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The earliest period of British history. Stonehenge as one of the earliest prehistoric
monuments left. Its structure and destination.
The earliest period of British history is marked by several prehistoric monuments, the most
famous and best preserved of which is Stonehenge, built in contemporary Wiltshire by some
unknown people. These people refer to some ethnic group which has nothing to do either
with Celts or Germans. These people inhabited the island of Britain in the epoch called
Bronze Age.
Stonehenge is situated not far from the town of Salisbury.
Stonehenge was built in several waves and consists of several distinctly different parts: the
outer dyke, the outer circle of wooden poles (now not existing), the outer circle of stones,
and the inner circle of stones.
According to contemporary studies, the first preparations to building Stonehenge started
around 8000 years BC.
The inner circle of Stonehenge consists of blue stones (now their number is 45). It was
comprised approximately 2000 yrs BC. The blue stones were brought from Prescelly
Mountains (240 miles away, southwestern tip of Wales). BS weight is about 4 tons each,
about 82 stones are preserved.
The outer ring of stones consists of sarsen stones 50 ton each. They were transported from
Malborough Downs, about 20 miles to the north. The outer ring comprises a horseshoe and
consists of 5 trilithons.
The legend runs that it was Merlin who brought to Salisbury the plan from Ireland.
Stonehenge could be used both for religious purposes and as an astronomic clock. The
blue stones were aligned to the summer solstice. These stones are made of Dolerite, while
one of them, of Colchester (Cocheston) sandstone (pale green studded with garnets) is called
“The Altar Stone”
At the time of Equinoxes (around March 21 and September 21) the rising sun appears
exactly due east and the setting sun due west causing the morning and evening shadows to
align in a straight line. On summer and winter solstice the line, of sight to the rising sun is in
a direction precisely the reverse to that of the setting sun. The “Heel Stone” demonstrates it
by its shadow.
Arrival of the Celts and development of agriculture and crafts. Iron age. Celtic family life
and religion.
At about the 7th century BC new groups of people began to arrive in Britain from
Europe. They spoke Celtic languages, knew the skills of work with iron and quickly pushed
the earlier ethnic groups into less favourable regions.
Celts were armed with iron weapons, had iron tools and therefore could expand to
such areas where people of Bronze Age couldn’t settle.
Celtic family was dominated by males (unlike earlier Pictish tribes, which exercised
matriarchy), though women were respected and sometimes quite influential, at times being
able to be heads of the clan or tribe.
Celtic religion was pagan, their priests were called Druids (because they gathered in
sacred groves), and some of their ceremonies included human sacrifice.
Celts used earlier monuments such as Stonehenge for their own religious purposes.
The first coming of Romans and expansion of the Roman Empire to the North.
First Roman troops came under Julius Caesar in 55 BC, but were unable to conquer
Great Britain immediately. The real expansion of Romans over Britain began in the 1st
century AD.
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Some Celts fiercely resisted Romans. The champion was the Celtic queen Boadicea, who
finally had to kill her daughters and commit the suicide because of her failure.
Romans not just subdued the country, but brought their civilization into their most distant
northern province. to
The basis of Roman civilization in Britain (or Pretani, as they called it) were Roman
towns. They were divided into three types: colonies, municipias and civitas. Many towns
grew out of Celtic settlements (London is a typical example). Colonies and municipias were
established by Roman charter. Coloniae were towns peopled by Roman settlers. Municipia
were large cities in which the whole population was given Roman citizenship. The 3d type of
towns included the old Celtic tribal capitals, through which the Romans administered the
whole population in the countryside
At first there were no walls around the towns, but from the end of the 2nd century to the 3d
AD almost every town was given walls.
After Romans withdrew from England, they left behind them about 20 large towns and
almost 100 smaller ones. Many of them originally were military camps, and the Latin word
for camp, castra, has remained part of many town names to this day.
Urban civilization of Romans was very developed: many houses had central heating and
baths, there were well-built paved roads, fountains etc. All these wonders of civilization
struck imagination of many Celts, who began to enjoy the outer aspects of Roman
civilization, acquiring love for luxury and comfort.
Later this love would undermine the forces of the Celts, who would be unable to resist wilder
but spiritually healthier Germans (Angles, Saxons, Jutes, and Friesians).
Roman Empire. Britain as one of Roman provinces.
The Celts who accepted Roman civilization preferred living in towns and enjoy all the luxury
of the civilized world. The Celts who continued their traditional life were pushed into
mountainous regions of Wales and Scotland.
Romans brought into Britain not only the skills of building and central heating, but also
language and literacy. The Celts learned the Roman alphabet, many Latin words remained in
their language.
Londinium (built in the place of old Celtic settlement Lindin) was the largest Roman town in
Britain. 20000 citizens inhabited London, and it was twice the size of Paris at that time.
Early Christianity began to penetrate through Roman Empire into Britain.
As the Celts in Scotland (Caledonia) were wild and extremely hostile towards Roman
citizens, Emperor Hadrian ordered to build the wall, later called the Hadrian wall, to protect
civilized Celts and Romans against warlike northern tribes.
Early Middle Ages
Decay of Roman Empire and withdrawal of Roman legions.
Gradual decay of Roman Empire, attack of barbarous tribes undermined its strength and
made it impossible to keep the army in such a distant province as Britain. In 409 all the
Roman troops left the island.
The Romanized Celts who didn’t leave Britain together with the Romans were left face to
face with wild Germanic tribes, which raided the island from the continent.
Beginning of Germanic invasion and destroying of Roman material civilization.
At first, Germans raided Britain only for plunder, but later, in 431, they came to settle,
bringing their families with them. From 430 onward, gradual settlement of several Germanic
tribes, that is Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Friesians, started. Germans did not know the
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destination of all those edifices, fountains, heating etc. and they began to destroy them in
order to get the building material for their huts. Very quickly beautiful Roman towns turned
into ruins: “…and goats were grazing on London ruins”.
Gradually several kingdoms were established:
 Nothumbria, Mercia, East Anglia – Angles
 Wessex, Sussex, Essex – Saxons
 Kent – Jutes.
 By approximately 7th century there existed 3 main kingdoms: Nothumbria,
Mercia, Wessex.
Germans developed political and administrative institutions. The most important of these
institutions were the king and king’s council. The council chose the king from the royal
family, therefore kings couldn’t totally ignore it. By 10th century Saxons divided land into
administrative areas, shires (counties). The administrator of the shire was called the shire
reeve, or sheriff.
Changes in agriculture and country administration.
Heavier and more progressive plough permitted to cultivate heavier soils, but it
demanded six or eight oxen to pull it. Few families could afford so many oxen, therefore
several families owned them on a co-operative basis. Each family had several strips of land
on the collective field, belonging to the whole village. The big field was divided into three:
one for spring crops, another, for the autumn ones, the third one rested and was used for
cattle. This system existed for 1000 years, up to the 18th cent. It contributed to closer
cooperation of people. The Saxons also settled previously unfarmed lands.
The center of the village was a “manor” (large house) where people came to pay taxes
and where justice was administered. Also people came there to join the army (fyrd). The lord
of the manor house was to organize all this. The lords=aldermen. In 11th cent. they acquired
a new name, earl.
Language of Anglo-Saxons.
The language belonged to the Low West German group of languages. Most people
were illiterate. Sometimes they used runes to put down important things. They say that runes
were probably invented by Goths (who lived in the east and south, up to the Black Sea).
Runes were incised on wood, therefore they consisted of vertical and slanting strokes.
With the coming of Christianity the Latin alphabet was introduced. But some runes
were preserved, as Latin letters were not enough to denote all the Saxon sounds. The “insular
writing” (alphabet typical of isles) developed – it was a combination of Latin letters and
runes. The majority of Old English records were written in this alphabet.
Religion of Germans and introduction of Christianity
Originally all of them were pagans and the names of their gods became names of
weekdays. (Tig-Tuesday, Wodin – Wednesday, Thor – Thursday, Frei – Friday).
Christianity first reached Britain in Roman times, but with the coming of Germans
Christian Celts were driven to Wales, Cornwall, and Scotland.
In 597 Pope Gregory the Great sent a monk Augustine to re-establish faith in Great
Britain. He went to Canterbury, the capital of Kent (the king’s wife was Christian).
Augustine became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in 601.
Two churches: the Celtic and the Roman. From two sides, the Celtic from the ‘ground’
(common folk), the Roman from the ‘top’ (the nobility) they made England Christian by 660
(only Sussex and the Isle of White hadn’t accepted the new faith). In 663 at the Synod of
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Whitby the king of Northumbria chose to support the Roman Church, which quickly
extended its authority over all lands, including the Celtic ones.
