The meeting of the Long Parliament (as it was afterwards called) in November 1640 ended the great days of the English monarchy, and sowed the seeds for the English Civil War. The Commons were determined on reform; they meant to put an end to the king's unconstitutional methods in both Church and State. Charles I himself, though he seldom faced facts, saw that some concessions would be necessary. But a real settlement was not achieved, chiefly because tempers were rising and the atmosphere soon became that of a revolution. Charles was partly to blame. He had no real desire for a lasting understanding with Parliament, and his shifty character aroused general distrust. But he found that the more he gave way to Parliament, the more it demanded. John Pym, a squire of Somerset, was the acknowledged leader of the Commons.
His enemies nicknamed him 'King Pym'. He was 'the first great popular organiser', for he used the press, the petition, and even the platform to support his cause. He now led the attack on the chief instruments of the late personal government. The judges who had upheld Charles's financial exactions in the Courts were arrested and imprisoned, and so was Archbishop Laud, who was beheaded in 1645. But the principal victim was Strafford. He was charged with having tried to 'subvert the fundamental laws and government of England and Ireland, and instead thereof to introduce an in March arbitrary and tyrannical government against law'. 1641 he was brought to Westminster Hall to be tried for high treason. But his accusers were at once faced with a difficult point. Strafford may have tried to 'subvert the laws'; but treason meant treason to the king, and had Strafford been a traitor to Charles? It was difficult to prove that he had, and as the trial proceeded it became clear that the verdict would be Not Guilty. But the Puritan majority in the House was determined that Strafford should die. Parliament therefore passed a special Bill of Attainder, condemning the minister to death without trial.
The Lords passed the Bill of Attainder, and it remained for the king to give or to withhold his consent. Some may think that it was Charles's duty to risk his life to defend Strafford. But the mob raged round Whitehall, howling for blood. Charles feared for the safety of the queen and his children, and he gave way. ' If my own person only were in danger', he told the Council, with tears in his eyes, 'I would gladly venture it to save Lord Strafford's life.' Three days later the earl was led to his execution in May 1641 in the presence of a crowd of 200000 people who had come to witness the end of 'Black Tom Tyrant'. No man ever died more bravely. 'I thank my God', he said, as he prepared to die, 'I am not afraid of death, but do as cheerfully put off my doublet at this time as ever I did when I went to bed.' The executioner offered to cover his eyes with a handkerchief. 'Thou shalt not bind my eyes.' said Strafford, 'for I will see it done.' And so he placed his head upon the block.
His misfortune, wrote Laud, was that 'he served a mild and gracious prince, who knew not how to be, or be made great'. That summerParliament was busy passing a number of Acts intended to make absolute government impossible for the future. One Act declared that the presentParliament could not be dissolved without its own consent; another - the Triennial Act - that in future Parliaments should be Called every three years. The three Courts by which the king and Laud had carried out their religious and financial measures were abolished - the Star Chamber, the Court of High Commission, and the Council of the North. Finally Ship-Money and other arbitrary forms of taxation were declared illegal. These abolitions of the year 1641 were the permanent, constructive work of the Puritan revolution; nor were the institutions then destroyed restored with the monarchy in 1660. Meanwhile another Bill had come up for discussion. A petition was presented to Parliament praying for the ending of episcopacy (that is, the rule of the Church by bishops) 'in all its roots and branches'.
The thorough-going Puritan members considered the petition, and a 'Root-and-Branch' Bill in 1641 was prepared, but it fell through. For now a new factor came into play. Hitherto a large majority, both of Lords and Commons, had been united in their opposition to the king. But this Bill divided parliamentarians for the first time. There were many who began to fear extremes; and a moderate party now sprang up. It was out of this debate on the Root-and- Branch Bill that the germs of the future Roundhead and Cavalier parties were formed. The extremists - the Roundheads - included Pym, Hampden, and Oliver Cromwell. The chief figures on the other side were LordFalkland and Sir Edward Hyde, afterwards the famous Earl of Clarendon, the future Chancellor and historian. Parliament adjourned for six months, but met again at the end of October. It had no sooner assembled than terrible news arrived from Ireland. Now that the stern hand of Strafford was withdrawn, the crushed Irish had risen against their lords. There was a sudden and horrible rebellion thousands of Protestants were massacred in cold blood. When this news was received in London it only served to increase the Puritanfury. Meanwhile the Commons drew up a Grand Remonstrance in November 1641, in which they recited the past acts of the king and his servants to which they objected - there were 201 items - and stated a programme for the future. Some of its clauses prayed the king to reduce the power of the bishops and to remove 'oppressions in religion'. Another clause asked His Majesty to employ ministers 'such as the Parliament may have cause to confide in' - which in later times solved the problem of disputes between king and Parliament.
