Northwest Europe (1636–1647 CE): Civil Strife, Colonial Expansion, and Intellectual Achievement

England: Civil War and Turmoil

The tensions between Charles I and Parliament culminated in open conflict with the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642. The king's authoritarian policies, religious controversies, and resistance to parliamentary authority led to a brutal struggle between Royalists (supporters of the monarchy) and Parliamentarians (advocates of parliamentary governance). Prominent leaders such as Oliver Cromwell emerged, significantly influencing the Parliamentarian cause. Battles such as Edgehill (1642), Marston Moor (1644), and Naseby (1645) were pivotal, ultimately resulting in Charles's defeat and subsequent imprisonment.

Ireland: Rebellion and Conflict

In 1641, Ireland erupted into rebellion as the Catholic Gaelic and Old English populations sought to reverse decades of plantation policies and Protestant domination. This uprising swiftly escalated into the Irish Confederate Wars, intertwining with the broader conflicts across Britain and Ireland, further complicating the turbulent political landscape.

Scotland: Covenanters and Wars of the Three Kingdoms

Scotland, deeply affected by Charles I's religious policies, witnessed the outbreak of the Bishops' Wars in 1639 and 1640, driven by Presbyterian Covenanters resisting Anglican influence. By 1643, Scotland allied formally with the English Parliamentarians through the Solemn League and Covenant, playing a critical role in shaping the outcome of the civil wars across the British Isles.

Scandinavia: Denmark-Norway’s Continuing Struggles

Christian IV struggled to restore Danish influence following earlier military defeats. Although he pursued internal reforms and fortifications, Denmark-Norway remained politically weakened, grappling with ongoing economic and military setbacks that constrained its ambitions in European affairs.

Maritime and Colonial Developments

The English East India Company expanded its commercial presence in India significantly during this period. The hospitality initially extended by the Mughal emperor Jahangir was further consolidated under his successor Shah Jahan, resulting in increased English influence and the expansion of trade networks, particularly in commodities like cotton, silk, indigo, and tea. Concurrently, English colonial ventures in North America continued to flourish, with Massachusetts Bay Colony and other New England settlements experiencing substantial growth, laying foundational structures for future American colonial expansion.

Scientific and Intellectual Advances

The period remained intellectually vibrant, marked by ongoing developments in natural philosophy and science. The legacy of Francis Bacon’s inductive methods continued to inspire researchers, while significant strides were made in mathematics and astronomy. In 1637, René Descartes published Discourse on Method, greatly influencing European thought, including intellectual circles in Northwest Europe.

Cultural Flourishing Amidst Conflict

Despite political upheaval, cultural life in Northwest Europe persisted robustly. Literature thrived, with the emergence of works such as John Milton’s early poetry, reflecting the intense religious and political debates of the era. Music and theater continued to evolve, capturing the complexities and turbulence of contemporary society.

Legacy of the Era

By 1647 CE, Northwest Europe was profoundly transformed. England stood on the precipice of a republic as Charles I awaited trial and the balance of power shifted decisively toward Parliament. Ireland and Scotland remained entangled in complex conflicts tied to broader struggles across the British Isles. Meanwhile, the region's cultural and intellectual advancements set the stage for future developments, marking the era as one of profound transition.

The Confederates send around fifteen hundred men under Alasdair MacColla to Scotland in 1644 to support the royalists there under James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, against the Covenanters, sparking a Civil War—their only intervention on the Royalist side in the civil wars in Britain.

The Confederates receive modest subsidies from the monarchies of France and Spain, who want to recruit troops in Ireland but their main continental support comes from the Papacy.

Pope Innocent X strongly supports Confederate Ireland, over the objections of Mazarin and the Queen, Henrietta Maria, who in 1644 had moved to Paris.

Innocent had received the Confederation's envoy in February 1645 and resolved to send a nuncio extraordinary to Ireland, Giovanni Battista Rinuccini, archbishop of Fermo, who had embarked from La Rochelle with the Confederacy's secretary, Richard Bellings.

He had taken with him a large quantity of arms and military supplies and a very large sum of money.

These supplies mean that Rinuccini has a big influence on the Confederate's internal politics; he is backed by the more militant Confederates such as Owen Roe O'Neill.

Rinuccini is received at Kilkenny with great honors, asserting that the object of his mission is to sustain the King, but above all to help the Catholic people of Ireland in securing the free and public exercise of the Catholic religion, and the restoration of the churches and church property, but not any former monastic property.

The nuncio considers himself the virtual head of the Confederate Catholic party in Ireland.

The Supreme Council of the Confederates has come to an agreement with Ormonde, signed March 28, 1646.

Under its terms, Catholics will be allowed to serve in public office and find schools; there are also verbal promises of future concessions on religious toleration.

There is an amnesty for acts committed in the Rebellion of 1641 and a guarantee against further seizure of Irish Catholic land.

The Supreme Council also puts great hope in a secret treaty they have concluded with the Earl of Glamorgan on the King's behalf, which promises further concessions to Irish Catholics in the future.

However, there is no reversal of Poynings Law which subordinates the Irish Parliament to the English one, no reversal of the Protestant domination of Parliament and no reversal of the main plantations, or colonization, in Ulster and Munster.

Moreover, regarding the religious articles of the treaty, all churches taken over by Catholics in the war will have to be returned to Protestant hands and public practice of Catholicism is not guaranteed.

In return for the concessions that are made, Irish troops are to be sent to England to fight for the royalists in the English Civil War.

