King Charles I’s relationship with the Puritans in Parliament deteriorated as they pressed relentlessly for religious reform. His marriage to the French Catholic Queen, Henrietta Maria, further aggravated his rift with the radical Protestants. When he heard rumors that Parliament members encouraged Scotland to rebel against his religious authority, Charles was incensed. On January 3, 1642, his Attorney General, Sir John Bankes, read articles of impeachment against five elected officials: John Pym, John Hampden, Denzil Holles, Arthur Haselrig, and William Strode. Since no one in Parliament supported the charges, the King himself marched to the House of Commons the following day with dozens of armed guards to arrest the five men.
Taking over the speaker’s chair, the King called out the suspects’ names, one by one, but no one responded. Charles looked to Speaker William Lenthall for help, but Lenthall merely bowed and said he could only reply as directed by the House of Commons, and he "cannot give any other answer than this."
Realizing his enemies had slipped away, the King said, "I see the birds have flown," and he stomped out. London's officials also refused to help the King hunt down the wanted men. When rumors circulated that Charles was sending soldiers into the city to force cooperation, men poured in to defend London against the King's army, fueling the fire for an approaching civil war and royal execution.
Charles' actions triggered an unrest that rippled across the Atlantic to the American colonies, triggering a desire for greater economic and political autonomy, and ultimately an independence from the English crown.
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“He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.”
(Luke 1:52; 1599 Geneva Bible)
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