Hello, and Welcome to Western civ. Episode four hundred and sixty three. The war begins on December the twenty first, fourteen sixty one. Elections were held in London for the Common Council, and the results were clear the Puritans were in the ascendancy. When the lords gathered in Westminster at the end of December, a crowd of apprentices and others began to shout out at them, no bishops, no poete
bish Lords. An opposing force made up of military volunteers and soldiers of fortune who had also gathered in the city. They had actually come to serve the King and ire and elsewhere, but they could also be supported to guarantee to turn upon the crowds and support Parliament. At this point, the king realized these soldiers might be useful for putting down any brief rebellion. Problem, as we're about to see is that this wasn't going to be a rebellion. This was going to be outright civil war.
Now.
This was actually the period, so we're talking late sixteen forty one early sixteen forty two, when we first actually hear the terms roundhead and cavalier. Roundhead became the common currency to refer to those of the Puritan persuasion because of their short cropped hair. The Royalist soldiers had long Aristocratic locks, flowing like a beautiful night, you know, in those pictures, and so hence we call them the cavaliers. With the steady formation of these two antagonistic powers, there
was already talk around of a civil war. Argument and dissension sprang up everywhere. Two days after Christmas, crowds once more gathered around Westminster to demand a response from lords to another petition against the bishops. We're talking Episcopal bishops here, but those who are much more Catholic in their outward looking features than the Puritans would prefure. A group of soldiers fell upon them, but the citizens in this case
actually fought back. Inspired by fear, they attacked the troops with sticks and stones and wooden cudgels. Some sailors joined in, until the soldiers were actually beaten down and had to run away. On the following morning, soldiers advanced out of Westminster Abbey and fell upon the citizens, this time with swords and pistols. In the afternoon, they went after a group of apprentices in retaliation. The citizens now threatened to
shut up their shops and refrain from all trade in London. Meanwhile, in the House of Lords, the bishops sat huddled in torchlight, listening to the rage and menace of the crowd outside. They were forced to leave the chamber by secret message, some under the protection of great lords, others using secret passages out of the buildings. Otherwise they probably would have
met the fate of some of those soldiers. On the twenty ninth of December, now we're still in sixteen forty one, a group of twelve bishops laid the complaint that they had been quote violently menaced, affronted and assaulted by multitudes of people end quote, and that because of their enforced absence from the House of Lords, which they now couldn't get back into, any laws passed had to be considered null and void. This was tantamount, of course, to asserting
that without bishops, parliament became illegal. The members of the House of Commons were incensed at this claim. I thought it was arrogant, and on the following day they had the bishops in the House of Commons impeached for high reason. Ultimately they were arrested and sent to the tower. On the first day of the new year, sixteen forty two, matters came to a head. Committees from the House of Commons and the remaining lords met at Guildhall to consider
a new strategy. It was agreed that the trained bands, those that had been put together from various groups in London, would be summoned on the authority of Parliament, not at the King. At this meeting, plans were also drawn up to impeach the Queen for communicating with Catholic rebels in Ireland. The threats perhaps was designed to provoke King Charles into
violent action. The trained bands were indeed raised for the cause of parliamentary effectively placing London under Parliament's military control to summon armed troops. Now we can't forget it was an act of treason. But tellingly, and this is the important part, nobody said seemed to care anymore. Charles was, of course seeking his own methods. What he was trying to do at the moment was draw up plans to
impeach certain members of the House of Parliaments. That Charles' problem throughout the early proceedings here was that he really believed this was a small group of agitators, that the large population, and even the large population of the House of Commons in general still loved him. He was wrong about that, and his inability to conceive this as a broader based issue is what ultimately puts him on the back foot for so much of this coming conflict.
In the end, it's going to cost him his head. Now.
On January third, as a consequence the charges which had been drawn up against several of these men, Lord Mandeville, of course, John Pim, John Hamden, Arthur Haselrigg Denzil Hollis, and William Strode were red ows before the House of Lords.
On the file day.
Not to resist his own countermeasure, John Pim sent a delegation to the Common Council of London, newly elected in the Puritan interest, to plead for help. That day the council elected its own Committee of Safety for the city, and you could start to hear rhymes of the same things that are going to happen in the French Revolution.
By the way, Now wasn't a moment too.
