Category Politics & Parliaments

 The Wars of the Roses were a series of battles that were fought in England between two great houses or families. They were the House of Lancaster, whose supporters were called Lancastrians, and the House of York, whose supporters were the Yorkists. The battles were called the Wars of the Roses because the Yorkists were represented by a white rose and the Lancastrians by a red rose. This long civil war lasted from AD 1455-1485. Almost all the rich people in England chose sides, and during the wars, parliament kept changing sides.

 During the Wars of the Roses, the winning side would use what was known as acts of attainder to strip the losers of all their property. By this act, those in power could convict their political enemies of treason, without bringing them to trial. By passing a bill of attainder, parliament simply declared anyone named in the act to be guilty of treason. Parliament could then take away all their civil rights and property, Between 1459 and 1500, parliament stripped 400 persons of their property and rights using acts of attainder. However, when those that lost came into power, they would promptly reverse the act of attainder, and take back whatever they had lost.

 Henry Bolingbroke, son of John Gaunt, became Henry IV, King of England after deposing, Richard II. Parliament played an important role in making him the king, and so, Henry IV was willing to agree to its many demands. One of these demands was that the members of parliament be given the freedom to discuss, and speak on any matter without fear of arrest. In effect, the House of Commons was asking for freedom of speech, and Henry agreed to this request. So, the reign of Henry IV saw the foundation laid for one of the most scared privileges of democracy today- freedom of speech. 

Following the death of his grandfather, Edward Ill in June, 1377, Richard II was crowned King of England at the age of ten. At that time, his uncle John Gaunt was involved in a tussle for power with parliament. As he grew older, Richard, like his uncle and grandfather before him, wanted to rule without being controlled by the parliament. This angered the members of the House of Commons. To make matters worse, Richard granted favours generously to his friends and supporters. The House of Commons disapproved of this, and in 1386, it wanted to impeach both the Chancellor and Treasurer.

 Richard at first arrogantly refused to allow the impeachment- in fact he is reported to have said that he would not dismiss even a single kitchen hand at parliament’s request! However, he finally had to give in, and allow the impeachment. Two years later, parliament executed six of the king’s friends and supporters, and for the next ten years, the king was forced to co-operate with parliament. It was a bitter and humiliating lesson for the monarch, and this period saw parliament grow even stronger than before. 

 Sir Peter de Ia Mare was an English politician who is best remembered as the Presiding Officer of the House of Commons during the Good Parliament of 1376. Soon after parliament was called, its members chose Sir Peter to be their spokesman. He thus became the first man to be recognized as Speaker of the House of Commons.

 Sir Peter played an important role in the impeachment of various corrupt officials, including the close friends of the king. However, he was later imprisoned by John Gaunt, the third son of the king, to whom the king had handed over the reins of government. The impeachments were also reversed by the next parliament, which was packed with Gaunt’s supporters.

Edward II succeeded to the throne upon his father’s death in 1307. His reign was one of constant struggle with the barons. In this struggle, Edward was defeated, and thrown into prison. The question now became what to do with him. The simplest solution was to have Edward put to death. The problem was that the execution of Edward II would necessitate a trial. While there was general agreement that Edward had not paid proper attention to the needs of his subjects, his actions were not considered treas on. The situation was further complicated by the fact that legal power and the ability to set royal policy still rested with Edward even though he was in jail!

In light of these circumstances, parliament chose to act as an authority above the king. Representatives were summoned to the House of Commons, and the debate began.

Eventually, parliament agreed to remove Edward from power. However, Edward was not deposed. Rather, parliament’s decision was presented to Edward, who was asked to accept it. His abdication was announced on January 24, 1327, and it heralded the increasing power and importance of parliament in governing England. 

Edward Ill came to the throne in 1327, and from that point, the representatives of the counties who were called the knights of the shire and of the towns who were the burgesses, became a permanent part of parliament.

When parliament opened, the Chancellor would explain to all the members why they had been summoned. The parliament would then split up. The Lords and important church officials would meet with the king and his council in the council chamber, while the lower clergy, knights, and elected representatives of towns and counties or burgesses would meet in another place. Both groups would discuss the royal requests separately, and then meet again to make their speeches.

Thus, two distinct houses of parliament emerged by the 14th century. One was composed of the elected representatives of the towns and counties. This became known as the Lower House, or House of Commons. The other was composed of religious leaders and nobility. This was the House of Lords, or Upper House. There is no doubt that the early parliaments were dominated by the king and his council, and the role of the House Commons was limited to presenting petitions.