Kings and Parliaments, 1603–29 (AQA A-Level History): Revision Notes

The Reign of James I - Religious Policies and Parliament Relations

Introduction: James's inheritance in 1603

When James VI of Scotland succeeded Elizabeth I in 1603, his accession was welcomed by most English subjects. The peaceful transfer of power to the nearest Protestant relative of the late Queen offered stability and the prospect of secure succession through James's children. However, this inheritance brought complex challenges. As monarch and Head of the Church of England, James had a religious duty to ensure his subjects' spiritual welfare and loyalty at a time when the true path to salvation was intensely debated. Simultaneously, he ruled three separate kingdoms (England, Scotland, and Ireland), each with distinct religious cultures, which complicated his task considerably. The secular demands of government required strong royal finances and effective relationships with political institutions, particularly Parliament. Success or failure in managing these religious and political problems would shape the development of the monarchy he had inherited.

Religious policies

Initial expectations and disappointments

James's religious inheritance was mixed. Multiple groups held conflicting hopes about how the new King would handle religious matters. Catholics anticipated that respect for his mother, Mary Queen of Scots, would encourage James to adopt a more tolerant approach towards them and perhaps reduce the persecution they had endured under Elizabeth. Puritans, meanwhile, hoped that James's upbringing in Presbyterian Scotland would lead him to favour their plans for reforming the Church of England along more 'godly' lines. Both groups were to be disappointed by James's actual policies.

However, this leniency encouraged an extremist minority to seek more dramatic change. In 1605, Catholic conspirators attempted to blow up Parliament while the King was present in what became known as the Gunpowder Plot. This attack on royal authority demonstrated that toleration carried risks and reinforced Protestant fears about Catholic loyalty.

The Hampton Court Conference and asserting royal authority

The Millenary Petition was presented to James by Puritans in 1603 as he travelled to London to claim his throne. This carefully worded document (reputedly signed by 1,000 Puritan ministers, though this cannot be proven) expressed Puritan concerns about the state of the Anglican Church. The petitioners were tactful, taking into account James's known interest in theological debate. However, when James agreed to meet Puritan representatives at a conference held at Hampton Court in 1604, he rejected their proposals for reform. Instead, James warned them that if they refused to conform to established rules, he would "harry them out of the land".

James demonstrated his uncompromising approach by appointing Richard Bancroft as Archbishop of Canterbury in 1604. Bancroft enforced strict rules regarding ceremonies and ministerial dress contained in the Anglican prayer book. His aggressive approach led some ministers to lose their livings because of their refusal to conform to these requirements. A few particularly determined Puritans chose to leave England entirely, emigrating first to Holland and later establishing Puritan colonies in North America. Most Puritans, however, remained within the Anglican Church and attempted to conform while hoping for better circumstances.

Compromise and coexistence after 1611

Within a few years, James softened his stance considerably. Having initially asserted his authority, he proved wise enough to recognise that political harmony could best be achieved by avoiding unnecessary provocation. The policy of persecuting recusants for their Catholic faith continued to be applied, but it was enforced intermittently rather than rigorously. This meant that discreet Catholics could often worship undisturbed for extended periods, provided they avoided drawing attention to themselves or challenging royal authority.

James also recognised the need to improve the quality of the clergy and shared the Puritan enthusiasm for effective preaching. He raised no objection to the widespread practice of impropriation, whereby the collection of tithes (a 10 per cent tax on households levied as income for parish priests) was taken over by lay patrons. This practice allowed the impropriator to influence the choice of minister for the parish. Many parishes had come under the control of local gentry through this mechanism, or through purchasing the advowson (the right to nominate a particular minister). While the King and bishops held many advowsons, a substantial number had been acquired by the gentry and through borough corporations. Importantly, Puritan supporters endowed weekday lectures, often to be held in market towns. This arrangement enabled Puritan ministers to preach for a living without undertaking the full ceremonial duties required of a parish minister. Though the logic of these arrangements may appear questionable, they provided a practical measure of peace within the Anglican Church and allowed Puritan reformers to coexist as one faction within it.

