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James I
James inherited the unsettled issues of Elizabeth’s reign. His worst struggles with Parliament were over money. In addition, James offended the Puritan members of Parliament. The Puritans hoped he would enact reforms to purify the English church of Catholic practices. Except for agreeing to a new translation of the Bible, however, he refused to make Puritan reforms. -
Death of Elizabeth I
During her reign, Queen Elizabeth I of England had had frequent conflicts with Parliament. Many of the arguments were over money, because the treasury did not have enough funds to pay the queen’s expenses. By the time Elizabeth died in 1603, she had left a huge debt for her successor to deal with. Parliament’s financial power was one obstacle to English rulers’ becoming absolute monarchs. The resulting struggle between Parliament and the monarchy would have serious consequences for England. -
Parliament
The highest legislature, consisting of the sovereign, the House of Lords, and the House of Commons. -
Charles I
Charles offended Puritans by upholding the rituals of the Anglican Church. In addition, in 1637, Charles tried to force the Presbyterian Scots to accept a version of the Anglican prayer book. He wanted both his kingdoms to follow one religion. The Scots rebelled, assembled a huge army, and threatened to invade England. To meet this danger, Charles needed money—money he could get only by calling Parliament into session. This gave Parliament a chance to oppose him. -
Petition of Rights
A major English constitutional document that sets out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. -
Charles I dissolves Parliament
Charles's reign began with an unpopular friendship with George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, who used his influence against the wishes of other nobility. Buckingham was assassinated in 1628. There was ongoing tension with parliament over money - made worse by the costs of war abroad. In addition, Charles favored a High Anglican form of worship, and his wife was Catholic - both made many of his subjects suspicious, particularly the Puritans. -
Charles I calls Parliament back into session
The parliament was summoned to pass financial bills, a step that was necessary as a result of the cost of the Bishops' Wars. -
Autumn of 1641 laws
During the autumn of 1641, Parliament passed laws to limit royal power. Furious, Charles tried to arrest Parliament’s leaders in January 1642, but they escaped. Equally furious, a mob of Londoners raged outside the palace. Charles fled London and raised an army in the north of England, where people were loyal to him. -
English Civil War
From 1642 to 1649, supporters and opponents of King Charles fought the English Civil War. Those who remained loyal to Charles were called Royalists or Cavaliers. On the other side were Puritan supporters of Parliament. Because these men wore their hair short over their ears, Cavaliers called them Roundheads. -
Oliver Cromwell
At first neither side could gain a lasting advantage. However, by 1644 the Puritans found a general who could win—Oliver Cromwell. In 1645, Cromwell’s New Model Army began defeating the Cavaliers, and the tide turned toward the Puritans. In 1647, they held the king prisoner. -
Charles I executed
In 1649, Cromwell and the Puritans brought Charles to trial for treason against Parliament. They found him guilty and sentenced him to death. The execution of Charles was revolutionary. Kings had often been overthrown, killed in battle, or put to death in secret. Never before, however, had a reigning monarch faced a public trial and execution. -
Oliver Cromwell rules England
Cromwell now held the reins of power. In 1649, he abolished the monarchy and the House of Lords. He established a commonwealth, a republican form of government. In 1653, Cromwell sent home the remaining members of Parliament. -
Restoration
Oliver Cromwell ruled until his death in 1658. Shortly afterward, the government he had established collapsed, and a new Parliament was selected. The English people were sick of military rule. In 1659, Parliament voted to ask the older son of Charles I to rule England. -
Charles II
When Prince Charles entered London in 1660, crowds shouted joyfully and bells rang. On this note of celebration, the reign of Charles II began. Because he restored the monarchy, the period of his rule is called the Restoration. -
Habeas Corpus passed
During Charles II’s reign, Parliament passed an important guarantee of freedom, habeas corpus. Habeas corpus is Latin meaning “to have the body.” This 1679 law gave every prisoner the right to obtain a writ or document ordering that the prisoner be brought before a judge to specify the charges against the prisoner. -
James II
In 1685, Charles II died, and James II became king. James soon offended his subjects by displaying his Catholicism. Violating English law, he appointed several Catholics to high office. When Parliament protested, James dissolved it. In 1688, James’s second wife gave birth to a son. English Protestants became terrified at the prospect of a line of Catholic kings. -
William and Mary
At their coronation, William and Mary vowed to recognize Parliament as their partner in governing. England had become not an absolute monarchy but a constitutional monarchy, where laws limited the ruler’s power. -
Glorious Revolution
James had an older daughter, Mary, who was Protestant. She was also the wife of William of Orange, a prince of the Netherlands. Seven members of Parliament invited William and Mary to overthrow James for the sake of Protestantism. When William led his army to London in 1688, James fled to France. This bloodless overthrow of King James II is called the Glorious Revolution. -
English Bill of Rights and Constitutional Monarchy
To make clear the limits of royal power, Parliament drafted a Bill of Rights in 1689. This document listed many things that a ruler could not do:no suspending of Parliament’s laws,no levying of taxes without a specific grant from Parliament, no interfering with freedom of speech in Parliament, no penalty for a citizen who petitions the king about grievances. A form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a written, unwritten or blended constitution.
