What is the English Civil War?
Q: What is the English Civil War?
A: The English Civil War was a conflict in the middle 17th century between King Charles I and Parliament of England over how England should be ruled.
Q: Who were the two sides involved in the war?
A: The two sides involved in the war were King Charles I's supporters, known as Royalists or Cavaliers, and Parliament's supporters, known as Parliamentarians or Roundheads.
Q: How long did the war last?
A: The fighting that took place in each of England, Scotland and Ireland lasted from 1639 to 1653. In England specifically, it lasted from 1642 to 1651.
Q: What other names are used for this conflict?
A: This conflict is also sometimes referred to as the Wars of the Three Kingdoms due to its involvement with three separate countries (England, Scotland and Ireland), or alternatively as the First English Civil War (1642-46), Second English Civil War (1648) and Third English Civil War (1649-51).
Q: Who won the war?
A: The Parliamentarians won the war.
Q: What happened to King Charles I after he lost?
A: After losing, King Charles I was captured, put on trial and executed in 1649. His son Charles II then tried to take over but failed and escaped abroad.
Q: Who ran England during this time without a king?
A: During this time without a king, Oliver Cromwell - a former Parliamentarian general - ran England for most of this period.
