The Root and Branch Petition was a petition presented to the

Long Parliament The Long Parliament was an Parliament of England, English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660, making it the longest-lasting Parliament in English and British history. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament, which had convened f ...

on 11 December 1640. The petition had been signed by 15,000

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

ers and was presented to the

English Parliament The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advised th ...

by a crowd of 1,500. The petition called on Parliament to abolish

episcopacy A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

from the 'roots' and in all its 'branches'.

Debate

Henry_Vane_the_Younger_by_Sir_Peter_Lely

When the petition was debated in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

, the call for radical reforms in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

was supported by Henry Vane and Nathaniel Fiennes, among others. Vane came to the front of the anti-episcopal faction, claiming that episcopacy was a corrupt doctrine "hastening us back again to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

", while Fiennes argued that the episcopacy constituted a political and religious danger to English society. The

was reluctant to act on the Root and Branch Petition, though it did ultimately refer the petition to committee in February 1641, with Vane and Fiennes being added to the committee. This petition formed the basis of the Root and Branch Bill, which was drawn up by

Oliver St John Sir Oliver St John (; c. 1598 – 31 December 1673) was an English barrister, judge and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640-53. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War. Early life St John was the son o ...

and introduced in Parliament by Henry Vane and

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

in May 1641. The first reading of the bill was moved by Edward Dering, not because he agreed with it, but because he thought the radical idea of abolishing the episcopacy would force the passage of the more moderate Clergy Act. He went on to oppose the bill while it was in committee, defending the idea of a "primitive episcopacy", which would bring bishops into line with the rest of the clergy. In one speech in the House of Commons, Dering was quoted as saying: The bitter debates that the Commons held on the Bill eventually resulted in the indication of parliamentary support for church reform. As a result, mobs started to invade churches, removing "scandalous images" and any other "signs of '' popery''". After lengthy debates, the bill was eventually defeated in August 1641, dying without a vote as more critical matters began to occupy Parliament.

Aftermath

In early 1641, the Commons attempted to pass a series of constitutional measures, but the bishops ensured they were rejected by the House of Lords. The Commons responded by introducing the Bishops Exclusion Bill, which would remove them from the House of Lords, but this was also rejected. In December 1641, riots erupted throughout

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

, which resulted in a number of deaths and prevented the bishops from attending the House of Lords. In January 1642, Charles I fled London, accompanied by many Royalist MPs and Lords; this gave the anti-episcopal faction a majority in both houses, and the bill became law in February 1642. These heightened tensions led to the outbreak of the

First English Civil War The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. An estimated 15% to 20% of adult males in England and Wales served in the military at some point b ...

in August 1642, in which many of the anti-episcopal faction joined the Parliamentarian side, while their opponents joined the Royalists. On 12 June 1643, the Parliamentarians convened the

Westminster Assembly The Westminster Assembly of Divines was a council of Divinity (academic discipline), divines (theologians) and members of the English Parliament appointed from 1643 to 1653 to restructure the Church of England. Several Scots also attended, and ...

in order to formally restructure the Church of England. Following the end of the First Civil War, the aims of the Root and Branch Bill were ultimately achieved in October 1646, when Parliament passed the ''Ordinance for the abolishing of Archbishops and Bishops in England and Wales and for settling their lands and possessions upon Trustees for the use of the Commonwealth''.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Text of the Root and Branch Petition
1640 in England 1640 in law 1641 in England 1641 in law English Civil War English laws Parliament of England Petitions 1640 works 17th-century documents Episcopacy Christianity and law in the 17th century