Civil War person: Puritan

Lesson at a glance

Suggested inquiry questions: Why did the Puritans support war against King Charles I in 1642?

Potential activities: Watch the video and complete the document activity

Why did the Puritans support war against King Charles I in 1642?

Some of Charles I’s loudest critics were the Puritans. Puritans were extreme Protestants. Like Archbishop William Laud, they believed that the Church of England in the 1630s needed changing. Unlike Laud, they believed churches and services should be much simpler. They were bitterly opposed to the Catholic Church. They worried that Laud’s changes were making the Church of England too much like the Catholic Church. They disliked the bishops because the Catholic Church also had bishops. They disliked the bishops because it was the bishops who put Charles’s religious policies into action. They hated Laud and he hated them. In 1637 William Prynne and two other Puritans published a pamphlet criticising Laud. He had them arrested, their ears cut off and their faces branded with red-hot irons. This treatment created a lot of sympathy for the Puritans. It also increased hatred between the Puritans and the bishops. 

The Puritans were a small minority, but they were very powerful and influential. Most came from the gentry or merchant class. They were usually well educated and successful in business. They were very determined because they believed God was on their side. The leading opponents of Charles I (including John Pym and John Hampden) were Puritans. They too were prepared to fight for their beliefs.  


Tasks

Watch the video of our actor playing the role of a Puritan.

Document activityRead the document background, the document and answer the questions which follow. You can use the transcript and simplified transcript to help. 



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Lesson at a glance

Suggested inquiry questions: Why did the Puritans support war against King Charles I in 1642?

Potential activities: Watch the video and complete the document activity

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