Joining the Roman Church made England the part of Universal religious (and partly
political) system.
Establishment of minsters provided centers of education, which resulted in England
becoming one of the most cultured countries of Europe. Venerable Bede (around 8th cent),
Ecclesiastical History of the English People.
Celtic kingdoms
Wales, Scotland, and Ireland were independent countries by that time.
Wales was separated by the Offa’s Dyke (779), Scotland, by the Hadrian’s wall.
People who inhabited Wales called themselves Cymry or countrymen. There were 5
kingdoms: Gwynedd, Powys, Ceredigion, Dyfed, Glamorgan.
The first Welsh high king—Gruffydd up Llewelyn (1039). Was killed in the battle
with Saxons. Later Welsh kings could rule only after promising loyalty to English kings
(Edward the Confessor).
Ireland was never invaded by either Romans or Germans. Christianity came there at
430 (British slave Patrick). Consisted of 5 kingdoms: Ulster, Connaught, Leinster, Munster,
and Tara as the seat of the high kings. These kingdoms often were at war with each other.
Viking raids (which lay the end to the ‘golden age’) forced the Irish to unite. But
Vikings brought fresh culture and new lifestyle to Ireland: towns and ports were established,
as well as trade with distant countries through Vikings. Dublin was founded by the Vikings.
1002—1014, Brian Boru, the greatest Irish ruler, the High King.
Scotland was traditionally and geographically divided into Highlands and Lowlands.
Highlands was inhabited by Picts and Scots (people who had come in 8th cent. from
Ireland). Picts practices matriarchy. Both groups spoke mainly Celtic.
Lowlands was inhabited by Britons (Celts either) and Southern Picts, land by Angles.
Picts, Scots and Britons shared similar ‘clan’ lifestyle, their economy depended on cattle,
while Angles lived in individual family groups and grew crops.
Scotland was also attacked by the Vikings. The latter began to settle on north islands:
Shetland, Orkney, The Hebrides, the Isle of Man. Gradually the earls of Vikings began to
accept the rule of the king of Scots.
934 – defeat from a Wessex army. Therefore they agreed to obey London and live
with England in peace, hoping that it would be impossible to control them in the Highlands.
And they were right.
Saxon Britain
Saxon kingdoms and kings.
The strongest Saxon kingdom in the 8th century was Mercia. The peak of its authority
fell on the reign of King Offa (757—796).
Offa was one of the most powerful rulers not only in England but in Europe: his daughter
became the wife of son of Charles the Great, King of Franks; Offa ordered to build a dyke,
separating Wales from England, and the dyke WAS built, the traces of it still being visible
today.
Beginning of Danish invasions.
Vikings came originally from Norway. They established their settlements in Denmark,
Sweden, Iceland, Normandy.
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Vikings were northern Germans, their religion was still pagan.
Vikings were very skilled seamen and warriors and supported themselves and their families
through plunder.
Their piracy was determined by extremely severe conditions of Norway, where it was easier
for people to communicate by sea than by land.
Their first attack in England was in Lindisfarne, Northumbria, in 793.
In the first half of the 9th century the Danes (as they were called in England) destroyed the
dynasties of Northumbria, Mercia, and East Anglia. Wessex dynasty remained the only
surviving, therefore its role in later history and culture of England became decisive.
Alfred (849—900), King of Wessex, ruled from 871 to 899. He was the man who defeated
the Danes and divided the country into north-eastern part (Danelaw) and south-western part
(English law).
His elder brothers all perished in battles with the Danes. He was the youngest, but the wisest.
His early years of rule were particularly full of dangers. For several years he even had to hide
in the forests with his men, but he never stopped his struggle.
Alfred won a decisive victory over Danes in 878. A few years later London was returned
under English control.
Largely due to Alfred’s efforts, Danes quickly accepted Christianity and were integrated into
English society.
King Alfred not only was a champion against Danes, but also:
I.Developed education (schools for sons of nobles; foreign scholars, craftsmen);
II Restored many monasteries;
III. United the country under the rule of Wessex kings;
IV. Translated many books from Latin into English, ordered the compilation of the first
history book, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle;
V. Created fleet and laid the foundation for a regular army (horsemen and unmounted
soldiers, the rest of the population, peasants, paid the rent and worked on lands of lords,
kings, knights, and monasteries)
VI. Tried to create a uniform legal space, with rules equal both for the Danes and the Saxons.
There remained the inscription on the base of the statue of King Alfred in Wantage,
Oxfordshire, his place of birth: “Alfred found learning dead and he restored it , he found
Education neglected and he revived it, the laws powerless and he gave them force, the
Church debased and he raised it. the land ravaged by a fearful enemy from which he
delivered it—Alfred’s name will live as long as mankind shall respect the past”.
This is how Alfred himself said about his life: “Desire for and possession of earthly
power never pleased me overmuch, and I did not unduly desire this earthly rule… I desired
to live worthily as long as I lived, and to leave after my life, to the men who should come
after me, the memory of me in good works”.
Danes left significant traces in English culture and nation.
Danish language left about 500 words: again, egg, game, flag, kilt, kid, hug, they,
then, their, husband, fellow, knife, law, leg, log, wing, give, get, forgive, take, call, ugly,
wrong; words with sk/sc element: sky, skin, scare, score, scald, bask…
Names ending in –son (Johnson). Place names ending in –ly (Whitby), -thorp
(Althorp), -toft (Lowestoft).
Titles: earl.
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Danes after they settled in England turned into free farmers and minor landowners.
Later this class of free farmers would form the yeomanry, the main military force of
mediaeval English army.
From Alfred to Harold II.
Several generations of Alfred’s children and grandchildren secured England from
direct threat. But gradually the dynasty began to exhaust itself.
In 950 renewed the Danish raids. Distant descendant of king Alfred, king Ethelred
(very weak ruler, who did not have enough authority) in the beginning of 11th century was
forced by the situation to establish Danegeld to collect taxes and pay Danes to stay out.
After Ethelred’s death his son Edmund concluded a treaty with Danish king Canute
and divided England by the Thames. In few days Edmund died and Canute was elected by
Witan king of all England.
When Danish kings settled on the English throne it was clear that the times of Saxon
dominance were coming to their logical end.
Canute managed to appease the country and establish order over the land he
controlled. His 19 years of rule were the quietest time in 11th century. He died in 1035, and
his son shortly after, in 1040.
Witan chose Edward (‘the Confessor’), one of Ethelred’s sons, to be king (1040—
1066). His mother was a daughter of a Norman Duke. He himself spent all his early youth in
Normandy. When he returned to England, he brought a lot of Normans to England.
In 1066 Edward was dying. Many years of social and political tension were in the past:
Normans under the pressure of Saxons and Danes were sent back, Edward became more
patriotic and united with his people against foreigners. Edward pointed at Harold, son of
Godwin, as his heir on the throne. When Edward died, Witan immediately chose Harold as
English king.
Harold, a Dane by his blood, thus became the last king of Saxon England. His right to
the English throne was challenged by William of Normandy.
William had some reasons for his challenge: first, Edward had promised him he would
have made him his heir, second, Harold had solemnly sworn to William during his stay in
Normandy not to claim the English throne.
Normans.
About 150 years earlier, Normans had been Vikings, too. By now they were
Christians, their language and culture were French.
Feudal relations on the continent were much better developed as well as the institution
of knighthood (chivalry) and the culture of courtesy.
William was an illegitimate son of his father the Duke, but his father made him his only
heir. Hostility of the society and the sense of diffidence, uncertainty in his rights made him
particularly energetic in achieving his goals.
England by the times of Harold.
England was more or less united country, its northern shires been less loyal than
southern ones. Wessex, East Anglia, Kent and other former kingdoms are now provinces of
one kingdom ruled by earls.
After the time of disorder under King Ethelred England had enjoyed 20 years of
relative peace under Canute, than times of Norman dominance during Edward and several
months of disquiet under Harold, when the island was threatened from 2 sides: North and
South.
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System of witans penetrated the whole society, being markedly different from the
system of strict inheritance which dominated in Europe.
The Normans
1066 was a hard year for England.
Danes threatened from Yorkshire, claiming the throne, while William and his Norman army
from the South.
In September, after hard battle and victory over Vikings in the North Harold was informed
about landing of William of Normandy near the town of Hastings.
Harold hurried to the South with his already exhausted army. But he made a very
serious mistake: thinking that Norman army was small (and it was) he did not wait to the rest
of his army. Had he waited he could win.
