English Constitutionalism versus French Absolutism

Cost of waging war and running the government increased so 17th century rulers looked to new sources of income. Those who raised money without the consent of a representative body became absolute, those who depended on a representative body found conflict but eventually a more democratic rule.

England and France set the examples here. But what caused the English to enter into a civil war that pitted Parliament against the King?? And, what factors allowed Louis XIV to become absolute??

Evolution of relationship between

English Monarchs and Parliament

Reason 1

William I Norman King conquered Saxon Nobles

Domesday Book record of who owed what taxes to the King

Salisbury Oath nobles swore allegiance

Henry II Replaced nobles courts with Royal court system and trial by jury

John I Magna Carta

King is subject to laws, Trial by Jury, Great Council (clergy and nobles) House of Lords

NO TAXES WITHOUT NOBLES’ CONSENT

Edward I Model Parliament

Added middle class reps to Great Council - House of Commons

100 Yrs War GAVE PARLIAMENT POWER OF THE PURSE. The ability of one group to manipulate and control the actions of another group by withholding funding, or putting stipulations on the use of funds. Bargaining power

War of Roses Many nobles died - King took their land

Middle class rallied to support King

Kings became Powerful

Tudor Dynasty

Strong Kings who controlled Parliament

Henry VII Court of Star ChamberControlled nobles while furthering trade and wealth

Henry VIII Replaced Catholicism with the help of the Reformation Parliament.

Elizabeth I Politique

Revival of Protestant Religion with Elizabethan Settlement

Defeat of Spain

Would work with Puritans in Parliament but not tolerate Separatists - Conventicle Act

Result: Parliament won several rights to challenge a weaker ruler

POLITICALLY

Using PERSIA to examine situation in England before the Civil War

Stuart Kings against Parliament

The Stuarts believed in the Divine Rights of an Absolute Ruler - wanted what Louis of France had

Nobles and wealthy merchants in Parliament [House of Lords and House of Commons] felt threatened by Kings who circumvented their political power. Parliament was established and had bargaining base with king, plus legal experience, expected to be consulted

Jury System

Magna Carta

Model Parliament

Power of the Purse

To raise more money:

1. Kings sold peerage

2. Did not consult Parliament

No Power of the Purse

Nobles gladly paid taxes in return for a voice in how the money was spent

Kings threatened economic well being of nobles landed wealth and merchants commercial wealth

[House of Lords and Commons]

Religion

Extreme Protestant sects

Stuart Kings appeared to possess Catholic tendencies

Parliament, especially the House of Commons, had many PURITANS who wished to purify the Anglican Church of any Catholic ceremonies or Episcopal system. That also included the Scottish Presbyterian system.

Remember, Elizabeth had Puritans work with her in Parliament but the extremists were exiled or executed under the Conventicle Act

And then there was the Stuart Kings personality

Scots did not know local English customs

Arrogant and refused to compromise

Prone to making faulty decisions

James I Charles I

James I 1603 - 1625

Son of Mary Stuart - She was executed by her cousin Elizabeth

Elizabeth left him a large debt ( he needed to raise money), and a fiercely divided Church.

Believed in the divine right of Kings (Trew Laws of a free Monarchy) King ruled by the will of God and was responsible only to him. Therefore, he rarely expected to consult Parliament. He stood above the law, his subjects had no right to question or resist his will.

House of Lords (nobility and bishops) mostly supported King but some were beginning to resent his extreme claims

House of Commons (merchants, lawyers, prosperous land owners) were determined to defend Parliament’s legitimate role in government and religiously were mostly Anglican but Puritans were gaining power.

Needed new source of income to pay off debts so without summoning Parliament he levied Impositions (taxes) - Tonnage and poundage.

