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Title: The Reformation and the Civil War The Civil War of England (1642 - 1649) is one of the most remarkable and important events in the history of England. The monarchy and the popular will were in open conflict for the first time. The nature of this war was dual. This was a religious and a political war.
The Puritans and the Parliament united against the King and condemned his interference in the religious affairs. Both the Parliament and the Puritans were dissatisfied, as the King did not care for the existence of either. The Parliament along with the Puritans combined to dispute the Kings authority to lay down the law in Church and State. It is clear that if the church has never been reformed, and its center was in Rome, as it used to be, there probably would not have been an English war. The reasons for that are: 1. Reformation gave religious freedom to many groups of people who were powerless before. 2.
King viewed his role and rights differently than the pre-reformation Kings. In order to understand these reasons in full, it is necessary to know about the natures of both the Reformation and the Civil War. Reformation in England was not as straightforward as it has been in Germany and Switzerland. William Tyndale (circa 1492 - 1536), the English biblical translator, religious reformer, and writer became one of the first English followers of Martin Luther. Tyndale was born in Gloucestershire. He received his master's degree from the University of Oxford.
Continuing his education at the University of Cambridge, Tyndale decided to translate the Bible from Greek into English. He strongly believed in each persons right to be able to read the Bible. Moreover, being Luthers follower, Tyndale aimed at combating the corrupted English Catholic Church. In 1525, after meeting Martin Luther personally, Tyndale started the printing of the English version of the New Testament. Once an English version of the Bible became available, a solid foundation for the Reformation in England was laid. Even after the Reformation has gained many supporters in Switzerland and Germany, England held its loyalty to the Catholic Church.
In 1509, Henry VIII inherited the throne. The young king was interested in Martin Luthers writings and had given them much attention. He, however, remained a firm Catholic and even wrote a treatise, which defended the Roman Church. In fact, Henry VIII was called the Defender of the Faith for that treatise. The Catholic Church had even offered indulgence for 10 years to anybody who read Henrys work. Henry gained his popularity by ending the War of the Roses.
To his fortune, he belonged both to the House of York and the House of Lancaster, which put peace between them and ended the long war. Henry also became known as a strong leader and the one who ruled strictly according to the Constitution. It was actually the kings personal life that became a problem. Originally, Henry got married to Catherine of Aragon, who was six years older than him. For the 18 years of their marriage, they had had six children.
All of them, except one, died still being very young. Henry as the first of the Tudors dreamt of a male heir, who would guarantee that the family line would continue. In 1527, it became clear that Catherine was too old to have any children, so Henry made an attempt to get a divorce from the Pope. Divorces were not an uncommon practice and had been granted to kings and numerous noble people before. This time, however, Pope Clement VII refused Henry VIII. Henrys wife, Catherine of Aragon, was the aunt of the German Emperor, Charles V.
The Pope, fearing further spread of Lutheranism in Germany, absolutely did not want to break any ties with Charles V. Clement VII, however, also realized that he could not ignore a possibility of spread of Reformation in England, which might have been caused by his refusal to Henry. As a result, the Pope was not giving a clear answer to Henry for quite some time. By 1531 Henry got so irritated by the Roman politics, that he declared himself, with the help of an assembly of the clergy, the head of the English Church. That not only meant that from than on Henry could give the divorce to himself, but also that the Roman Pope has lost his Papal authority in England. Henry, of course, did not suspect that his moves would promote the spread of Reformation in England in any way.
To him, it was all about politics and his personal life. In 1539, as the new head of the Church, Henry issued the Six Articles of Faith. These articles were to be the basic tenets of the Catholic faith and were directed against any heretical ideas. However, the abolition of papal authority in England was a favorable change for the most people. Had it not been what the majority desired, the separation from the Roman Church would not have had any chance to become a permanent fact in English history. By the time Henrys only son Edward VI took the throne, Protestantism was gaining more and more grounds in England.
In 1549, during the reign of Edward, the first version of The Book of Common Prayer was published and made compulsory by the Parliament. This book was one of the first attempts to reform the church. Even though its content was much similar to the traditional Catholic liturgical books, the style was significantly simplified. More importantly, the English Church had no more need to refer to the Roman Church in its service any more.
The revised edition of the Book of Common Prayer, with appeared some 3 years later, was even more reformist in its nature. Many services were simplified and some eliminated. Edward did not live long and his sister Queen Mary I soon inherited the throne of England. Just like her mother, Mary was an Orthodox Catholic, so she attempted to revive Catholicism greatly. Her first reform was to reintroduce Latin as the language of the Church services.
That, of course, meant a complete denial of the new Book of Common Prayer. Catholicism was made English state religion again. Anybody who opposed this was burned at stake. Mary I earned her title Bloody Mary because of her cruelty towards Protestants. This was the time when many of them fled to the continental Europe. Rebellious moods grew among those who stayed.
The situation completely changed under the Queen Elizabeth I in 1563. She restored Protestantism and persecuted Roman Catholics. Elizabeth brought back to life the Book of Common Prayer, adopted during the reign of Edward. In 1570 the situation became critical, when Pope called Philip II, husband of Mary I, to go to war against Elizabeth. The war ended when Elizabeth completely destroyed the Spanish Armada in 1588. This victory completely assured that England was on the course of Reformation.
The two next English monarchs, James I and his son Charles I, open a new era in the history of England. James replaced the feudal power of the nobility with a strong central government, and maintaining the divine right of kings, he enforced the superiority of the state over the church. James convoked the Hampton Court Conference (1604), at which he authorized a new translation of the Bible, generally called the King James Version. His undue severity toward Roman Catholics, however, led to the abortive Gunpowder Plot in 1605.
James tried unsuccessfully to advance the cause of religious peace in Europe, giving his daughter Elizabeth in marriage to the elector of the Palatinate, Frederick V, the leader of the German Protestants. He also sought to end the conflict by attempting to arrange a marriage between his son, Charles, and the infanta of Spain, then the principal Catholic power. When he was rebuffed, he formed an alliance with France and declared war on Spain, thus contributing to the flames he had tried to quench. James I died at the Theobalds in Hertfordshire on March 27, 1625, and was succeeded to the throne by his son, Charles I. Charles followed the Anglican Church. Catholicism and Puritanism were the other faiths that existed in England at that time.
Charles desired to convert his subjects to his own faith. At the same time the Puritans, who were in majority in the Parliament, desired to convert the nation to their faith. The King tried to give some concessions and amenities to the Catholics by appointing them in high positions. He appointed William Laud as the Archbishop of Canterbury and wanted the people to be guided by him. Due to this there was war with the Parliament.
The Puritans were badly suppressed. This added to the growing unpopularity of Charles. When the King visited Scotland to settle the Scottish issue, he had to accept the full Restoration of the Presbyterian system. The King also met some Scottish nobles, who did not want the struggle to continue longer. A plot was also framed by some of the Kings friends to seize some of the Presbyterian leaders. These issues aroused anti-Regal feelings, and the confidence in the King was also lost.
An incident occurred in Ireland that once again created a rift between the King and the Parliament. A revolt broke out in which many Protestants were killed. The Irish rebels claimed that they were acting for the King. Crushing this rebellion became very difficult, The Parliament, meanwhile, debated the issue of no confidence in the King. The impeachment and execution of Strafford and the impeachment of Archbishop Laud caused by the Act of Attainder was responsible for the widening of the gap between the King and the Parliament. For this Act allowed the declaration of guilt and the imposition of punishment on an individual without a proper trial.
The Royal Counselors, the Secretary of State and Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal fled to save their lives. Charles I charged five parliament members with high treason, and sent armed forces to arrest them...
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