All this shows that Parliament had considerably advanced its demands. During the months from November 1640 to September 1641 they, had succeeded in placing constitutional checks on the king's power. From November 1641 to August 1642 they were bent on seizing control of both Church and State, until they forced Charles to reply: ' If I granted your demands, I should be no more than the merephantom of a king.' The Grand Remonstrance was passed by a majority of only eleven - a fact which illustrates the growth of the anti-Puritan party.
The situation, at the end of 1641, was dangerous in the extreme. On the one hand the queen and the swaggering ' Cavaliers' of the Court were urging Charles to strike at King Pym and his fellow leaders before it was too late. On the other hand, London was a stronghold of Puritanism, and it was the London merchants who had felt the weight of Charles's taxation most heavily. The London ' prentices' and the king's swordsmen were itching to get at one another's throats. Never the less Pym proceeded steadily on his way. He was determined to deprive the king of the command of the militia; for it was obvious that if the Irish rebellion was to be crushed a militia must be called out. And once Charles had command of the national armed forces, would he not use them to crush Parliament and destroy English liberty for ever? Pym had no doubt that he would. A Militia Bill was therefore brought in, and - contrary to all English law and custom - it took the command of the military forces out of the king's hands. To this Charles of course refused his consent.
Early in January 1642 he took the queen's advice, and instructed the Attorney- General to impeach Pym, Hampden, and three other leading members of the Commons. The members were alarmed, but Charles promised them 'on the word of a king' that no violence should be done them. The next day - the 4th of January 1642 - he went down to the House with 400 swordsmen. He left his guard at the door, and walked in accompanied only by Prince Rupert, his German nephew. But the five members, warned of his intention, had fled by river. There was a dead silence as the king looked round. He asked the Speaker, Lenthall, where the missing members were. 'I have neither eyes to see', Lenthall replied, 'nor tongue to speak in this place, but as this House shall direct me.' There was another pause as Charles scanned the benches. 'I see', he said at last, 'all the birds are flown. I do expect you will send them to me as soon as they shall return hither.' Then, amid cries of 'Privilege, privilege', he walked out. By this revolutionary act the king had outlawed himself. All hope of reconciliation being now past, he determined to try the issue of war. He left his capital on the 10th of January, sent the queen out of the country, and took up his quarters at York. Parliament claimed the control of the militia and secured the command of the fleet. During the spring and summer of 1642 both sides were busy raising troops. The great strength of the Puritan cause was London. The city contained a tenth of the population of England - 500000 out of five million. The number of troops which London provided was more than sufficient to quell any Royalist opposition in the surrounding country. The London 'train-bands' therefore protected the Puritan leaders during the eight months that the king was gathering his army in the north - January to August 1642. And so the English Civil War started. Research Long Parliament
The Massachusetts Spy was an American newspaper founded at Boston, on August 1st, 1770. This newspaper was established to support the Whig element in the New England colonies in opposition to the Boston Chronicle which favoured the British Government. It was edited by Isaiah Thomas, and was suspended in six months for a time, but was begun again and removed to Worcester. Contributions were at first made by members of both political parties, but its sympathies were so evidently revolutionary that the royalist writers withdrew. Research Massachusetts Spy
Rivington's New York Gazetteer or, the Connecticut, New Jersey, Hudson's River and Quebec Weekly Advertiser was an American newspaper established in New York City on April the 22nd, 1773. It was distinctly royalist in its sympathies, its circulation extended exclusively among the Tories, and it was issued under the protection of the king's army. James Rivington was obliged to suspend publication in 1775, but renewed in 1777 under the title Rivington's New York Loyal Gazette afterward changed to Royal Gazette. The publication was finally suspended in 1783, when the British withdrew from New York. Research Rivington's New York Gazetteer
