Episode Details

Jonathan Healey, The Blazing World: A New History of Revolutionary England, 1603–1689. During the Personal Rule, Charles expanded the "Ship Money" tax to inland counties, leading to a landmark legal battle over the King's right to declare emergencies without Parliament. Religious tensions peaked as Archbishop William Laud imposed high-church practices, which many saw as a "popish plot." After failing to force a new prayer book on Scotland, Charles was compelled to recall Parliament, which then executed his minister Strafford. The crisis culminated in Charles's failed attempt to arrest five MPs inside the House of Commons, forcing him to flee London to gather an army for the coming Civil War. (4)
1650