Charles I: The Death of a King and the Birth of a Superpower

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The eradication of Charles I from power in England allowed the country to become the major superpower of the world by the end of the 18th century. A superpower is defined as an extremely powerful nation, especially one capable of influencing international events and and policies of less powerful nations. Many common characteristics are prominent when concluding whether a country is a superpower or not, including an educated populace, a healthy economy, a rich culture, a strong military, a large land mass, and a stable government. The beheading of Charles directly relates to each of these aspects of a superpower, through one way or another. Scientific discoveries resulting from the push for education after Charles I’s death and their benefits to the economy and culture accommodate the educational, economical, and culture characteristics of a superpower. The military expansion, conquering of new lands and spread of culture after Charles accommodates the military and land mass aspects. And finally, Parliament’s eventual takeover of the government accommodates the stable government necessity of a superpower.
To start, the death of Charles I led to scientific discoveries in England, which helped build the economy and establish the superpower status of England. During his reign, Charles I constantly oppressed ideas that went against the Church of England due to his religious ideals and belief that he could impose religious conformity across all of his lands. Between 1650 and 1659, after Charles’ beheading, both the supporters of Cromwell and the defeated monarchists turned to science and technology for its potential economic and social benefits. The commonwealth made it a priority to pay off their debts from the civil war in any way...

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...nts would not have happened if Charles I had not been eradicated from the throne of England.

Works Cited

Barone, Michael. Our First Revolution. New York: Crown Publishers, 2007
Breen, T.H. http://www.nytimes.com/books/97/10/26/reviews/971026.26breent.html http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/what-is-a-superpower Jardine, Lisa. http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/empire_seapower/jardineih_01.shtml
Kenyon, J.P. Stuart England. New York: St. Martin’s Press Inc., 1978
Miller, John. The Stuarts. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004
Morgan, Kenneth. The Oxford History of Britain. New York: Oxford University Press Inc., 2010
Uglow, Jenny. A Gambling Man: Charles II's Restoration Game. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2009.
Wenzlhuemer, Roland J. "Empire, British." Encyclopedia of Western Colonialism since 1450 Vol. 1. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2007

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