English Civil War - Part One
War, terrorism, assassinations, the great fire of London, plague,
Part 1- Changing Winds
Britian had come a long way in 600 years. After the divine right of kings set forth by William the conqueror. After the earlier abuses of power such as feudalism, careless spending, oppressive taxes, imprisoning people without a trial, forming their own church for their own gain, getting excommunicated and executing wives to get a divorce... the people of England didn't trust their kings and queens as they once had. Trouble was brewing.
1603 - Queen Elizabeth I Dies
The last in the royal Tudor lin was about to die. Everyone had been waiting with baited breath. Queen Elizabeth had no children to inherit the throne. She also hadn't named a successor and many people had only ever know her as queen. She had reigned 45 years and people felt the changing winds approaching. Some felt like anarchy and breakdown of the social order were imminent.
However, from her deathbed, a close advisor claimed that Elizabeth had given him some indication that King James of Scotland should inherit the throne.
Royal family dynamics were strange back then. Elizabeth had been the one who ordered the execution of James' mother, Mary Queen of Scots. Now she was naming him as heir to her throne.
When she finally died plans had been set in place. A rider was dispatched to ride for 2 days straight. Fresh horses were strategically placed along the route. There was a rush to be the first to tell the new king because they were likely to get rewarded and given a decent position in the new monarch.
1603- James I crowned.
Many were excited to have a king once again. Great hope and promise were placed behind the future of his reign.
James however, wasnt in a rush to reach London, mainly because he didn't care to attend the funeral for Elizabeth, who had after all, had his mother executed. James asked parliament to fund his journey down from Scotland. This trip took a whole month due to his many hunting trips.
Once he arrived in London, his coronation had to be postponed due to a recent rise to deaths due to plague.
Long Live King James
King James was impressed with the grandeur and extravagance his new possessions in England. He marveled at the Crown Jewel collection and saw his weath had grown substantially with this new title.
The King held large parties, sparing no expense. His wife wasn't satisfied with the 3,000 dresses left behind by Queen Elizabeth and insisted on keeping up with the latest fashion.
King James I knighted more people in the first 4 months than Elizabeth did in her 45 years. Allegedly knighting a steak and a person whose name he had forgotten. (Page 3)
Divine right
James I was a strong proponent of the divine right of kings. He believed that God had placed him as ruler and therefore nobody couldn't disagree or hold him accountable because his will was God's will.
page 24 of Rebellion
1604- KJV commissioned
King James was an educated man and he enjoyed theological debate. King James invited representatives from the Puritans and the rest of the Church of England. They argued about the practice of confession, wedding rings, and who was qualified to perform baptisms. The event got pretty heated and only accomplished pushing the two sides further apart. It frustrated King James who, in the end, believed a solution would be to have a more accurate translation of the bible. Therefore, the KJV was born.
1605- Gunpowder Plot
1607- Financial Crisis
Despite the wealth of King James, much of it was in material possessions and not a steady income. Soon, he was running low on actual money. He spoke to parliament and they imposed a tax on the people to supplement the problem. This was hugely unpopular because they saw the King's lavish lifestyle and it was generally agreed that such a tax should only be levied during times of war. Some refused to pay and argued against it but parliament upheld it and said the king had the power to declare a tax at any time. As King James believed in the divine right of Kings he believed his right to tax was God given.
Soon the king was selling titles such as Baron and Duke. This was a great short term solution as it made vast sums from a few mere words. However, in the long run it would prove to cheapen the respectability and reverence given to the nobility from the lower classes. Titles had become available for purchase and not earned.
1610- Assassination of King Henry of France
A Frenchman claimed to have experienced a vision from God instructing him to convince King Henry IV to forcefully convert all the protestants to Catholicism.
Unable to meet with the king, he interpreted the King's decision to invade the Spanish Netherlands as the start of a war against the pope. Determined to stop him, he decided to kill the king.
