Parliament and Taxes

James I and Charles I were always short of money. Most of what they spent came from the people, as taxes passed by Parliament. The gentry and merchants who sat in the House of Commons did not much like their Stuart kings. They said that they both wasted money, and would not agree to all they wanted.

The quarrel between Charles I and the Commons was so bad that after 1629 the king tried to rule without Parliament. He collected some taxes without Parliament's permission. Men who refused to pay were fined or put in prison.

Some gentry thought that Charles was becoming a despot - a ruler who ignored the law. His governor of Ireland, the tough Earl of Strafford, did ignore the law. In 1639, Charles ordered Strafford to return to England and take command. The gentry grew even more alarmed.

King Charles, on the other hand, thought that ruling the country was his job, not the people's. Most other countries had kings who were above parliaments and the law. Why should England be different?

Parliament met in 1640 because King Charles needed money to pay the Scots. The House of Commons was full of men who objected to what Charles had done. They said that in future the king must not rule without Parliament. They condemned Strafford to death. Then they began to attack the Church of England as well. Charles could stand no more. In 1642 civil war broke out between him and Parliament.

Walter Robson: Crown, Parliament and People; Oxford University Press, 1992/2002, page 40 f.