Rise of Parliament
BRITISH CIVIL WAR
 1640s – Civil War in Britain
 Fought between Calvinist Protestants and
Church of England
Background To War
 This civil war was a movement of Liberalism
and Representative institutions
 1603 – Queen Elizabeth dies
 Parliament becomes restless
 James I, then Charles I become king
 Parliament doesn’t trust him-Catholic
 Parliament wont’ give them adequate
revenue to accomplish their goals
Why they didn’t like Charles
 -he supported church hierarchy
 Knew king would make laws and solve cases
at his own discretion
 They were all property owners and feared he
would raise taxes
 He was an absolutist
Deadlock
 Parliament in England concentrated
 One for the whole country , represented by
landed interest in both houses
 1629 – deadlock
 Charles wants to expand navy, needs money,
tries to raise it without parliamentary consent
 He wanted to do whatever he wanted –
absolutist
 Ship Money Dispute
 Political classes don’t accept unlimited King
 Scots rebel in 1637 – Edinburgh
 Charles summons parliament to quash
rebellion NO
 Dissolved parliament, the same men elected
again
 Long Parliament 20 years
 Passed its own demands
Emergence of Cromwell
 Oliver Cromwell comes to the foreground in
Parliament
 Most powerful person in parliament
 He argues that Charles cannot be trusted, and
must be executed
 Parliament hesitates
 ‘Prides Purge’ – weeds out most of long
parliament
 Left a rump of 50
 Charles sentenced to death in 1649
 England declared a republic – Cromwell
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governed
He subdues Ireland and Scotland by force
1000s of Catholics killed, women and
children, and priests
Cromwell had difficulty governing – had to
use military law
Ruled as Lord Protector
 He dies in 1658 – 2 years later Royalty
restored – Charles II
 Legacy of Cromwell – nightmare- had to rule
by force
The Triumph of Parliament
 Restoration 1660-68
 Parliament gets power back
 Abolished feudal land payments to king,
establishes private property
 Land owning class become a propertied
aristocracy
 Parliament enacts taxation instead of feudal
dues
 Gives power to parliament
 They consolidated religion
 Dissenters forbidden from governing bodies
Test Act 1673
 All officeholders must take communion from
church of England
 Make it impossible for Catholics to serve in
government
 James (Brother) next in line to be king
 He’s Catholic
 Parliament moves to keep James from throne
 Whigs
 Supporters Tories
 Revolution of 1688
 James II becomes King in 1685
 Acted as if there was no Test Act
 Appoints many Catholics
 Promotes religious toleration
 Made laws on his own will
 Tories and Whigs join forces
 1688 James has a son, baptized Catholic
 Both Parties abandon James
 Offer the throne to his daughter Mary
 Protestant
 Husband of William of Orange
 He has support of both parties James flees
 Constitutional forces and Anglican
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protestants win
1689 – Parliament enacts a bill of rights
No law suspended by King
No tax or army without parl. Consent
William III accepted – legal contract
 Act of Settlement 1701
 No Catholic could be King
Glorious Revolution
 1688 Becomes known as the Glorious
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Revolution
-establishes control of parliamentary
government
-rule of law
-right of rebellion against tyranny
-Overthrow of James II limited
John Locke