The Normans were well armed, on horses and they had good armor unlike Saxons.
Saxons had only a small professional body of soldiers who knew military skills well. The
rest of Harold’s army was fyrd, consisting mostly of badly armed and unskilled peasants.
Normans, seeing very fierce resistance, began to shoot into air and their arrows
crashed the heads of the Saxons. Another trick they invented was a favourite trick of all
Mediaeval wars, i.e. false retreat, with a fresh troop in the ambush.
As a result, Saxon army was exterminated completely and Harold himself was killed.
No other regular military force could protect England from foreign invasion.
William marched to London without meeting any resistance and was crowned king on
Christmas Day.
Norman invasion in 1066 and battle at Hastings with further conquest of the country was
the main turning point in English mediaeval history. The consequences were numerous.
Saxon barons, at least those ready to resist, were all either killed or forced to fly. They
were replaced by Normans.
In the North where resistance to Normans was particularly persistent (York was the center of
revolts) Normans acted with extreme cruelty, demolishing everything and killing everybody
including animals.
Saxon peasants in the beginning did not feel any distinct difference with Saxon times. Only
later they became more linked to their masters and their land.
Nation was split into two hostile camps, hostility of which was aggravated by both social
origins and different ethnicity and culture.
Feudal system and strict inheritance replaced underdeveloped feudalism and traces of
democracy in English political and social life.
At the same time, it made England more uniform with other European countries. It ended
with English provinciality both in political and cultural life.
Consequences for culture and language can hardly be overestimated. Marriage of Saxon and
Franco-Norman cultures greatly enriched England, though at the same time it deprived it of
some unique features.
English language, by the times of Norman conquest being a number of Germanic dialects,
began to gradually transform into Middle English, its London dialect evolved into Modern
English by the period of Renaissance.
Not long before his death, William ordered the census of enumeration, which was executed
with surprising for Middle Ages punctuality. Domesday Book (1086), as it was called by
ordinary people, is one of the most valuable historic documents, telling us a great deal about
all sides of English life in 11th century.
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Danegeld was not abolished but transformed into a regular tax system.
Development of political institutions under Norman rule.
Monarchy and feudal system became firmly established under Normans. England
became united, the power of king was stronger than power of any other feudal lords.
Monarchy in England due to Normans quickly turned into the most centralized in Europe.
William took into account negative experience of French monarchy, where the king fully
controlled only a small area around Paris called l'Ile de France, while each of his vassals
could rebel against him or be in other ways disloyal to him, like William himself. He
strengthened his power so much, that made any real resistance to his authority almost
impossible.
William the Conqueror died in 1187 in Normandy and was buried in Rouen.
William died of severe abdominal injuries which he received when he fell from horse during
the siege of Mantes (the town was between “zones of control” of dukes of Normandy and
kings of France).
His second son William II, called Rufus (Red) for his red hair, inherited English throne. His
eldest son Robert received Normandy, while Henry, the youngest of brothers, received only
5000 pounds.
William Rufus (1087—1100). He inherited from his farther enormous greed and cruelty, but
no particular talents. His greed was fabulous: he could summon his vassals for a would-be
war only to take from them their money they had with them and let them go. For his lack of
political strategy and avarice William was disliked by many people. Therefore there is no
great surprise he was found dead during one of royal hunts. It was said that it was an
accident, but the fact that his brother Henry was close by made some people think he was
killed. Nobody cared much enough about the details of William’s death to begin
investigation. Henry acted quickly and rushed to London to seize the crown.
Henry I (1100—1135) was the first Norman king to be born in England.
Robert was on a Crusade when his brother William died and was unable to act immediately.
In 1101 Robert tried to invade England but was forced by diplomacy to leave the country,
agreeing to never resume his attempts to take the crown of England.
But in 1106 Henry with his Saxon army invaded Normandy, won the glorious victory over
Norman army, captured Robert and thus made Normandy possession of English crown.
Many years after, Robert unsuccessfully attempted to escape from the castle in England he
was kept in, but was seized and blinded. He died in imprisonment in 1134, when he was over
80.
For about a century Normandy and England remained under one ruler, though, of course,
without merging into a single country.
The rest of Henry's reign was filled with judicial and financial reforms.
i. He issued the Charter of Liberties. It bound the king to certain laws regarding the
treatment of church officials and nobles. It is considered a forerunner of the Great Charter
of Liberties, signed by King John in 1215.
ii. He restored old Saxon laws known as the laws of King Edward the Confessor.
iii. He established the biannual Exchequer to reform the treasury.
iv. He used itinerant officials to curb abuses of power at the local and regional level,
garnering the praise of the people.
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v. The differences between the Anglo-Saxon and Norman populations began to break down
during his reign and he himself married a daughter of the old Saxon royal house.
vi. On the whole, England was modernized and order was established in many spheres of
life.
Henry I, in spite of all his authority, was unable to secure smooth succession of his power.
The greatest tragedy in Henry’s life was disastrous death of his only legal son William (he
was drowned in sea during a storm). It said that after Henry was told about his son’s death
“he never smiled” until his death.
Henry wanted to be succeeded by his daughter Matilda, but his desire was opposed by many
people, as no tradition of female reigning existed.
His stern but efficient rule was followed by civil war known as the Anarchy.
Edward I (1272—1307)
Parliament during Edward’s reign gradually becomes established in English life;
Professional army comes to dismiss the feudal one;
Wales is conquered and brought under English control. Edward’s son, future king Edward
II, becomes the 1st Prince of Wales;
Edward tried to unite Scotland and England, but John Balliol, whom Edward originally
supported as a candidate to the Scottish throne, refused to pay homage to Edward and the
war between England and Scotland started;
John Balliol spent three years in the Tower, while another focus of rebellion, William
Wallace, was executed;
Edward attempts to bring Scotland under English control finally failed;
The words on Edward’s grave: “Edward, hammer of the Scots”.
The first full parliament was called in 1295. In 1297, after an armed resistance of lords, it
was called again and since then the parliamentary life in England seems firmly established.
The principle that there “must be no taxation without representation”.
Edward II (1307—1327)
A weak king, under whose reign a small group of royal favourites ruled the country,
arousing general resistance, particularly on the side of big lords;
Edward II had perpetual conflicts with barons, the most hated were Thomas Lancaster and
Earl of Pembroke;
The rule of Edward’s favourites the Despensers ended in their hanging and deposition and
murdering of the King himself;
Edward II lost the war with Scotland. After Edward’s death, in 1328, Robert the Bruce was
crowned the king of Scotland.
Edward III (1327—1377)
In 1328 he signed the Treaty of Northampton, acknowledging Scottish Independence. He
however made an attemt to restore the descendant of John Balliol on the throne and even
forced Scottish King David II to leave the country. But soon Edward was defeated and
ceased the struggle for Scotland.
Edward III declared war on France in 1337 and claims the French crown;
Causes of the war with France: interference with wool trade with Flanders, the part of French
Burgundy, and with Gascony (part of Aquitaine). Burgundy in this war made an alliance
with England, while Scotland allied with France, which later led to captivity of the Scottish
king;
The same year Edward established the Order of the Garter;
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The military success in the 100-years war was on the side of England. The English won
brilliant battles in 1346 (Crecy) and 1356 (Poiteiers), the latter one was won by the Prince of
Wales (the Black Prince). French king was captured, his freedom later was bought for
500000;
Military victories of England were largely due to emergence of a new type of military force:
the archers, who were free yeomen (originally the descendants of the Danes). Up to almost
the 19th century the archers were unsurpassed in their military efficiency.
The treaty of Bretigny in 1360: The French recognized English control over Aquitaine, parts
of Normandy, Brittany, Calais, while Edward refused from the French crown.
The English found it very hard to control the conquered lands. In next 15 a vast part of the
land the French returned;
Black Death (The Plague). This disaster came from China through the Crimea and seriously
depopulated the greater part of Europe, where about one third of the population died out. It
came to England in 1348-9. Positive consequences: scarcity of working hands led to higher
wages of the remaining peasants and workmen, who could ask not only more money for their
labour, but also more freedoms.
The war with France greatly contributed to the growth of Parliaments’ importance. The
Commons began to convert their petitions into statutes. The post of Speaker appears for the
first time. Parliament is divided into two chambers. The Upper Chamber is called by the king
(lords, prelates), the Lower Chamber, or the Chamber of Commons, is elected. By the end of
Middle Ages it consisted of: 74 knights from 37 shires, more than 200 deputies from towns
and villages. The first division into chambers became visible in 1332.The rights of
Parliament: the right to establish the sum of taxes. Legislative power, the right to appoint
important officials, the right to administer justice (the Lord Chamber is the High Court) etc.
