AP® European History · Unit 3 · Topic 3.2
The English Civil War
The English Civil War was a fight over who truly holds sovereign power, king or Parliament, and it ended with Charles I beheaded and a general, Oliver Cromwell, ruling in his place.
Charles I believed in divine right: he answered to God, not to Parliament. From 1629 to 1640 he ruled without calling Parliament at all, raising money through old feudal dues and fines that stretched his legal authority to its edge. Religion made things worse. Charles pushed a prayer book and bishops' authority onto Presbyterian Scotland, and when the Scots rebelled, Charles needed money for an army, which meant he needed Parliament, which meant Parliament finally had leverage after eleven years of being shut out.
Parliament used that leverage to demand permanent checks on royal power, and negotiations broke down into war in 1642. Roughly speaking, the wealthier southeast and London backed Parliament, while the king drew support from the north and west, though plenty of counties were divided. Parliament's early armies were regional levies, uneven in discipline. The New Model Army changed that: officers rose on skill and religious conviction instead of noble birth, and soldiers were paid and drilled regularly instead of being left to fend for themselves. A professional force beat a traditional one.
Parliament won, tried Charles I for treason against his own kingdom, and executed him in 1649, a stunning claim that even a king answers to the people he governs. England became a republic. But Oliver Cromwell, the general whose army had won the war, soon dissolved Parliament repeatedly and ruled as Lord Protector backed by military force. The experiment meant to end personal rule had produced another ruler without Parliament's consent, setting up the restoration debates that follow.
Key terms
- Divine right
- The belief that a monarch's authority comes directly from God and cannot be checked by subjects or Parliament.
- New Model Army
- Parliament's professional army, formed in 1645, that promoted by merit and paid soldiers regularly.
- Long Parliament
- The Parliament Charles I was forced to summon in 1640, which refused to disband and pushed reforms limiting royal power.
- Lord Protector
- The title Oliver Cromwell held while ruling England after the monarchy's abolition, backed chiefly by the army.
- Regicide
- The killing of a king, here referring to the 1649 execution of Charles I after trial for treason.
Watch it explained
- How it worksWalk me through Charles I ruling eleven years without Parliament and what forced him to call it back.
- How it worksShow me which regions of England backed the king and which backed Parliament in 1642.
- How it worksHow did the New Model Army beat a royal army that had every advantage of birth and training?
- Going furtherWhat happens to a republic when the general who won the war becomes Lord Protector?
Check yourself
End of topic.