Regulating religion and morality in the King's armies, 1639-1646

grantor: University of TorontoThe centrality of religion and piety has traditionally been attributed by historians of the Civil Wars to the Parliamentarians, and especially to the New Model Army. This dissertation documents the commitment to religion and morality in the King's armies. A close textual analysis of printed military regulations, royal proclamations, and injunctions establishes the official religious culture in the King's armies from 1639 to 1646. It describes a royal/episcopal tradition featuring a type of piety in which reverence for the liturgy and sacraments of the Church of England were emphasized. After 1643, this religious culture showed an increasingly pronounced devotion to the Eucharist. One notable feature of the religious culture of the King's armies was the likelihood of a de facto tolerance of Roman Catholics. This finding reinforces Newman's assessment of Catholic involvement in the Royalist armies. The shift to a greater Eucharistic focus in the religious culture outlined in the attempts at regulation of the King's army coincide with a change in genre, from military regulations alone, to proclamations and injunctions as well. It also coincides with the splintering of the Royalist Council of War and the rise of the Courtier Councillors previously noted by Ian Roy. With regard to morality, the King's armies of the Bishops' Wars conformed generally to the campaign to reform manners variously described by Spufford and Underdown. In the Civil Wars, the Royalist army notably departed from the precedent of the Bishops' Wars regulations and eliminated the purely sexual offenses of adultery and fornication. Swearing and the provocation of duels were perennial concerns throughout the period. Unanticipated results of this investigation include the discovery of the regulatory foundation of the British Army Chaplains' Corps and many details about attitudes to and the status of women in the King's armies.Ph.D