Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer looks at the relationship between James I and the Puritans, focusing on the significance of foreign policy. The writer notes that the Puritan's view regarding foreign policy, although the Millenary Petition of 1603 acknowledged James's authority over all such matters, was stringently anti-Spanish. The writer maintains that in the eyes of the Puritans, Spain was something of a Catholic super-power and, along with the traditional hatred of the Spanish, they took the more extreme view that the Pope was the "Anti-Christ" and that all Catholics were irretrievably evil. The writer points out that when compared to James's tolerant attitude, this was potentially dangerous for both parties. The writer notes that before 1618, foreign policy did little to damage James's relationship with England's Puritans, who were largely conformist. The writer concludes that after 1618, however, with the increasingly serious negotiations with Spain over the match, the Puritans became far more concerned about James's tolerant attitude towards Catholicism and, in a Millenarian point of view, the potential danger of James failing to ensure a Protestant victory in the Battle of Armageddon.

From the Paper:

"James's 1618 Book of Sports was, by going against extreme Puritan Sabbatarianism, a further attempt to separate the conformist Puritans from the non-conformist individuals, which added to his lengthy list of such efforts. These endeavours, whilst casual, did help James in recognising some extremists, but also helped to further alienate some - such alienated groups would have been particularly adverse to any foreign policy sympathetic to Catholic powers (and more prepared to resort to extreme measures), which was especially dangerous because most such Puritans were by no means poor: Puritanism required, to some extent, literacy, and literacy was largely restricted to richer members of society, who were therefore more likely to be MPs, or MPs' more important constituents (as part of the Gentry). Such Puritans were, fortunately for James, rare (partly owing to their emigration) and so they had little effect. Puritans in Parliament were conformists at least to the extent that they recognised parliament, and so had little effect on foreign policy - the reasons for anti-Spanish sentiment in Parliament were varied, but had little to do with extreme Puritanism. Until 1618, there was little reason for souring the relationship between James and the majority of Puritans (specifically) through domestic policy, finance, the constitution or other areas, as the dissatisfaction that could arise from these problems were not religious issues. After 1618, however, with the increasingly serious negotiations with Spain over the Match (now with Charles, since Henry, James's older son, had died), the Puritans became far more concerned about James's tolerant attitude towards Catholicism and, in a Millenarian point of view, the potential danger of James failing to ensure a Protestant Victory in the Battle of Armageddon."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Patrick Collinson (ed.), The Sixteenth Century: 1485-1603 (Shot Oxford History of the British Isles) (OUP, 2001).

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