Civilisation of the English-speaking Countries The Stuarts in England (1603-1714)

James I
 ruled Scotland as James VI, and in 1603 became King of England and King of Ireland as
James I
 wrote two books on the nature of monarchy, believing in king’s power to be God-given
 brought the war with Spain to an end
 wanted to establish a union of the crowns of England and Scotland (the lion and the unicorn,
the Union Jack, the title of King of Great Britain)
 in 1605 he captured the plotters behind the Gunpowder Plot; the conspirators wanted to blow
up the Parliament and the King and restore Catholic rule in England
 because of financial pressures, he often quarrelled with Parliament and tried to rule without it
as much as possible
 authorised a new translation of the Bible (King James’s Bible) which reflected the episcopal
character of the English Church
 attempted to make the Scottish Kirk similar to the English Church by introducing bishops, but
met resistance; in England he was disliked by Puritans, who wanted a democratic church; the
divisions in the Church were to become a source of trouble for James’s son, Charles

Charles I
 ruled England, Scotland and Ireland since 1625 until his execution in 1649
 was married to a Roman Catholic French princess, Henrietta Maria
 like his father, he advocated the Divine Right of Kings
 quarrelled with his Parliament and tried to rule without it (the Eleven Years’ Tyranny or
the Personal Rule)
 levied taxes without consulting Parliament (ship money)
 faced trouble in the Church of Scotland where he tried to introduce the new Anglican-
style prayer book
 when forced to call Parliament (in order to subdue the Scots), he faced criticism from John
Pym
 the Long Parliament presented a list of grievances against him
 conflicted with the King, Parliament formed an army; the supporters of Parliament were
called “Roundheads” while the royalists were known as “Cavaliers”
 Charles I became prisoner of Parliament; he was later tried, found guilty of “making war
against his kingdom and the Parliament”; he was beheaded during a public execution

Republican Britain: The English Commonwealth, 1649-1660

Britain was then ruled by a Puritan commander of New Model Army, Oliver Cromwell, who later
came to be called “Lord Protector”, with far greater powers than the king. The army became the most
powerful force in the land. Parliament was dissolved and strict Puritan government was enforced.
Cromwell managed to subjugate the Scots and the Irish using his military force. After Cromwell’s
death, his son, Richard, took over but was not an effective ruler. There was disagreement among
commanders in the army and the Protectorate collapsed.

The Restoration: Charles II

In 1660 son of Charles I was invited to return to his kingdom.

 he ruled through the time of the Great Plague (1665) and the Fire of London (1666)
 as a patron of the arts and sciences he commissioned the work of Christopher Wren and
helped found the Royal Society and the Observatory in Greenwich
 because his wife was barren, he left no legal heir (only 12 illegitimate children by numerous
mistresses), so after his death he was succeeded by his brother James II
Civilisation of the English-speaking Countries The Stuarts in England (1603-1714)

James II
 ruled only for a short time, for he faced opposition in Parliament
 he was a believer in absolutism
 he attempted to introduce unpopular laws, such as freedom of religion for the Catholics
 he was the last Catholic ruler to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland
 he was deposed during the Glorious Revolution of 1688*
 James’s Protestant nephew, William of Orange, married to James’s daughter Mary, came to
Britain with an army
 James fled to France and the Parliament decided that he had abdicated
 the throne was taken over jointly by William and Mary
 James returned with an army to face the Williamite forces in Ireland but was defeated during
the Battle of the Boyne in 1690

*The Glorious Revolution was the overthrow of King James II of England (James VII of Scotland)
by a union of Parliamentarians with the invading army of William of Orange, who as a result
ascended the English throne. It may be seen as the last successful invasion of England. It is
sometimes called the Bloodless Revolution, but it was not completely bloodless, as it led to
serious military clashes in Ireland and Scotland.

William and Mary

 they were cousins (both were grandchildren of Charles I); Mary was 12 years younger than
her husband
 ruled jointly , so their reign is known as co-regency (the situation where a monarchical
position normally held by only a single person, is held by two)
 signed the English Bill of Rights and began a new co-operation between the Parliament and
the monarchs, leading to a greater measure of personal liberty and democracy in Britain. The
Bill of Rights, enacted in 1689, was more a bill of limitations: the use of royal and prerogative
rights (the foundation of Tudor-Stuart authority) was forbidden, the king could only maintain
a standing army with parliamentary consent, and an annual income of £600,000 was disbursed
to the monarchs, with grants for specific purposes also appropriated by Parliament.
 The Settlement Act of 1701 was the final act to fully establish the supremacy of Parliament.
King William's War, a series of continental battles fought primarily to push Protestantism, had
heavily taxed English economic resources; to retaliate, The Settlement Act forbade wars
without Parliament’s consent. The act forbade members of the House of Commons, as well as
all non-indigenous people, from holding public office and subjected ministerial appointments
to parliamentary approval. Judges were removed from royal punishment, as they had to now
be formally impeached by the House of Parliament, with no royal pardon. Additionally, the
Act barred Roman Catholics from ascending the throne.
 William and Mary were childless and were ultimately succeeded by Mary’s younger sister,
Anne

Queen Anne, the last of the Stuarts

 The Act of Union with Scotland 1707 stated that England and Scotland should “be united into
one kingdom by the name of Great Britain”
 succeeded by her cousin, George I of the House of Hanover