Britain Without A King Flashcards
(5 cards)
Challenges facing the rump Parliament
Radical groups:
The views on religion and society were being challenged by radicals who scared the parliament and gentry.
Scotland and Ireland
Within days of the execution Scotland declared Prince Charles King Charles eldest son king of Great Britain. But Britain was now a republic so the young monarch escaped to France were many hoped he would gain support to reclaim the throne. In Ireland the Irish catholic confederation was formed and controlled the country. This was a clear enemy for Protestant England but an ally to catholic france.
Political tensions:
Many people viewed the new regime with suspicion and saw the execution of the king as sacrilege. But more than anything people including the rump Parliament were worried about the growing power of the army.
Religious divides:
Tensions still remained between those who wanted a strict compulsory Church of England and those who wanted more religious freedom.
Radical groups:
Levellers:
Rump Parliament had leveller leaders imprisoned. In 1649 levellers in the army mutinied over unpaid wages and being forced to fight in Ireland. Fairfax and Cromwell persuaded them to surrender and the ring leader Robert Lockyer was executed. Another mutiny broke out in Oxfordshire but was quickly crushed by Cromwell and his troops with most mutineers being pardoned 3 leaders were executed and Lilburne was tried but found not guilty and the movement seemed no real threat.
Diggers:
Believed all land should be shared equally and refered to earth as the common treasury for all. They set up communities to work the land and share the produce. They despised landlord and the social hierarchy but were faced with harassment wherever they went and the movement faded.
Quakers:
Key figure George fox. They emphasised a close study of the bible and believed everyone had a relationship with god making there no need for churches and priests. They refused to show respect to their social superiors. Especially strong in north of England. And by 1660 there were over 55,000 quakers. Leaders were often arrested and the government launched a program to destroy the movement.
Rise of Cromwell.
For cromwell and the army the biggest threat was Scotland and Ireland and throughout 1649 cromwell grew his power by crushing leveller movements. He led a campaign Ireland in august 1649 and the conflict was bloody but he defeated the Irish rebels. The massacre of the populations of drogheda and Wexford showed his power. He left Ireland to face the Scot’s taking part in a bloody battle at Dunbar. He defeated royalist and Scottish forces in Worcester in September 1651. This ended the threat to the republic and gained Cromwell much respect and fear from the rump Parliament. And loyalty from the army.
Rule of the rump Parliament.
With Cromwell off battling enemies of the republic the commonwealth was ran by the rump Parliament which grew to 200 as some MPs who refused to agree to Charles trial were brought back.
By February 1641 the rump elected a council of the stage which took the place of the king, it put forward many reform for the rump to discuss with some being more radical or for the people. These included:
March 1649, monarchy and House of Lords abolished
April 1649 sale of royal lands to pay wages owed to army
May 1649 England declared a commonwealth ruled by parliament
September 1650 compulsory church attendance abolished
December 1650 use of English rather than latin in courts
October 1651 navigation act introduced helping British merchants to increase trade and grow navy in case of war.
Cromwell vs the commonwealth
Cromwell was busy with wars from 1649-51 but he was still an MP and followed the events in Parliament. He approves of many measures but felt some actions were more the rump attempting to keep power and enforce their authority:
March 1649 arrest of civilian leveller leader
September 1649 censorship reintroduced in response to radical groups.
January 1650 all adult males to take oath of loyalty to rump
April 1650 observing sabbath made compulsory
June 1650 issue of new government newspaper
August 1650 blasphemy act passed to undermine and restrict actions of extreme puritans.
Cromwell was not worried by the crushing of radical groups but he disliked the lack of religious reform as he believed England could become a truly godly nation. He was a puritan and wanted greater religious freedom for people to find god through study prayer and discussion rather than forced to worship his in controlled ways. This scared the rump who saw the church as a good way to maintain order.
To encourage reform Cromwell reached an agreement with the rump MPs in April 1653 which meant the rump would dissolve itself and hold fresh elections supervised by the army. He planned to select MPs who would reform religion. Cromwell heard news the next morning that the MPs were going to break the agreement and hold free elections without the armies intervention. Cromwell rushed to Parliament calling them whoremasters and drunkards and in gods name go! He called the army to clear out the MPs and dissolved the rump by force. Giving the army all control.
