2E The English Revolution, 1625–1660 – An experiment in Absolutism, 1629–1640 — AQA A-Level History
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2E The English Revolution, 1625–1660 – An experiment in Absolutism, 1629–1640 explained
Charles I’s Personal Rule (1629–1640) saw him govern without Parliament, relying heavily on chief ministers like Thomas Wentworth (Earl of Strafford) and William Laud.
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His methods of government bypassed parliamentary legislation, utilising prerogative courts like the Star Chamber to enforce royal will and maintain order. To survive without parliamentary subsidies, Charles implemented controversial financial policies, exploiting feudal prerogatives. The most notorious was Ship Money, levied inland from 1635, alongside distraint of knighthood and forest fines. The reaction against these policies grew increasingly hostile, culminating in the 1637 Hampden Case, which, despite a narrow royal victory, galvanised widespread opposition to what many perceived as arbitrary, absolutist rule.
Religious issues: Laud and Arminianism in England and Scotland; the growth of opposition from Puritans
Religious issues were central to the breakdown of Charles I’s Personal Rule. William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1633, enforced Arminianism across England, emphasising the 'beauty of holiness', clerical authority, and the altar policy, which moved communion tables to the east end. In Scotland, Charles and Laud disastrously attempted to impose a new English-style Prayer Book in 1637, sparking the National Covenant and the Bishops' Wars. These Arminian reforms alienated many, fuelling the growth of opposition from Puritans who viewed the changes as a covert return to Catholicism. Prominent Puritans like Prynne, Bastwick, and Burton were mutilated by the Star Chamber for their vocal resistance, which only amplified public sympathy and solidified anti-Laudian sentiment.
Political issues: the role of Wentworth; policies in Ireland and England; the reactions against the Crown; demands for the recall of Parliament
Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, was central to Charles I’s Personal Rule, implementing the policy of 'Thorough' to enhance royal authority and efficiency. In England, Wentworth enforced the Book of Orders to regulate local government and poor relief. As Lord Deputy of Ireland from 1632, he ruthlessly alienated all factions—Old English, New English, and native Irish—by reclaiming Crown lands and imposing new customs duties to make Ireland financially independent. These authoritarian policies provoked fierce reactions against the Crown, heightening fears of Catholic absolutism. Growing opposition, exemplified by the Providence Island Company's covert network and the 1639-40 taxpayers' strike, culminated in overwhelming demands for the recall of Parliament, forcing Charles to summon the Short Parliament to fund his Scottish campaigns.
Radicalism, dissent and the approach of war: the spread of religious radicalism; the Scottish Covenant and the Bishops' War; the Pacification of Berwick; the second Bishops' war
The imposition of Laudianism provoked the spread of religious radicalism and dissent, visible in the underground Puritan networks and the high-profile punishments of Prynne, Bastwick, and Burton. The crisis escalated when Charles I imposed a new English-style Prayer Book on Scotland in 1637, triggering the 1638 Scottish National Covenant to defend Presbyterianism. Charles's attempt to crush this rebellion led to the First Bishops' War in 1639, which ended inconclusively with the Pacification of Berwick because the English militia was underfunded and unenthusiastic. Charles's subsequent failure to secure adequate funds from the Short Parliament resulted in the disastrous Second Bishops' War in 1640, where Scottish forces occupied Newcastle, forcing Charles to summon the Long Parliament.
Your focus
- Describe the roles of Charles I's chief ministers during the Personal Rule.
- Explain the methods of government and financial policies implemented between 1629 and 1640.
- Analyse the causes and significance of the reaction against Charles I's financial policies.
Show all 12 objectives
- Identify the main features of Laudian Arminianism in England and Scotland.
- Explain the causes of the Scottish rebellion in response to religious changes.
- Evaluate the reasons for the growth of Puritan opposition to Charles I's religious policies.
- Analyse the aims and impact of Wentworth's policy of 'Thorough' in England and Ireland.
- Evaluate the causes and nature of the political reactions against the Crown during the 1630s.
- Explain the factors that led to the demands for the recall of Parliament by 1640.
- Explain the causes and manifestations of religious radicalism and dissent in the late 1630s.
- Analyse the origins and significance of the Scottish National Covenant.
- Evaluate the causes, events, and outcomes of the First and Second Bishops' Wars, including the Pacification of Berwick.
2E The English Revolution, 1625–1660 – An experiment in Absolutism, 1629–1640 exam tips
Marking Points
- Identify the roles of key ministers, specifically Wentworth (Thorough in Ireland) and Laud, in executing Charles's policies.
- Explain the function of prerogative courts, such as the Star Chamber and High Commission, as methods of government during the Personal Rule.
- Detail specific financial policies, including Ship Money, monopolies like Popish Soap, and forest fines, used to raise non-parliamentary revenue.
- Analyse the reaction against these policies, using the Hampden Case (1637) and the Providence Island Company as evidence of organised opposition.
- Define the key features of Laudian Arminianism in England, including the altar controversy, emphasis on sacraments, and the 'beauty of holiness'.
- Explain the specific religious policies imposed on Scotland, notably the 1636 Book of Canons and the 1637 Prayer Book.
- Analyse the growth of Puritan opposition, referencing the pamphleteering of figures like Prynne, Bastwick, and Burton.
