A King Returns to the Throne
Chris Anderson
Randolph-Henry High School
Introduction
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Charles II, son of Charles I, faced lots of danger during the
civil war
in fact, he actually fought in the war on the side of the
royalists
Charles II had also witnessed his father’s execution
Charles II was almost captured and executed but was able
to escape capture--he fled to the mainland of Europe
– while in Europe, he wandered between nations to keep from being
captured
– many European monarchs were friendly, others threatened to turn
Charles over to the English
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the Puritans in England kept aware of Charles’ location in
Europe
Charles II
Merry Monarch
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May 26, 1660--Charles II returns to the throne of
England
his return ended the land and bloody English Civil
War and the harsh Puritan rule
Charles’ return to the throne was called the
Restoration
Charles became known as the “merry monarch”
because of his love for social life--games, parties, etc.
Charles will marry a Portuguese princess; they,
however, will have no children
– Charles did have many illegitimate children by his
many mistresses
Merry Monarch (cot.)
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Charles II allowed the
English Parliament to
gain more power
Charles publicly
claimed he was a
member of the Church
of England; however, he
was secretly a Catholic
1661, a new Parliament
was elected--the
Cavalier Parliament
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1661, this new
Parliament passed a
series of laws called the
Clarendon Code
– this code made the
Church of England the
official Church in
England
– the law also said that
only members of the
Church of England could
attend Universities and
serve in Parliament
Merry Monarch (cot.)
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This Cavalier
Parliament also limited
the power of the king
– Parliament made Charles
II accept the Petition of
Right signed by his
father
– Parliament created a
constitutional
monarchy--a monarchy
limited by a constitution
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Charles did not agree to
all Parliament did--but
he never publicly
disagreed with
Parliament
1665--the Plague returns
to England--killing
nearly 100,000 people
1665--a terrible fire
destroys most of
London
Merry Monarch (cot.)
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Political parties began to
develop in England-they were based on the
opposition to
Catholicism
the parties developed as
an argument over who
would take over the
throne after Charles II-he had no legitimate heir
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James II was to be the
new king--he was
Charles’ II brother
– there was one problem
with James--he was an
open and practicing
Catholic
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1679: Parliament
attempts to pass the
Exclusion Bill
– this bill would have kept
James from becoming
king
James II
The Two Parties
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Whigs
– members of
Parliament who
wanted to keep
James from
becoming king
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Tories
– members of
Parliament who
believed James
should succeed
his brother
Charles II
The Two Parties (cot.)
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The Tories (supporters of James) were able
to defeat the Exclusion Bill
– the Tories were able to do this by accepting a
bill proposed by the Whigs--habeas corpus
law
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according to the habeas corpus law, a
person could not be imprisoned by the king
without just cause or without trial
Bloodless Revolt
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1685: Charles II dies
and his Catholic
brother--James II-becomes king
– James’ becoming king
ended the peace between
Parliament and the
monarchy
– James wanted absolute
power
– James ignored the
Clarendon Code by
electing Catholics to
government positions
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All of James’ actions
made Parliament very
upset--Parliament
attempted to remain
patient
Parliament was actually
waiting for James to die
and pass the throne over
to his Protestant
daughter Mary
Mary was married to
William of Orange--the
ruler in the Netherlands
Bloodless Revolt
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1688: James’ 2nd wife
bears him a son--a
future heir to the
English throne
– James was to raise his
son as a Catholic--a fact
that Parliament did not
want to deal with;
another future Catholic
king
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both the Whig and Tory
parties united against
James
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Both the parties invited
Mary’s husband-William of Orange--to
invade and take over
England
James hears of the plot
and flees England--he
goes to France
William & Mary will
take over without a drop
of blood being spilled
this is known as the
Glorious Revolution
William and MaryThese Bill of Rights kept
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1689: William and
Mary come to power
they agree to govern
England “according to
the statutes in
Parliament agreed upon,
and the laws and
customs of the same”
1689: Parliament passes
the Bill of Rights
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the king from raising taxes
or maintaining an army
without Parliament’s
consent
– this also gave individual
rights to the people:
• right to trial by jury
• outlawed cruel and
unusual punishment
• limited the amount of
bail
• people had the right to
appeal to the king and
free speech in
Parliament
William and Mary
William & Mary
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James will try to lead an unsuccessful revolt
against William & Mary
because of this failed revolt, parliament
passed more laws limiting the power of the
monarch
Parliament also passed the Act of
Settlement--excluding Catholics from
inheriting the throne of England
Parliament & the Crown
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The Bill of Right & Act
of Settlement illustrated
the power that
Parliament had gained
over the monarchy
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– the monarch could not
rule without the consent
of Parliament
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England was not a
democracy even though
Parliamentary members
were elected
Member of the House of
Commons were elected
– only property owning
males could vote--4% of
the population
Members of the House of
Commons were not paid
– only the rich could run
for office
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therefore, Parliament was
controlled by a select few
who owned property
Parliament & the Crown (cont.)
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1702: William dies-Mary has already passed
the throne passes to
Mary’s sister Anne
1702: Parliament
begins to create a new
order of succession to
the throne
– on too many occasions,
monarchs had no
children to take over
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Anne had no living
children to take over
upon her death
Parliament, thus,
decided that Anne
would be succeeded by
the children of the
Protestant
granddaughter of
James I--Sophia
– Sophia was the wife of
the German elector of
Hanover
Parliament & the Crown (cont.)
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When Sophia’s children
take over, a new dynasty
takes over in England-the House of Hanover
Parliament was afraid
that the people of
Scotland may want a
Stuart on the throne, not
a Hanover
– Parliament feared that the
Scots may ally
themselves with France
and attack England
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1707: Parliament issues
the Act of Union of 1707
– this act united England
and Scotland into a new
nation called Great
Britain
– the Scots will give up
their own Parliament and
gain representation in the
English Parliament
– the Scots will be allowed
to keep their Calvinist
religion, their own laws,
courts, and education
system
Queen Anne
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She ruled from 1707 until 1714
Parliament increased its power under her
she was not a very skilled leader and received help
from a cabinet--a small group of advisors from the
House of commons
– this 1st cabinet was made of both Whigs and Tories
– the two parties would constantly argue and quarrel
– to keep things orderly, later cabinets were constructed
of the majority party
Queen Anne
George I & Robert Walpole
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1714: Anne dies and Sophia’s son--George I-took over (this followed the Act of Settlement)
George had been raised in Germany
he spoke very little English
because of his unfamiliarity with England and its
customs, George relied, heavily, on his cabinet
eventually, the Whig party took control of the
cabinet
the leader of the Whig party was Sir Robert
Walpole
George I
Robert Walpole
Walpole
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Since Walpole was the
head of the Whig party,
he became the head of
the King’s cabinet
Walpole’s head position
in the cabinet would be
called the prime
minister--the chief
executive of a
parliamentary
government
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Walpole remained prime
minister when George II
became king in 1727
George II will
encourage Walpole to
take over more
responsibility in the
government
– managing finances,
appointing government
officials, requesting the
passage of laws
Walpole (cont.)
 Walpole
helped England to
avoid wars
 he allowed the American
colonies to grow
George III
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1760: a new king comes to the throne--George III
George III was the grandson of George II
he was only 22 years old when he became king
he expands the British empire by defeating France
– Great Britain gains control over Canada and all of
France’s territory east of the Mississippi River
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this war with France will be costly for England--it
will eventually lead to Britain’s losing of its
American Colonies
George III