1660
what did charles say in the declaration of breda
- he will pardon all except those involved in the regicide
- mixed monarchy, king in parliament = parliament is NOT sovereign
- freedom of religion - “liberty to tender consciences” except those who “disturb the peace of the kingdom” which is decided by parl
- proposes that the army will be paid their arrears if he is let into power = makes ally
- property that was sold or bought etc will de decided by parliament.
why was charles welcomed back
general feeling of the pol nat that to have stability, there should be a king to return to the old order
concessions of the restoration settlement -
- all acts of 1641 which constrained the monarch’s power would never return
- removal of feudal dues eg ship money, forest fines, and the Distraint of Knighthood
- closure of the prerogative courts of Star Chamber and High commission
- removal of the Council of the North
however - the settlement went towards charles as
- attempts to restrict charles 2’s prerogative powers by explicitely confirming parliamentary privileges and the laws of Magna Carta failed in the HOL
- none of the terms that parliament had tried to impose on Charles 1 eg Nineteen propositions of 1642, or Newport negotiations of 1648 were incorporated into the constitutional settlement of 1660
restoration settlement - religion
- church land that was sold during civil wars was restored without compensation
- episcopal govt of church restored + bishops returned to their dioceses
- Worchester Conference
Worcester Conference
Meeting between charles 2 and presbytarians
charles proposed a settlement where presbytarian councils limited the powers of bishops
the cavalier parliament rejected these proposals.
when did cavalier parliament sit
1660 - 1679
cavalier parliament stats
had a session every year apart from ‘72
name from the large number of royalists who sat
restoration settlement - property settlement.
- royal and church land sold by parliament to be reinstated without compensation
- royalists whose estates had been sequestered and sold by parliament were able to get them back through courts => royalists benefit - rewarding and shifts power balance.
- HOWEVER royalists who had sold land to pay Decimation Taxes or fines or to raise forces for the King had little chance of receiving compensation
restoration settlement - finance
- parl paid crown £1.2 mil per year (settlements per year so he would have to call parliament every year)
- king granted tonnage and poundage for life (worth £800,000 a year)
- dunkirk sold for £400,000
- parl expected the king to raise a further £100,000 per year from Crown lands
HOWEVER left the crown in a deficit of £120,000 a year.
restoration settlement - amnesty
- Act of Indemnity and Oblivion (1660) took u charles’ offer of a “free and general pardon” for his opponents in the civil war
- 10 committers of regicide were hanged, drawn and quartered.
charles 2nds actions at the great fire of london
- he took personal command of the efforts to halt the spreading of the flames
charles’ leading style
preferred to ensure his supremacy by setting counsellor against counsellor etc instead of dominating and leading.
woudl have different lines of policy running at once, made by different groups of advisors
when was the clarendon period
1660-1667
when was the cabal
1667-1674
when was danby
1674-1678
when was exclusion bit
1678-1681
clarendon period in brief
- Edward Hyde chief advisor
- charles was partying
- 2nd Dutch War
the unsuccessful war and clarendon code meant he sacrificed clarendon to reset his role w/ parl
CABAL period in brief
- crown supporters, pro-french, toleration, pro-catholic
- 3rd Dutch War,
- Charles negotiating with France for finance, lost parliamentary support.
blamed on CABAL
Danby in brief
- bribed court supporters and purged opposition
- lots are anglican in parl
- charles is supporting expansion of catholic france against prot dutch
exclusion phase in brief
- charles protecting james as successor
- 3x vote and failed to exlude james
absolutism phase dates
1881-1885
absolutism period in brief
- finance good so charles is able to close parliament and exercise power.
2nd anglo-dutch war dates
1664-1667
second anglo dutch war - why and what
- protestant but over trade
- growing consensus between court and parliament that there should be a war with the dutch, so from charles’ perspective a duch war would strengthen domestic loyalty to the crown.
early battle victory in 2nd anglo-dutch war?
