The covenant – eventually signed by 600,000 people – stated that as long as the king protected the Presbyterian Church, the Presbyterian Church would protect the king. It led to the Church drawing up a ‘National Covenant’ in part written by the theologian Alexander Henderson and including amongst its prominent signatories the Marquis of Montrose. It caused a riot, with one woman, Jenny Geddes, purportedly throwing her stool at the minister and shouting ‘daur ye say Mass in my lug?’
The more headstrong Charles, abetted by Archbishop William Laud, sought to eradicate the differences by imposing his own prayer books on the Kirk in 1637.
The Church maintained that while the King had authority in matters temporal, they had authority in matters spiritual and often where one ended and the other began was a point of serious contention.Īs with James, the idea of being one King ruling over two different systems of religion irked Charles. In particular he resented the Kirk’s overbearing attitude: Andrew Melville, a previous Moderator, had upbraided James as ‘God’s silly vassal’. This was a bizarre change of fortunes, since it was the Scots who had catapulted the country from political tension to armed conflict in the first place.Ĭharles, who had of course been born in Scotland, had an even more tumultuous relationship with the Kirk than his father, James VI and I. His military shattered, Charles resorted to guile.
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