The greatest story in the world, period 3 (of 3) : $b The development of the modern worldHutchinson, Horace G. (Horace Gordon)
History
The greatest story in the world, period 3 (of 3) : $b The development of the modern world
Hutchinson, Horace G. (Horace Gordon)
World history
Ten years later than the expedition of the Pilgrim Fathers, that is
to say, in 1630, there was a further large emigration of Puritans
from Old England into New England. Under Charles I. who had
succeeded James, and tried to pursue the same policy of governing and
extorting money without a Parliament, the strained feeling between
the Crown and the people grew more intense. They formed themselves
into distinct parties--Royalists or Cavaliers on the outside, and
Puritans on the other.
The smouldering hostility broke into open war. In the first battles
the Royalists had the advantage. The Puritan armies were raw and
badly organised. But in their ranks were men of ability and of stern
purpose. Under the orders of Oliver Cromwell as {85} their
commander-in-chief a rigid discipline was imposed. They went into
battle singing hymns, inspired by an intense conviction that they
were fighting in the service of the Lord. It was a union of
discipline with zeal which the light-hearted and light-headed
Cavaliers could not match.
The Royalists wore gallant and gay attire and flowing curls, and
culled all the joys of life. The Puritans dressed themselves in
sombre colours, set their faces into solemn lines and regarded even
innocent mirth and amusement as a sin. The earnestness which marked
all their behaviour they brought to the business of fighting.
After the fortunes of the war had gone variously in several
campaigns, the Royalists suffered what really was a decisive defeat
in the battle of Naseby in 1645. Their cause never recovered from it.
There was quartered in the north of England at this time a Scottish
army. Charles had endeavoured to impose on the Church of Scotland
the form of Protestantism which was the State religion in England.
But the majority of the Scottish people professed a religion much
more nearly akin to that of the English Puritans. They bound
themselves by a Covenant (whence its adherents were called
Covenanters) to oppose by all means in their power the priests and
the bishops whom the Scottish king of the United Kingdom tried to
force on them. They took arms and made their way victoriously south
until they were bribed to stop and to establish themselves in
quarters in the north of England by part payment and part promise of
payment of a yearly sum. And to the protection of that army Charles
fled, as his fortunes grew more and more desperate, after the defeat
at Naseby in 1646. The payments promised to the Scots were much in
arrears. After long negotiations they gave up their king into the
hands of the English Puritans in exchange {86} for a large sum of
money to quit the debt. Once the king escaped, but was recaptured,
and in 1649, after a trial in which the verdict was certain from the
first, was executed on the block.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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