However, the terms agreed are not acceptable to either the Catholic clergy, the Irish military commanders—notably Owen Roe O'Neill and Thomas Preston—or the majority of the General Assembly.

Nor is Rinuccini the papal nuncio party to the treaty, which leaves untouched the objects of his mission; he had induced nine of the Irish bishops to sign a protest against any arrangement with Ormonde or the king that will not guarantee the maintenance of the Catholic religion.

Parliament ultimately achieves the aims of the Root and Branch Bill in October 1646, when it passes the Ordinance for the abolishing of Archbishops and Bishops in England and Wales and for settling their lands and possessions upon Trustees for the use of the Commonwealth.

Taken and ransacked by Royalist troops in 1644 after the Battle of Aberdeen, it had been stormed two years later by a Royalist force under the command of Marquis of Huntly.

Northwest Europe (1648–1659 CE): Regicide, Commonwealth, and Maritime Expansion

England: Execution and Commonwealth

The conflict between Charles I and Parliament reached its dramatic conclusion with the trial and execution of the king in 1649, an unprecedented event that shocked Europe. Following the execution, the monarchy was abolished, and England became a republic known as the Commonwealth, governed initially by the Rump Parliament and later dominated by the military leadership of Oliver Cromwell, who assumed the title Lord Protector in 1653. Cromwell's rule saw strict moral and religious policies enforced, including the suppression of theaters and other forms of public entertainment. The principal members of the House of Stuart lived in exile in mainland Europe during this period.

Ireland: Cromwellian Conquest

In Ireland, Cromwell undertook a brutal military campaign from 1649 to 1653, known as the Cromwellian Conquest, aiming to suppress Catholic resistance and consolidate English rule. The campaign featured notorious sieges and massacres, notably at Drogheda and Wexford in 1649. This conquest resulted in large-scale confiscation of Catholic-owned lands and the transplantation of populations, dramatically altering the demographic and socio-political landscape of Ireland.

Scotland: Conflict and Incorporation

Scotland resisted the English Commonwealth, crowning Charles II as King of Scots in 1651. However, English forces decisively defeated Scottish royalist armies at the Battles of Dunbar (1650) and Worcester (1651), forcing Charles II into exile and bringing Scotland under direct English control. Scotland was formally united with England under the Commonwealth regime, a union deeply resented by many Scots.

Maritime and Colonial Expansion

The English East India Company continued its aggressive commercial expansion in Asia, fortifying its presence along key trade routes. By 1658, the company secured greater autonomy and territorial control, significantly advancing its trading privileges in Bengal under Mughal patronage. Concurrently, English maritime power was further solidified through the First Anglo-Dutch War (1652–1654), which challenged Dutch dominance in global trade, ultimately securing advantageous trade terms for England despite heavy losses on both sides. The East India Company established numerous factories, including prominent forts such as Fort William in Bengal, Fort St George in Madras, and Bombay Castle, facilitating their dominance in trade.

Scandinavia: Shifting Alliances and Territorial Adjustments

Denmark-Norway under Frederick III grappled with ongoing military and economic pressures. The kingdom suffered a significant territorial loss following the Treaty of Roskilde (1658) to Sweden, which ceded territories such as Skåne, Halland, and Blekinge, marking a substantial reduction in Danish territorial control.

Scientific and Intellectual Developments

The Royal Society, established in the previous era, continued to foster significant scientific discourse and experimentation. Innovations in natural philosophy advanced, driven by the empirical methodologies championed by figures such as Robert Boyle, whose research into chemistry and physics marked substantial scientific progress. Intellectual debate intensified around governance, law, and society, informed heavily by the turbulent political context.

Cultural and Literary Expression

Literary and cultural expressions mirrored the political turbulence of the era. The era saw the continued productivity of John Milton, who published significant political tracts advocating republicanism and freedom of conscience. His seminal political treatise, Areopagitica (1644), argued eloquently against censorship, while his later poetry began to develop the foundations for his epic masterpiece, Paradise Lost.

Religious and Social Context

The Jews of England were no longer subject to any restrictions on their activities or particular obligations regarding residence or clothing from this period onward. Organized primarily into two communities, the Portuguese-origin Sephardim engaged in trade with Latin America, while the Ashkenazim, originating from Central and Eastern Europe, specialized in trade with India.

Legacy of the Era

By 1659, Northwest Europe had experienced radical political transformation and social upheaval. England's unprecedented republican experiment was increasingly unstable, as Cromwell’s death in 1658 left the Commonwealth vulnerable. Ireland endured deep and lasting scars from Cromwellian rule, and Scotland chafed under imposed union. Maritime and colonial successes positioned England to emerge as a significant global power, shaping future trajectories of empire and commerce. This era laid complex foundations for subsequent restoration, revolution, and imperial expansion.

The year 1648 sees the collapse of Stuart power.

The trial and execution of Charles I by the English Parliament in 1649 begins eleven years of republican government known as the English Interregnum.

Scotland initially recognizes the late King's son, also called Charles, as their monarch, before being subjugated and forced to enter Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth by General Monck's occupying army.

The principal members of the House of Stuart live in exile in mainland Europe during this period.

The Levellers, a major faction on the Parliamentarian side who have come to prominence at the end of the First English Civil War, emphasize popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law, and religious tolerance, all of which had been expressed in the manifesto Agreement of the People for constitutional changes to the English state issued from 1647.

Leveller views and support are found in the populace of the City of London and in some regiments in the New Model Army.

After amassing signatories including about a third of all Londoners, the Levellers' largest petition, entitled "To The Right Honovrable The Commons Of England", is on September 11, 1648, presented to Parliament.