What did parliament think about the power of the king?
A rather potted history is: King Charles I thought he should rule by divine right, given to him by God. Parliament thought that the people (Parliament) should govern the country and not the monarchy. Eventually, after winning the English Civil War, Parliament beheaded Charles 1 and governed the country. The monarchy was restored on Olive Cromwell's death, and King Charles II took to the throne.
Today, the monarchy remains as the Head of State, but with limited powers. Parliament governs the country, elected by the population, over the age of 18, and registered on the Electoral Role.
Why has Charles done to anger Parliament?
Firstly, Charles had married Henrietta Maria, the daughter of Henri IV of France who was a catholic. This left a suspicion amongst many of the Puritan elements within Parliament that she would influence Charles to turn England back towards Rome or at the very least convert their children, storing problems for the future.
Mainly though, Charles was arrogant, conceited and a strong believer in the divine rights of kings. He had witnessed the damaged relationship between his father and Parliament, and considered that Parliament was entirely at fault. He found it difficult to believe that a king could be wrong. He was not prepared to concilliate, persuade or compromise and regarded all opposition as, by definition, treasonous.
