History of Europe

King Charles I of England, who caused the Three Kingdoms War and was finally executed

World history events rarely ride into the history of junior high school, with the few exceptions being the Puritan Revolution that took place during the time of Charles I.

This time I would like to take a look at the life of Charles I, who was executed during the Puritan Revolution.

A boy who is the exact opposite of his father

Charles I was born in 1600 as a child of James I, the first King of Stuart England.

Charles had a brother, who was originally the crown prince, but when his brother died of smallpox in 1612, he was confirmed to be the next king.

Charles seemed to have a complex with his well-made brother who had lived up to his father's expectations for something, and he was opposed to his father, including that. It may have been related to Charles being stuttering by nature.

In 1625, he was crowned King Charles I of England, Scotland and Ireland with the death of his father.

In contrast to his father's path of peace, Charles I will pursue a hard line of foreign affairs as the "King of War (Rex Belikos)".

Petition of Right

He immediately sent to Cadiz, Spain, but was unable to achieve results.

In addition, with the advice of the Duke of Buckingham as an assistant, the country rebelled by marrying Henrietta Maria, the sister of King Louis XIII of France and a Catholic, and Charles I continued to defeat and mismanagement the Duke of Buckingham. It is said that he continued to protect.

As such, Charles arrested and imprisoned unwilling lawmakers as he deepened his confrontation with Congress, forced his troops to stay in aristocratic homes, and taxed them without the consent of Congress.

Originally, the King of England had a tradition and rule of taxing after obtaining the approval of the parliament according to the "Law", but Charles I did not keep this.

Congress, on the other hand, has the famous " Petition of Right . Is submitted to Charles I.

The content was that the king would follow the traditional ancestral law and obtain the approval of the parliament when taxing, and in fact it was not something that would make a name for itself in history. Charles I easily accepted this, but did not open a parliament, and he began to steer to absolute monarchy with his father's divine right of kings as a shield.

The Duke of Buckingham, who was the confidant of Charles I, was assassinated at this point. This caused the king and parliament to confront again, and Charles I finally dissolved the parliament.

Puritan Revolution

Charles I did not convene Congress for the next 11 years. In the meantime, Thomas Wentworth and Archbishop of Canterbury William Laud will be in charge of the affairs, effectively abandoning the petition of right and arresting and imprisoning many lawmakers.

Under such circumstances, a Calvinist Protestant sect called Puritan emerged, and Charles I repressed these forces called Puritan.

Furthermore, unlike the line of James I, the control by the Anglican Church was applied to Scotland, and there was a big backlash here as well.

Although Charles I was King of Scotland, his coronation took place seven years after his coronation, and the Scottish inhabitants did not have a good impression of Charles I from the beginning.

Moreover, being an absent monarch, rarely found in Scotland, also contributes to his dissatisfaction.

In 1638, a rebellion against the King broke out in central Edinburgh, Scotland. Charles I will hold a parliament for the first time in 11 years to dispatch a suppression army.

However, Charles I disbanded the parliament again because the Scottish troops could not cooperate in the parliament. Since this period was as short as 3 weeks, it is called "Short Parliament" in world history.

During this time, the Scottish army continued to march, and Charles I managed to reconcile by paying compensation to the Scottish army. However, the king does not have such money and decides to open a parliament to raise compensation.

In this parliament, later called the "Long Parliament," it began with the impeachment of the king's aides. In addition, it was decided to hold a parliament for at least 50 days a year and to invalidate taxation without the approval of the parliament.

The Scottish Parliament made a similar request to Charles I, and even rebelled against Ireland.

Charles I was numb in this situation and led the army to assault the reformist members, where the civil war between the members and the king, the Puritan Revolution in the future. The battle called was started.

By the way, the name of the Puritan Revolution is well established in Japan, but in the United Kingdom and the United States it is also called the "Three Kingdoms War", and I personally think that this is more suitable for the actual situation.

Execution of Charles I

The battle was initially in the king's favor. Charles I will open his own parliament, and England will have two parliaments side by side.

A civil war broke out even though the confronting parliamentary side was tied to Scotland. Divided into two groups, the "Presbyterians" who seek to reconcile with the King and the "Independents" who want a thorough fight with the King, the leader of the Independents, Oliver Cromwell, leads the Ironside and fights against the King of Naseby. After winning the battle, Charles I surrenders.

However, it didn't seem like he was grown up, and Charles I discovered that he was trying to join hands with the opposition of the Independents. Arrested and expelled 186 members.

In world history, this is called the "pride's purge," and the parliament now functions as the "remaining parliament."

In 1649, a trial against Charles I began at Westminster Hall. The result is the death penalty.

The death penalty is a voting system of 135 people, with 67 people, less than half, and 59 people signing the death penalty, but Cromwell executed the king.

Cromwell, who saw the execution, said he smiled, saying, "Cruelty is sometimes necessary."

Personal evaluation of Charles I

There is no dispute that Charles I is a historic dark prince.

He is one of the darkest princes in British history, and it is his own business that has caused a rebellion in the country.

But that doesn't mean it's okay to be executed, and Charles I's execution remains a dark part of British history.