Refused to give into the Millenary Petition - Puritans wanted the Anglican church to get rid of Catholic ceremonies and Episcopal governance system but the Hampton conference did yield the King James version of the Bible

Issued the Book of Sport that allowed those who went to services at the Church of England to play games on Sunday. This angered the Puritans who kept Sunday holy but James felt the Puritans narrow view kept Catholics from converting to the Church of England and besides he needed physically fit soldiers.

Some separatists left for Cape Cod Colony and Massachusetts Bay Colony

James I may have come out of this unscathed had he not:

1. Allowed his homosexual lover, Buckingham to control patronage or sell peerage. Buck was assassinated in 1628

2. Declared Peace with Spain (a Catholic country)

3. Relaxed laws against Catholics, then under pressure renewed them - Gunpowder plot - Guy Fawkes attempted to blow up Parliament

4. Hesitated to send troops to help Protestants in Germany during the 30 Years War

5. Arranged a marriage between his son and the daughter of the King of Spain. In response, members of Parliament forced war with Spain

But was his foreign policy really wrong ?????

Charles I 1625 - 1649Was even more inflexible and inept than his father. Kept Buckingham until his assassination.

Parliament forced war with Spain but refused to adequately fund it so Charles…

Levied new taxes and duties

Forced Loans and imprisoned those who refused to pay

Quartered troops in private homes

And… the war against Spain was not going well, now France was involved

Parliament met at the King’s request and gave him the Petition of Rights that:

Disallowed illegal taxes and forced loans without the consent of Parliament

No Englishman could be imprisoned without a trial

Disallowed quartering of troops.

Charles needed the money so he signed it then disregarded it.

Parliament met in 1629 and declared Charles’ religious changes “popery” and his illegal taxes treason, the King dissolved Parliament for 11 years.

How did Charles rule without Parliament?

Made peace with Spain and France

Supported Arminians who rejected Puritan doctrine

Wentworh instituted Thorough - an administrative tool to establish the King’s control of England and allow him to rule without Parliament

Instituted old taxes

Enforced ‘ship money” for all towns, not just coastal

Sold Nobles titles and knighthoods

Nobles feared thorough might do away with them

Religious policies were his downfall

Tried to make all Protestant groups following the Anglican Church in England and Scotland…One religion … One ruler…

William Laud

Imposed the Episcopal governing system

Court of High Commission prohibited Puritans from publishing and preaching

Tried to impose the Episcopal system and Anglican Book of Common Prayer

Scotland revolted and Charles was forced to call Parliament

Short Parliament

Puritans in the House of Commons,

led by Pym refused to fund the Scottish

war until Charles gave into their political and religious demands.

Power of the Purse

So, Charles dismissed them after only one month April - May 1640

Then the Scots invaded England and defeated the British Army at Newburn. Charles had no choice but to convene Parliament

Long Parliament 1640 - 1660 That is a long time

Imprisoned and executed Wentworth and Laud

Abolished Court of High Commission and Star Chamber

Imposition of new taxes and ship money was illegal

Resolved to meet at least every three years and could not be disbanded unless Parliament agreed to it - Triennial Act

Despite the fact that members in House of Commons initially agreed, they were divided on religion reform. Some wanted to end Episcopal system and prayer book, others wanted a Calvinist structure with congregations electing representatives to speak for them in a Presbyter, and others wanted every congregation to have its own authority, and some wanted to keep the Anglican Church

When the Irish revolted and Parliament was asked to fund an army to suppress it, Pym and followers in Commons refused the King and wanted Parliament to become commanders of the army. This only divided Parliament more.

Landowners and merchants resented King’s financial policies while the Puritans resented his religious policies so this Parliament had a lot of support for different reasons

With all these divisions, Charles thinks he sees a chance.

Parliament presents Charles with the Grand Remonstance (list of grievances against the King) and he invaded Parliament with his soldiers to arrest Pym who had been forewarned and escaped

Charles knew he was in hot water so he retreated to London to raise his own army

Shocked by the King’s invasion, Parliament passed the Militia Ordinance and raised their own army under Oliver Cromwell

Civil War began over 2 issues: (1) Who would rule, parliamentary government or an absolute monarch. (2)Would the church be controlled by the Episcopal or Presbyterian system?

