The Stuarts. The English Civil War (1642-1646) polarized society largely along class lines

 TEXT 23

The Stuarts

Elizabeth was followed to the throne by James VI of Scotland, who became James I of England. James believed in the absolute power of the monarchy, and he had a rocky relationship with an increasingly demanding Parliament which was a forum for the interests of the nobility and the merchant classes. 

During James' reign radical Protestant groups called Puritans began to gain a sizeable following. Puritans wanted to "purify" the church by paring down church ritual, educating the clergy, and limiting the powers of bishops. King James resisted this last. The powers of the church and king were too closely linked. The Puritans also favored thrift, education and individual initiative; therefore they found great support among the new middle class of merchants, the powers in the Commons.

Charles I (1625-49) continued his father's hostile relationship with Parliament, squabbling over the right to levy taxes. Parliament made increasing demands, which the king refused to meet. Neither side was willing to budge. Finally in 1642 fighting broke out.

The English Civil War (1642-1646) polarized society largely along class lines.

The split between Charles and Parliament was such that neither side was willing to back down over the principles that they held and war was inevitable as a way in which all problems could be solved. The country split into those who supported the king and those who supported Parliament. Parliament drew most of its support from the middle classes, while the king was supported by the nobility, the clergy, and the peasantry. The poor were bound by tradition and they supported the king, as they always had. Charles encouraged poor relief, unemployment measures, price controls, and protection for small farmers. For most people, life during the Civil War went on as before. Few were involved or even knew about the fighting.

The war began as a series of indecisive skirmishes notable for not much beyond the emergence of a Parliamentary general from East Anglia. Oliver Cromwell. Cromwell whipped his irregular volunteer troops into the disciplined New Model Army.

As with most wars during the 17-th century, the English Civil War was not a long continuous war. Armies lacked mobility and the time taken to collect the most basic of equipment meant that there were long periods of time when no fighting was taking place despite England being at war at the time. There were only three major battles in the English Civil War. In June 1645, Cromwell’s Army inflicted a fatal blow to the king’s army at the Battle of Naseby. Charles did not recover from this defeat and his cause was lost.

            In 1646 the Royalist forces were disbanded. In 1647 Charles I negotiated with a Scottish group for assistance, starting the second phase of the wars, a series of Royalist rebellions, and a Scottish invasion. All were defeated, and Charles I was executed in 1649. The fighting continued, and Royalist forces under Charles II invaded England in 1651. Parliamentary forces defeated the Royalists and Charles II fled abroad, effectively ending the civil wars.

The wars' political consequence was the establishment of the Commonwealth and Protectorate. Seemingly Parliament was in control, but the real power lay with Cromwell and the army. Cromwell lacked real desire for reform; he dissolved Parliament by the crude expediency of armed force. He tried to work with religious leaders to “design a blueprint