3 Preaching, peace and providence at royalist Oxford
-
William White
Abstract
This chapter looks at how preachers at Oxford, the royalist capital, responded to the various attempts of king and parliament to negotiate a peace settlement during the First Civil War. It takes as its principal case study those preached to the Oxford Parliament during the spring of 1644. It is argued that these should be understood not so much as appeals to public opinion or responses to the printed polemic of parliamentarian adversaries, but as interventions in a fractious debate about the future direction of royalism and the acceptable terms of any peace settlement with parliament. Court divines at Oxford, desperate to prevent the lands, bishops or liturgy of the Church of England from being sacrificed for the sake of a swift peace, attempted from the pulpit to steer the more moderate MPs of the Oxford Parliament away from thoughts of a settlement and towards the pressing issue of supply. The chapter therefore highlights another dimension of the royalist clergy’s bid to drive forward the war effort from the pulpit, while at the same time strengthening the case for viewing preachers as autonomous agents who sought to mould the king’s cause in their own image.
Abstract
This chapter looks at how preachers at Oxford, the royalist capital, responded to the various attempts of king and parliament to negotiate a peace settlement during the First Civil War. It takes as its principal case study those preached to the Oxford Parliament during the spring of 1644. It is argued that these should be understood not so much as appeals to public opinion or responses to the printed polemic of parliamentarian adversaries, but as interventions in a fractious debate about the future direction of royalism and the acceptable terms of any peace settlement with parliament. Court divines at Oxford, desperate to prevent the lands, bishops or liturgy of the Church of England from being sacrificed for the sake of a swift peace, attempted from the pulpit to steer the more moderate MPs of the Oxford Parliament away from thoughts of a settlement and towards the pressing issue of supply. The chapter therefore highlights another dimension of the royalist clergy’s bid to drive forward the war effort from the pulpit, while at the same time strengthening the case for viewing preachers as autonomous agents who sought to mould the king’s cause in their own image.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front Matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- Abbreviations x
- Introduction 1
- 1 The pulpit and public politics, 1640–2 16
- 2 Royalist preachers and the First Civil War 47
- 3 Preaching, peace and providence at royalist Oxford 72
- 4 Sermons and the politics of counsel, 1646–51 98
- 5 Resisting the republican regime 134
- 6 Apostacy, loyalty and the Interregnum pulpit 160
- 7 ‘If the king will not comply’ 186
- 8 Hearing and reading royalist sermons 211
- Conclusion 242
- Bibliography of manuscript sources 247
- Index 250
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front Matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- Abbreviations x
- Introduction 1
- 1 The pulpit and public politics, 1640–2 16
- 2 Royalist preachers and the First Civil War 47
- 3 Preaching, peace and providence at royalist Oxford 72
- 4 Sermons and the politics of counsel, 1646–51 98
- 5 Resisting the republican regime 134
- 6 Apostacy, loyalty and the Interregnum pulpit 160
- 7 ‘If the king will not comply’ 186
- 8 Hearing and reading royalist sermons 211
- Conclusion 242
- Bibliography of manuscript sources 247
- Index 250
