---
title: "The King, Parliament and the Civil War"
description: "A quarrel over who could raise money and command an army ended with a king tried and executed by his own subjects. The republic that followed did not last, but the question of who is above the law nev"
canonical: https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/the-king-parliament-and-the-civil-war-mt_OGW1jWquJn
source: https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/the-king-parliament-and-the-civil-war-mt_OGW1jWquJn.md
retrieved: 2026-09-12
---

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# The King, Parliament and the Civil War

A quarrel over who could raise money and command an army ended with a king tried and executed by his own subjects. The republic that followed did not last, but the question of who is above the law never went back in the box.

Subject: History · Area: Britain Through Time · Ages 11 to 13
Page: https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/the-king-parliament-and-the-civil-war-mt_OGW1jWquJn

## Ready when they can

- Say what Parliament and the king each claimed the right to do
- Explain why executing a king in 1649 was different from killing one in a battle
- Name one thing that changed for good after the monarchy came back

## Lesson: The king who lost his head to law

Charles I took the throne in 1625 claiming kings rule by God. He taxed without Parliament's consent and even married a French Catholic princess, which angered Protestant England. When Parliament pushed back, he shut it down in 1629 and ruled alone for eleven years. King and Parliament each claimed the right to command money and law.

**Example.** Talking failed, so war came from 1642 to 1649. Oliver Cromwell led Parliament's forces against the king's men and won. Then came the shock: Parliament charged Charles with treason and beheaded him in 1649. Kings had died in battle before, but a trial, a sentence and a scaffold said even a king answers to law.

With no king, England became a republic under Cromwell, but he ruled so harshly that people tired of him. After he died in 1658, England invited Charles II back in 1660, an event called the Restoration. The crown returned smaller than before, since all remembered what happened to his father.

**Tip.** Track what could never be undone. No king after ruled without Parliament for long. In 1688 Parliament replaced James II with William and Mary, and the 1689 Bill of Rights locked in a constitutional monarchy. Thinkers like Locke turned the lesson into a rule: power is a contract rulers can break.

**Recap.** A king who claimed God-given power was tried and beheaded, so Parliament never let the crown rule alone again.

## Practice

8 questions on this page, each with its working shown.

## Needs first

- [Magna Carta and Limiting Royal Power](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/magna-carta-and-limiting-royal-power-mt_8ShghTx0jd)
- [Tudor England and the Break With Rome](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/tudor-england-and-the-break-with-rome-mt_RUPYnRkH7i)

## Opens up

- [Britain, the Slave Trade and Abolition](https://lightmysky.com/learn/history/britain-the-slave-trade-and-abolition-mt_va8IlbmszO)