Why did the Parliamentarians win the English Civil Wars?
The Civil War lasted until 1646. Charles I lost the war. He gave himself up to the Scots. The Scots
handed him over to Parliament.
Why did Parliament win the Civil War?
There are four reasons why Parliament won:
1. Parliament had the better generals
The Royalists best general was Prince Rupert. He was very brave and dashing. His cavalry charged
the enemy at top speed. But he sometimes acted rashly and also lost control of his men.
Parliament’s best general was Oliver Cromwell. He made few mistakes and his soldiers always
carried out his orders.
2. Other kings did not help Charles
Charles hoped kings from other countries would help him to fight Parliament. But no other kings
joined him.
In 1644 the Scots sent 20 000 men to fight on Parliament’s side. The Scots helped Parliament to win
the Battle of Marston Moor.
3. Parliament had the New Model Army
In 1644 Oliver Cromwell and Sir Thomas Fairfax formed the New Model Army to fight for
Parliament. The soldiers in it were:




Well trained
Disciplined
Well equipped
Well fed
The Royalists laughed and called in the New Noddle Army.!
But they were wrong to laugh. The New Model Army was very strong. It beat the King’s army at
Naseby in 1645.
4. Charles ran out of money
Charles’ supporters had lots of money but this ran out as the war dragged on for many years.
Charles lost a lot of soldiers at Naseby.
He did not have enough men to raise another army.
Parliament was given money by rich merchants.
Parliament was also better at collecting taxes than the King.
Passmores History Department Year 8 Unit #7 Lesson #4
Text from Heinemann Living Through History ‘The Making of the United Kingdom’ Foundation Edition pp.56-57