Chapter 20:
Enlightenment and Revolution
in England and America
Section 1
Civil War and
Revolution
Charles I and Parliament
 Like his father, Charles I believed in the divine
rights of kings, putting him out of touch with the
people and politics of Eng.
 Parliament presented Charles with the Petition of
Right, which stated among other things that the
king could not impose taxes without the consent
of Parliament.
 Charles signed it. But continued to tax the people
anyway. When Parliament complained, Charles
dismissed them.
 As if he wasn’t unpopular enough, {Puritans were
also opposed to Charles because they thought
he was too Catholic} and believed he was
becoming a tyrant
King Charles I
Continued….
 Others believed Charles was becoming a tyrant too
 The state religion of Scotland was a form of
Protestantism called Presbyterianism. Charles tried
to force them to follow Anglican practices
 The Scots felt the changes were too Catholic. So
they signed the National Covenant, stating that any
changes to the Scottish church would violate their
religion as well as their political freedom
 Charles took troops to Scotland but could not put
down the rebellion
 Seeking more funds Charles called Parliament back
into session. But Parliament wanted to discuss their
complaints first so Charles dismissed them yet
again
The Signing of the National Covenant
The Long Parliament
 Because the Scots pulled out another victory, this
time in England itself, Charles reconvened the
Parliament again in 1640
 {The Parliament that Charles called for to help put
down the Scottish rebellion was called the Long
Parliament} because it lasted off and on for 20
years.
 Instead of addressing the rebellion, Parliament set
some rules. They ended the king’s power to
dissolve the Parliament and passed a law that they
must meet at least every three years
 But when Parliament tried to make changes to the
Anglican Church, public support shifted back to
the king
Continued….
 While Charles I was struggling with Parliament, a
rebellion broke out in Ireland, when native Irish
rose up against the English lords who treated
them like slaves
 Not trusting the king, Parliament proposed that
they be in charge of the army being sent to
squash the Irish rebellion
 {The Long Parliament dissolved when
Charles refused to put them in charge of the
army,} he then sent troops to the House of
Commons to arrest his opponents.
 This led to a civil war in 1642
English Civil War
Cavalier
King
Charles
Spaniel
 The citizens were divided into two groups
 {The supporters of the king were called Cavaliers}
(Anglicans, Roman Catholics and nobles)
 {Those who supported Parliament were called
Roundheads led by Oliver Cromwell} (Puritans, and other
non-Anglican Protestants)
 Cromwell’s army defeated Charles in 1645. The king fled
to Scotland but the Scots turned Charles in to Parliament
 Cromwell then kicked all the kings supporters out of
Parliament and it became known as the Rump
Parliament.
 The Rump Parliament abolished the monarchy and
the House of Lords and proclaimed England a
{commonwealth, or republic}
The Beheading of King Charles I
Cromwell’s Commonwealth
 Despite his dictatorial rule, Cromwell was tolerant
of religious views other that his own.
 Despite his great power, Cromwell’s goal was to
bring a Parliamentary Republic to England
 Cromwell tried twice to create a constitution- a
document outlining the basic laws and principles
that govern a nation
 The first written constitution was the Instrument
of Government in 1653. It stated that landowners
would elect Parliament members
 Cromwell’s government was not popular in
England and discontent spread across the country
The head of Oliver Cromwell, now at Sidney Sussex College
Continued….
 Cromwell might have been overthrown if it wasn’t
for three factors:
 *The government made a lot of money to support
the army and the economy
 **The army was powerful and disciplined and
made sure that no one could take actions against
the gov.
 ***His enemies had no organized army
 The Dutch took advantage of the chaos in England
and establish a ongoing trade system
 Cromwell challenged the Dutch by passing the
Navigation Act of 1651, which led to war
between the two countries
 The war ended with no clear winner, but England
did establish itself as a naval power
Depiction of a battle at sea
End of the Revolution
 The republican government in England eventually
failed
 {Cromwell quarreled with the Parliament,
which resented his power, and had it
dissolved.} Until his death he ruled alone
 His son Richard took the throne, but he was weak
and lost the throne
 In 1660, unhappy with the commonwealth and its
lack of results, Parliament called in Charles I’s son,
Charles II, to rule England.
 He was welcomed by the public who hope the
restoration of the monarchy would bring peace
and progress to England once again
 A Depiction of
Oliver Cromwell
dissolving the
Long Parliament.