"he had seen that the king wanted to make war on the pope, in order to transfer the Holy See to Paris".
On 14 May 1610, the man lay in wait and when the king passed, his carriage was halted by a blockage in the street, and he was stabbed King Henry to death. The assassin was immediately seized by police.
At the start of the interrogation, the assassin said, "I know very well he is dead; I saw the blood on my knife and the place where I hit him. But I have no regrets at all about dying, because I've done what I came to do."
During interrogation, the assassin was frequently tortured to make him identify accomplices, but he denied that he had any and insisted that he had acted alone.
On May 27 he was taken to Paris and was tortured one last time before being pulled apart by four horses, a method of execution reserved for regicides.
1611- Lady Arbella Stuart
Arbella was an English noblewoman who was considered a possible successor to Queen Elizabeth I of England. During the reign of King James VI and I (her first cousin), she married William Seymour, 2nd Duke of Somerset in secret. This made any potential claim to the throne of England very strong. When King James found out he demanded that they be arrested. Arbella, who was lodged at Highgate in London dressed as a man to escape.
She sailed to France but the ship was overtaken by King James's men just before it reached Calais. She was returned to England and imprisoned in the Tower of London. She never saw her husband again.
King James placed William Seymour under house arrest. Lady Arbella died at age 39 from illnesses exacerbated by her refusal to eat.
1611- Parliament is Dissolved
James I was still experiencing financial issues. He urged parliament to assign him more funds. Instead of granting this request the parliament instead debated. Instead of debating whether they should assign the King more funds or how much, they debated the king's right to make such requests.
James I was frustrated, embarrassed and stressed by the recent threats to his throne. He announced the dissolution of parliament and threw members in jail. James tried asking the city for a loan but was denied for not being trustworthy enough. Stories of his extravagant parties were common knowledge. So James started taxing people any way he could.
Part 2 - Charles takes over and war begins
1618- Marriage Proposal
Phillip III of Spain promised his daughter to James' son along with a vast inheritance. Eventhough James was protestant and Spain was Catholic. The inheritance was of great interest to James, worth more than his religious views. In return King Phillip requested that Catholics be able to worship freely and also that James helps the Catholic forces in the Holy Roman Empire.
James really wanted the power and money that would go with marrying his son to the princess of Spain. So he wanted to make the King of Spain happy by sending troops to help the Catholics in the Holy Roman Empire. However, James couldn't do this without the approval of parliament.
James recall parliament parliament after 10 years. He needed them to approve catholic sympathizing policies and an act of war aiding the Catholics in Europe. Parliament were horrified and requested that James marry a protestant and declare war on catholic powers and support protestants in the Holy Roman Empire. It's reported the King responded with "God give me patience!" King James again dissolved parliament and wouldn't recall them for the rest of his life.
Last paragraph of page 75
Secret Mission for Love - 1623
Bottom of page 78
1625 - James dies and Charles becomes king.
Last paragraph of 107 - character
Charles looked to strengthen his alliances by marrying the princess of France. He did, however, she was Catholic and Charles made promises about the free treatment of Catholics which he could not ensure without parliament. He was frustrated by not having the power he believed he should. Like his father, he still believed in divine right of kings and that nobody had the right to say no to him. Page 112. Last paragraph.
Page 116, his wife refuses to attend his coronation
King Charles had aspirations of fighting a great war. Either against Spain who's princess snubbed him or defending his brother in law against Catholics in Germany. The new King Charles was frustrated that he needed parliaments approval to fund a navy and thus the war. Still believing in the divine right of kings he was frustrated when parliament didn't do as he asked.
When they refused he tried to sell the Crown Jewels on the Dutch market. Parliament threatened to arrest anyone trying to sell them and argued that the jewels were belonging to the office of the sovereign monarch but not theirs personally.
