The Main Reason for the Defeat of the Royalist Cause Was the Leadership of Charles L

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The Main Reason For The Defeat Of The Royalist Cause In The First Civil War Was The Leadership Of Charles l – Assess The Validity Of This View With Reference To The Years 1642-1646. In the period up to the outbreak of civil war in England, there were several reasons as to why the Royalist Cause and Charles were defeated. Many of his subjects came to question whether he was a monarch who could be trusted to rule within the ambiguous bounds of the unwritten ancient constitution. Firstly, Charles alone contributed heavily to the defeat of the Royalist cause. He was hampered by a speech defect which made communication difficult and communication with Parliament suffered as a direct result. Many ideas and thoughts needed interpretation because of this. He had a shy personality which as a leader wasn’t a good attribute to attain. Some people argue that he was weak in that he couldn’t understand criticism or any ideas that didn’t match his own. Once he had an idea, to him that was final and the only “right” idea. Charles as a military leader also added to the defeat. He made himself commander in chief and while this may have strengthened his position if he could provide strong leadership and bring his generals and politicians together, it also meant that he became responsible for his defeat. Good advice was never acted upon. Military failure also played a role in the defeat of the Royalist cause. Charles failed to take advantage of the strengths of his position. After the stale mate at Edgehill, Charles had the opportunity to proceed to London but after slow progress he had to turn back to Turnham Green. Progressing to London would have allowed Charles l greater opportunities. It houses many of the greatest ports and had great advantages for whoever had charge of
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