b. Internal Affairs of England.

1649

ΤΟ

1653.

The COMMONWEALTH, or the English Republic. The title and office of king and of the House of Lords is abolished by the army under the lead of Cromwell; the "Rump Parliament," consisting of about fifty independents and commoners thoroughly in sympathy with and supported by Cromwell and his "Iron-sides," governs England. Scotland proclaims Charles II. king on his subscribing to their covenant, and Ireland rises in his favor. Cromwell defeats the Scotch at Worcester, suppresses the Irish demonstration, and Charles escapes disguised to France.

Growing difficulties between the army and the parliament; Cromwell at last forcibly turns out the "Rump," and a new parliament (“ Barebones'") is chosen, as thoroughly as possible in sympathy with his own ideas; after a little they resign their power to Cromwell, who is named "Lord Protector" of England.

1653

TO

1660.

THE PROTECTORATE. - Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland, rules according to "the instrument of government," a written constitution defining the powers, rights, relations, and duties of the various ruling powers of England. By this instrument parliaments are to be triennial, are to have sole power of granting supplies and levying taxes; a standing army is to be supported, and the Lord Protector is to be the chief executor of the state.

England is now divided into military districts, each under a major-general, whose troops are supported by taxing royalist estates. Episcopal clergymen are forbidden to preach, and priests are banished; all publications are examined by the government, and only those it approves are allowed to circulate.

On the death of Oliver Cromwell (1658), his son Richard is proclaimed Lord Protector in his stead. The army and parliament quarrel; Richard, helpless to reconcile them, resigns, and the English portion of the army expels the parliament (re-assembled "Rump "); divisions arise in the army, and Monk, the general of the Scottish troops, marches on London and proclaims a "Free Parliament." By this "Free Parliament," or convention, Charles II. is proclaimed the king of England, on the conditions which he himself offers, a general amnesty to his enemies, and toleration of all religious opinions not hurtful to the state (Declaration of Breda).

1660

ΤΟ

THE RESTORATION. Charles abolishes all the old feudal dues, in consideration of a yearly in1688. come of $6,000,000, and disbands the army. Parliament, under the lead of Clarendon, repeals the measures of the preceding twenty-eight years; orders the "Solemn League and Covenant" to be burned, and passes the Corporation Act, by which all magistrates must commune with the Church of England, abjure the covenant, and take an oath declaring it illegal to bear arms against the king. Continual efforts on the part of the king and his ministers to procure measures from parliament that will favor Catholics, and increase the forces at the disposal of the king; continued efforts on the part of the parliament and the nation to keep non-conformists and Catholics out of office, and to see that the taxes and the troops raised by the nation be used for national purposes. These efforts end, (a), in the passing of the Test Act, which requires all government officers to commune with the Church of England, and to declare against transubstantiation; this act calls forth a strong and definite party of Dissenters; (b), in the formation of a small standing army under the king's command, to be used in the foreign wars of the period;

(c), in a powerful agitation against Roman Catholics, culminating in an unsuccessful movement to exclude the king's Catholic brother James from the English throne. The troubles threatened by these conflicting efforts on the part of the king and parliament are averted, (a), by changes of ministers, (b), by compromises, made mostly by the king, (c), by pensions to Charles from Lewis XIV. of France. That is, during this reign the great measures of state are mostly planned and urged by a small group of the king's advisers or friends, who form a sort of ministry, but whom the king changes when they too greatly displease either himself or parliament; now, too, the king adopts a regular policy of compromise, thus often obtaining his own way while warding off the civil conflict of the preceding reign. When, however, parliament pushes him too hard, Charles has recourse either to some pretext for foreign war, which forces parliament to grant supplies and troops, or else obtains a pension from Lewis, which enables him to live and reign without calling on parliament. Although no serious break occurs between the nation and the king, great discontent is caused by the leaning of the court toward Catholicism, by the shifting policy of Charles, and by his secret and disgraceful dependence on the French king.

In 1685 James II., his brother, accedes. He allows Roman Catholic worship, favors Papists, brings them into office, and forbids Protestant clergymen to preach doctrinal sermons; he forms a camp of 13,000 men near London, declares liberty of conscience throughout the realm, and orders this declaration to be read in all the churches; seven prominent bishops petition him not to insist upon this reading; the king commits them to the tower, and brings them to judgment; they are, however, acquitted, and on the day of their acquittal an invitation, signed by

noble and leading Englishmen, is sent to William of Orange, husband of Mary, daughter of James II., to "save England from a Catholic tyranny." William comes at once to England, James II. flees to France, parliament offers the crown to William and Mary jointly (1689), on condition of their agreeing that law shall neither be imposed nor suspended, nor moneys levied without the consent of parliament; that it shall be lawful to petition the sovereign; that no standing army shall be maintained without the consent of parliament; that election for parliament and debates within it shall be free, and that parliaments shall be frequently held (Declaration of Rights).

William and Mary accept, and the so-called "Revolution of 1688" is accomplished. The government moves on in accordance with the Declaration of Rights, which becomes a settled part of the constitution; from this time on, moreover, the Commons assume as their right the practices which had grown up under Charles II. of giving the king a fixed income; of demanding from the king and his ministers estimates and accounts of supplies demanded, and of voting definite sums for definite purposes. An act of toleration is passed, freeing dissenters from punishment for not attending the services of the Established Church, and the censorship of the press is abolished. Lingering dissatisfaction and revolt in Scotland and Ireland suppressed.

During this reign the Ministry, led by some chief, or Prime Minister, becomes a recognized and constitutional part of the government, and the ministers are held responsible for the measures of the monarch.

1702

TO

1714.

Anne, second daughter of James II., queen. In 1707 England and Scotland are united by the name of Great Britain, under one monarch and

one parliament. During this reign the custom is established that the ministry shall belong to the party which has the majority in the House of Commons. Parties (Whig and Tory) become a strongly marked feature of English politics.

House of Hanover or Brunswick; William and the first three Georges. Chief interests of Great Britain, foreign and colonial. See a.

STUDY ON b.

1714

ΤΟ

1789.

What is the real nature of the government named the Commonwealth? The Protectorate? What resemblance between Cromwell and the kings of the "Old Régime"? What difference? What two important changes in the relation to the king and the state are made at the time of the Restoration? What do the acts of the first freely elected parliament of the Restoration indicate in regard to the religious attitude of the majority of English people? How will you describe their nature? After the Restoration, what or who holds the strongest political power in England? Prove it. What are the two points of James' offence against England? In what ways is the acceptance of the "Declaration of Rights" a revolution? In whose hands does it place the chief political power of England? What power has the House of Commons to force the government to yield to its wishes? Illustrate. What new organ becomes a part of the British government? Whom does this organ represent? What new organization among the people is called forth by this organ? When does the government of England cease to be properly classed as a feudal government? What remains of its old feudal organization?

2.

a.

Famous Works, Foundations, Enterprises, Inventions, Investigations, and Discoveries of the Period.

Publications of the Press.

In England, the most important books of the last half of the seventeenth century are Milton's "Paradise Lost," a poem based on the story of the temptation and fall of Adam; Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress," an allegory