Charles attacks Spain
Despite not being given money by parliament, Charles sent a fleet of old ships to antagonize Spain and capture the port city of Cadiz. It went terribly. Despite capturing the city. The British threw a victory party and in doing so got distracted and the Spanish attacked and killed a bunch of them. Meanwhile, out at sea, the remaining ships had orders to capture Spanish silver ships traveling from Mexico. But the ships were in such bad shape they couldn't catch anything. So they returned home.
Charles then tried to wage war with France eventhough his wife was French but when the attack began so well, his troops requested backup. Again, parliament was disbanded and had no agreements to fund such a war. So the men waited for support hopelessly and 4,000 of them died. Very few made it home.
Parliament sought to blame the Duke of Buckingham, the man that oversaw both the expedition. However, Buckingham was a very close friend of the king's family and Charles sought to defend him no matter what. (Chapter on page 117) When two members of parliament attempted to charge Buckingham with treason, King Charles instead had them thrown in jail.
Discontent spread around the city. (Mantra from page 121)
2nd paragraph from bottom of 132
King Charles defended the Duke of Buckingham against any criticism. This made him hugely resented and blamed even more for the state of the country. Public opinion was fiercely opposed to the King and his defense of the Duke. Soon pamphlets were being anonymously distributed throughout London. The Duke's personal doctor was attacked by a mob. King Charles became concerned about an uprising and so demanded the acquisition of all gunpowder in the city. The public saw the king's men stocking up on gunpowder and in an escalation, started arming themselves preemptively in case the king tried to oppress them.
The duke of Buckingham was advised to wear a chainmail undershirt as protection against any attempted assassination. He refused, seeing it as a sign of weakness and fear. Page 141
Page 142
Middle of 143
The coming months brought food shortages and the imprisonment of the king's enemies. Members of parliament were imprisoned for not doing as the king requested and others were arrested for their criticism of the the king's preferred theology. One man was whipped, ears cutoff and imprisoned for life.
The declaration of sports
The church leaders during Elizabeth I had imposed a restriction on recreational activities. Charles I issued a reversal of that and people were all now allowed to practice all kinds of past times on the holy day. Dancing, bowling, archery were all again permitted. Playing cards, gambling, making toasts, celebrating easter or Christmas, closed theatres. Playing football. Doing any of these could result in fines, imprisonment or execution.
https://youtu.be/jBCxE8tUIWM
P173 - new prayer book
P175 - 176
By this time, there was so much public disdain for King Charles I that he began forming an army as a precaution against mounting tensions. He conscripted many men against their will. Any one who refused would be named as a traitor. However, the men didn't like the king and were extremely reluctant to put their life on the line for his. When the King asked the men to make an oath of allegiance to him, two officers were arrested for refusing.
Still, the King formed an army in the city of York. Within this army were highly trained horsemen.
Ironically, the region in which Charles found the most enemies was in his father's homeland of Scotland. Although they believed in the divine right of King's, they criticized his religious views. They didn't approve of the imposed prayer book, the lifting of restricted activities on the sabbath and his catholic sympathies.
In response to the King's growing army, the Scottish became afraid that the he would use it to forcefully subdue them. So in response, they too formed an army. Charles sent troops to the Scottish border as a precaution.
The unemployed members of parliament and the monarch-hostile puritans invited the Scottish army into England. They crossed the border with their leaders carrying bibles high. They declared peace toward the common man and promised not to take anything without paying for it. They declared their enemies were the Catholics and the king.
Many supporters of the king believed that the Scottish forces would be met with hostility by the locals, however much of the time the opposite was true. Many came out to feast with and support the invading Scottish forces.
The English retreated to Newcastle but were defeated swiftly. Their lack of experience or loyalty to a selfish king were cited as possible reasons.
Parliament reconvenes
Charles was encouraged to negotiate with the Scottish before more damage could be done. The Scottish on the other hand requested that the King call together parliament so that they could negotiate with them. In other words, they didn't trust the King and he was out of ideas. Reluctantly, he called parliament together.
