English

Constitutional
Monarchy
Ms. Susan M. Pojer
Horace Greeley H. S.
Chappaqua, NY
Background

(1215-1603)
 Magna Carta, 1215
a King John I forced to accept it.
a A list of demands made by the
nobility.
a Created a CONTRACT between the
king and the aristocracy.
a Established principles which
limited the power of the king:
 Established basic legal rights.
 The king must ask for popular
consent for taxes.
 Accused must have jury trial.
 Model Parliament, 1295
a King Edward I brought his
military leaders and nobility
together as a Parliament to
ask their consent to new
taxes.
a Established the principle of
parliamentary “power of the
purse.”
a A radical new idea for any
monarch to ask for anything!
The Elizabethan
“Bargain”
a Parliament:
 Would have the power
to tax.
 Can debate and amend
disputed bills.
a The Monarch:
 Had the royal
perogative
[right/choice]
on foreign
policy.
 The
Early Stuarts
(1603-1649)
The Stuart Monarchy
James I [r. 1603-1625]
James I’s speech to the
House of Commons:

I am surprised that my
ancestors should ever be
permitted such an
institution to come into
existence. I am a
stranger, and found it
here when I arrived, so
that I am obliged to put
up with what I cannot get
rid of!
 James I [r. 1603-1625]

a Wanted absolute power.

a He quickly alienated a
Parliament grown
accustomed under the
Tudors to act on the
premise that monarch and
Parliament TOGETHER
ruled England as a
“balance polity.”
James I [r. 1603-1625]
a He alienated the Puritans
by his strong defense of
the Anglican Church.
a Many of England’s gentry
[mostly rich landowners
below the level of the
nobility] became Puritans.
 These Puritan gentry
formed an important and
large part of the House of
Commons.
 It was NOT WISE to
alienate them!
 Gunpowder Plot, 1605
a An attempt by some provincial
Catholics to kill King James I and
most of the Protestant
aristocracy.
a Blow up the House of Lords
during the state opening of
Parliament.

Guy Fawkes
Executions of the Gunpowder
Plotters
 James I [r. 1603-1625]
a Problems he faced:
 Large royal debt.
 He wasn’t English  he
didn’t understand
English customs [esp.
English law!]
 Believed in Divine Right
of Kings.
 Pro-Catholic
sympathies.
 Clashed with Parliament
 He raised money
without Parliament’s
 King
James
Bible,
1611
 Charles I [r. 1625-1649]
a Pro-ceremonies and
rituals.
a Uniformity of church
services imposed by a
church court.
 Anglican Book of
Common Prayer for
both England AND
Scotland.

a Seen as too pro-

Catholic by the
Puritans.
Archbishop William Laud
 Charles I & Parliament

a Constantly at war with Spain and France.

 Always need £, but how to get it??
a Usually Parliament would give Charles £ from
taxes to fund his wars.
a Periodically, Parliament would deny funds.
 In return, Charles would dissolve Parliament and try
to rule England without it  find funds in other
ways.
Ship Money Assessments, 1636
[per square mile]
a A medieval tax for
coastal cities for
defense.
a Charles applied them
to inland counties as
well.
a This got him around
the need to call
Parliament into
session.
 The Petition of Rights, 1628

a In return for money to fund his wars, Charles I agreed:

 No imprisonment without due cause.
 No taxation without Parliament’s consent.
 No putting soldiers in private homes.
 No martial law during peacetime.
a Charles signed it, and then ignored it, dissolving
 The “Short” Parliament
a “Short Parliament”
 No Parliament in 20
yrs.
 Rebellion in Scotland
over Laud issues.
 Charles need £ war
with France.

a Calls Parliament into

session in 1640
 MPs demand more
protection of property.
 Charles dismisses Charles I by Van Dyck
(1633)
them after 3 weeks.
The “Long” Parliament
a In session from 1640 to 1660.
 Laud executed.
 Triennial Act passed 
Parliament must be called in
session at least once every 3
yrs.
 Parliament can’t be adjourned
without its own consent!

a Charles enters the House of

Commons to end the session
and arrest 5 MPs
unsuccessful
a Charles heads north to form
 The
Civil War
(1642-1649)
 Civil War
(1642-1649)

Royalists Parliamentarians
(Cavaliers) (Roundheads)

a House of Lords † House of Commons

a N & W England † S & E England
a Aristocracy † Puritans
a Large landowners † Merchants
a Church officials † Townspeople
a More rural † More urban
 Playskool Version
of the English Civil War

Roundheads

Cavaliers
Allegiance
of
Members
of the
Long
Parliament
(1640-1660)
 Oliver Cromwell [1599-1658]
† Officer of the Parliamentary army [cavalry]  the
New Model Army.
† Led the army that defeated royal forces and now
controlled the government.
† He wore…a plain cloth-suit, which seemed to have
been made by a poor tailor; his shirt
was plain, and not very clean; and I
remember a speck or two of
blood upon his collar…his face was
swollen and red, his voice sharp and
untunable, and his speech full of
passion. [Sir Philip Warwick,
a Royalist, 1640]
New Model Army Soldier’s
Catechism
The English Civil War: 1642-
1645
 The Battle of Naseby [re-
enactment], 1645

a Charles I is defeated at Marston Moor,

Naseby, and Preston.
a He is handed over to Parliament.
 The
Interregnum
(1649-1660)
The “Interregnum” Period [1649-1660]

† The Commonwealth (1649-

1653)
† The Protectorate (1654-1660)
The Coat of Arms & the Flag
of the Commonwealth
 Pride’s Purge, 1648

† Cromwell purges the House of Commons of

moderates [anyone who isn’t anti-monarchy].
† The results is the “Rump” Parliament.
Regicide  Beheading of Charles
I, 1649

† The vote by the Rump Parliament was 68-67.

