Exam - Causes of ECW Flashcards
What we’re the three main themes of the causes of the English Civil War?
- power
- religion
- money
What were the main reasons why Charles’ relations with Parliament were so difficult originally?
- Charles’ personality
- foreign policy
- financial pressures
- Buckingham
- Religion
What was the petition of right?
Stopped Charles from interpreting his prerogative as he pleased and it dealt with taxation, imprisonment without trial, martial law and billeting
Why was Charles reluctant to accept the petition of right?
Restricted his freedom and he wanted absolute trust and loyalty. He believed that the forced loan was the fault of the MPs themselves who refused him money
What was the personal rule?
The period of which Charles ruled without parliament
What were the three main reasons why the personal rule ended?
- lack of funds
- lack of popularity
- religious issues
Why was Parliament to blame for relations breaking down with the king?
- wouldn’t grant Charles a regular income or large grants (tonnage and poundage)
- wouldn’t grant Charles the sufficient funds for foreign policy (naval war with Spain)
Why was Charles to blame for relations breaking down with Parliament?
- refused to compromise with Parliament on matters concerning religion
- collected customs duties and introduced forced loans without Parliaments permission
- Promoted Arminians who were disliked by parliament
In what way was Parliament willing to compromise with Charles?
- they would grant Charles money if he only agreed to speak to them about the matter of religion
- petition of right
In what way was Charles willing to compromise with Parliament?
- accepted small amounts of tonnage and poundage even though previous monarchs received much more which went against tradition (unconstitutional)
Why did religious policy contribute to the unpopularity of the personal rule?
- Arminians were growing in power
- Laud, the archbishop of Canterbury, favoured arminianism and was seen to be using absolutist methods to impose his will
What were lauds aims?
- impose uniformity of practice
- make churches more fit for worship
- eradicate puritanism
- increase Church influence on government
- restore wealth of the clergy
How did financial policy contribute to the unpopularity of the personal rule?
- distraint of knighthood
- changes to forest law
- wardships
- recusancy fines
- monopolies and grants
- ship money
Why was an increase in trade unpopular with Puritans?
Saw it as abandoning the Protestant cause in Europe
What was the book of orders?
Monthly expectations to ensure that the idle poor were being put to work, children were in apprenticeships and erring poor were punished
What was the important financial case which discredited Charles’ personal rule?
- John Hampden Case
- He challenged the legality of ship-money, and although he lost the case, it demonstrated how legal experts were divided on the legality of Charles’ actions.
- This caused a 90% decrease in income from ship money.
What was the reform of the militia?
A muster master was appointed to each county
What was the important financial case which discredited Charles’ personal rule?
- John Hampden Case
- He challenged the legality of ship-money, and although he lost the case, it demonstrated how legal experts were divided on the legality of Charles’ actions.
- This caused a 90% decrease in income from ship money.
Why was the reform of the militia unpopular?
- muster masters were outsiders and disliked by the counties
* fear that Charles was preparing an army
What actions by Charles resulted in further discontent in England?
- act of revocation
- articles of perth
- wasn’t crowned in traditional Palace in scotland
- took too long to visit Scotland
- rejected petition that objected religious innovations
What was the act of revocation?
Took land from nobles and was given to the Church
What did Wentworth do in the North to upset the local gentry?
- He gave JP’s a new ‘Book of Orders’, directing them how to instruct the local gentry.
The introduction of what caused the Bishops War?
- The new laudian prayer book in Scottland.
What were the two Parliaments called following the end of the personal rule?
- Short Parliament
* Long Parliament
What two events prompted the Personal Rule to end when it did?
- Finance - Hamden Case.
* War - Scottland.
Who was responsible for unpopularity in Ireland during the personal rule?
- Thomas Wentworth. (Policy of Thorough)
What did Wentworth do in the North to upset the local gentry?
- He gave JP’s a new ‘Book of Orders’, directing them how to instruct the local gentry.
Why did the Act of Revocation only put Charles in a worse position?
Didn’t do much beyond alienating the nobles
What was the impact of reinforcing the articles of perth?
Upset Presbyterians as the introduction of bishops seemed too close to being Episcopalian
What was the impact of Charles being crowned in Holyrood Palace rather than Scone or Stirling?
Went against Scottish tradition and was seen as disrespectful - growth of hatred towards the king
What was the impact of Charles rejecting the petition he was given by the Scottish Lords?
Lord Balmerino tried to revive the petition but was charged with Treason and sentenced to death
What did Charles want to achieve in the Short / Long Parliaments?
- To get financial support from Parliament,
* Without making many concessions on Laudian reform.
Give 3 main events from the crisis of 1640-1642:
- Attempted arrest of 5 MP’s.
- Root and Branch Bill.
- London Mob (Rabble / disorder on the streets)
How did opposition lead to the end of the personal rule?
- secret meetings set up
- sympathy towards the punished
- challenging legality of taxation
- new prayer book in scotland
- Scots didn’t trust charles
Why was Charles forced to call for parliament in 1640?
- trouble in England
- hampden’s case
- bishops wars
Why was their little expectation for war in 1640?
There had been rows like this before but the cumulative effect of the crises were considerable
Why was Stafford the main target of opposition and ultimately executed?
He was seen as the man most likely to take a hard line against them and was associated closely with the attempt to rule without parliament
What secured Stafford’s execution?
Act of Attainder
Why was the execution of Charles not greeted with joy?