Tricolor is a name generally applied to the blue, white and red national flag of France. The tricolor originated in the early days of the French revolution and was a blending of the colours of the National Guard of Paris who bore cockades of the city colours, red and blue, and of the royalist troops who bore white cockades. These colours were grouped in a flag of three perpendicular stripes of equal width, the blue being placed beside the pole, next the white and the red on the outside. The tricolor was for a time replaced by the red ensign of the Commune before being finally adopted as the national flag, and under Napoleon, led the Republic and then the imperial troops to victory. Louis XVIII and Charles X replaced the tricolor with the Bourbon white flag with its three golden fleur-de-lis, but with Louis-Philippe the tricolor was reinstated. Research Tricolor
Abraham Cowley was an English poet. He was born in 1618 at London and died in 1667. He was one of the metaphysical school of poets who followed John Donne in his use of far-fetched conceits. He published his first volume, Poetic Blossoms, at the age of fifteen. He entered Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1636, but was ejected as a royalist in 1643, and removed to St John's College, Oxford. He engaged actively in the royal cause, and when the queen was obliged to quit England, Abraham Cowley accompanied her. He was absent from his native country nearly ten years, and it was principally through him that the correspondence was maintained between the king and queen. On the Restoration he returned with the other royalists, and obtained the lease of a farm at Chertsey, held under the queen, by which his income was about 300 pounds sterling per annum. Abraham Cowley's poems have failed to maintain their ancient popularity, but he still holds a high position as a prosewriter and as an essayist. He took a considerable interest in science, and was one of the founders of the Royal Society. His chief works are: Love's Riddle, a pastoralcomedy; Davideis, a scriptural epic; Naufragium Joculare; The Mistress, a collection of love verses; Pindarique Odes; Liber Plantarum; etc. Research Abraham Cowley
Alexander Brome was an English poet and dramatist. He was born in 1620 and died in 1666. He was the author of many royalist songs and epigrams. Published The Cunning Lovers, a comedy, 1654; Fancy's Festivals, 1657; Songs, etc, 1660; Translation of Horace, 1666. Research Alexander Brome
Andrew Marvell was an English poet. He was born in 1621 at Winstead and died in 1678. In 1650 he was chosen to tutor Mary, daughter of LordFairfax. In 1653 he was introduced by Milton to Bradshaw, and became a member of the most enlightened and philosophic party in the politics of the commonwealth. After serving as tutor to a nephew of Oliver Cromwell he was chosen to assist Milton in the Latin secretaryship. In 1659 he was elected member for Hull, and succeeded in holding his seat until his death. He was thus able to protect Milton from royalist reprisals. In 1663 he accompanied LordCarlisle on an embassy to Russia, Sweden and Denmark. In 1667 he began to write his powerful satires against the king, the Duke of York, LordDanby, the Papists, and the high Churchmen. Research Andrew Marvell
Lord Arthur Capel was a British soldier. He was born about 1600 and died in 1649. The son of Sir Henry Capel, he was raised to peerage by Charles I. During the English Civil War he fought bravely as one of the royalist generals in the west in the engagements at Bristol, Exeter, and Taunton. Having been at length forced to surrender at Colchester to General Fairfax he was imprisoned, and, after some vicissitudes, executed on March the 9th, 1649. His Daily Observations or Meditations was published posthumously with a memoir. Research Arthur Capel
Baptiate Honore Raymond Capefigue was a French historian and biographer. He was born in 1801 and died in 1872. He held various journalistic posts in connection with the Temps, the Messager, etc, his royalist articles winning him a temporary appointment in the foreign office under the Bourbons. His numerous works include biographies and histories extending over the whole field of French history from the time of Hugh Capet to that of the Empire. Research Baptiste Capefigue
Cadwallader Colden was the first surveyor-general of New York. He was born in 1688 and died in 1776. He was an ardentroyalist, was president of the council in 1760 and Lieutenant-Governor in 1761, took an active part in founding the American Philosophical Society, and was a correspondent of the prominent scientific men of his time, including Linnaeus and Benjamin Franklin. Research Cadwallader Colden
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Long Parliament