Religious policy in Scotland

James took cautious steps to bring Presbyterian practice in Scotland into closer alignment with English arrangements. By 1621 he had persuaded the Scots to accept bishops, albeit with more limited powers than their English counterparts. When James attempted to establish a Prayer Book similar to that used in England, this aroused considerable opposition, and he withdrew the proposal until a more favourable opportunity arose. Through such careful and tactful measures, James gradually hoped to bring the two Churches together and create religious uniformity across his kingdoms.

Assessment: an area of achievement

The success of James's pragmatic approach to religious problems can be measured by the relatively few complaints voiced in Parliament during most of his reign. Grievances were mainly limited to grumbles that recusancy fines were not being collected rigorously enough, or that the King's foreign policy was insufficiently 'Protestant' in character. Shortly after his accession, James ended Elizabeth's long and expensive war with Spain, which some Protestants viewed suspiciously. While the 'hotter sort' of Protestants and Puritans might have held reservations about these policies, the peace was both financially necessary and politically wise. Religion did not become a major source of tension in Parliament until the outbreak of the Thirty Years War in 1618 created new conflicts across Europe that raised questions about England's international Protestant commitments.

Relations with Parliament

The Buckinghamshire election dispute and the Commons Apology 1604

Despite James's relative success in managing religious tensions, the political atmosphere soured during the first years of his reign, with both King and Parliament showing signs of mutual irritation. In 1604, a disputed election in Buckinghamshire produced an early flashpoint. A clumsy attempt by the Privy Council to reverse the election result in favour of the Court candidate, Sir John Fortescue, provoked an angry protest from the House of Commons. Although the document produced in response was entitled the Commons Apology, it was actually a forthright assertion of parliamentary rights.

James had demonstrated his interest in political philosophy when he published a learned work in 1598 entitled The True Law of Free Monarchies. In this text, James articulated his understanding of royal authority, claiming that kings possessed a God-given right to rule that elevated them above ordinary humanity.

James asserted that "Kings are justly called gods for that they exercise a manner or resemblance of divine power on earth." He further claimed that monarchs "make and unmake their subjects, they have power of raising and casting down, of life and death." While James regarded these statements as logical philosophical arguments, such rhetoric gave many MPs cause for serious concern. To James, the argument was straightforward: because kings made the laws, they were, by definition, above those laws. However, this reasoning appeared to threaten the established constitutional balance.

The question of union with Scotland

When Parliament reassembled in 1605-06, a mood of Protestant unity prevailed, created partly by reconciliation efforts and partly by the Gunpowder Plot's demonstration of Catholic extremism. The discovery of the plot had helped settle the King's debts through a parliamentary grant, providing temporary financial relief. However, underlying problems were already emerging in relation to the King's Scottish background and the prominent role of his Scottish friends at Court.

James came to advocate a 'perfect' union between Scotland and England. He envisioned amalgamating the best features of Scottish and English institutions, seeing possibilities for reform and improvement of the governing system in both kingdoms. However, many Englishmen harboured deep anti-Scottish prejudices, a legacy of past hostilities that had been aggravated by the new King's numerous gifts of titles and pensions to his Scottish friends and courtiers. MPs refused to countenance the notion that English institutions could be improved by importing Scottish ideas.

James's generosity to his Scottish companions was deeply resented by English courtiers and politicians, and wider concerns about the King's finances were already mounting. The issue of finance would prove to be the most damaging problem for the relationship between King and Parliament.

Key dates

Religious policies:

• 1603: Millenary Petition presented to James by Puritans
• 1604: Hampton Court Conference; appointment of Richard Bancroft as Archbishop of Canterbury marks beginning of strict approach to Puritan ministers
• 1605: Gunpowder Plot demonstrates Catholic extremism
• 1611: Appointment of George Abbot as Archbishop introduces a more moderate approach

King and Parliament:

• 1603: James becomes King; Buckinghamshire election dispute begins
• 1604: Commons Apology presented in Parliament asserting parliamentary rights; Gunpowder Plot discovered
• 1605-07: Debates over constitutional links with Scotland lead to tension and ultimate failure of James's plan for Anglo-Scottish union

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