England 1603–49

What England 1603–49 covers

England 1603–49 is examined in Unit AS 1, Historical Investigations and Interpretations — the option chosen from five. It covers James I's Elizabethan inheritance, James I, the Church of England and the Puritans, James I, the Catholics and the Gunpowder Plot, the financial problems of James I, the foreign policy of James I, royal favourites and the politics of the court, Charles I, war and Parliament 1625–29, the decision to rule without Parliament, financing the Personal Rule, Laudianism and religious reform in the 1630s, the court culture of Charles I, Scotland, Ireland and the collapse of the Personal Rule, the campaigns and battles of the Civil War, why Parliament won the Civil War, the search for a settlement 1646–49, radicalism, the Levellers and the Army and the regicide and the birth of the Commonwealth.

The 18 subtopics

Each one has its own page. CCEA AS History students sit this topic in the first year.

• James I's Elizabethan inheritanceState of the Crown's finances when James inherited them, book in which James set out his theory of kingship and millenary Petition.Open →
• James I, the Church of England and the PuritansHampton Court Conference, authorised Version and book of Sports.Open →
• James I, the Catholics and the Gunpowder PlotBye Plot, aim of the Gunpowder Plot and church papistry.Open →
• The financial problems of James IGreat Contract, cockayne Project and monopoly in this context.Open →
• The foreign policy of James IGuiding aim of James's foreign policy and spanish Match.Open →
• Royal favourites and the politics of the courtRobert Carr and the Overbury scandal, the rise of Buckingham, the sale of honours and the revival of impeachment.Open →
• Charles I, war and Parliament 1625–29Forced Loan, expedition to the Île de Ré and four grievances addressed by the Petition of Right.Open →
• The decision to rule without ParliamentThe Three Resolutions and the dissolution of 1629, peace with France and Spain, and the case for and against the Eleven Years' Tyranny.Open →
• Financing the Personal RuleDistraint of knighthood, forest fines and ship Money.Open →
• Laudianism and religious reform in the 1630sAltar policy, metropolitical visitations and significance of Laud's attack on lay impropriation.Open →
• The court culture of Charles IPolitical cost of a more private court, significant about Charles's art collection and court masque.Open →
• Scotland, Ireland and the collapse of the Personal RuleAct of Revocation, national Covenant and terms of the Treaty of Ripon.Open →
• The Long Parliament and the outbreak of war 1640–42The road to war from November 1640: the Long Parliament's reforms, Pym and the Junto, Root and Branch, the Irish Rebellion, the Grand Remonstrance, the Five Members, the Militia Ordinance, how sides formed, and historians' explanations.Open →
• The campaigns and battles of the Civil WarSignificance of Marston Moor, outcome of the second battle of Newbury and second Civil War.Open →
• Why Parliament won the Civil WarSolemn League and Covenant and self-Denying Ordinance.Open →
• The search for a settlement 1646–49Newcastle Propositions, significance of Cornet Joyce seizing the King and heads of the Proposals.Open →
• Radicalism, the Levellers and the ArmyThe collapse of censorship, the Agreement of the People, the Putney Debates and the Diggers at St George's Hill.Open →
• The regicide and the birth of the CommonwealthPride's Purge, rump Parliament and charles's defence at the trial.Open →

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Take England 1603–49 further

The same content, four other ways.

Commonly confused

Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.

• Impositions vs Ship Money

  Impositions: an extra duty on imported goods upheld in 1606. Ship Money: a levy for naval defence extended inland and taken yearly in peacetime, tested in 1637.

• The Millenary Petition vs The Petition of Right

  The Millenary Petition: a moderate list of clerical grievances presented in 1603 asking for further reform of worship. The Petition of Right: a constitutional statement of 1628 against taxation without consent, imprisonment without cause, billeting and martial law.

• Impeachment vs Attainder

  Impeachment: a judicial process in which the Commons prosecutes before the Lords and guilt must be proved. Attainder: simply an Act declaring a man guilty, used when the proof was lacking.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What claim brought James VI of Scotland to the English throne in 1603?

   Model answer

   James was the great-great-grandson of Henry VII through Margaret Tudor, and he was the closest surviving heir once Elizabeth died childless.

2. 2

   Why was James's accession greeted with relief?

   Model answer

   The succession had been left unsettled for decades and many had feared a disputed claim or civil war, so a peaceful transfer to an adult king with sons was welcomed.

3. 3

   What was the state of the Crown's finances when James inherited them?

   Model answer

   Elizabeth had left a debt of about £400,000, run up by the long war with Spain and paid for partly by selling Crown land.

4. 4

   Why had Elizabeth's sale of Crown land created a long-term problem?

   Model answer

   Selling land reduced the permanent income from rents, so the Crown became more dependent on parliamentary taxation just as prices were rising.

5. 5

   What war was still being fought in 1603?

   Model answer

   England was still at war with Spain, a conflict that had run since 1585, and also facing the closing stages of the Nine Years War in Ireland.

6. 6

   How did the experience of ruling Scotland shape James's expectations of England?

   Model answer

   James had governed a poorer kingdom with a weaker parliament and a Presbyterian kirk that challenged him, so he arrived expecting more money and more deference than England was willing to give.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

England 1603–49 revision questions

Is England 1603–49 examined at AS in CCEA History?

Yes. It sits in AS Unit 1, which you take in the first year, so it is on the AS paper as well as counting towards the full A level.

What does England 1603–49 cover in CCEA AS-Level History?

18 subtopics: james i's elizabethan inheritance, james i, the church of england and the puritans, james i, the catholics and the gunpowder plot, the financial problems of james i, the foreign policy of james i, royal favourites and the politics of the court, charles i, war and parliament 1625–29, the decision to rule without parliament, financing the personal rule, laudianism and religious reform in the 1630s, the court culture of charles i, scotland, ireland and the collapse of the personal rule, the long parliament and the outbreak of war 1640–42, the campaigns and battles of the civil war, why parliament won the civil war, the search for a settlement 1646–49, radicalism, the levellers and the army and the regicide and the birth of the commonwealth. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.

How is England 1603–49 organised?

By the CCEA 4010 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.