By the end of the reign of Edward III English Parliament has almost a modern image.
Richard II (1377—1399). Early death of the Black Prince led to ascendance to the throne of
Edward’s grandson Richard, the boy of 10.
For a long time Richard ruled under the governance of John of Gaunt, Lord of Lancaster;
In 1381, when he was a boy of about 15 years, the Peasants War (known as the revolt of
Wat Tyler) started and he became personally involved in negotiations with its leaders,
There were several reasons for the rebellion. The most important one was that Black Death
resulted in greater demands of peasants which were not always satisfied. Due to greater
material opportunities more common people had the means to organize their protest.
The anti-Papist movement of lollards (the followers of John Wycliffe, a theologist and an
ideologist of Church reform from Oxford), which had widely spread throughout England by
the 80s, gave a good ideological ground for the rebels;
Abundance of former soldiers, who had fought in France, provided the rebels with skilled
fighters. Wat Tyler, though very little is known about his past for certain, is believed to have
been one of such soldiers;
The rebellion, which developed into a very bloody war, was finally put down. Richard at
first promised freedoms and forgiveness to peasants who rebelled. But the lords made him
break his word. However, for many years Richard was believed to be a sort of peasant
leader;
After the political crisis of 1388, Richard’s power began to grow and finally became almost
absolute: even William the Conqueror never exercised such great a power
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Finally Richard’s behaviour, particularly persecution of his political enemies such as John
of Lancaster and deprivation of his son Henry of the father’s inheritance, led to a revolt
against him, headed by Henry Lancaster.
Henry IV (1399—1413).
In 1399 Richard II was deposed and soon almost certainly murdered.
Henry Lancaster, his cousin, became King Henry IV, thus beginning formally a new dynasty
of the Lancasters;
Henry IV, feeling himself unconfident, had to consent to still greater power for Parliament,
thus becoming one of the least influential monarchs;
After his death, the crown passed to Henry’s son, Henry V, who was to become one of
England’s most popular warrior kings.
Scotland in the 14th and the 15th centuries
King Robert Bruce was succeeded by his small son, King David II. David was deprived of
his father’s talents. The situation was aggravated by constant conflict with late John Balliol
supporters. In 1346, fighting on the side of the French, he was captured by the English in the
battle of Crecy and 11 years spent in English prison before he was ransomed;
David’s nephew, Robert High Stuart, followed him on the Scottish throne. He was the first
of the Stuart monarchs, probably most unlucky dynasty in Britain;
In the 14th and later, in the 15th century, Scotland remained though independent but rather
weak country because of a deep inner split due to constant conflicts between barons;
Scotland’s true strength was in its educational centers. In the 15 th century universities in St.Andrew, Glasgow, and Aberdeen were founded. Scotland was one of the best educated
countries in Europe.
Ireland in the 14th and the 15th centuries
Ireland unlike other countries in Europe had no feudal institutions and was rather an Anarchy
than a Monarchy.
In early Middle Ages Different kingdoms in Ireland were governed by their own kings
formally supervised by High King in Tara;
Soon after Norman conquest, which in Ireland took place in the 12th, Norman-Irish barons
turned into almost independent rulers, not controlled from London;
Several times, under king John Lackland, under Edward I there were made more or less
successful attempts to bring them to loyalty to London;
The area adjoining Dublin was called the Pale. It was the most “pro-English” region in
Ireland and to preserve its English character Irish Parliament was called. But it helped little;
Norman barons and Irish chieftains would lead a free life of their own not letting their lands
both in the Pale and other parts of the country be controlled by London.
The growth of towns in England
Towns’ life in the 13th – 14th centuries: appearance of trade and craft guilds;
Coming of friars (нищенствующие монахи) from Europe who played a significant part in
de Monfort’s parliamentary initiatives.
Henry V (1413 – 1422), one of the most popular “war” kings. The first English-speaking
monarch.
Resumed fighting in France, won a decisive battle of Agincourt in 1415, after which the best
of the French army was exterminated;
In 1420 he was recognized as an heir to the French throne, but he died earlier than the
French king, and his 9-months-old son, later Henry VI, inherited the two crowns;
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Later, after his death (1430—31), came Joan of Arc and destroyed all the plans of the
English. Though she was burnt as a heretic, she inspired the French so powerfully, that most
French provinces including Burgundy (which form 100 years fought on the side of England)
united against the English. England began to lose the war and in 1453 it lost everything
except Calais. It lost even Gascony which remained English for three centuries.
Henry VI (1422—1461). After his father’s death he was recognized not only as king of
England but also as king of France. In 1429 he was crowned both in Westminster Abbey and
Notre Dame de Paris.
But Henry was a weak-brained man, almost unable to rule himself. Partly because of absence
of a strong leader was it possible for France to win.
Henry’s clever wife, Margaret of Anjou, headed the Lancaster party against the Yorkist one.
The war of the Roses (1455 – 1485) started soon after the lost 100-years-war and lasted for
30 years.
The war started because of the conflict between the Yorkists (White Rose), supporters of the
Duke of York (an heir of the earl of March, who lost the competition for the throne when
Richard II was deposed) and Lancastrians (Red Rose), supporters of the royal family. Both
the Yorks and the Lancasters were branches of the Plantagenet dynasty and descendants of
king Edward III;
In 1461 Edward, son of Richard, the duke of York, won the throne and imprisoned Henry
VI, becoming king Edward IV;
9 years later the war resumed, Henry VI was rescued, restored on the throne in an act known
as the Readeption of Henry VI, Lancastrians drove Edward away from the country, who took
refuge in Burgundy;
In 1471 Edward collected a small army and invaded England. He won a decisive battle, thus
eliminating the Lancastrian resistance completely;
The Lancastrian heir, Edward of Westminster (Prince of Wales) was killed, too, and on the
night that Edward re-entered London, Henry VI, who was being held prisoner, was murdered
in order to completely remove the Lancastrian opposition in future. There remained only one
“semi-Lancastrian” potential heir—Henry Tudor;
The result of the war was a complete ruin of the English nobility. The war did not touch very
much ordinary people, but representatives of most high-ranked families were killed in this
war.
Edward IV (1461—1483)
When in 1483 he fell ill, he made amendments to his will, according to which his brother
Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was to become protector of his heir Edward, the boy of 12;
Richard III (1483—1485). The most unpopular English king. He murdered his nephews, the
sons of late Edward IV, and took the throne;
After two years of his rule most representatives of English nobility united against Richard.
Even the remnants of Yorkist and Lancastrian supporters forgot their enmity in the face of
the common enemy. Cruel as people of that age were, the fact that Richard killed two
helpless children shook them deeply;
The first rebellion (1483) against him headed by Duke of Buckingham failed and the Duke
was executed;
The second rebellion against Richard was headed by Henry Tudor, duke of Richmond (of
Lancastrian branch, half-Welsh by blood). The rebellion was more than successful: Richard
was defeated in the Battle of Bosworth Field and killed. Henry was crowned king on the
battlefield as king Henry VII;
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Ascendance to the throne of Tudor laid the end of the War of Roses and Middle Ages in
England.
Beginning of a new stage in English history: the Tudor Age. Henry VII (1485—1509), the
first Tudor.
With Henry Tudor there came a new type of monarchy, absolute monarchy. The nobility was
so exhausted by the War of Roses that for a long time couldn’t make a strong opposition to
the crown.
Henry was peaceful, never wasted money and English wealth grew greatly under his rule;
Henry laid the foundation of the English merchant fleet;
England began gradually to become one of the leading trade empires in Europe;
During his reign England for the first time established its embassies in a few European
countries. Besides, Henry VII can be rightfully regarded as the father of English intelligence
service, as he inspired and developed the net of spies in foreign countries, which enabled him
to receive the necessary information promptly.
Henry VII called Parliament only seven times during his almost 24 years of rule, but he
instead introduced the King’s Council, which efficiently governed the country through
established committees.
The wise, prudent and peaceful policy of the first Tudor King gave its results: when Henry
VII died in 1509, the wealth accumulated in England exceeded 1.5 mln pounds, an
unprecedented sum for that time.
The end of Middle Ages in Britain: local courts ceased to exist, Justices of the Peace
appeared; gradually grew the middle class, consisting of gentry, yeomen, educated people,
professionals etc., first factories and companies (Merchant Adventures’, which controlled the
whole cloth export) were established, the House of Commons grew in importance
The language and literature: Middle English came to replace Old English. The best piece
of literature in Middle English was “The Canterbury Tales” by Geoffrey Chaucer (1340?—
1400). “The Canterbury Tales” laid the foundation of English fiction. The first English
printing press was set up in 1475 by William Caxton.
