In return for providing Charles I with the finance he
needed for war in Scotland, the Parliament of 1640
passed several acts intended to ensure a Parliament
would sit regularly, and for reasonable periods. Charles'
response was to make it clear he considered these
measures temporary - and that he would use force to
assert his God-given rights.
In turn, Parliament began to make progressively more radical
demands - control over the appointment of ministers, for example. In
a climate of growing mistrust, the two sides drifted apart, gathering their own supporters and armies. Open warfare broke out in 1642, after Charles first attempted to impeach five MPs by force (only to be refused by Speaker Lenthall) and then rejected further demands for reform in the