Soon, by the way, because the king was actually ready to strike that very next day. Pim, who again remembers in charge of the Puritan faction within the House of Commons. He had been alerted to the attempted assault, perhaps by spies at court, and he prepared instead for a notable act of theatricality. The accused men, the men that I just mentioned, took their seats in Commons in the early afternoon, knowing full well that the King would be informed of
their presence. At three o'clock, Charles left Whitehall with an armed guard of three hundred men and made his way to men's winster, the idea of being, of course, that he was going to arrest them. The news reached the Common and the indicted members slipped from their seats and hid in the court of the King's bench before being rowed from the river into the city. Even as they made their departure, the King's party could be heard clattering
on the stairs into the lobby. The King entered the chamber of the Commons alone, but the doors were left open so that the members could see the armed forces waiting outside. Charles said, quote, gentlemen, I am sorry to have this occasion of coming to you end quote. He asked for the accused members to be surrendered to him. He realized then that they weren't there. His bluff had been called. He looked about him, seeing that they were gone, and said, quote, I do not see any of them.
I think I should know them. He added, I come to tell you that I must have them. Wheresoever I find them, is mister pim here. No one answered, well, well, tis no matter. I think my eyes are as good as another's end quote. He then asked the speaker of the House of Commons to help him find these members.
The speaker, whose last name was Lentil, replied, may it please your Majesty, I have neither eyes to see nor tongues to speak in this place, but as the house is pleased to direct me whose servant I am here, and I humbly beg your Majesty's pardon that I cannot give other answer than this to what your Majesty is pleased to demand of me. This was essentially an equivocation.
There followed a long pause, the king eventually responding, quote, well, since I see all the birds have flown, I do expect from you that you will send them unto me as soon as they return hither. If not, I will seek them myself, for their treason is foul, and such a one as you will thank me to discover. But I assure you on the word of a king, I never did intend any force, but shall proceed against them in legal and fair way, and I never meant any other end quote. As the King turned to go, cries
of privilege, privilege were raised around them. Of course, we're talking now about privileges of English gentlemen, the idea of habeas corpus, which Charles has already suspended from time to time. So the idea that he would treat fairly to them is something that the Commons was no longer willing to entertain.
Now.
The members of the King's party in Commons realized at once that the King had committed a huge, maybe fatal mistake. His authority was totally lost, and everyone could see it. In a mood of understandable dismay, they submitted meekly to the decision of the rest of Parliament to adjourn itself to the hall of one of the London guilds as a place of greater safety. On the evening of the failed attempt, the city had all the air of an army camp. Barricades had been set up, chains were drawn
across the principal streets. The people of the suburbs, as well as the city itself, offered their support to Parliament in the case that Charles's army would march upon them. The women oiled water, ready to throw upon any encroaching cavaliers. The members who had absconded were now safely concealed in a house. The call went up among some that the king was unworthy to live. Indeed, Charles had now effectively lost control over his capital city. Unfortunately for Charles, London
was not the only seat of disaffection. In the days immediately following, thousands of men from Kent to Buckinghamshire, North Hampshire and Leicestershire, Essex and Sussex rode or marched to Westminster with petitions for Parliament. They complained in general about the decay of trade provoked by the divisions. The country was, as a result of this crisis, confronted by an immediate
and sudden economic decline. The loss of confidence restricted trade, and the tradesmen and merchants of London hoarded their money in the hope of better times. The majority of people, of course, yearned for peace, and it's important to note, however, that the petitioners from Kent and elsewhere addressed Parliament, not the King, now as the center of authority in the nation. Without really other options, by the tenth of January, Charles
decided he must leave London and did so for Hampton Court. Meanwhile, the military arsenal of the nation was moved to Hull, where twenty thousand weapons and seven thousand barrels of gunpowder were secured. The King appointed the Earl of Newcastle to be the governor of the port and arsenal, but he was circumvented almost immediately by the swift action of a young parliamentarian named John Ham, who persuaded the Mayor of Hull to admit his men.
And so now it was the.
Commons and Parliament, not the King, in charge of twenty thousand weapons and seven thousand barrels of gunpowder. The Commons drew up a declaration to the officials of the counties, urging them to get ready for the defense. The King, in response, sent a letter to Westminster in which he proposed that he would reserve the privileges of its members and protect the interests of the true religion in exchange for only now a commits in preserving his authority and
his revenues. At the end of January, Charles also summoned all of his faithful lords to Windsor. This was the castle which, for all practical purposes, is going to be the seat of power for every Royalist move from here on out. On the fifth of February, the Commons sent up to the Lords a bill concerning the exclusion of bishops from Parliament. Meanwhile, by the middle of that month things are happening fast.