The country voted on each counties representative. Very few of the king's men won their elections. The puritans had the most success because they were known to strongly disapprove of the king.
Once the puritans had a majority in parliament, the set about persecuting other protestants and Catholics. They imprisoned the religious leaders that had tried changing their religious practices. They announced a nationwide fast.
The new puritan parliament could be as cruel and authoritarian as the King, most likely because they both believed they were fulfilling God's will.
They wanted to charge the king's advisor with crimes that he had committed on behalf of the king. He believed the King should have absolute power and therefore could do anything. He was found guilty and executed in front of 100,000 people who were in festive spirits.
Page 225 top and bottom
Ireland
Predominantly Catholic, Ireland had been poorly treated during the reign of James I. The King had confiscated thousands of acres and given them to his supporters in England and Scotland. 40,000 acres in County Derry and became know as Londonderry. 6 of the 9 counties in the Ulster region were given to the protestant Scottish. This region exists today as Northern Ireland and has been a cause of religious extremist violence from that day until today.
In 1641, reports reached London that Irish Catholics had been attacking and murdering protestants. People were outraged but the reports failed to include the tit for tat violence that the protestants were performing on the Catholics. This gave the protestants a misfounded impression of being victimized disproportionately. So Parliament sent troops to Ulster county to keep the peace.
Cavalier vs Roundheads
Around this time, protestant anti-royalists would mock the king's troops as "caballeros", Spanish for a Spanish gentleman. They were trying to offend them and suggest that they were less English than the common man. This became the word 'cavalier' which in turn became embraced by the king's supporters. Puritans then used the word cavalier to describe people who weren't as Christian or respectful as them.
Parlimentary puritan inspired Anti-catholic mobs in London sought to attack local bishops. The 12 catholic bishops who were members of parliament were once again able to attend parliament. They proclaimed that all meetings in their absence were void. This suggested that parliament couldnt meet without Catholics present. The next day all 12 were arrested for treason and locked up in the tower of London.
Tensions were high. The king ordered his troops to patrol the streets to show a presence and represent his power to the people. Parliament took this as a threat and sealed their doors, meeting in private. They discussed arresting the queen for speaking with the Irish Catholic Revolutionaries. The king was furious, if parliament could arrest the queen then what power did he really have? The king responded by declaring warrants for the arrests of certain members of parliament. When they weren't surrendered he marched to parliament himself with 300 Cavaliers. When he got there the members of parliament stood in silence, the men the king was seeking were in hiding and everyone refused to tell the king where. The King was powerless. He had lost his authority over them and had no option but to leave without the enemies.
After the king and his men left parliament, the building was fortified with chains and barricades. They were afraid of what the king might do to regain his power and authority. Meanwhile, the king and queen left London for their country home, afraid for their safety.
The English arsenal was held in the city of Hull. Parliament and the King planned on taking possession of it for their own protection. However, parliament got their first and told the city's mayor not to let the king and his men inside the city gates. Page 240 & 241
Bottom of 243
The south-east strongly supported parliament. The north-west supported the King.
The King left Nottingham with 14,000 men who believed themselves to be patriotic, anti-puritan or just wanted to get paid. The Earl of Essex marched an army of 20,000 out of Northampton. They sought to defend the true religion, were anti-monarch or just wanted to get paid.
Both sides recruited whomever they could find, people who had debts to pay off, the old and the homeless. Men were released from prison and put into the army.
These troops were difficult to manage and often got into trouble misbehaving. The King's men left pubs in terrible states while the Parliamentary puritans vandalized churches they didn't agree with.
The Parliamentary troops were known to sing worship songs as they marched. Some carried muskets, primitive guns that were only effective up close. Others carried pikes, swords, bows and arrows.
The king's army moved to Shrewsbury. P252, middle paragraph of 255. Parliament convinced the fellow puritan Scottish to launch an army from the north. They captured Newcastle and York from the king's men.