Henry VIII (1509—1547)
Henry VIII was wasteful with money: fought wars with Ireland, with Scotland etc., kept a
very luxurious court.
European military campaigns, in which Henry participated, were unsuccessful for England.
The King of England badly chose its allies, frequently changing them and finally lost. The
wars with Ireland also proved unsuccessful.
Henry VIII defeated Scottish army at Flodden in 1513. This defeat led to further cleavage in
Scottish nobility. Its nobility divided: some supported alliance with France, some stood for
friendship with England. Finally, the latter party prevailed, and in the second half of the 16 th
century Scotland developed into protestant country, too.
Henry wasted all the money, saved by his father. Therefore, he needed new financial
resources. One of good solutions was to use the Church wealth.
Henry’s first wife Catherine of Aragon was unable to give him an heir, therefore he made up
his mind to declare their marriage illegal and marry his new love Anne Boleyn.
In 1531 Henry VIII persuaded bishops to make him the Head of the Church of England.
After that it wasn’t difficult to persuade English judges to declare his union with Catherine
illegal. He married Anne Boleyn, who gave birth to the future Queen Elizabeth I.
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Through several acts of Parliament between 1532 and 1536 England became a protestant
state. 560 monasteries were gradually closed, their lands were sold to lords and other
purposes.
Such unusual decisions as direct interference with the choice of religion led to growth of
confidence in members of the Parliament. Therefore as a result of the religious reform the
importance of the Parliament grew.
Happiness with Anne Boleyn did not last long, however. When Henry saw that no sons could
be expected of her, he made up his mind to get rid of her and marry Queen’s lady-in-waiting
Jane Seymour. In 1536 the King accused his wife of infidelity to him (imaginary) and
supplied the court with evidences of her unfaithfulness. Anne was decapitated, her daughter
Elizabeth, like earlier her half-sister Mary, was proclaimed illegitimate and sent from the
court. Jane Seymour’s life was short either: she died soon after she gave birth to Henry’s
only son Prince Edward.
After Jane’s death Henry was married three times, one more wife ended her life on the
scaffold.
Edward VI (1547—1553), son of Jane Seymour (the third wife of Henry VIII), became
king as child and died at the age of 16
As the King was too small, the country during his reign was ruled by his governors.
On the whole, the religious reformation was being carried further.
During this reign England began direct commercial contacts with Moscovia (then ruled by
the Tsar Ivan the Terrible).
Mary I (1553—1558), the daughter of Catherine of Aragon and Henry VIII
Mary was a Catholic and it was the main problem. In addition, she married (with
Parliament’s consent) to Philip II of Spain. Luckily, the Parliament forbade Philip to be king
after Mary’s death.
Mary I began to return Catholicism and burn English protestants, what made her very
unpopular in England.
She died 5 years later, in 1558, and the crown passed to her half-sister Elizabeth.
Elisabeth I (1558—1603), the daughter of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII
The coming of Elizabeth, finally, put an end to religious chaos. In 1559 there was
summoned the parliament, which passed The Reformation Bill, consisting of The Act of
Uniformity and The Act of Supremacy. According to the Act of Supremacy, the Queen
assumed the title "Supreme Governor of the Church of England," rather than "Supreme
Head," primarily because several bishops and many members of the public felt that a woman
could not be the head of the Church. This title later became one of the official titles of all
English monarchs including Elizabeth II, regardless of their sex. Both acts created the
fundaments of the Church of England we know today
The Queen tried to avoid calling Parliament and did it only in cases of pressing necessity.
However, she had enough tact and wisdom to remain with both chambers on good terms.
Queen Elizabeth encouraged military fleet building and sea trade, not scrupling for even
piracy. Such brilliant captains as Francis Drake, John Hawkins, Walter Raleigh, Martin
Frobisher came to be known not just as daring voyagers, but also as pirates. The main targets
for English pirated were loaded with gold Spanish ships, the regular robbing and drowning
of which weakened Spain—not dangerously, but offensively.
After 1580 Queen Elizabeth finished the conquest of Ireland, started by her father, though
the methods used sowed the seeds of nationalism and future problems in Irish-English
relations.
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One of the most important events of the Elizabethan era was the defeat of the Spanish
Armada in 1588. The sea battle lasted for many days in July 1588 and ended in the drowning
of the half of Spanish ships. The remaining part of the Armada returned to Spain exhausted
and demoralized.
The defeat of the Armada led to slow decay of Spanish Empire and its political authority in
Europe.
New trading companies, charted by the Queen, were established: among them Africa
Company (1588), East India (1600) and some other;
The first English colony in America, Virginia, appeared during her reign.
The Queen had no children and therefore the only heir to throne was James VI of Scotland,
the son of Mary Stuart (executed in 1587) and an off-spring through the female line of Henry
VII.
The reign of James I (1603—1625)
Scotland, England and Ireland were united under one crown. Ireland had a government and
Parliament of its own. Flags of England and Scotland were united in one.
The relationships between monarch and Parliament were characterized by pronounced
hostility. The conflict started when the king faced the need to pay a debt inherited from
Elizabeth. James asked Parliament to raise taxes, it in return insisted on king’s cocoordinating his policy with Parliament. He refused. For eleven years, up to 1621, James
never called Parliament.
James never participated in any wars, what made his reign one of the most peaceful periods
in English history.
Under James's rule England began to found new colonies in North America, particularly
important were New England colonies, founded by puritans, seeking for religious freedom.
James I ordered a new translation of the Bible, which would become a true masterpiece.
King James's Bible was one of the factors, which contributed to formation of the national
identity.
Charles I (1625—1645), the son of James I
The rule of James, with his dramatic quarrels with Parliament, was only a prelude to the
tragic reign of Charles I.
Like his farther, Charles believed in monarch’s “divine right” to rule, what meant that King
was a supreme creature responsible only to God, but not to human laws.
For a large period Charles was a successful king, though each time he called Parliament he
quarreled with it.
The Petition of Rights was passed by Parliament in 1628. It stated that king couldn’t raise
money except by the Act of Parliament. Parliament now was to control national budget, law,
and money.
Next year (1629) Charles dissolved Parliament and up to 1637 he ruled without it.
The decisive phase of the crisis began almost unexpectedly: because of Charles's conflict
with Scotland: Charles tried to impose some Catholic practices, such as the institute of the
episcopate, on Calvinist Scotland. The Scots rebelled (The Bishop’s war) and Charles was
helpless against them. He had to consent to all their demands. He also was forced to pay
money to Scots. Need of money made Charles call the Parliament (a little later it was called
the Short Parliament). When called, it passed an Act, according to which it was to meet at
least once in three years. But Charles again was reluctant to follow the agreement and
dissolved the Short Parliament. Soon there was called The Long Parliament, which was
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finally dissolved only in 1660. The leading figure in 1640 until 1643 was John Pym, one of
the most active members of the House of Commons.
John Pym was a puritan (as Oliver Cromwell), and an undoubted leader of the Commons
until his participation in drafting the "Grand Remonstrance" of grievances in December
1641. The Remonstrance outlined over 200 points on which Parliament felt betrayed by
Charles or, more specifically, by his advisors. Radicalism of this document resulted in
division in the Commons and appearance of the Royalist and Parliamentary parties. The
document was passed by the
Commons without king's permission. John Pym was a key organizer of Parliament's needed
loans and taxes to fund their army and fight the King, and negotiated the Solemn League
and Covenant, which gained the support of Scottish Presbyterians. These two things laid
firm foundations for Parliament's success in 1645-6.
In 1641 Irish Catholics rebelled against English Protestant government and protestant
settlers. About 3000 protestants including women and children were murdered in Ulster.
Charles and English Parliament quarreled again. Charles was suspected of sympathizing with
Catholic Irishmen. Parliament united forces against the king and, inspired by Pym, started
the war against the monarch.
"The English Civil War" (1642-51), is a name for the civil wars in England and the
Scottish Civil War, which began with the raising of Charles I's standard at Nottingham
on August 22, 1642, and ended at the Battle of Worcester fought on September 3, 1651. It
is common to classify the English Civil War into three parts:
i.
The First English Civil War of 1642-1646
ii. The Second English Civil War of 1648-1649
iii. The Third English Civil War of 1649-1651.
Gradually, particularly after Pym’s death in 1643, another radical parliamentarian, Oliver
Cromwell, became a leading figure against the king.
In 1645 the Royalist army was defeated at Naseby, and the soon the First Civil War was
over. Parliament remained the only legitimate organ to rule the country.
