How Did Charles 1 Abuse Of Power

Charles I’s abuse of power brought significant changes that impacted England because he dismissed the Parliament, created new religious laws that caused disputes and ignited the start of the English Civil War. Charles I often created new laws that were not passed through parliament and refused to take advice given by the members. During his rule he passed the ship money law during peacetime which angered many citizens. When Parliament disapproved of Charles I’s actions and, “…passed further measures displeasing to Charles, he dismissed Parliament”. The creation of this tax fortified his abuse of power because the English law prohibited the tax to have effect during peacetime; however, Charles I demonstrated he had the power to overrule the …show more content…
Furthermore, Charles I wanted to change religious concepts and move the Church of England away from Calvinism. He attempted to shift the religion into a more traditional and sacramental direction. This dramatic change was strongly unwelcomed among the people. Charles I exemplified his power and would “…punish those who refused to accept his reforms and enforce any punishment whatsoever (including torture), with the sole exception of death”. This demonstrated his absolute rule because he was able to solely change England’s religion, appoint a new bishop, and create new policies. It also showed the lawlessness of the court because citizens can be punished for disobeying Charles I’s new religious policies without trial. The change in religion created conflicts between the church and the people because citizen’s strongly disagreed with the new religious policies. It led to protests and uprising against the monarchy because they were forced to obey and had no religious freedom. Another outcome of Charles I’s actions was the English Civil War. He dismissed Parliament because the members often disagreed with his methods. But, he later reappointed