Part 1- Changing Winds
Britian had come a long way in 600 years. After the divine right of kings set forth by William the conqueror. After the earlier abuses of power such as feudalism, careless spending, oppressive taxes, imprisoning people without a trial, forming their own church for their own gain, getting excommunicated and executing wives to get a divorce... the people of England didn't trust their kings and queens as they once had. Trouble was brewing.
1603 - Queen Elizabeth I Dies
The last in the royal Tudor lin was about to die. Everyone had been waiting with baited breath. Queen Elizabeth had no children to inherit the throne. She also hadn't named a successor and many people had only ever know her as queen. She had reigned 45 years and people felt the changing winds approaching. Some felt like anarchy and breakdown of the social order were imminent.
However, from her deathbed, a close advisor claimed that Elizabeth had given him some indication that King James of Scotland should inherit the throne.
Royal family dynamics were strange back then. Elizabeth had been the one who ordered the execution of James' mother, Mary Queen of Scots. Now she was naming him as heir to her throne.
When she finally died plans had been set in place. A rider was dispatched to ride for 2 days straight. Fresh horses were strategically placed along the route. There was a rush to be the first to tell the new king because they were likely to get rewarded and given a decent position in the new monarch.
1603- James I crowned.
Many were excited to have a king once again. Great hope and promise were placed behind the future of his reign.
James however, wasnt in a rush to reach London, mainly because he didn't care to attend the funeral for Elizabeth, who had after all, had his mother executed. James asked parliament to fund his journey down from Scotland. This trip took a whole month due to his many hunting trips.
Once he arrived in London, his coronation had to be postponed due to a recent rise to deaths due to plague.
Long Live King James
King James was impressed with the grandeur and extravagance his new possessions in England. He marveled at the Crown Jewel collection and saw his weath had grown substantially with this new title.
The King held large parties, sparing no expense. His wife wasn't satisfied with the 3,000 dresses left behind by Queen Elizabeth and insisted on keeping up with the latest fashion.
King James I knighted more people in the first 4 months than Elizabeth did in her 45 years. Allegedly knighting a steak and a person whose name he had forgotten. (Page 3)
Divine right
James I was a strong proponent of the divine right of kings. He believed that God had placed him as ruler and therefore nobody couldn't disagree or hold him accountable because his will was God's will.
page 24 of Rebellion
1604- KJV commissioned
King James was an educated man and he enjoyed theological debate. King James invited representatives from the Puritans and the rest of the Church of England. They argued about the practice of confession, wedding rings, and who was qualified to perform baptisms. The event got pretty heated and only accomplished pushing the two sides further apart. It frustrated King James who, in the end, believed a solution would be to have a more accurate translation of the bible. Therefore, the KJV was born.
1605- Gunpowder Plot
1607- Financial Crisis
Despite the wealth of King James, much of it was in material possessions and not a steady income. Soon, he was running low on actual money. He spoke to parliament and they imposed a tax on the people to supplement the problem. This was hugely unpopular because they saw the King's lavish lifestyle and it was generally agreed that such a tax should only be levied during times of war. Some refused to pay and argued against it but parliament upheld it and said the king had the power to declare a tax at any time. As King James believed in the divine right of Kings he believed his right to tax was God given.
Soon the king was selling titles such as Baron and Duke. This was a great short term solution as it made vast sums from a few mere words. However, in the long run it would prove to cheapen the respectability and reverence given to the nobility from the lower classes. Titles had become available for purchase and not earned.
1610- Assassination of King Henry of France
A Frenchman claimed to have experienced a vision from God instructing him to convince King Henry IV to forcefully convert all the protestants to Catholicism.
Unable to meet with the king, he interpreted the King's decision to invade the Spanish Netherlands as the start of a war against the pope. Determined to stop him, he decided to kill the king.
"he had seen that the king wanted to make war on the pope, in order to transfer the Holy See to Paris".
