The English Civil War
Causes
If you were to blame the English Civil War on one person, it would be King Charles I. He had a desperate desire for money and after having been rejected by parliament to grant this wish, Charles became inventive with strategies to acquire more cash. He reestablished ship money which was a type of tax that all towns and landowners had to pay. Ship money requires you to supply the king with a ship or a ship's value in money. Charles collected tonnage and poundage which were more taxes but on the goods leaving and entering the country. He also mortgaged royal properties, billeted soldiers with homeowner, and sold noble titles.
Charles' advisers were highly disliked by the people of England which contributed to the revolt against the king. After the assassination of the Duke of Buckingham, Charles hired Lord Strafford and Archbishop Laud to bring control to the country. Lord Straffford was creative in finding new way to bring in money for the king and his methods became known as "Strafford's Fork" - a reference to the king who was feeding off of the country. Archbishop Laud was equally popular and took great pleasure in angering the Puritans. The Puritans, at the time, were protesting against decoration and ritual in the church and Laud insisted on more of these things. Deciding that enough was enough, the Puritans attacked churches violently, destroying books, carvings, and stain glass windows.
The entire fight with parliament was cause for the English Civil War, but the tipping point was when King Charles I charged into the House of Commons. This would have been a small ordeal had it not been for the 500 soldiers that followed him. He did this illegal act in the hopes of arresting the radical members and regaining control of parliament. His plan failed as the radical members had gotten wind of Charles' idea and escaped without a scratch.
Charles' advisers were highly disliked by the people of England which contributed to the revolt against the king. After the assassination of the Duke of Buckingham, Charles hired Lord Strafford and Archbishop Laud to bring control to the country. Lord Straffford was creative in finding new way to bring in money for the king and his methods became known as "Strafford's Fork" - a reference to the king who was feeding off of the country. Archbishop Laud was equally popular and took great pleasure in angering the Puritans. The Puritans, at the time, were protesting against decoration and ritual in the church and Laud insisted on more of these things. Deciding that enough was enough, the Puritans attacked churches violently, destroying books, carvings, and stain glass windows.
The entire fight with parliament was cause for the English Civil War, but the tipping point was when King Charles I charged into the House of Commons. This would have been a small ordeal had it not been for the 500 soldiers that followed him. He did this illegal act in the hopes of arresting the radical members and regaining control of parliament. His plan failed as the radical members had gotten wind of Charles' idea and escaped without a scratch.
Events
King Charles I was the leader of the Royalist army or the "Cavaliers" and opposed the "Roundhead" army or the "New Model Army". His strategy was to win in the early stages of war but he did not do well in the big, important battles. He fought against Oliver Cromwell, leader of the Roundhead army, who was a Puritan, and lost two important battles against him. Cromwell's New Model Army defeated Charles' Royalist Army at the Battle of Marston Moor of 1644 and the Battle of Naseby of 1645. After having been defeated, Charles was forced to retreat to Scotland where they made him a prisoner and handed him over to parliament.
The Battle of Naseby:
Won by Oliver Cromwell and the New Model Army
Lost by King Charles I and the Royalist Army
Won by Oliver Cromwell and the New Model Army
Lost by King Charles I and the Royalist Army
Results
When the Civil War began, many members of parliament who supported King Charles I left their positions in the House of Commons to fight for the king. Because of this, Presbyterians and Puritans were left in control of parliament. These two group were in the midst of constant argument and were rarely ever in agreement. The Presbyterians were eventually removed from parliament by the remaining Puritans. This occurred due to the different opinions on King Charles I. The Presbyterians were fine with the idea of Charles returning to the throne if he agreed to limit his power while the Puritans wanted to terminate the monarchy entirely. This led to the Puritans sending Colonel Pride to drive out the 143 Presbyterians in parliament in an event that would soon be known as "Pride's Purge". The state of the monarchy was called "Rump Parliament".
Parliament was in a position to punish King Charles I for his past grievances and charged him with treason. Treason, by definition, was the act of trying to overthrow the king. This however, was a reasonable charge because Charles purposely alienated himself from the people of England and Scotland, therefore overthrowing himself. After his execution, England was left without a king and considered a republic.
Parliament was in a position to punish King Charles I for his past grievances and charged him with treason. Treason, by definition, was the act of trying to overthrow the king. This however, was a reasonable charge because Charles purposely alienated himself from the people of England and Scotland, therefore overthrowing himself. After his execution, England was left without a king and considered a republic.