The Jailed Soldier-Poet With the Unfettered Soul

In the early 1600s, the British Isles were divided over questions of religion, power, and economics. King Charles I’s marriage to a Catholic rankled English Protestants, who feared that he would begin to reintroduce Catholic influences into the kingdom. In 1629, Charles dissolved Parliament and ruled by decree for 11 years, during which time he instituted taxes to help restore the navy (“ship money”). Since Parliament was not involved in levying the tax, this was seen as an overstep on the part of the king. Charles’s attempted reforms of the church further alarmed many in England.

The match to light this powder keg came, perhaps unsurprisingly, from Ireland. When rebellion broke out there, Charles and his (now reconvened) Parliament argued over who would command the forces necessary to put down the uprising. In the end, Charles raised the force and took command of it on his own, without Parliament’s approval. The gauntlet had been thrown down, and the situation quickly flared up into a series of three English Civil Wars, taking place between 1642 and 1651. The conflicts occurred between the Cavaliers, who supported the king, and the Roundheads, who supported Parliament.