On 14 May 1610, the man lay in wait and when the king passed, his carriage was halted by a blockage in the street, and he was stabbed King Henry to death. The assassin was immediately seized by police.
At the start of the interrogation, the assassin said, "I know very well he is dead; I saw the blood on my knife and the place where I hit him. But I have no regrets at all about dying, because I've done what I came to do."
During interrogation, the assassin was frequently tortured to make him identify accomplices, but he denied that he had any and insisted that he had acted alone.
On May 27 he was taken to Paris and was tortured one last time before being pulled apart by four horses, a method of execution reserved for regicides.
1611- Lady Arbella Stuart
Arbella was an English noblewoman who was considered a possible successor to Queen Elizabeth I of England. During the reign of King James VI and I (her first cousin), she married William Seymour, 2nd Duke of Somerset in secret. This made any potential claim to the throne of England very strong. When King James found out he demanded that they be arrested. Arbella, who was lodged at Highgate in London dressed as a man to escape.
She sailed to France but the ship was overtaken by King James's men just before it reached Calais. She was returned to England and imprisoned in the Tower of London. She never saw her husband again.
King James placed William Seymour under house arrest. Lady Arbella died at age 39 from illnesses exacerbated by her refusal to eat.
1611- Parliament is Dissolved
James I was still experiencing financial issues. He urged parliament to assign him more funds. Instead of granting this request the parliament instead debated. Instead of debating whether they should assign the King more funds or how much, they debated the king's right to make such requests.
James I was frustrated, embarrassed and stressed by the recent threats to his throne. He announced the dissolution of parliament and threw members in jail. James tried asking the city for a loan but was denied for not being trustworthy enough. Stories of his extravagant parties were common knowledge. So James started taxing people any way he could.
Part 2 - Charles takes over and war begins
1618- Marriage Proposal
Phillip III of Spain promised his daughter to James' son along with a vast inheritance. Eventhough James was protestant and Spain was Catholic. The inheritance was of great interest to James, worth more than his religious views. In return King Phillip requested that Catholics be able to worship freely and also that James helps the Catholic forces in the Holy Roman Empire.
James really wanted the power and money that would go with marrying his son to the princess of Spain. So he wanted to make the King of Spain happy by sending troops to help the Catholics in the Holy Roman Empire. However, James couldn't do this without the approval of parliament.
James recall parliament parliament after 10 years. He needed them to approve catholic sympathizing policies and an act of war aiding the Catholics in Europe. Parliament were horrified and requested that James marry a protestant and declare war on catholic powers and support protestants in the Holy Roman Empire. It's reported the King responded with "God give me patience!" King James again dissolved parliament and wouldn't recall them for the rest of his life.
Last paragraph of page 75
Secret Mission for Love - 1623
Bottom of page 78
1625 - James dies and Charles becomes king.
Last paragraph of 107 - character
Charles looked to strengthen his alliances by marrying the princess of France. He did, however, she was Catholic and Charles made promises about the free treatment of Catholics which he could not ensure without parliament. He was frustrated by not having the power he believed he should. Like his father, he still believed in divine right of kings and that nobody had the right to say no to him. Page 112. Last paragraph.
Page 116, his wife refuses to attend his coronation
King Charles had aspirations of fighting a great war. Either against Spain who's princess snubbed him or defending his brother in law against Catholics in Germany. The new King Charles was frustrated that he needed parliaments approval to fund a navy and thus the war. Still believing in the divine right of kings he was frustrated when parliament didn't do as he asked.
When they refused he tried to sell the Crown Jewels on the Dutch market. Parliament threatened to arrest anyone trying to sell them and argued that the jewels were belonging to the office of the sovereign monarch but not theirs personally.