The Second Civil War (1648) took place, when royalist uprisings started all over the country.
This time Scots, to whom Charles promised religious reform, was on the king’s side.
Cromwell’s army, which alone resisted royalist forces, opposed even by both chambers of
Parliament, put down all the uprisings and captured the king.
Charles was accused of treason and in 1649 he was judged, found guilty and executed.
The Third Civil War (1649-1651) was the war with royalist forces in Ireland which ended in
bloody massacres of Catholics and further confiscation of lands owned by Catholics.
The Republic, which formally lasted since 1649 to 1660, was headed by puritans and
thoroughly disliked by the majority of English nation, which already at the end of the 1 st
Civil War began to more and more support the royalists. The puritan laws were almost
unbelievably severe and hated by everyone in the country.
Since 1653 Oliver Cromwell ruled alone under the title of Lord Protector. When he died in
1658 he was succeeded by his son Richard. The latter was a bad ruler and he was deposed in
two years. The monarchy was restored. Children of Charles I, Charles and James, were
called back, and in 1661 Charles II was crowned a King. But, what is very important, his
power was already limited by Parliament.
The adventure of the Parliament: The Rump of the Long Parliament ruled the country
from December 1648 to 1653, when Cromwell dissolved it to take the power in his hands. It
was called once again in 1659 after the Protectorate and the Long parliament was recreated
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out of it in February 1660 only to dissolve itself in March and appoint new elections. The
Convention parliament formally invited Charles II into the country.
The true decision of English nation was Parliamentary monarchy. The monarchy was
restored with unanimous support and approval 2 years after Cromwell's death. Ironsides,
former soldiers of the Cromwellian army, greeted the new king Charles II on his way to his
palace in London.
The Restored Monarchy
Disruption of England with Roman Church under Henry VIII resulted in the following
consequences:
Growth of Parliament's importance;
Growth of independence of England as a nation;
Appearance of religious intolerance;
Beginning of cleavage in the universal Christian world;
A powerful stimulus, which led to rise in national development, England's success in foreign
policy and, finally, to its success as a world empire.
Defeat of the Spanish Armada under Queen Elizabeth's reign opened way to beginning of
British expansion and trade success. French victory over the Spanish army at the same time
on land made France another rising power in Europe. Thus, the turn of the 16 th and the 17th
centuries completely altered the alignment of forces in the world.
The Tudor age became the period of rise of England as a nation, of coming of its new
religious and ethnic identity.
Establishment of Protestantism in at least one country led to further secularization of
European social life and politics.
Coming of the Stuarts necessitated the precise definition of prerogatives of Crown and
Parliament. Throughout the 17th century the intense and dramatic argument over the nature
and ranges of prerogatives was in the focus of rapidly developing political thought. That was
the time of appearance of first politicians and political scientists in the modern sense of the
word.
Union between England and Scotland also precipitated building of a strong nation.
The Tudor and Stuart ages were the centuries of gradual transition of Mediaeval stability and
integrity to a new identity of modernity. During a long and multi-staged crisis under the
Stuarts England was slowly approaching modernity.
Charles II (1660—1685) got the nickname of “merry king”, as most of the time he was busy
with festivities and entertainments.
The early years of the new reign were marked by two major disasters: Great Plague (1665)
which killed 68000 people only in London and the Great Fire (1666), which burnt most of
old London.
Shortly after Charles's coronation on 23 April 1661, the Cavalier Parliament assembled. For
most of the time, it was busy with passing the Clarendon Code, which included a number of
Acts against non-conformists. However, Charles II who originally supported anti-nonconformists’ bills, with time was less and less inclined to continue the policy of religious
intolerance. Therefore, the tension between the Cavalier Parliament and Charles was steadily
increasing. But after the events of the forties the King no longer was strong enough to act at
his own will.
Disagreement within the political circles around the problem of inheritance was the main
(though, not the only) cause of appearance of the first political divisions, which later would
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lead to party formation. The so called Exclusionists, who opposed the possibility of a
Catholic ascending the throne, formed the core of the Country party, nicknamed by their
opponents as the Whigs (Scottish horse thieves). The supporters of James as an heir and
King’s policy as a whole formed the Court party and were nicknamed the Tories, or Irish
robbers.
Charles II, fearing that the Cavalier Parliament would pass a Bill, excluding his brother from
the list of inheritance, dissolved it in January 1679. Two further Parliaments were still more
hostile to Charles and were soon dissolved, too. The remaining years Charles II managed to
rule without Parliament.
One of the most important documents of the period was The Habeas Corpus Act 1679,
which defined and strengthened the ancient prerogative writ of habeas corpus, whereby
persons couldn’t be detained, persecuted, or tried without a proper court decision. Passing of
this statute was instigated by the Earl of Shaftesbury, who was a leader of Exclusionists, that
is, people, who tried to prevent James, the catholic brother of Charles II, from inheriting the
crown. However, considering Charles had no direct heirs, James ascended to the throne after
his death.
James II (1685—1689).
He had daughters Mary and Ann, who were protestants, so everybody hoped that after his
death one of them would be Queen. But when his son James was born in 1688 (his second
wife was Catholic), it was decided to act.
Mary together with her husband William of Orange (the Dutch) invaded England, James II
was deposed and fled finally to France. This great event was called The Glorious
Revolution, which was one of the major turning points in English history.
In 1689 both William and Mary were crowned as equal sovereigns. Before coronation they
made a solemn declaration of the rights of Parliament. In 1701 this declaration became Act
of Parliament, called Bill of Rights. Since then the monarchy in England became
constitutional.
Now it was Parliament’s prerogative to settle the succession to the throne. Parliament had the
sole right to raise taxes, absolute power over army and Navy.
William Orange after Mary’s death ruled alone. He put down Jacobite rebellion (Jacobites
were those, who supported James III, the son of James II) in Scotland and Ireland. That he
gave posts to foreigners and raised taxes made him unpopular. After his death, Mary’s sister
Ann became queen;
Queen Ann (1702--1714), the last of the Stuarts who reigned. Since the times of Queen Ann
Scottish MPs sat in Westminster.
Ann’s 17 children did not survive. Therefore it was her cousin Sophia of Hanover who was
to follow her on the throne. Sophia died in 1714 and her son George came to the throne. A
new dynasty began.
New Hanoverian dynasty came to the British throne in 1714. George I (1714—1727)
became king, because he was the only legal PROTESTANT heir to the throne after the death
of Queen Ann, who left no children.
Because of his poor English and altered situation in the country he wasn't able to influence
British politics decisively, as monarchs of old days. Now the Cabinet of ministers and primeminister began to play a leading part in the national life.
The 18th century became a revolutionary age in many ways for England: rapidly developed
all-world trade, appeared the Bank of England (1694). At the same time came the first
financial crisis (1719): the South Sea Bubble. The economic crisis, after which a lot of
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people, including aristocrats, were impoverished, made George I and his ministers
unpopular.
Growth of population led to an agricultural crisis, which instigated development of new
agricultural machinery, leading to intensive farming.
18th century became also known as the age of Industrial Revolution: there was invented
steam engine, new technologies came rapidly into being, appeared plants (machine-building,
steel etc.) instead of workshops. Enclosures of common lands, which began in the 17 th
century and continued in the 18th, led to movement of thousands of people from the country
to towns.
First British "Prime Ministers":
Robert Walpole (during the late rule of George I and then George II) and the Cabinet.
Walpole became very powerful largely due to bribes he gave to other members of the
Cabinet. However, due to his peaceful policy and low taxation, Walpole enjoyed wide public
support for many years and began to lose it only when he attempted to impose unpopular
taxes.
William Pitt (the Elder) can be called the first imperialist in modern Britain. Under his
cabinet Great Britain gloriously won the Seven Years' War (1756-1763), almost dismissing
France from the world arena and annexing huge colonies in Canada and India. It was a
continuation of the process of colonization, started as early as on the border of the 16th and
17th centuries.
William Pitt the Younger defended the idea of free trade (first developed by Adam Smith).
He introduced special measures against corruption and luxury. At the same time, to prevent
the spread of revolutionary ideas from France, he imposed very severe measures in Great
Britain: taxes on newspapers, keeping in prison without trial, monitoring of coming
foreigners. Meetings of more than 50 men were banned. Trade unions were also declared
illegal.
In 1783 England lost 13 American colonies. But already in 1788 appeared the first British
settlements in Australia.
