chapter 9

Question 1

the short parliament

Answer 1

• not enough money to fight scottish covenanters: Wentworth advised king to recall Parl
• 13th April 1940: Parl needed to grant subsidies then he would listen to grievances
• king possessed intercepted letter from covenanters to king of france seeking help- push parl to support him?

Question 2

why was short parl dissolved

Answer 2

• 5th may- neither subsidies granted or grievances discussed
• charles expected to get money from spanish king or pope
• stratford suggested in privy council meeting to use irish army to put down covenanters
• stratford ill, unable to help king politically
• some in park sympathised with covenanters
• many in parl desperate to discuss grievances, didn’t trust king to keep word once granted subsidies

Question 3

long parliament

Answer 3

• November 1640
• Truce of Ripon: king had to recall Parl, king couldn’t dissolve until it voted subsidies that would enable scottish army to be paid off to trigger withdrawal back to scotland
• charles politically, financially and militarily weak so had to obey, reached end of ability to raise money through prerogative means
• not formally dissolved until 1660

Question 4

sources of kings strength

Answer 4

• support in house of lords
• supremacy in legal system
• command of the army
• censorship of the press
• authority over foreign policy
• determined and effective ministers
• resources of the three kingdoms

Question 5

charles fatal weaknesses

Answer 5

• came from his words and actions
• disquiet interpreted as outright criticism
• style of gov, absence of parl, Laud and Strafford’s drive for centralisation caused those not in inner circle and gentry to feel alienated
• charles unable to handle debate and dispute without seeing it as dangerous disloyalty and rebellion

Question 6

Parliamentary opposition key members

Answer 6

• Lords: Saye and Sele, Lord Brooke, Earl of Warwick
• Commons: Hampden, Holles and Pym

Question 7

measures to remedy grievances

Answer 7

1. dismantle prerogative courts of star chamber

Question 8

sources of division

Answer 8

• some members of parliament agreed with Pym, king not willingly reach negotiated settlement so felt they had to push forward radical agenda forcing settlement
• some wanted to continue to persue negotiated settlement
• some felt king in the right
• no single solution so initiatives came independently from Lords and commons making it easier for charles to resist pressure to change

Question 9

root and branch debates

Answer 9

• dec 1640: how church should be administered now that parl able to have a voice
• Oliver st john redrafted Londoners’ petition, presented to the commoners by Henry Vane Jr and Cromwell in 1641

Question 10

context of the Bill

Answer 10

• Long Parl set about reforming Church of England - putting right Laudian excesses
• Pym presented petition from Mrs Burton and Bastwick sought their husbands’ release from prison.
• a measure intended to have catholics removed from london
• sought right to appoint next dean of durham cathedral, traditionally crown appointment
• unprecedented involvement by parliament in the day to day governance of church of england

Question 11

initiative from house of lords- bridge appointments

Answer 11

• proposed by Earl of Bedford, moderate man
• scheme to provide charles with a workable financial settlement in return for regular Parliaments and abolish most hated tools of personal rule
• to ensure cooperation: Laud and Stafford replaced with Bedford and Pym so parl closely involved with King’s finances
• 21st feb covenanters sent a note demanding episcopacy be abolished and stratford executed or they will not work with bedford plan.
• plan began to unravel and bedfords death of smallpox in May 1641 bought it to an end

Question 12

initiative in the commons

Answer 12

• collapse of Bedfords scheme shifted reforms to commons, attention began to focus directly on Pym as leader of significant group within parliament
• king pym: director of whole machine, able to do most hurt
• reviled by some: accused of corruption and treachery

Question 13

the ten propositions

Answer 13

• a list of suggestions brought by Pym before parl on 24th June
• outlined how settlement might be made with King
• very general but some were very specific
• would have dramatically limited King’s powers e.g. disbandment of army in the North, parliamentary input into who would be in privy council, oversight of queens household, parliamentary control over education of royal children
• parliament took propositions seriously, established series of committees to cover each point
• lay more in the radical nature of their terms, dramatic constitutional innovations

Question 14

content of the bill

Answer 14

• root and branch most significant reforming measure
• intended to root out episcopacy, root and branch by abolishing offices of archbishop and bishop
• would dismantle structure of church of england and substantially alter composition of house of lords
• politically reduce kings power as he appointed bishops which ensured he had loyal supporters in the lords

Question 15

arguments over the bill

Answer 15

• exposed divisions within parliament that centred around different attitudes individual MPs had towards church
• significant number MPs wanted to remove Lauds influence from church- felt tried to rise higher than kings authority: ‘made kings throne a footstool for his own’
• some wanted to restore church to pre- Laudian state back to ‘true reformed protestant religion’
• small number want to alter structure of church to bring into line with puritan congregational churches ( root and branch was a great step)
• debates over religious issues were contentious
• proved so divisive, shelved in. Aug 1641