Supporters of the King were called Cavaliers and resided in NW England

Supporters of Parliament were called Roundheads and lived in the SE

Cromwell and the Puritan Republic

1. Solemn League and Covenant with Scotland (accepted a Presbyterian structure for church, no more Anglican prayer book)

2. Organized Parliamentary army under Cromwell

Oliver Cromwell did not want the Episcopal or Presbyterian system but he would accept the majority religion as long as Protestant dissenters could worship

New Model Army with victories at Marston Moor and Naseby but Charles did not give up so………

Colonel Thomas Pride barred the Presbyterians from taking their seats in Parliament. (Pride’s Purge)

Rump Parliament (fifty remaining members) who

Tried and executed the King

Abolished the Monarchy,

House of Lords and

the Anglican Church

Two factors = Parliamentary Victory

Oliver CromwellPuritan republic but really a military dictatorship

Commonwealth 1649 - 1653

Conquered Ireland and Scotland creating Great Britain

Rule by a One-House Parliament and a Council of State. When House of Commons tried to disband his army, he dissolved Council and Rump Parliament and replaced them with Barebone’s Parliament. Took Title of Lord Protector supported by Army

Strict Puritan - public morality, closing theatres, prohibited dance and strict observance of the Sabbath. Did not tolerate Anglicans

Navigation Acts, all imported goods to England must be carried in English ships or ships owned by importing country.

Restoration Kings Charles II 1660 - 1685

Charles II came to the throne as a hereditary king, no legal requirement to call Parliament and the Anglican Church

Wanted all religions to worship freely and remain loyal to the king but many royalists in Parliament still believed that you could not separate religion and political loyalty

Claredon Code - Imposed penalties for not attending Anglican services, must use Book of Common Prayer and Thirty- Nine Articles. Swear allegiance to Church of England to hold a government job

Again imposed Navigation Acts this time, it led to war with Holland

Needed more money than Parliament allowed so he increased customs duties

Treaty of Dover - pledged to announce his conversion to Catholicism and Louis XIV promised to pay him a large sum of money

Declaration of Indulgences - ended all laws against Catholics and Protestant dissenters but Parliament refused to finance the war until he rescinded it.

Test Act demanded pledge against Transubstantiation

Popish Plot - Titus Oates swore that Charles’ wife plotted to kill the king so James, a Catholic could take the throne. BUT Charles did get his revenge against Whigs

James II 1685 - 1688

Charles left a Parliament of mostly loyalists but James blew it

Repealed the Test Act and dismissed Parliament when they protested

Appointed Catholics to high positions in his court and the army

Declaration of Indulgences - suspended all religious tests and allowed free worship

Local candidates for Parliament who opposed the declaration were removed by the king’s soldiers and replaced by Catholics

Imprisoned 7 Anglican bishops who refused to publish his suspension laws

He wanted Absolutism but even the loyalists (Tories) could not accept this

When his Catholic wife gave birth to a Catholic male heir Whig and Tory members of Parliament offered the crown to his oldest daughter, Protestant May and her Husband William II of Orange

Glorious Revolution 1688

William, with his army, came to England in 1688 and was received without a battle because James fled to France and the protection of Louis XIV

Bloodless Revolution was complete. William and Mary

Recognized the Bill of Rights that limited the powers of the king and guaranteed liberties for upper classes

1. Kings are subject to the laws and rule with the consent of Parliament that would meet every three years

2. Prohibited Catholics from the English throne

3. Toleration Acts allowed worship for all Protestants but not Catholics

Act of Settlement English crown went to Protestant House of Hanover in Germany if Queen Anne’s (last Stuart) children could not take the throne

Supported by John Locke’s Second Treaties of Government