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History and Evolution:
By William E. Steinman:
Part 112 The Civil War:
May 16, 2005:
Things were coming to a head for Charles I. He had bungled pretty much everything he had done since taking the throne. In desperation he began negotiations with the Scots to end that war. Meanwhile another rebellion erupted in Ireland. With that happening, the leaders of Commons decided to try to get control of the army. They knew that Charlie with a large army would be a threat to them. Charles got even more desperate and tried to arrest some of the members of Commons and a Lord. However, they all got away and hid out in London. After that, things got quiet for a while, but it was only a time out for collecting support and building armies. This was really the beginning of the end for Charles I.
By his insistence on divine right prerogatives and by retaining poor choices in his privy council and advisory staff, King Charles had backed himself into an untenable corner. Civil war was the only possible course, for Parliament and for the King. Charles was supported by the landed gentry who were facing an end to special privilege if Charles lost. Also with the king were, of course, the clergy and the rabble peasantry. Opposing him were the large middle classes, the merchants, and most of the nobility.
The King settled in York and began to gather his forces and his support. The Parliamentarians remained in London where they remained a majority in session. In June of 1641 they sent their proposals to the King. The proposals were rather detailed but the essence was the transfer of power from the King to Parliament. It was an ultimatum. Civil war would necessarily follow.
On August 22 of 1642 the King raised his standard at Nottingham and the fighting began, sporadic at first. In September the Earl of Essex let the Parliamentary troops out of London while the King transferred his position to Shrewsbury in Western England. The armies met at Edgehill near Warwick in October and a lot of people died, but the results were inconclusive.
The battle went back and forth from 1642 until 1646. Real estate was won and lost, but the war continued with nothing conclusive. Parliament was the first to seek outside aid by making a league with the Scots. The King, not to be outdone, made peace with Ireland and brought English troops home to fight for him. this gave an edge to the Royalists but it did not last long. The Parliamentarians, with the help of the Scots gained the upper hand. Through 1646 the Royalists were beaten in every major battle and they finally surrendered at Oxford. Charles tried to hide out with the Scots, but they turned him over to the Parliamentarians in 1647.
Then some crap hit the fan between the army and Parliament. It seems to go on and on. In this fiasco, the army kidnaped Charles and allowed him somehow to escape. He managed to get to the Isle or Wight. This is a dot of land in the English Channel. There he made deals with some Scottish people. He promised them to establish Presbyterianism in England and suppress Independents. Can you believe they believed he could do that? Go figure!
Well it all came to nothing but more bloodshed. There were a series of Royalist rebellions which were put down. There was also an invasion from Scotland which was likewise defeated. By this time, Oliver Cromwell had become the first chairman of the Council of State. this was the executive body of a one-chamber Parliament. We will get to how this body came about in a following essay about Cromwell. Suffice it for now to notice that England was run by a one chamber Parliament headed by Cromwell.
The next big civil war problem broke out in Ireland in 1649 and 1650. Then there was a Scottish rebellion under the Scottish first marquis of Montrose who had switched sides. This was also defeated. About then, Charles II started acting up. This was the eldest son of Charles I. He made a deal with some Presbyterian Covenanters to take power. Cromwell defeated them at first, but did not follow up and they penetrated into England. That gave Cromwell a chance to destroy them at Worcester in 1651. that brought an end to the civil war. Charles II ran for it and got out of England. Cromwell was the man of the hour.
When all was said and done, there was some loss of life but not much destruction of property. Politically a Commonwealth and a Protectorate were established with Cromwell running the show. The English church remained, but not as it was. There was a definite nonconformist bend to the religion of the time.
In 1649, Charles was brought before a special high court at
Westminster Hall. He was charged with high treason and other high
crimes against the realm. You got to admire this guys guts if
nothing else. He got on his divine rights high horse and refuse
to recognize the legality of the court. He said he was the King
and there was no superior jurisdiction on earth that could try
him. This kind of reminds me of Hussein's position in Iraq. It
did not help him much. The death sentence was read to him on January
27 and he was beheaded on January 30. So ended the life of Charles
I of England.
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