Charles attacks Spain
Despite not being given money by parliament, Charles sent a fleet of old ships to antagonize Spain and capture the port city of Cadiz. It went terribly. Despite capturing the city. The British threw a victory party and in doing so got distracted and the Spanish attacked and killed a bunch of them. Meanwhile, out at sea, the remaining ships had orders to capture Spanish silver ships traveling from Mexico. But the ships were in such bad shape they couldn't catch anything. So they returned home.
Charles then tried to wage war with France eventhough his wife was French but when the attack began so well, his troops requested backup. Again, parliament was disbanded and had no agreements to fund such a war. So the men waited for support hopelessly and 4,000 of them died. Very few made it home.
Parliament sought to blame the Duke of Buckingham, the man that oversaw both the expedition. However, Buckingham was a very close friend of the king's family and Charles sought to defend him no matter what. (Chapter on page 117) When two members of parliament attempted to charge Buckingham with treason, King Charles instead had them thrown in jail.
Discontent spread around the city. (Mantra from page 121)
2nd paragraph from bottom of 132
King Charles defended the Duke of Buckingham against any criticism. This made him hugely resented and blamed even more for the state of the country. Public opinion was fiercely opposed to the King and his defense of the Duke. Soon pamphlets were being anonymously distributed throughout London. The Duke's personal doctor was attacked by a mob. King Charles became concerned about an uprising and so demanded the acquisition of all gunpowder in the city. The public saw the king's men stocking up on gunpowder and in an escalation, started arming themselves preemptively in case the king tried to oppress them.
The duke of Buckingham was advised to wear a chainmail undershirt as protection against any attempted assassination. He refused, seeing it as a sign of weakness and fear. Page 141
Page 142
Middle of 143
The coming months brought food shortages and the imprisonment of the king's enemies. Members of parliament were imprisoned for not doing as the king requested and others were arrested for their criticism of the the king's preferred theology. One man was whipped, ears cutoff and imprisoned for life.
The declaration of sports
The church leaders during Elizabeth I had imposed a restriction on recreational activities. Charles I issued a reversal of that and people were all now allowed to practice all kinds of past times on the holy day. Dancing, bowling, archery were all again permitted. Playing cards, gambling, making toasts, celebrating easter or Christmas, closed theatres. Playing football. Doing any of these could result in fines, imprisonment or execution.
https://youtu.be/jBCxE8tUIWM
P173 - new prayer book
P175 - 176
By this time, there was so much public disdain for King Charles I that he began forming an army as a precaution against mounting tensions. He conscripted many men against their will. Any one who refused would be named as a traitor. However, the men didn't like the king and were extremely reluctant to put their life on the line for his. When the King asked the men to make an oath of allegiance to him, two officers were arrested for refusing.
Still, the King formed an army in the city of York. Within this army were highly trained horsemen.
Ironically, the region in which Charles found the most enemies was in his father's homeland of Scotland. Although they believed in the divine right of King's, they criticized his religious views. They didn't approve of the imposed prayer book, the lifting of restricted activities on the sabbath and his catholic sympathies.
In response to the King's growing army, the Scottish became afraid that the he would use it to forcefully subdue them. So in response, they too formed an army. Charles sent troops to the Scottish border as a precaution.
The unemployed members of parliament and the monarch-hostile puritans invited the Scottish army into England. They crossed the border with their leaders carrying bibles high. They declared peace toward the common man and promised not to take anything without paying for it. They declared their enemies were the Catholics and the king.
Many supporters of the king believed that the Scottish forces would be met with hostility by the locals, however much of the time the opposite was true. Many came out to feast with and support the invading Scottish forces.
The English retreated to Newcastle but were defeated swiftly. Their lack of experience or loyalty to a selfish king were cited as possible reasons.
Parliament reconvenes
Charles was encouraged to negotiate with the Scottish before more damage could be done. The Scottish on the other hand requested that the King call together parliament so that they could negotiate with them. In other words, they didn't trust the King and he was out of ideas. Reluctantly, he called parliament together.