As a result of Napoleonic wars Britain acquired Trinidad and Ceylon (1802), Tobago,
Mauritius, Saint Lucia, Malta (1814). Malacca joined the Empire in 1795, and Sir Stampford
Raffles acquired Singapore in 1819. New Zealand became British in 1840. British control
was extended to Fiji, Tonga, Papua and other Pacific islands. Hong Kong as the result of
"Opium wars" became British in 1841. Britain extended its possession to Persian Gulf and
Arabian sheikhdoms. The most important acquisitions were in Africa. The chain of British
territories there stretched from the Cape of Good Hope to Cairo. Thus Britain owned onequarter of world's territories where lived more than one-quarter of the total humanity.
The most important inner military conflict was with Jacobites, supporters of James II's son,
James Francis Edward Stuart (the "Old Pretender"). There was a series of Jacobite rebellions:
the rebellion of 1715 ("the Fifteen") was after the Old Pretender fled to France, and the
rebellion of 1719 ("the Nineteen") was so weak that it was almost farcical. The Old
Pretender's son, Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie"), however, led a much
stronger rebellion on his father's behalf in 1745. Bonnie Prince Charlie landed in Scotland in
July 1745. Many Scotsmen were loyal to his cause; he defeated British forces in September.
He then attempted to enter England, where even Roman Catholics seemed hostile to the
invasion. A British army drove the Jacobites back into Scotland. On 16 April 1746, Bonnie
Prince Charlie faced the Duke of Cumberland in the Battle of Culloden, the last battle ever
fought on British soil. The ravaged Jacobite troops were routed by the British Government
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Army. Bonnie Prince Charlie escaped to France, but many of his Scottish supporters were
caught and executed. No further serious attempt was made at restoring the House of Stuart.
At the same time it put the end to old traditional life of Highlanders.
George II (1727—1760) was the second British monarch of the House of Hanover, and the
last British monarch to personally lead his troops into battle (at Dettingen in 1743). He was
also the last British monarch to have been born outside of Great Britain.
George III (1760 - 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October
1760 until 1 January 1801, and thereafter King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland until his death. George was the third British monarch of the House of Hanover, but
the first to be born in Britain and use English as his first language. During George Ill's reign,
Britain lost many of its colonies in North America, which became the United States. Also
during his reign, the realms of Great Britain and Ireland were joined together to form the
United Kingdom.
Great Britain, in alliance with Russia, Prussia, Austria and some other countries won several
decisive battles in Napoleonic wars (Trafalgar battle in 1805, Waterloo battle in 1815). The
last one, at Waterloo, determined the victory over Napoleon and his army.
Catholic Relief Bill was passed due to Lord Canning and Lord Wellington’s efforts and
granted to Catholics in 1829.
Robert Peel, a Home Secretary by then, introduced a number of important reforms of British
criminal law: most memorable Metropolitan Police Force (Metropolitan Police Act 1829).
Policemen were nicknamed “bobbies” after Robert Peel. He also changed the Penal code
sufficiently reducing the number of crimes punishable by death.
William IV (1830—1837), the brother of George IV. A few important reforms were
passed during his short reign.
Under the Whig government of Lord Grey Reform Act 1832 was passed (after a serious
social crisis which followed when the House of Lords two times refused to accept the bill).
The Act greatly increased the number of voters and made the entire electoral system, almost
unchanged since the 15th century, more up-to-date.
The government also abolished slavery throughout the British Empire and restricted child
labour.
Queen Victoria (1837—1901), a niece of William IV. As the woman couldn’t be a ruler of
Hanover, Britain automatically lost its possessions in Hanover. Victoria ascended the throne
as an 18-year old girl. With her name people associate the peak of British Empire.
The Chartist movement which started in 1838 was a logical consequence of the Reform Act
1832 which extended the number of voters over the majority of male representatives of the
middle class, but still refused the working class people in electoral rights. The movement
originated when six Members of Parliament and six working men, including William Lovett,
(from the London Working Men's Association, set up in 1836) formed a committee, which
then published the People's Charter, containing the following objectives:
i. Universal suffrage for all men over the age of 21
ii. Equal-sized electoral districts
iii. Voting by secret ballot
iv. An end to the need for a property qualification for Parliament (so that constituencies
could return the man of their choice, rich or poor)
v. Payment for members of Parliament
vi. Annual election of Parliament
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Though the People’s Charter was refused in the House of Commons two times (1838 and
1848), finally under Benjamin Disraeli’s government the number of voters was doubled,
gradually most of other demands except annual elections were accepted.
The reign of Queen Victoria was marked by activity of several outstanding Prime Ministers.
Robert Peel has been already mentioned. Peel was also known for his abolishment of Corn
taxes which followed the Irish famine in 1841-42. With Lord Palmerston we usually
associate British aggressive foreign policy in the mid-19th century, responsible, among
others, for the Turkish war with Russia. William Gladstone, the main opponent of Disraeli, a
liberal Prime Minister. His first office as Prime Minister (1868—1874) became famous for
abolishment of the state church in Ireland in 1869, Irish land act of 1870, fundamental
reform in elementary school education, abolishment of the system of selling vacancies in the
army in 1871, introduction of secret voting in 1872. It was he, who in 1866—67 greatly
contributed to developing the electoral Reform Act into a revolutionary document. Benjamin
Disraeli, a Tory MP and Prime Minister, was the first Jew to enter the Parliament and the
only Jew to serve as Prime Minister. He was to become probably the most famous Prime
Minister of the 19th century. Though he was systematically against all reforms suggested by
Gladstone, but becoming the head of the Cabinet in 1874 began to introduce some reforms:
improvement of labour conditions at factories etc. His position was that Britain was to rule
all over the world and carefully defend its interests. D. concluded a treaty with Turks against
Russia, but in 1878 he signed a secret agreement with Russia making her serious
concessions. Later there was a disastrous and costly war with Zuluses in South Africa. All
this finally undermined his and the Tories’ authority and brought Gladstone back to power.
Further development of political parties: Liberal Party, which developed from Whigs, was
formally established in 1859. Conservative party originated from Tories (the term was first
suggested in 1830s). Development of the Trade Union movement, particularly rapid in the
second half of the 19th century, led to establishment of Labour Party at the turn of the
centuries.
Life conditions of millions of people gradually improved through a series of reforms. One of
the improvement results was that many middle-class people began to move into urban
suburbs.
Industrial development of Great Britain in the 19 th century maintained this country among
the most powerful and influential states throughout the century, though by the end of the 19 th
century its power slowly started to decay.
Appearance and rapid development of railway system played an extremely important role in
connecting the Kingdom. Railways were also built in many colonies, for example India, and
are still being exploited now. In 1863 London Underground came into being.
The net of communications, including sea steamers, trains, post, telegraph etc. began to wrap
almost half of the world.
Two major educational reforms took place within the country in the 19 th century, which
made elementary education obligatory for all children before 13. Also schools and
universities were built in British colonies, thus Britain prepared elites from the local
population. The foundation of European education in India was laid by British authorities.
The Hey Day of the British Empire. British Empire in the 19th century led a lot of wars in
its colonies and other countries in order to strengthen its authority in the world. Important
wars and military conflicts:
Indian Mutiny (First War of Indian Independence, the Sepoy Rebellion) took place in 1857,
after which British East India Company disappeared and direct rule by the British
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government (British Raj) of much of the Indian subcontinent for the next 90 years was
introduced;
The Crimean war (1854—1856) was fought between the Imperial Russia on one side and an
alliance of France, the United Kingdom, the Kingdom of Sardinia, and the Ottoman Empire
on the other. The majority of the conflict took place on the Crimean peninsula in the Black
Sea, with military conflicts also occurring in western Turkey, the Baltic Sea region and in the
Pacific Ocean.;
The Opium wars with China (1834—1843), (1856—1860) resulted in part in downfall of the
Chinese Empire, in corruption of many of Chinese citizens;
The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between Britain and the Zulus, and marked the end
of the Zulus as an independent nation;
The Boer wars. The first one, the Transvaal war, was fought from December 16, 1880 until
March 23, 1881. It was the first clash between the British and the Transvaal Boers, which
resulted in British defeat and giving the Boers self-government in the Transvaal under a
theoretical British oversight. The Second war was more successful for GB. It was also called
South African War (outside of South Africa ), the Anglo-Boer War (among some South
Africans) and in Afrikaans as the Anglo-Boereoorlog or Tweede Vryheidsoorlog (Second
War of Independence). It was fought from October 1899 until June 1902 between the British
Empire and the two independent Boer republics of the Orange Free State and the South
African Republic (Transvaal Republic). After a protracted hard-fought war, the two
independent republics were absorbed into the British Empire;
British interference with intertribal relations in Africa led to long-term negative effects, not
overcome up to our days;
English language is becoming the world language;
The British Commonwealth, which in the middle of the XX century completely substituted
the Empire, first began to appear in the end of the XIX (Canada, Australia, some other
territories).
