The English Civil War · KS3 History

Charles I and Parliament

Charles I became king in 1625. He believed in the divine right of kings: that God had chosen him and he shouldn't be questioned.
Money: he raised taxes such as Ship Money without Parliament's agreement.
Religion: Puritans feared he was bringing back Catholic ways; his wife Henrietta Maria was Catholic, and Archbishop Laud changed church services.
Power: he ruled without Parliament from 1629 to 1640 (the Personal Rule). In January 1642, he tried to arrest five MPs in Parliament.

Royalists (Cavaliers) supported the king; Parliamentarians (Roundheads) supported Parliament. The war began in 1642.
Key battles: Edgehill (1642), Marston Moor (1644) and Naseby (1645), where Oliver Cromwell's New Model Army won a decisive victory.
Guernsey mostly supported Parliament, but Castle Cornet was held for the king until 1651, one of the last Royalist strongholds to surrender.

Charles I was put on trial and executed on 30 January 1649. England became a republic (the Commonwealth).
Oliver Cromwell became Lord Protector in 1653. Puritan rules closed theatres and banned Christmas celebrations.
After Cromwell died, the monarchy was restored in 1660 with Charles II (the Restoration).

Divine right of kings: The belief that kings are chosen by God and can't be questioned.
Ship Money: A tax Charles I made the whole country pay without Parliament's agreement.
Personal Rule: The years 1629 to 1640 when Charles I ruled without Parliament.
Puritans: Strict Protestants who wanted a simpler Church.
Royalists: Supporters of the king, also called Cavaliers.
Parliamentarians: Supporters of Parliament, also called Roundheads.
New Model Army: Parliament's professional army.
Interregnum: The period without a monarch, from 1649 to 1660.
Lord Protector: Oliver Cromwell's title as ruler from 1653.
Restoration: The return of the monarchy with Charles II in 1660.