The Puritan Commonwealth
[1649-1653]
† Cromwell rules with the
Rump Parliament.
† Constitutional Republic
 Created a constitution 
Instrument of Government
 An executive [Cromwell]
 A Council of State 
annually elected the
committee of Parliament.
 No monarch.
† Europe is appalled  other
nations don’t recognize it.
Rebels within a Rebellion:
Levellers
† John Lilburne was their leader.
† One of the first libertarians in
the world.
† The Agreement of the People
was their political manifesto.
 Abolish corruption within
the Parliament &
judicial process.
 Toleration of
religious differences.
 Laws written in
the vernacular.
 Universal suffrage as
a “natural right.”
 Rebels within a Rebellion:
Diggers
† Agrarian “communists” led by
Gerrard Winstanley and William
Everard  seen as the “true
Levellers.”
† With Charles I gone, they felt that
land should now be distributed to
the poor.
† Food prices had reached record
highs in the 1640s.
† They alarmed the Commonwealth
government and angered the local
landowners who wanted to claim
confiscated aristocratic lands for
themselves.
Cromwell Dissolves the “Rump”
Parliament in 1653
 The Protectorate [1653-1660]
† Cromwell tears up the ineffective
Constitution.
† Dismisses the Rump Parliament
and rules with the support of the
military.
 Declares martial law.
 Military dictator.
† Religious tolerance for all [esp.
for Jews], except for Catholics.
† Crushes a rebellion in Scotland.
† Crushes a rebellion among the Catholics of Ireland 
kills 40% of all ethnic Irish!
 Ulster
Plantation
Established
Under
King James I
Ulster Plantation: 1609-1660
% Of Land Owned by Catholics in
Ireland
[in green]
Cromwell—Lord Protector or
King??

† England longs for an end to martial law!

† Cromwell dies in 1658 and his son, Richard,
takes over, but is weak and lasts for only two
 The
Restoration
(1660-1688)
Parliament could no more exist without the
Crown than the Crown without Parliament.
This was the most important lesson of the
English Civil War!
 King Charles II [r. 1660-1685]
a Had charm, poise, &
political skills [unlike his
father!].
a Restored the theaters and
reopened the pubs and
brothels closed during the
Restoration.
a Favored religious
toleration.
a Had secret Catholic
sympathies.
a Realized that he could not
repeat the mistakes his
 King Charles II [r. 1660-1685]
a 1661  “Cavalier” Parliament [filled with
Royalists]
 Disbanded the Puritan army.
 Pardoned most Puritan rebels.
 Restored the authority of the Church of
England.

a 1662  Clarendon Code [Act of Uniformity]

 All clergy & church officials had to conform to
the Anglican Book of Common Prayer.
 It forbade “non-conformists” to worship publicly,
teach their faith, or attend English universities.
Great London Plague, 1665
Great London Fire, 1666
 King Charles II [r. 1660-1685]

a 1673  Test Act

 Parliament excluded all but Anglicans from
civilian and military positions.
[to the Anglican gentry, the Puritans were
considered “radicals” and the Catholics were
seen as “traitors!”]

a 1679  Habeas Corpus Act

 Any unjustly imprisoned persons could obtain
a writ of habeas corpus compelling the govt.
to explain why he had lost his liberty.
 Charles II’s Foreign Policy
1665 – 1667: Second Anglo-Dutch
War

a To Charles II, Louis XIV is an ideal ally against

the Dutch.
a 1670  Treaty of Dover
King James II [r. 1685-1688]

a Was a bigoted
convert to
Catholicism without
any of Charles II’s
shrewdness or ability
to compromise.
a Alienated even the
Tories.
a Provoked the
revolution that
Charles II had
succeeded in
avoiding!
 King James II [r. 1685-1688]
a Introduced Catholics into the
High Command of both the
army and navy.
a Camped a standing army a few
miles outside of London.
a Surrounded himself with
Catholic advisors & attacked
Anglican control of the
universities.
a Claimed the power to suspend or dispense with Acts
of Parliament.
a 1687  Declaration of Liberty of Conscience
 He extended religious toleration without
Parliament’s approval or support.
 The
Glorious
Revolution
1688
The “Glorious” Revolution: 1688
a Whig & Tory leaders offered the throne jointly to
James II’s daughter Mary [raised a Protestant] & her
husband, William of Orange.
 He was a vigorous enemy of Louis XIV.
 He was seen as a champion of the Protestant
cause.
English Bill of Rights [1689]
a It settled all of the
major issues
between King &
Parliament.
a It served as a model
for the U. S. Bill of
Rights.
a It also formed a base
for the steady
expansion of civil
liberties in the 18c
and early 19c in
England.
 English Bill of Rights [1689]
a Main provisions:
1. The King could not suspend the operation of laws.
2. The King could not interfere with the ordinary course of
justice.
3. No taxes levied or standard army maintained in peacetime
without Parliament’s consent.
4. Freedom of speech in Parliament.
5. Sessions of Parliament would be held frequently.
6. Subjects had the right of bail, petition, and freedom from
excessive fines and cruel and unusual punishment.
7. The monarch must be a Protestant.
8. Freedom from arbitrary arrest.
9. Censorship of the press was dropped.
10.Religious toleration.
The Seesaw of King &
Parliament:

1603-1689