Lesson 2E.1.1

2E.1.1 Origins of the English Civil War, 1625–1642 Quiz: AQA History, Unit 16

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 2E.1.1, Origins of the English Civil War, 1625–1642: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA History (7042), Unit 16: 2E The English Revolution, 1625–1660, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What did the Petition of Right of 1628 require the Crown to respect?

    • The Crown's right to levy taxes without Parliament's consent
    • The monarch's right to dissolve Parliament at will
    • The liberties of subjects, including no taxation without consent and no imprisonment without cause
    • The Church's right to collect tithes from all landowners

  2. Which doctrine held that kings derived their authority directly from God and were accountable to God alone?

    • The ancient constitution
    • Popular sovereignty
    • Divine Right of Kings
    • Constitutional monarchy

  3. Which royal favourite, whose policies angered Parliament, was assassinated in 1628?

    • Thomas Wentworth
    • William Laud
    • George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham
    • Robert Cecil

  4. What happened to Parliament in March 1629, after members held the Speaker in his chair during a protest?

    • It granted Charles a permanent tax on wine and cloth
    • It was granted a new charter that gave it control over the royal council
    • It was dissolved, and Charles began eleven years of rule without parliament
    • It passed the Petition of Right and then reconvened the next year

  5. Which minister, as Lord Deputy of Ireland from 1632, pursued strong and centralised government?

    • Robert Cecil, Earl of Salisbury
    • Richard Weston, Lord Treasurer
    • Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon
    • Thomas Wentworth, later Earl of Strafford

  6. Which Archbishop of Canterbury promoted Arminian ideas and ceremony in the Church of England from the 1630s?

    • William Laud
    • John Whitgift
    • Richard Neile
    • Thomas Cranmer

  7. What was ship money, a tax that Charles I levied without parliamentary approval?

    • A tax on land paid by Catholic families who refused the Oath of Allegiance
    • A tax on imported silk and wine, paid by London merchants
    • A levy on coastal towns and later the whole country to pay for the navy
    • A payment made by landowners in place of military service

  8. Which document of 1638 rejected the English Prayer Book and was signed by many Scots?

    • The National Covenant
    • The Scottish Confession of 1560
    • The Solemn League and Covenant
    • The Articles of Perth

  9. Which agreement ended the First Bishops' War in June 1639?

    • The Treaty of Westminster
    • The Pacification of Berwick
    • The Oxford Agreement
    • The Treaty of Ripon

  10. How long did the Short Parliament of April 1640 last before it was dissolved?

    • About three weeks
    • About three months
    • About one week
    • About one year

  11. Which 1641 Act required that Parliament be summoned at least once every three years?

    • The Triennial Act
    • The Test Act
    • The Act of Uniformity
    • The Act of Settlement

  12. How was Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, removed from power in 1641?

    • He was killed in a duel with a Scottish commander
    • He was impeached and then died in exile in Spain
    • He was pardoned by Charles and given a seat on the Privy Council
    • He was executed after a parliamentary Act of Attainder

  13. Which document, presented to the king in November 1641, listed Parliament's grievances against his government?

    • The Petition of Right
    • The Heads of Proposals
    • The Grand Remonstrance
    • The Nineteen Propositions

  14. Which five MPs did Charles I attempt to arrest in January 1642?

    • Pym, Hampden and three of their allies
    • Monck, Hyde and two privy councillors
    • Laud, Strafford and two bishops
    • Cromwell, Fairfax and two officers

  15. Which event in Ireland in October 1641 raised fears of a Catholic threat in England?

    • The massacre of Protestant settlers at Londonderry
    • The arrival of Spanish troops at Cork
    • The Irish parliament's refusal to grant taxes
    • The Irish rising in Ulster

  16. What were the Bishops' Wars of 1639 and 1640?

    • Campaigns by Charles against the Irish Catholic rebels in Ulster
    • Campaigns by Parliament against the Pope's forces in the Low Countries
    • Wars between England and France over the Huguenot question
    • Conflicts between Charles and the Scots over the Prayer Book and the Church in Scotland

  17. Who was the leading parliamentary radical in the Long Parliament, who organised opposition to Charles I?

    • John Pym
    • Oliver Cromwell
    • John Lilburne
    • Thomas Fairfax

  18. Which best explains why Charles I's Personal Rule (1629-40) lasted for eleven years?

    • Parliament was willing to cooperate fully with the king on all religious matters
    • Charles had the support of all the Scottish Presbyterians
    • The Pope financed the king's government, so no taxes were needed
    • The Crown could raise money through prerogative taxes and courts, and avoided calling Parliament until forced to by the Scots

  19. Which best evaluates the financial policies of Charles I before 1640?

    • They relied entirely on loans from foreign banks, so the Crown never had to tax its subjects
    • They were irrelevant, because the Crown never needed money for its government
    • They were a complete success and removed the need for any future parliaments
    • They were controversial and generated resentment, and they were a key cause of the crisis that led to war

  20. Which best explains the outbreak of the First Civil War in 1642?

    • A decision by the Scots to invade England and restore Charles to absolute power
    • A French invasion of England in 1641 forced both sides into a civil war
    • A plague epidemic that killed the leaders of Parliament and the Royalist party
    • Religious, constitutional and military crises, including the failed arrest of the Five Members and the Irish rising, led to open war

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