English Civil War 1642-1649 Flashcards
(20 cards)
When did the English civil war begin?
- Battle of edge hill.
When was the end of the English civil war?
1649, with the execution of Charles I.
When did the royalists get defeated in war?
1645, battle of naseby
Why did the English civil war break out? Political wise
Charles believed in the divine right of kings, meaning he saw himself only answerable to God, not to parliament. This led him to rule without parliament from 1629 to 1640, a period known as personal rule. Parliament however, sought to limit the king’s power and assert its own authority
Why did the English civil war break out? Religion wise?
Charles married Henrietta Maria, a catholic french princess, which alarmed the Protestant England. His attempts to impose angelic practices on the Church of England and Scotland, introducing the angelic book of common prayer, sparked unrest among puritans and other groups who viewed it as moving towards Catholicism
Why did the English civil war break out? Financial wise
Charles’ war with Spain and France were expensive, and his methods of raising funds was through taxation. Taxes such as: ship money, and forcing loans. Charles recalled parliament in 1640 to raise funds to suppress Scottish rebellion, and the disputes worsened the connection
What were the key events
Outbreak of war 1642- conflict erupted into a war when Charles I raised his royal standard in Nottingham. War was between the royalists (cavaliers) and the parliamentarians (round heads)
Key battles: battle of edge hill (1642), Battle of Marston Moor (1644) and Battle of Naseby where the parliamentarians defeated the royalists.
1649 - trial and execution of charles,. He was executed for treason.
Who fought?
Started in edgehill.
Cavaliers were made up of: wealthy land owners (who didnt want to lose their wealth), mainly in the North, and those who were worried about the growing influence of the parliament.
Roundheads: middle class and peasants, south England, merchants who weren’t happy about the taxation, those against the religious reforma of charles
What did they want?
Most parliamentarians didnt want the full removal of the king, they just wanted to remove the royal reforms. Cromwell wanted to remove the king, and it was achieved through the new model army
What was the new model army made of?
He recruited men based on their ability rather than privilege
Army was disciplined and lived by a strict and religious code, only Protestants
The men were not allowed to drink nor swear.
What were the army sizes
New model army: 14,000 men
Royalists: 9000 men
Who was Cromwell
Mp for Cornwall
Led parliament forces with Thomas fairax
Created new model army
Puritans
What was the second civil war?
1647, charles surrendered to the Scottish army.
But he promised to impose Presbyterianism (protestism) in england for 3 years in exchange for their help.
Scotland invades england in 1648.
Scots lose at the battle of Preston against the new model army in 1648.
Charles couldn’t be trusted as he negotiated against the parliaments back.
He was tried for treason and executed in 1649.
Who were the levellers
They published petitions and pamphlets for wider voting rights (universal suffrage), equality under law, end to monarchy, religious freedom, and reformation of legal system, and a written constitution. They introduced radical democratic ideas.
What were the consequences of the civil war?
Trial and execution of Charles I was a huge shock. The idea of king put on trial undermined the divine right.
After Charles’ execution, a commonwealth (republican system) was set up.
They continued to suppress the Irish. Cromwell crushed them with their army. There were massacres in drogheda and Wexford
1650, Cromwell and his group were fully in control.
Rump parliament couldn’t come up with a constitution, and Cromwell disbanded them
1653, Cromwell took over as lord protecter, basically king, but he refused the crown in 1657
Generally stable rule .
What was rump parliament
Was the remaining MPs from the long parliament which survived the pride purge where 140 Mps were purged, as they supported charles. During the trial, only rump parliamentarians could attend, and the supporters of Charles weren’t allowed.
When did Cromwell die? And what happened
Cromwell died in 1660, his son Richard, was unable to rule effectively, general monck invited charles II to return back to seize rule.
Negative aspects of Cromwell
A lot of people weren’t happy with his rule, due to his strict aspects of life. He also tried to cancel Christmas. He killed people who surrendered, including children and women. He killed the leaders of the levellers, who believed in equality.
Positive
He won wars against the Dutch and Spanish. He also introduced the navigation act of 1651, where only English ships were allowed to enter and exit england. People were free to worship in anyway they liked. People felt that Cromwell was on their sides.
What was the great remonstrance of 1641
List of complaints against charles, criticising him regarding use of personal rule, religious reforms, illegal taxation (ship money)
