Charles 1 Dbq

The English Civil War broke out in 1642. There were many causes. Charles 1 reined from 1625 to 1649. Over that time, many of Charles’ English subjects became alienated by his religious policies. Many English Protestants or “puritans” came to believe in the existence of a sinister royal plot, one which aimed at the restoration of the Catholic faith in England. He displayed an apparent determination to rule without parliament. The personal rule of Charles 1 lasted eleven years. A key cause was that many people were unhappy that “illegal” taxations took place and had little faith in their king’s ability to manage money effectively.

At the time of the rein of Charles’ 1 England, Scotland and Ireland were all under his rule. They had all their

He did not want to consult parliament but would rather rule alone, only consulting a small group of people who became much hated. King Charles I passed the usual court system and used the infamous “court of the star chamber” to enforce his will. King Charles believed that he was above the parliament as he was a absolute king, “[The King] is above the law…absolute parliament…or else…he is not a absolute king” (Source A). King Charles I also cared nothing for the limits of his royal privilege, “with articles of impeachment against five commoners and one peer. He demanded that they be immediately imprisoned on a charge of high treason. The Lords…appointed a committee to consider its legality. In the meantime, Charles had sent a sergeant to the Commons to arrest the five members of the Lower House even before the Lords had agreed to it. The commons too, refused the order, returning the answer that an attempt to arrest any of its members was a breach or privilege” (Source

King Charles I did not call parliament during his personal rule and because of this he was not able to ask parliament for money. Asking the parliament to consent for new or increased taxes had been the normal way Kings and Queens had raised money. Because King Charles was not able to collect Tonnage and Poundage due to unresolved financial difficulties (Source E) As King Charles I desperately needed money he needed other ways of obtaining it. Ship Money was a tax that was put on coastal areas to fund the navy as these areas are most likely to be needed to be defended from attackers. King Charles I decided to extend this levy to all of England in 1635. Concerted opposition started to gather momentum. Additionally many “monopolies” were put sold to various groups of people and these were sold for large sums of money. “Jesuits and Benedictines…dealing stocks rather than souls” (Source I). The first parliament that King Charles I called during his personal rule was in 1640. Charles desperately needed money in order to fight the Scottish war. The Scottish had crossed the border into England at the river tweed on 20th August 1640. They met little resistance and went on to occupy the Northern city of Newcastle. Charles had to pay the Scots 850 pounds a day for a treaty on the 21st October 1640. People were even being forced to “lend” money to the King and their refusal to do so could have them put into jail, “your people have been…required