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Parliament enacts Petition of Right
The Petition of Right required that there should be no forced loans or taxation without the consent of Parliament, that no freeman should be imprisoned without due cause, and troops should not be in private homes. This petition limited royal authority by requiring Parliament's permission to tax the people of England. -
Charles dissolves Parliament until 1640
Although Charles I agreed to the Petition of Right, his word could not be trusted. The king dissolved Parliament and did not recall it until 1640. His failure to call Parliament caused its members to oppose the king as well as caused Parliament to meet longer in later years. This event begins the distrust of the absolutist monarchy. -
Actions of the Long Parliament
The Long Parliament's House of Commons impeached and executed the king's subjects, Laud and Strafford, abolished courts that enforced royal authority, and prohibited the levying of new taxes without Parliament's consent. Parliament began to stand up in opposition against Charles' monarchy. -
House of Commons passes Militia Ordinance
Those opposed to absolutism argued that Charles could not be trusted with an army and that Parliament should become commander-in-chief of the English forces. A majority of the House of Commons passed the Militia Ordinance after Charles invaded Parliament, which gave Parliament authority to raise its own army. The monarchy was beginning to be limited by its authority over the armed forces. England was thus divided up into associations for the militia. -
Parliament passes Test Act
The Test act required all civil and military officials of the monarchy to swear an oath against the doctrine of transubstantiation - which was against the Roman Catholic faith. Parliament passed this act to attack the king's brother, James, a devout Catholic. Parliament passed laws targeting the king and his family because they were thought of as favoring Catholicism. Parliament sought a limited monarchy in which the kings did not have absolute power. -
Glorious Revolution: English Bill of Rights
William and Mary recognized the English Bill of Rights, a document that firmly limited the powers of the monarchy. It guaranteed the civil liberties of the privileged classes. The monarchs would be subject to law and would rule by the consent of Parliament. Parliament would be called into session every three years, and Roman Catholics were not allowed to occupy the English throne. The Bill of Rights allowed Parliament to counteract and reject laws created by the monarchy and limit its power. -
John Locke publishes his Second Treatise of Civil Government
Locke's book defended the idea that government resided in the consent of the governed. This point of view opposed absolutism as well as absolutist political thought. It promoted a limited monarchy with the balances of Parliament.