Now.
Charles and the Queen Henrietta Maria were at Canterbury on their word to Dover, where it was agreed that the Queen would embark for Holland. Things were now moving fast. Indeed, the bill for the exclusion, which was passed by the lords, then reached the King. He was advised that if he didn't give it royal assent, then the Queen's journey might be prevented by parliamentary supporters. In fact, the Queen herself urged Charles to agree to the bill as far as
she was concerned. Frankly, the bishops were simply dispensable. They could always be replaced afterwards. So Charles consented, even though he had promised in his coronation oath to maintain the ecclesiasticals in all their privileges. He probably calculated, like Queen Penranta Maria, that he could just rescind this decision. Later on, when Charles traveled back to his palace at Greenwich, he sent for his eldest son. He was determined to keep the Prince of Wales with him as a guarantee for
the preservation of the royal family. Bother and son, in fact, would actually remain together for the next three years, all through the coming Civil War. The members of Parliament now asked politely for Charles to simply stay around Westminster. They believed his presence elsewhere could provoke conflict and danger. He responded, quote, for my residence near you, I wish it to be so safe and honorable that I have no cause to be absent from Whitehall. Ask yourself whether I have not
end quote. He attendedly agreed. He didn't believe that he needed to be and any close proximity to London or to the parliamentarians. He was no longer safe. But in reality Charles had no interest in going to Whitehall and going to Westminster, and going to any of those places. None of them he considered safe, and in fact the next day set out for York. On March sixteenth, with the King absent, the Commons meant for one of the
most i would say revolutionary moments in English history. On that day, March sixteenth, sixteen forty two, the Commons issued a proclamation that it was Parliament which was the supreme.
Power of the land.
This had never before been done in English history, and it sets a break in tradition everything that happens afterwards. We can now talk about Parliament as the head of government rather than the King.
Who will be continued to be the head of state.
At the same time, members issued an order requiring the leaders of local militias to be appointed by them by Parliament, not by the King. These men would in turn raise forces on behalf of Parliament, not the King. Still, there was no necessity for war at this point. Many local communities throughout the realm were at peace. Neither side appeared to have the power of resources to raise or command an army. No one wanted to be found guilty of
starting the civil war. The King and the company of his son made a slow journey to York, and he still was optimistic, saying that he could easily raise an army of sixteen thousand men, which would put down any pidly army that the parliamentarians. The problem, of course, wasn't raising the men, it was arming them, because now the
parliamentarians were in control of Hull. And so in the last week of April, Charles approached Hall where that twenty thousand stash of weapons and that seven thousand barrels of gunpowder was sitting with a company of about three hundred horsemen, preceded by a message that he had come to meet with the governor. Sir John Hawtham resolved with the municipal laders to stop any triumphant entry. When the King arrived
at the gates, he found them shut. He found the drawbridge raised, and there was a guard upon the ramparts. He demanded entrance, as the lawful sovereign, but he was told by Hawtham that quote I dare not open the gates, being instructed by Parliament with the safety of the town. Charles responded, I believe you have no order from Parliament to shut the gates against me or to keep me
out of the town. To this, Hawtham answered that the King's force was so great that quote if it were admitted, I should not be able to give a good account of the town end quote. Eventually, Hautum, it appears this is actually disputed, but it appears told him that Charles could come in if he left most of his men outside, he could bring twelve. Now Charles refused on the condition that this was just.
An insult to his person.
He declared that Hotham was a traitor. His dignity and self respect had been too injured. And so Charles continued on to York, and from there he sent a message to Parliament. He told them all about the insult that had been given to them by Hautam. He believed him to be imputent. Meanwhile, the two houses, and we're talking about lords and commons now both stated in a reply that quote, Sir John Hottam had done nothing but in obedience to the commands of the Houses of Parliament. Parliament
had picked its side. In the spring of sixteen forty two, the two houses of Parliament resolved that quote the King, seduced by wicked counselors, intends to make war against Parliament.
End quote.
