The First Bourgeois Revolution Happened in England Covers the period between 1642 and 1689. It is one of the most convulsive periods of the British Isles.
At the beginning of the seventeenth century, England enjoyed a certain privileged position compared to the rest of Europe, having managed to stay largely outside the wars of religion.
In addition, England had a strong bourgeois class, which, although it had been consolidated by the good development of the merchant fleet and the colonial enclaves, had but little representation at the political level.
The origins of the revolution go back to 1603, when the queen Isabel I , Last monarch of the Tudor dynasty, dies without heirs.
Isabel I had many achievements during her monarchy and was the head of the Anglican Church , Defeated the Spanish Armada and oversaw the colonial expansion in America.
Without heir to continue the Tudor dynasty, Elizabeth's cousin, James Stuart, who was King of Scotland, was proclaimed King Stuart of England, Scotland and Ireland.
Jacobo claimed the divine right of the kings and maintained divergences and tense relations with the Parliament, especially for monetary reasons and by its arbitrary tax policy. Neither did he enjoy the sympathy of the people.
Reign of Charles I: first outbreaks of the Bourgeois Revolution
At the death of James I, his son, Charles I, took his throne in 1625, who, like his father, abused his power. his absolutism And their support for the Catholic Church further deteriorated relations with the people and with Parliament.
To limit its power, Parliament had Charles I sign the Petition of Law in 1629, (Second English Magna Carta). Under this request, certain guarantees were offered to the people regarding the collection of taxes and illegal detentions. Charles I, however, soon ignored the Petition and dissolved Parliament temporarily.
Its imposition of the Anglican religion awoke rebellions in Scotland that invaded the north of England and they added to the increasingly growing popular discontent.
Due to the threat of the Scottish invasion, Charles I was forced to re-establish Parliament in 1640 to gain the support of the bourgeoisie, but this did not end the political power struggle between the king and Parliament.
More and more sectors of the population showed their discontent, many of them were persecuted, as was the case with the Puritans, who were targets of prejudices and punishments under King Charles I, emigrating many to America in search of religious freedom.
First English Civil War
Isabel I, Carlos I and Oliver Cromwell
The Civil War exploded in 1642, dividing the country and marking a milestone in the history of England. Parliament, seeking to limit the absolutist power of Charles I, declared a series of anti-absolutist laws.
In front of the Parliament, Oliver Cromwell Would lead his men, the"roundheads"(Puritan partisans of parliament), against the supporters of King Charles, the"knights"(the army loyal to the king).
After extensive battles and unconventional war tactics, Cromwell's army defeats Charles I, who flees to Scotland, where he is captured by order of Parliament.
He was the first European king to have a public trial and be executed for high treason. This event ended the conception of the divine origin of the king and sat the New political foundations .
Cromwell and the Puritan Revolution
Once the monarchy and the House of Lords were abolished, and seeking the clear benefit of the bourgeoisie and its interests, a Republic was established, although Cromwell ended up designating itself"Lord Protector of the Republic", and finally, imposing a puritan dictatorship guaranteed By the bourgeoisie and the military.
Cromwell died in 1658, leaving the power in the hands of son, who was deposed a year later.
The return of the Stuart
Parliament felt that England needed a king, so in 1660 Charles II, son of King Charles I, was invited to assume the reign.
Again, a king Stuart sat to the throne, although with limited powers, proclaiming this event like"the Restoration".
After his death in 1685, the brother of Carlos II, James II assumes the position. However, its measures to restore absolutism, revive Catholicism and restrict the rights that had been achieved (such as the limitation of illegal detention) were not tolerated by Parliament.
James II was forced to abdicate and instead was placed his daughter Mary Stuart and her husband William of Orange, prince of the Netherlands, as the new monarchs.
This event is known as the Glorious (or Incruenta) Revolution as no one was executed during the succession of power. Jacobo II did not offer resistance and ended up fleeing to France.
Parliamentary democracy
The new monarchs would rule under one m constitutional monarchy , In which the real power would be limited by the Constitution.
The Bill of Rights was signed, which ensured that the King could not cancel parliamentary laws or impose taxes without Parliament's approval.
In addition, it was established that the king would have no army during periods of peace, and that, after his death, the inspectors could control the actual accounts.
The document also grants individuals freedom of expression and the right to petition the king for grievances.
As a result of successive civil wars, the later Glorious Revolution and finally the Bill of Rights, lay the foundations of modern parliamentary democracy in England, where the power of monarchy would be limited to posterity.
On the other hand, it also meant a long war period that left hundreds of thousands dead (between the defending sides of parliament and the crown, and civilians decimated by war-induced illnesses).
On the other hand, the trial and execution of a sovereign under Parliament's sentence and the presence of a standing army throughout the 1650s, combined with the proliferation of radical religious sects, shook the very foundations of British society.
The importance of this first English revolution lies in the abolition of the monarchy and the upper house of the English Parliament (House of Lords), with a society that exercised its right against absolutism, gaining legal and political guarantees marking a historical landmark fundamental.
References
- English Civil Wars (2009) History.com Recovered in: May 9, 2017 from History.com Publisher A + E Networks.
- Cannadine, D."The Rise and Fall of Class in Britain"Columbia University Press (1999) in: The New York Times. Retrieved on May 9, 2017 from The New York Times: Books. Nytimes.com.
- Ohlmeyer, J."English Civil Wars"in Encyclopædia Britannica, Publisher: Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Retrieved on: 9 May 2017 of Encyclopædia Britannica britannica.com.
- "English Civil War"in Wikipedia Retrieved on May 9, 2017 from Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org.
- Hill, C."The World Turned Upside Down: Radical Ideas during the English Revolution"(Penguin Group 1984) Retrieved on 9 May 2017 from corndancer.com.
- Gardina, C."The English Atlantic in an Age of Revolution, 1640-1661"Harvard University Press, 2004, London. Retrieved on May 9, 2017 from books.google.com.
- "Summary of the Glorious Revolution in England. Fall of the Monarchy"(November, 2014) in Universal History / History and Biographies. Retrieved on May 9, 2017 in History and Biographies. History and Biography