Battle of Lowestoft June 1665 = started off well
but then a bad attack on Dutch merchant fleet led to the loss of 10 ships and 4250 men.
2nd anglo dutch war 1667 events
charles began peace negotiations = england dropped its guard and ships and dockyards were ambushed in june 1667 - Dutch fleet burned ships and took England’s flagship the Royal Charles
why did 2nd anglo-dutch war end
clarendon negotiated the Treaty of Breda
was a stalemate
- England acquired New York and New Jersey
parliament turning on clarendon
- clarendon failed to manage parliament effectively = growing opposition = he was bound to be ousted
- as charles’ chief advisor he would be held responsible
- lots of jealousy from younger courtiers who would later form the cabal
when did clarendon resign
august 1667. went into exile in france. some wanted to lock him up in tower of london and charles did nothing to intervene.
The cabal members
- clifford
- ashley
- buckingham
- arlington
- lauderdale
how did charles manage the cabal
played the men against one-another, picking and choosing policies to suit himself. similar to eliz
who were the court faction
supporters of the monarchy as an establishment even if they don’t agree with charles’ policy
who were the country faction
those who wanted a limited monarchy
finance stats 1665-66/7
royal income in 1665 was £820,000 - by 1666-7 it had fallen to £647,000. due to crown mismanagement + rife corruption
example of cavalier parliament using finance to restrict charles on religious matters
- said wouldnt give funds if he tried to broaden the church. in 1669, the commons’ refusal to grnat £300,000 force charles to issue a much more rigid conventicle act in 1670. = able to deny him his prerogative as head of churhc.
when was secret treaty of dover
1670
conditions of the secret treaty of dover
- charles had to declare himself a catholic whenever he felt possible to do so
- louis paid charles £250,000 in return for charles’ loyalty.
when was the third dutch war
1672-74
why was 3rd dutch war declared
in alliance with france, charles declared war .
politicla consequences of the 3rd dutch war
- the war was expensive, unpopualr as parliament feared the strength of catholic expansioon
why did the 3rd dutch war end
was a stalemate, parliament refused the money needed for charles to fight => treaty of westminster in 1674
what were cavalier parliament’s religious views due to
their concern over charles being pro-french (pro-catholic) foreign policy . and his court etc led them to be cautious
when was second declaration of indulgence
15th March 1672
2nd declaration of indulgence implications
coinciding with french alliance against the dutch, raised suspicians.
Parliament reacted to these efforts by denying charles’ dispensing power was that broad
in 1669 parliament refused to grant the kign a £300,000 subsidy in response to the lapsing of the conventicle act, forcing charles to withdraw the declaration and instread issue a test act.
when did james convert privately
1668
when did james conversion become public
1673 when he resued anglican communion
what did james’ conversion lead to
james had to resign due to the test act
lef to pamphlets eg Peter du Moulin who sent the message that france, popery and absolutism were an enemy’s plan for england.
what caused the downfall of the cabal
off the back of dutch propaganda, a long list of complaints and bills were drawn up eg french alliance, the cabal, prerogatives
charles blamed everything on cabal
when was danby in
1674
when did danby make marriage between mary and william
1677
when was the secret treaty of dover renegotiated
AUGUST 1677
charles kept parliament prorogued and louis agreed to grant charles 2 million livres annually.
when was the stop of the exchequer and what was the impact
1672 - suspended repayment of loans to government creditors for one year.
but charles found it harder to find credit in the longer term as he wasnt seen as reliable.
crown finance increasing
1670-1, crown’s ordinary revenue was £840,170
by 1678-9 it reached £1,000,000
why did crown income increas
the development of ships
the navigation acts rerouted more trade through english ports in english ships = increased incomes (customs)
and in 1671 the crown ended customs farming and got a proportion of customs and excise
danby bad financially
due to charles’ extravagence, when he left in 1679, the debt was £750,000 higher than 1674
downfall of danby
- 1678 montagu presented evidence of danby’s knowledge of charles’ relations with louis
twas that he acted on charles’ instruction to get more from louis idk)
when was titus oates’ conspiracy
1677
when was exclusion bill
october 1678 a bill was introduced to exclude all catholics from parliament and the king issued a proclamation banishing all catholics within 20 miles of london
when was the 1st exclusion parliament
march - may 1679
what was the 1st exclusion parliament’s aims
to secure freedom and rights in event of a catholic succession.
