Chapter 16Part 3

ConstitutionalismEngland

The Netherlands

Constitutionalism in Western Europe

1600-1725

Constitutionalism: Government’s power is

limited by law

17th Century England

Capitalism = much social mobility The English Middle Class: numbers

up due to the Commercial Revolution

Improved agricultural techniques could feed a larger population

England had a bigger middle class in proportion to its population than any other country in Europe EXCEPT the Netherlands

The Gentry

Wealthy land owners in the countryside dominated the House of Commons

Many had been middle class and had moved up

They relied on English law to limit the power of the King regarding economic and political matters

The Gentry

They were willing to pay taxes so long as the House of Commons had a say in how the money was to be spent

In England, paying taxes held no stigma like it did in France and Spain

England was more egalitarian. The peasants were not as exploited

as in other European countries

BUT

Taxation DID bring the House of Commons and the monarch into conflict

Religion

By the 17th century there were more Calvinists and fewer Anglicans

Puritans were the most reform-minded of the Calvinists

The Protestant work ethic had a big impact on the Middle Class and the Gentry

Calvinists

Were much opposed to the influence of the Catholic Church

BUT James I and Charles I not so much

The Stuarts

Began in 1603 with James I

Both James I and son, Charles I were absolutists at heart.

Both supported “Divine Right”

The ambitions of the early Stuart monarchs were held in check by Parliament

The Early Stuarts

Both had issues with Parliament Both suspended same Both into persecuting Puritans

BUT Charles more enthusiastic… Caused the Great Migration of the 17th

C Clashed with Parliament causing the

English Civil War

The Big Issues Prior to the English Civil War

Could the King govern without the consent of Parliament or go against its wishes?

Would the Church have an Episcopal or a Presbyterian format?

English Civil War 1642-49

King’s supporters: Cavaliers: Old Nobility of the Sword, Anglicans. Mercenaries, Catholics (like the Irish) who feared Puritans more than the Anglican king

Parliament Puritans: Roundheads Were led by Cromwell and his New

Model Army

Remember…

Parliament received help from the Scots in exchange for a promise:

That after the war, the English Church would be organized along Presbyterian lines…

Also, support from businessmen, merchant marine and navy

Battle of Nasby

The last major battle in the war Charles I captured by the Scots Was turned over to English

Parliament

Parliament ordered Cromwell to stand down and dissolve his army

Cromwell refused

Prides Purge 1648

The New Model Army (without the knowledge of Cromwell) purged Parliament of all except English Puritans (The Anglicans and Presbyterian Puritans were booted out)

Only 1/5 of Parliament remained

Charles I Beheaded in 1649

The Interregnum1649-1660

The Commonwealth 1649-53

Was supposed to be a Republic

The monarchy and the House of Lords was abolished

England became a military state

The Scots were unhappy with unfulfilled promise

Cromwell went to war with the Scots and defeated them

The Protectorate 1653-1659

Cromwell dissolved the Rump Parliament and ruled alone

He divided England into 12 military districts

Each district was controlled by a general

He denied religious freedom to Catholics and Anglicans

BUT allowed Jews to return in 1655 They had been banished since 1290

Cromwell’s Campaigns

1649 Cromwell put down an Irish Rebellion

1652 Act of Settlement: 2/3 of the land in Ireland owned by Catholics was given to English Protestants

1651-52 Defeated the Scots

Life in Cromwell’s England

Strict moral codes were used to regulate everyday life

Codes were enforced by the army The Press was censored Sports were prohibited Theaters were closed It got old fast

Cromwell died in 1658

His son, Richard, was inept

An Anglican Parliament will invite Charles I’s son, Charles II, to come back home

While in exile, Charles II agreed to abide by Parliament’s decisions in the post-war settlement

1660 The Restoration

Parliament was stronger in relation to the King than ever before

Charles II agreed to a significant degree of religious toleration…especially for Catholics (he had a fondness for them anyway)

The King’s power was NOT absolute Though Charles II would have liked

that

Charles II 1660-85

Was called the Merry Monarch

He had many close personal lady friends and illegitimate children but no legitimate children so his brother, James II will inherit the throne upon Charles II’s death

The Rise of Political Parties in England

The Tories: Conservative Nobles, gentry, Anglicans who

supported the King over Parliament

The Whigs: More Liberal Middle-Class and Puritans who

favored Parliament and religious toleration

1661 The Clarendon Code

An effort by monarchists and Anglicans to drive Puritans out of political and religious life

The Test Act of 1673: Excluded those who refused to receive the sacrament of the Church of England from voting, holding public office, teaching, preaching, attending universities, or assembling for meetings

In the Meantime

Charles seemed to support Catholics and was criticized for it by the Whigs in Parliament

He granted freedom of worship to Catholics

And took annual payments beginning in 1670 from Louis XIV if Charles would relax restrictions on Catholics!

Charles II and Catholicism

Charles dissolved Parliament when it passed a law denying royal succession to Catholics

James, Charles’s brother and heir, was Catholic

Charles II declared himself a Catholic on his deathbed

1679 The Habeas Corpus Act

Attempt by Parliament to limit Charles II’s power

Provisions: Allowed judges to demand that

prisoners be in court during their trials Required just cause for continued

imprisonment Provided for speedy trials Forbade Double Jeopardy

Charles II and Scotland

Scotland had gained its independence upon the restoration in 1660

Then Charles went back on his word which allowed for Presbyterianism in Scotland

In 1661 he declared himself the head of the Church of Scotland

Like his father, he tried to impose the Episcopal form of organization on the Presbyterians in Scotland

Charles II and Scotland

Thousands in Scotland were killed for resisting

The last few years of Charles II’s reign were known as the “Killing Time.”