No king had ever been executed in England
Why was the execution of Charles not greeted with joy?
No king had ever been executed in England
When did the status of the monarchy begin to decline?
Under the reign of James I
What was James known as?
The “wisest fool in Christendom”
What was James a firm believer in?
The divine right of kings
What is the divine right of Kings?
A belief that God had chosen the King and God couldn’t be wrong, neither could anyone appointed by him to rule
What did James expect from his parliament?
To do as he wanted - he did not expect it to argue with any of his decisions
What advantage did Parliament have over James?
They had money and he was continuously short of it
What form of taxation did Parliament and James clash over?
Customs duties
Why were customs duties important to James?
They were his source of income but Parliament told him that he couldn’t collect them without his consent
When did James suspend parliament?
1611 and they did not meet for another 10 years
When did James suspend parliament?
1611 and they did not meet for another 10 years
Who did James turn to to help run the country without Parliament?
His favourites (friends) and they were rewarded with titles
Why did James’ decision to rule with the help of his favourites rather than Parliament annoy MPs?
They believed that they had no right to run the country instead of themselves
When did James recall Parliament?
1621
Why did James call for parliament in 1621?
To discuss the future marriage of his Son, Charles, to the Spanish Infanta (Princess)
Why was Parliament opposed to the Spanish Match?
- If such as marriage occurred, would the children be brought up as Catholics?
- Spain was still not considered a friendly nation with England
When was the last war with Spain?
1588 (Spanish Armada)
What was the result of the Spanish Match?
The marriage never took place, but the relationship between the King and Parliament was never mended by the time James died in 1625
How did Charles’ personality differ from his father’s?
Charles was arrogant but also believed in the Divine right of kings
What was Charles’ perception of Parliament when he came to power?
He had witnessed the damaged relationship between Parliament and James, and considered Parliament to be entirely at fault
When did Charles marry and to whom?
1625 - Henrietta Maria (French Catholic Princess)
Why were people worried about Charles’ marriage to Henrietta?
They were fearful that Charles would make England a Catholic country
Instead of Parliament, who did James turn to for advice?
Duke of Buckingham
Why did Parliament dislike Buckingham?
Resented his level of power over the King
Was was Buckingham responsible for in 1623?
Taking England to war with Spain
Why was 1625 a disastrous year for Buckingham?
He lost the war with Spain and Parliament brought a charge of Treason against him
How successful was Buckingham’s War was th France in 1627?
It went very badly and the army lost
When did Buckingham die?
1628
How did Buckingham die?
While preparing a naval invasion of France, he was assasinated
What were the main themes of the arguments Charles had with Parliament between 1625-1629?
Money and religion
In 1625, how long did Charles refuse to let Parliament meet?
11 years (similar to his Father)
Instead of Parliament and without the aid of Buckingham, what did Charles rule using?
The Court of Star Chamber
How did Star Chamber raise money for its king?
- Heavily fined those brought before it
* Rich men were persuaded to buy titles
If rich men refused to purchase titles, how did Star Chamber make money regardless?
Fined them the same sum of money it would have cost for a title anyway
When was William Laud made Archbishop of Canterbury?
1633
What tax did Charles enforce in 1635?
Ship money and now everyone had to pay it
What was ship money’s original purpose?
A tax paid by coastal towns and villages to pay for the upkeep of the navy as they most benefitted from the Navy’s protection
What was Charles’ justification for making everyone pay ship money?
He decided that everyone in the Kingdom benefitted from the Navy’s protection and so everyone should pay it
What was Charles’ plan to force the Scots to do as he said in 1640?
Send an army which ended up being beaten
How was Charles punished for the war with the Scots?
Forced to pay a lot of money as compensation
Why was Charles forced to call for parliament in 1640?
He needed money
In return for money, and as a display of power upon their return, what did Parliament do?
Call for the execution of Stafford
What did Stafford do the influenced Parliaments decision to execute him?
He was raising a Catholic army in Ireland which could be used to take over England
When Stafford was executed in 1641, what did Parliament also demand?
That Charles get rid of the Court of Star Chamber
What was the impact of Strafford’s execution?
Irish Catholics rebelled against protestants, saying that they were rebelling for the King
What was Parliaments reaction to the Irish rebels?
They didn’t trust Charles who asked for an army to fight the Irish because they believed that Charles would use both army’s against them
By 1642, why was Charles forced to do as Parliament wished?
They had the ability to raise the money that Charles needed
Why did Charles believe that Parliament having control over him was unacceptable?
Divine right of Kings
How did Charles attempt to regain control in 1642?
Burst into Parliament with 300 soldiers to arrest his five biggest critics
Why were Charles’ five biggest critics missing from Parliament?
They had been tipped off that they were going to be arrested and had already fled to safety. Parliament viewed Charles’ act as a breach of their privilege
What demands did the long parliament pass in June 1642?
The 19 Propositions
What were the 19 propositions?
Meant that the King’s power would be greatly reduced and control of government would be given to Parliament
How did the 19 propositions divide Parliament?
Some supported it while other believed they had gone too far
What happened 6 days after Charles attempted to arrest the five MPs?
He left London and headed for Oxford
Why did Charles head to Oxford?
He wanted to raise an army to fight Parliament and put his enemies firmly in their place
When and how did the English Civil War begin?
22nd August 1642
Charles raised his standard at Nottingham
