England’s Reaction to Absolutism and the Glorious Revolution

From Queen Elizabeth I to William of Orange

Queen Elizabeth I

Daughter of Henry VIII

Battle w/Parliament over finances

Protestant No heirs (“Virgin

Queen) Cousin James inherits the throne

James

“Kings are justly called gods, for that they exercise a manner or resemblance of divine power on earth.” Upset the Puritan

controlled Parliament by not ridding the English church of Catholics or making Puritan moral reforms

Charles I

Constantly at war with France & Spain Needed tons of $ to finance wars

Parliament would not grant him the $ until he signed the Petition of Right Could not imprison subjects w/o due cause Could not tax w/o Parliaments consent No quartering No martial law in times of peace

Charles I

Charles signed, but ignored the document

In order to get his funding, Charles establishes fees & fines Charles becomes extremely unpopular

Charles still needs more $$$$$ Parliament opposes him Mobs take to the streets Charles flees London & gathers army of

loyalists

English Civil War1642-1649

Cavaliers (Royalists) vs. Roundheads (Puritans)

Oliver Cromwell Becomes general of the

Roundheads Defeats Cavaliers,

arrests Charles, and tries him for treason Charles is found guilty

and sentenced to death *first time a king is

publicly put on trial and executed

Oliver Cromwell

Abolishes monarchy and establishes House of Lords England is now a commonwealth and has

the first European constitution Cromwell decides that he likes having

power Tears up constitution Makes himself military dictator

Abolishes entertainment (theatre) Tolerant to all religions besides Catholicism

Charles II

Cromwell dies in 1658 and the government collapses

The English want the monarchy restored after experiencing the military dictator.

The son of Charles I, Charles II, is restored to the throne

The Restoration

Sports & theatre restored Women are allowed to act on stage for the

first time The arts are promoted and flourish

We’ve got ourselves a “sticky wicket” Who’s to rule?

Charles had NO legitimate children He had a brother James, but he was

Catholic and since England was mostly anti-Catholic, they were not happy with him ruling.

James II

James becomes king, but flaunts his Catholicism Appoints Catholics to

high government positions, despite a law that prohibited Catholics from holding office

Parliament protests James actions and ends up dissolving Parliament

Bye-Bye Dad!

Many English feared a succession of Catholic kings

James II had a Protestant daughter who married William of Orange, a Protestant prince from the Netherlands

Parliament asks them to come to England with an army to overthrow James in the name of Protestantism

Glorious Revolution

The army is never needed James flees to France This bloodless overthrowing of King

James II is called the Glorious Revolution

But not so fast…

In order to become king William and Mary had to agree to a Bill of Rights, which limited the power of the monarchy and increased the power of Parliament.

The English Bill of Rights