- Evaluate how the enforcement of Arminianism through the Court of High Commission heightened fears of a Catholic conspiracy.
- Evaluate Wentworth's implementation of 'Thorough' in England, specifically his use of the Book of Orders to centralise control over local magistrates.
- Analyse Wentworth's financial and political strategies in Ireland, including the manipulation of the Irish Parliament and the imposition of the Book of Rates.
- Assess the growing reaction against the Crown, noting how Wentworth's authoritarian methods alienated the political nation and fuelled fears of absolutism.
- Explain the connection between the collapse of Charles I's finances during the Scottish crisis and the mounting demands from the gentry for the recall of Parliament.
- Analyse the spread of religious radicalism in response to Laudian reforms, highlighting the role of Puritan pamphleteers and underground networks.
- Evaluate the significance of the 1638 Scottish National Covenant as a unified national rejection of Charles I's religious and political interference.
- Assess the reasons for Charles I's failure in the First Bishops' War, focusing on the weaknesses of the English militia and financial constraints leading to the Pacification of Berwick.
- Explain the consequences of the Second Bishops' War, particularly the Scottish victory at Newburn and the resulting Treaty of Ripon which forced the recall of Parliament.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Use the Hampden Case to demonstrate the legal and constitutional arguments used by the opposition against Ship Money.
- 💡Evaluate the extent to which Charles's financial policies were successful in the short term versus their long-term political cost.
- 💡Link the methods of government, such as the use of the Star Chamber, to growing fears of continental-style absolutism in England.
- 💡Connect Laudian religious policies directly to the outbreak of the Scottish rebellion to show how religious issues triggered the collapse of the Personal Rule.
- 💡Use the punishment of Prynne, Bastwick, and Burton to illustrate the severity of Laudian enforcement and the resulting public backlash.
- 💡Distinguish clearly between the religious context of England, which was Anglican and Puritan, and Scotland, which was Presbyterian, when discussing Laudian reforms.
- 💡Use the concept of 'Thorough' to link Wentworth's administrative reforms in both the North of England and Ireland.
- 💡When discussing reactions against the Crown, reference specific opposition networks like the Providence Island Company to demonstrate depth of knowledge.
- 💡Evaluate how Wentworth's success in making Ireland profitable paradoxically increased English fears that Charles could use an Irish army to enforce absolutism in England.
- 💡Link the spread of religious radicalism in England to the Scottish rebellion to show how opposition to Charles I was a cross-border issue.
- 💡Use the Pacification of Berwick to demonstrate Charles I's financial and military weaknesses during the Personal Rule.
- 💡Argue how the Second Bishops' War was the immediate catalyst for the collapse of the Personal Rule, as it made the summoning of the Long Parliament unavoidable.
Common Mistakes
- Error: Claiming Charles I raised taxes through Parliament during this period. Correction: Charles relied entirely on prerogative income and feudal dues, as Parliament was not called between 1629 and 1640.
- Error: Stating that Ship Money was universally refused from its introduction. Correction: Ship Money initially had high collection rates of over 90 percent until the late 1630s when opposition and the Scottish crisis disrupted it.
- Error: Confusing the roles of Wentworth and Laud. Correction: Wentworth focused on secular administration and finance, especially in Ireland, while Laud focused on religious uniformity, though both promoted the policy of Thorough.
- Error: Using the terms Arminian and Catholic interchangeably. Correction: Arminians were Protestants who rejected Calvinist predestination and favoured ceremony, though Puritans feared they were crypto-Catholics.
- Error: Assuming the Scottish rebellion was purely political. Correction: The Scottish resistance was fundamentally religious, driven by Presbyterian opposition to the imposition of the Laudian Prayer Book.
- Error: Claiming Puritans were a small, insignificant minority during the 1630s. Correction: Puritanism had a broad and growing influence among the gentry and merchant classes, forming the core of the opposition to Charles.
- Error: Assuming Wentworth's policies in Ireland were universally popular with the Protestant New English. Correction: Wentworth alienated the New English alongside the Old English and native Irish by reclaiming church lands and enforcing strict royal prerogative.
- Error: Confusing Wentworth's role in England with his role in Ireland. Correction: Wentworth was President of the Council of the North in England before becoming Lord Deputy of Ireland in 1632; his policies must be contextualised by location.
- Error: Stating that demands for Parliament's recall were solely due to Wentworth. Correction: Demands for Parliament were driven by a combination of Wentworth's authoritarianism, Laudian religious policies, and the financial collapse caused by the Scottish crisis.
- Error: Treating the First and Second Bishops' Wars as a single continuous conflict. Correction: Distinguish between the First Bishops' War (1639), which ended without major bloodshed at the Pacification of Berwick, and the Second Bishops' War (1640), which involved actual combat and English defeat.
- Error: Claiming the Scottish Covenant was a rebellion against the monarchy itself. Correction: The Covenanters initially claimed loyalty to the King, framing their opposition strictly against his religious innovations and 'evil councillors'.
- Error: Overstating the military strength of the Scottish army as the sole reason for Charles's defeat. Correction: Acknowledge that Charles's defeat was equally due to the reluctance, poor training, and lack of funding of the English forces.