So they began to prepare their army. In May, a levy of sixteen thousand soldiers was ordered. In the course of the spring Parliament nominated the Earl of Warwick to be Lord High Admiral of the English Fleet, and he worked quickly to gain the loyalty of his men, and ships that supported the cause of the king were quickly boarded and overpowered. Men and money, of course, were also arriving in York on the part of Charles. Yet the soldiers on either side had not yet necessarily been raised
to fight. The idea might be at this point that they could be used to deter other side from the support of any subsequent show of violence, regardless, and this happened so often. In these situations. Events had now just taken on a life of their own. Each side was essentially countermoving and moving honestly, without a lot of forethought.
A parliamentary supporter remarked later that quote, it is strange to note how we have insensibly slid into this beginning of a civil war by one unexpected accident after another, as waves of the sea which had brought us thus far end quote. Now Ever, since, of course, volumes upon volumes have been written abound the English Civil War cuns and everyone's always looking for one social cause or oftentimes
a religious cause, and that's true. But one principal motive I think that gets ignored in both this civil war and in so many others is just fear. The reality is both sides were acting out of fear of what the other side might do. There just wasn't trust. If there had been any modicum of trust between the parliament and the king, I think this would have been resolved. But John Pim and his colleagues knew that if the king prevailed, they would be declared traders and they would
be drawn and quartered. So at this point, from their perspective, there wasn't an option. They had to fight.
Now.
At the beginning of June, Parliament, guided by him, delivered nineteen propositions to the King. Among them was the wish or maybe command, that the King dismiss his forces and accept the validity of the force raised by Parliament. He needed to also accept the religious reforms outlined by the members of Parliament, and to exclude any Popish peers from the lords. His principal officers could only be appointed with the approval of Parliament, and all important matters of state
would need to be debated. There the documents became, in the words of one parliamentarian quote, the principal foundation of the ensuing war. The King, of course, rejected these demands out of hand with the words nolus legis angelikai muttare, which means we do not wish the laws of England to be changed. Technically he was right about that, and so at the beginning of July it was reported that royalists had now mustered and Hereford, Worcestershire, and Warwickshire, and so.
On June eleventh, Parliament declared that the King had already started the war, diverting any blame for beginning this conflict. Was true necessarily because no one had fired any shots yet. But again who started this war became really important in English minds. The Parliament again set up another Committee of Safety, through which that summer in autumn began to organize soldiers,
weaponry and supplies. Now it should be noted that a majority of the great magnates of the realm and the greater landowners supported the King because his privileges guaranteed their own. Twice as many families of the gentry also took the King's part. Of course, I should say that the Puritan gentry were all parliamentarians. Religious dissenters in general overwhelmingly took
the side of parliament. Of course, well, Roman Catholics and those of the Orthodox Anglican faith supported the king, or maybe for fear of reprisals from both sides, just decided to stay neutral. The universities and cathedral cities were largely for the king, although the clergy were often opposed by the aldermen, while the chief ports of the realm were all for the parliament. A greater number of towns, however,
just wanted to stay out of the whole thing. In most general terms, if you look at England, the north and the west were sympathetic to the king, while the south and east London in particular supported the parliamentary cause. But this is a crude drawing. The reality is is within any community, no matter where you were, there were divisions between the two sides. This is not like the American Civil War where you can just draw a neat line along the Mason Dixon line and say, well, this
is one side, this is the other side. This is much more of a mixed bag civil war. And the reality was most Englishmen were going to stay neutral throughout this thing. It was the hardcore partisans on both sides who provoked the conflict. It was they who would fight the conflict, and it was they who would end the conflict. That doesn't mean, as in any war, it was they who would bear the brunt of the casualties. As always, innocent neutral civilians pay the price.
Too.
Many families, in fact, were split in their allegiances.
Still, how did it.
Start, Well, we have to go to the afternoon of August the twenty second, sixteen forty two. On that day, Charles rode into Nottingham where the royal standard was being taken from the castle and then was fixed in the ground. Beside him, it was given a silk flag with royal arms and a new motto quote give Caesar his due end quote. I don't know if that's a message you're
going through, man, but okay. It was suspended from a long pole that was dyed red at the upper part, which was actually said to have maybe been an overused may pole. The king looked over a pre written proclamation of war, corrected certain words, and then had it read. The trumpets were sounded and everyone threw their hats into the air. Shouting God, save King Charles, and hang up the roundheads the standards. Unfortunately, by the way, was blown
down that night in a storm. In fact, the Earl of Clarendon, who was there at the time, reported that quote, a general sadness covered the whole of the town, and the King himself appeared more melancholic.
Than he used to be. But it didn't matter. The Civil War had begun.