The country voted on each counties representative. Very few of the king's men won their elections. The puritans had the most success because they were known to strongly disapprove of the king.
Once the puritans had a majority in parliament, the set about persecuting other protestants and Catholics. They imprisoned the religious leaders that had tried changing their religious practices. They announced a nationwide fast.
The new puritan parliament could be as cruel and authoritarian as the King, most likely because they both believed they were fulfilling God's will.
They wanted to charge the king's advisor with crimes that he had committed on behalf of the king. He believed the King should have absolute power and therefore could do anything. He was found guilty and executed in front of 100,000 people who were in festive spirits.
Page 225 top and bottom
Ireland
Predominantly Catholic, Ireland had been poorly treated during the reign of James I. The King had confiscated thousands of acres and given them to his supporters in England and Scotland. 40,000 acres in County Derry and became know as Londonderry. 6 of the 9 counties in the Ulster region were given to the protestant Scottish. This region exists today as Northern Ireland and has been a cause of religious extremist violence from that day until today.
In 1641, reports reached London that Irish Catholics had been attacking and murdering protestants. People were outraged but the reports failed to include the tit for tat violence that the protestants were performing on the Catholics. This gave the protestants a misfounded impression of being victimized disproportionately. So Parliament sent troops to Ulster county to keep the peace.
Cavalier vs Roundheads
Around this time, protestant anti-royalists would mock the king's troops as "caballeros", Spanish for a Spanish gentleman. They were trying to offend them and suggest that they were less English than the common man. This became the word 'cavalier' which in turn became embraced by the king's supporters. Puritans then used the word cavalier to describe people who weren't as Christian or respectful as them.
Parlimentary puritan inspired Anti-catholic mobs in London sought to attack local bishops. The 12 catholic bishops who were members of parliament were once again able to attend parliament. They proclaimed that all meetings in their absence were void. This suggested that parliament couldnt meet without Catholics present. The next day all 12 were arrested for treason and locked up in the tower of London.
Tensions were high. The king ordered his troops to patrol the streets to show a presence and represent his power to the people. Parliament took this as a threat and sealed their doors, meeting in private. They discussed arresting the queen for speaking with the Irish Catholic Revolutionaries. The king was furious, if parliament could arrest the queen then what power did he really have? The king responded by declaring warrants for the arrests of certain members of parliament. When they weren't surrendered he marched to parliament himself with 300 Cavaliers. When he got there the members of parliament stood in silence, the men the king was seeking were in hiding and everyone refused to tell the king where. The King was powerless. He had lost his authority over them and had no option but to leave without the enemies.
After the king and his men left parliament, the building was fortified with chains and barricades. They were afraid of what the king might do to regain his power and authority. Meanwhile, the king and queen left London for their country home, afraid for their safety.
The English arsenal was held in the city of Hull. Parliament and the King planned on taking possession of it for their own protection. However, parliament got their first and told the city's mayor not to let the king and his men inside the city gates. Page 240 & 241
Bottom of 243
The south-east strongly supported parliament. The north-west supported the King.
The King left Nottingham with 14,000 men who believed themselves to be patriotic, anti-puritan or just wanted to get paid. The Earl of Essex marched an army of 20,000 out of Northampton. They sought to defend the true religion, were anti-monarch or just wanted to get paid.
Both sides recruited whomever they could find, people who had debts to pay off, the old and the homeless. Men were released from prison and put into the army.
These troops were difficult to manage and often got into trouble misbehaving. The King's men left pubs in terrible states while the Parliamentary puritans vandalized churches they didn't agree with.
The Parliamentary troops were known to sing worship songs as they marched. Some carried muskets, primitive guns that were only effective up close. Others carried pikes, swords, bows and arrows.
The king's army moved to Shrewsbury. P252, middle paragraph of 255. Parliament convinced the fellow puritan Scottish to launch an army from the north. They captured Newcastle and York from the king's men.
Comments
Post a Comment