HY 106 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Dutch West India Company, Long Parliament, Toleration
Constitutionalism
1. Introduction
1. England and Holland evolved toward constitutionalism: the limitation of
government by law -- implies balance between authority of government
and rights of the subjects
2. A nationās constitution may be written or unwritten, but the state must
govern according to the laws and people look on the laws as protectors
of rights and liberties
3. However, a constitutional government was not fully democratic in that all
people have the right to participate either directly or indirectly in the
government of the state and therefore, democratic government is tied up
with the franchise(the vote)
2. The Decline of Royal Absolutism in England (1603-1649)
1. In the seventeenth century, England executed one king, experience a
bloody civil war, dictatorship, then restored son, and finally established
constitutional monarchy (1690)
2. Success of Elizabeth I rested on political flexibility, careful management
of finances, selection of ministers, manipulation of Parliament, and sense
of dignity and devotion
3. Her successor, James I, lacked the common touch, was devoted to the
theory of the divine right of kings, lectured the Hose of Commons,
implied total royal jurisdiction over the liberties, persons, and properties,
and antagonized the Parliament
4. The House of Commons appreciated its own financial strength, intending
to use that strength to acquire a greater say in the government, brought
around by many changes
1. The dissolution of the monasteries and the sale of monastic land
enriched many
2. Agricultural techniques such as the draining of wasteland and the
application of fertilizers had improved the land and its yield
3. People invested in commercial ventures at home, such as the cloth
industry, and through partnerships and joint stock companies
engaged in foreign enterprises
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5. The members of the House were largely members of a new wealthy and
powerful capitalist class that objected against the king on the issue of
religion
1. Many English people were dissatisfied with the Church of England
established by Henry VIII and reformed by Elizabeth and many
Puritans wanted to īpurifyī the Anglican church of Roman Catholic
elements
2. Others were attracted to John Calvinās theology, which included hard
work, sobriety, thrift, competition, postponement of pleasure, and
linked sin and poverty with weakness and moral corruption
3. James I and Charles I gave the impression of being highly
sympathetic to Roman Catholicism and Charles had supported the
policies of William Laud, archbishop of Canterbury, who tried to
impose elaborate ritual ceremonials in churches (Court of High
Commission ī enforced uniformity of church services)
4. In 1637, Laud attempted to impose on the church organization in
Scotland: a new prayer book, modeled on the Anglican Book of
Common Prayer and bishoprics, which the Presbyterian Scots firmly
rejected (Charles summoned Parliament)
6. Long Parliament from 1640-1660 proceed to enact legislation that limited
the power of the monarch and made arbitrary government impossible
7. In 1641, the Commons passed the Triennial Act, which compelled the
king to summon Parliament every three years and the Commons
impeached Archbishop Laud and abolished the Court of High
Commission
8. The English Civil War (1642-1649) tested whether sovereignty in
England was to reside in the king or in Parliament and the period
between 1649 (after King Charles I was executed) to 1660 was called
the īInterregnumī because it separated two monarchial periods,
witnessed Englandās solitary experience of military dictatorship
3. Puritanical Absolutism in England: Cromwell and the Protectorate
1. After King Charles I was beheaded on January 30, 1649, a
commonwealth, or republican form of government, was proclaimed and
legislative power rested on members of Parliament and executive power
was lodged in a council of state
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