what did the first exclusion parliament pass
the habeas corpus Amendment Act in may 1679 where imprisonment had to be brought to trial
how did charles compromise in 1st exclusion parliament
30 april
- no church patronage
- parliament had pwoer to appoint civil, legal, military offices
why did exclusionists fail in the first exclusion parliament
the court who opposed exclusion outnumbered exclusionists 2:1
when was the first exclusion arliement shut
july 1679
when did charles become ill and what was the rsult of this
august 1679
exacerbated exclusion crisi as the reality was settig in
charles exiled the duje of monmouth and sent the duke of york to scotland to reestablish order
when was the second exclusion parliament
oct 1680 to jan 1681
charles delayed it a year after it shouldve been opened
what was the result of the 2nd exclusion parliament
exclusion bill’s reading failed in the house of lords
and james attended HOL sessions to intimidate kinda
when was 3rd exclusion parliament
oxford parliament
march 1681
why did exclusion fail in the oxford parliment
charles was able to secure 40k and 115 annually from louis so he was no longer reliant on parliament
in another secret agreement with louis, he promsied in return for the money, not to call parliament for another 3 years.
when was venner’s uprising and what
january 1661
a 5th monarchist plot
easily suppressed, only 300 supporters
what was the savoy conference a result of and when
a result of venner’s uprising and was in april 1661.
was not fruitful for charles
the clarendon code - corporation act
1661
barred anyone who would not swear allegiance to the crown and worship the anglican church from municipal office
the clarendon code - act of uniformity
required all clergymen and teachers to take oaths otherwise theyd be deprived of their living
= 1800 ministers refused to take
the clarendon code - quaker act
1662
decreed harsh punishments for quakers
the clarendon code - conventicle act
1664
illegalised non-conformist meetings attended by 5+ people
the clarendon code - 5 mile act
1665
prohibited clergymen expelled under the act of uniformity from travelling within 5 miles of their former parishes
when and what was charles’ declaration of indulgence
1662
attempted to make changes to clarendon code to dispense dissenters and catholics
but was made to withdraw ti adn to acquiesce the conventicle and 5 mile act.
what was the church under charles
narrow anglican church
from the restoration.
what was the triennial act’s replacement and when
1663 replaced triennial act to one based ont rust. implicit that parliaments woudl be held every 3 years
why was there not a recall of parliament in 1681
as there was no body powerful enough to force a recall. charles had reduced his expenditure, had funds from louis, and the english economy was growing.
why did the crown collect customs duties. what act and when
1683 the Hearth Tax and Excise Tax.
what was the crown’s ordinary revenue in 1685
reached 1.3 million, exceeding the 1.2 million of the restoration settlement.
how did charles purge opposition further
thorugh quo warranto writs, which were issued requiring men to prove the legality of their royal charters.
often faulty and granted the king the pwoer to veto the appointment of civic officers.
stats on quo warranto
between 1681 and 1685, 51 new charters were issued, with another 47 agreed in the first three months of james’ reign
result of quo warranto in politics
this campaign against municipal independence was to entrench the Tories in municipal government.
which whigs were executed through the judiciary
eg Algernon Sidney and William Lord Russel in 1683 for their involvement in the Rye House Plot
what was the Rye House Plot
a plot by the whigs to assassinate Charles 2 on the way to the Newmarket races.
when was charles’ second declaration of indulgence and what did it result in
1672
hated by parliament and led to the test act 1673.
danby patronage stats
by 1675, had 30MPs receiving large crown pensions.
income 74-77 stat
1674-1677, royal income averaged 1.3 million annually, half from custom revenues