The figure of the monarch in GB ceases to play the role of leader and ruler of the nation, but
at the same time its role as national symbol increases. Queen Victoria became a very popular
monarch, not because she was powerful, but because she was able to touch hearts of her
citizens. The book of her memoirs about their life with late Prince Albert made Queen
Victoria loved by everyone in the country.
The beginning of World War One put the end to the old world of the XIX century. Britain
which entered the War soon after it started lost about 750000 killed.
The end of World War One and the Versailles treaty, drafted by French President
Clemenceau, created preconditions for appearance of German Nazism. After the Paris Peace
Conference of 1919 the first international organisation, the League of Nations, was founded.
The League's goals included disarmament, preventing war through collective security,
settling disputes between countries through negotiation diplomacy and improving global
welfare. It united the countries-winners in the World War except the USA and it was to mark
transition to a new stage of world order development.
Ireland except for Ulster became an independent state in two successive stages: 1922 and
1937.
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Great Britain Foreign Policy in XX—XXI centuries
Today it is no longer appropriate to speak of separate European counties. Today the image of
the world is determined by such powers as the USA, EU with, probably, Russia, and
increasingly strong Asia, China growing into an economical leader.
Present-day foreign policy of the United Kingdom is the legacy of the post-war world, which
in its turn is rooted in the balance of powers, formed after World War II. But WW II is the
consequence of World War I, in particular, of the Versailles Treaty, signed in May 1919.
Versailles Treaty was humiliating and disastrous for Germany, which had to pay very heavy
reparations. Woodrow Wilson, the President of the USA, opposed this Treaty, while it was
defended by Georges Clemenceau, the forceful wartime premier of France. The conditions of
the Treaty were among the reasons, which led to political situation within Germany, which
resulted in the Nazi victory in the elections of 1933.
The Versailles Treaty also designed a plan of the League of Nations. Though Wilson was an
ardent supporter of the League of Nations, the Senate of the USA voted against the USA
joining this organization. So, The USA were not a member of the League of Nations.
When World War II began in 1939, Great Britain entered the War. It happened in September
1939 when Germany invaded Poland. It was under the cabinet of Neville Chamberlain, who
was severely accused of the “policy of Appeasement”. In 1940 the Prime-minister of Britain
became Winston Churchill who was full of decision to beat Germans.
The victory in the WW II was possible only due to the Soviet Union and the USA.
Therefore, when the War was coming to an end, there were three countries, which decided
the international order: the USSR, the USA, and the UK. Later France was included to
prevent the USSR take too big part in Europe. Division of Germany at the Yalta (three
countries, 1944) and Potsdam Conferences (four countries, 1945) finally led to division of
Europe into two zones: the zone, controlled by the USA and Great Britain , and the zone
controlled by the USSR.
In October 1945 the Organization of the United Nations was formed. Its forerunner was the
League of Nations, which was dissolved because of its inability to prevent WW II. But this
time the USA was among its founders.
About the UN: In 1945, representatives of 50 countries met in San Francisco at the United
Nations Conference on International Organization to draw up the United Nations Charter.
Those delegates deliberated on the basis of proposals worked out by the representatives of
China, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and the United States at Dumbarton Oaks,
United States, in August-October 1944. The Charter was signed on 26 June 1945 by the
representatives of the 50 countries. Poland, which was not represented at the Conference,
signed it later and became one of the original 51 member states.
After the WW II it was clear that the USA were turning into an increasingly strong world
power. It was the War which created the American World, or, as political scientists say, Pax
Americana.
Churchill’s speech in Fulton, March 5, 1946 laid the foundation to the Cold War ideology.
There were two key points in his speech: that the USA and British Empire (soon after
increasingly Commonwealth of Nations) should cling together in their policy and in
spreading democratic values in the world, and that there was the “Iron Curtain”, behind the
line of which were situated the countries of Central and Eastern Europe dominated by the
USSR.
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The Marshall Plan (called thus after the USA Secretary of State George Marshall). It
worked since 1947 to 1952. The USA supplied the countries of Western Europe with
provision, raw materials, machinery to help them to recover after the War. It made Europe
depend on the USA economically and, therefore, politically. Later France together with new
Western Germany began to play more independent role in Europe and the world as a whole.
Relative importance Great Britain retained due to rapid development of nuclear weapons.
The most serious defeat was experienced by Britain in Egypt. Up to 1956 it used to control
the Suez Canal, its sea route to India. But in 1956 Egypt decided to take up the control of the
Canal. Great Britain together with Israel and France attacked Egypt, but the USA forced GB
to withdraw its troops. From that time onward it was clear that GB was no longer a world
power.
Soon after the WW II the process of decolonization became very quick. In 1947, after a
campaign by the Congress Party, led by Mahatma Gandhi, India gained independence.
Between 1957, when Ghana became independent, and 1968, when Swaziland achieved
liberty, almost all British African colonies (except Rhodesia) became free states, though
remaining in loose association with the UK in the form of the Commonwealth members.
Since the middle of the 20th century thousands of former Empire citizens from the newly
formed free countries began to arrive into Britain seeking job and better life.
The Birth of United Europe.
Three European communities which were established within the 50s: European Coal and
Steel Community (ECSC, 1951) was organized by France, West Germany, Luxemburg,
Belgium, Netherlands (it was the fulfilment of a plan developed by a French economist Jean
Monnet, publicized by the French foreign minister Robert Schuman); the European
Economic Community (EEC), and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom).
The European Economic Community (EEC) was an organisation established (1958) by the
treaty between Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany,
known informally as the Common Market. The EEC was the most significant of the three
treaty organisations that were consolidated in 1967 to form the European Community (EC;
known since the ratification 1993 of the Maastricht treaty as the European Union, EU). The
EEC had as its aim the eventual economic union of its member nations, ultimately leading to
political union. It worked for the free movement of labour and capital, the abolition of trusts
and cartels, and the development of joint and reciprocal policies on labour, social welfare,
agriculture, transport, and foreign trade.
In 1958, the United Kingdom proposed that the Common Market be expanded into a
transatlantic free-trade area. After the proposal was vetoed by France, the UK engineered the
formation (1960) of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and was joined by other
European nations that did not belong to the Common Market. Beginning in 1973, with
British, Irish, and Danish accession to the EEC, the EFTA and the EEC negotiated a series of
agreements that would ensure uniformity between the two organisations in many areas of
economic policy, and by 1995, all but four EFTA members had joined the European Union.
Eastern European countries (Poland, Check Republic, Baltic republics etc.) are rapidly
becoming members of EU, but they are playing like UK rather in favour of the USA.
Thus, the UK only became the member of the EC in 1973, later than other most important
European countries. Since that time onward its position in the EC was rather pro-American,
than pro-European.
The UK is also the member of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). NATO was
formed soon after WW II as the result of struggle for West Berlin to protect the world from
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the global war. To counterbalance it, the USSR initiated formation of Warsaw Pact of the
Eastern bloc.
Relations of Great Britain with the USSR never were so restrained as of the USA with the
USSR. The Communist Party was never prohibited in the UK unlike the USA with its policy
of “McCarthyism” and “witch hunt”. Notwithstanding the fact that it was Winston Churchill
who was an ideologist of the “Cold War”.
Present-day foreign policy of the UK is one of the bothering factors in EU. It is always
trying to oppose France and Germany, trying to diminish the British contribution into
European budget. It retains its national currency, like some other minor European countries.
Its policy on the whole keeps following the policy of the USA, the latter being very much
interested in weakening the positions of EU.
The UK, in spite of its gradual loss of positions, remains one of the most economically
powerful countries in the world. Its GDP in 2004 was 1379367 dollars (compared to
8785218 of the USA and 3630132 of Japan). The UK is the member of Big Eight, together
with the USA, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, and Russia. Big Eight, probably later
Big Nine, will play an increasingly leading role in the world policy.
Globalizing world. Today we see a competition for the leadership between the Anglo-Saxon
world, the Asian world, and, probably, the Latin American world. The UK should be
particularly cautious in its foreign policy considering it is the centre of the Commonwealth
of Nations and the growing proportion of British citizens are former immigrants from the
Third World countries.
The worthy future of the UK lies not on the other side of the Atlantics but within Europe.
The USA policy is becoming increasingly dangerous, which may lead to its own collapse,
entailing collapse of the countries, following its policy.