The Civil War
The nutshell
The Civil War was fought in the 1640s between King Charles I and Parliament. Parliament won, King Charles I was put on trial and executed, and for a few years England had no king at all.
Every fact on this page comes from UK Parliament's own history pages and the National Archives. Each source tag — like Parl — opens where a fact comes from.
The basics
What the Civil War was
The Civil War was a fight over who should hold power in England. On one side stood supporters of King Charles I. On the other stood supporters of Parliament.Parl The two sides fought in a series of campaigns between 1642 and 1651.Parl
Why it started
King Charles I believed a king could rule without asking Parliament. Parliament believed it had a real say, above all over taxes. Arguments about money, power and religion grew until the two sides went to war in 1642.Parl
How it ended
Parliament's side won. In January 1649 King Charles I was put on trial and then executed.Parl Parliament abolished the monarchy, and for about eleven years England was a republic with no king.Parl
What happened next
The republic did not last. In 1660 the son of Charles I returned as King Charles II, and the monarchy came back.Parl By then Parliament had changed. UK Parliament describes how it went from a body that met only when the King wished into one that had overthrown and executed a king.Parl
- The Civil War was a struggle between supporters of King Charles I and supporters of Parliament over who should hold power
- King Charles I was put on trial and executed in 1649, and England became a republic with no king for about eleven years
- The monarchy returned in 1660, when the son of Charles I became King Charles II
- "The Civil War" usually means the wars of 1642 to 1651, also called the English Civil Wars or the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, because the fighting reached England, Scotland and Ireland
- It was not a single battle — the fighting came in separate rounds across almost ten years
- Oliver Cromwell was a leader on Parliament's side and later ruled the republic as Lord Protector, never as a crowned king
The deep end6 min
The quarrel over power
The heart of the Civil War was a quarrel over power. King Charles I held that a monarch could govern by royal prerogative — the Crown's own authority — without the advice and consent of Parliament. Parliament held that it had a necessary part in government, above all in agreeing the taxes the Crown needed. UK Parliament records that this clash, sharpened by arguments over religion and money, broke into open war in 1642.Parl
Three kingdoms, not a single battle
The fighting was not one event. War ran between King and Parliament in a series of campaigns from 1642 to 1651, reaching across England, Scotland and Ireland. For that reason the conflicts are also known as the English Civil Wars or the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.Parl The National Archives describes the whole period as a conflict involving King Charles I, Parliament, the people and Oliver Cromwell.TNA
The trial and the republic
Parliament's forces won. In January 1649 King Charles I was brought to trial in Westminster Hall, found guilty, and beheaded on 30 January 1649. Parliament then passed Acts that abolished the monarchy and the House of Lords, and declared England a Commonwealth — a republic run without any king.Parl
Why it still matters
The republic did not survive. In 1660 the son of Charles I returned as King Charles II, and the monarchy was restored.Parl But the balance of power had shifted. UK Parliament describes how, across these years, Parliament changed from a body that met only when the King wished into one that had overthrown and executed a king.Parl That change is one reason the Civil War sits in the story of how the UK reached the Parliament it has today.