John Pym

1. John Pym You are an experienced and confident Member of Parliament who has become well known for questioning the actions of King Charles. You firmly believe in the importance of Parliament and think it is ridiculous that Charles makes decisions without consulting anyone but his closest friends and advisers. You regularly criticise his friend and adviser Thomas Winter, he is a dangerous influence on Charles. You have also been known to criticise those members of the Church who argue Charles was chosen to rule by God. The King is not some divine (god-like) figure, he must consult Parliament before he takes actions.

2. William Strode You are a Member of Parliament. You believe that the power of the King must be controlled. You regularly speak out against King Charles (and particularly his random decisions about when to tax the people). You once became so angry in Parliament another politician had to hold you down to your chair! Charles knows that you have openly disagreed with him and had tried to send you to his Star Chamber. This only made you more angry. The King must listen to the views of Parliament instead of just the opinions of his corrupt and dangerous advisers, like Thomas Winter.

3. Denzil Holles You are a rich baron, writer and Member of Parliament. You have for a long time believed that the power of the King must be controlled. You regularly speak out against King Charles (and particularly his Ship Tax). Charles knows that you have openly disagreed with him and sent you to his Star Chamber. You spent a year in jail and had to pay a heavy fine. You have now made your way back into the House of Commons (Parliament) and together with a group of fellow MPs have started drawing up a list of rules and that King Charles will be asked to follow.

4. John Hampden You are an experienced Member of Parliament and come from one of the most powerful families in English history. You were one of the first men in Parliament to questions the actions of King Charles I but you have gradually managed to convince many others around you that things should change! You particularly hate something called Ship Money – where Charles is unfairly taxing people across the country. You are also very critical of the changes Charles and Laud (the king’s archbishop) are trying to make to the Church. You will do anything necessary to make sure the voice of Parliament is always heard.

5. Arthur Haselrig You are a rich baron and Member of Parliament. You have for a long time believed that the power of the King must be controlled. You regularly speak out against King Charles and particularly his religious changes. You are a Puritan – which means you are a very strict Protestant who believes worship should be as simple and pure as possible. You are concerned Charles may start listening to Archbishop Laud – a man who you think wants to make the church more Catholic. You will do anything to prevent this.

6. King Charles IKing of England, Scotland and Ireland You are the son of King James I and became King yourself in 1625. Like your father, you firmly believe you were chosen by God Almighty to rule over this land and you therefore need to answer to no-one but God himself. Members of Parliament must obey your laws and your authority, and if they fail to obey, you will have them sent to the Star Chamber (your own law court). You are a Protestant but have recently married a Catholic Princess, Henrietta Maria (an unpopular decision among some of your people). You live an extremely expensive lifestyle and often find yourself in need of more money. You are a stubborn, confident and confrontational man who only takes advice from your closest circle of friends.

7. Oliver Cromwell You are a fairly wealthy man living in the Cambridgeshire countryside with your wife and nine children. You live a quiet life looking after your land, though you have recently become the Member of Parliament for Huntingdon. You enjoy this because you can voice the wishes and needs of the people from the Fens. You became a Puritan a few years ago which means you are a very strict Protestant. You believe people should live simple lives free from gambling, drinking too much and luxury. The church and worship should also be as simple and pure as possible – not like in the Catholic Church with all their statues and stained glass windows.

8. Henrietta Maria You are a French Princess who married King Charles I of England in 1625 when you were just a teenager. You are a strict Catholic and refuse to give up your Catholic religion just because England is an Anglican (Protestant) country. You and your husband are extremely close, he sympathises with a lot of your Catholic beliefs and you are very influential over him. You despise a group of people in England known as Puritans – they are very strict Protestants who believe in simple, pure worship (the opposite of Catholics!). Your religion might have made you unpopular with some of the English people, but what does that matter? . . .as long as the King listens to you.

9. Archbishop Laud You are the Archbishop of Canterbury and, therefore, one of the most powerful men in the Church of England (the Protestant church). You were given your job by King Charles I, a close friend of yours and someone you regularly advise. You believe that the church should introduce more rituals and traditions. People who follow your ideas have become known as Laudians. You hope to use your friendship with Charles to your advantage and spread your ideas across Scotland too. You despise those people that argue the church should be extremely simple and pure.

10. Joan O’Donnell You are a wealthy woman living in Omagh in Ireland. Your family used to own a great deal of land in the area but you have gradually lost your land to English settlers. Since Queen Elizabeth I gained control of Ireland more and more English people have moved over. Not only have they started to take your land but they brought with them their Protestant beliefs. You have been a Catholic all your life and have raised your children to be Catholics too. You hope King Charles will be more accepting of the Catholics than his father James, who forced you to pay fines when you didn’t go to the Protestant church, prevented you from holding your own Catholic services or even have your children baptised.

11. Patrick O’Donnell You are a wealthy man living in Omagh in Ireland. Your family used to own a great deal of land in the area but you have gradually lost your land to English settlers. Since Queen Elizabeth I gained control of Ireland more and more English people have moved over. Not only have they started to take your land but they brought with them their Protestant beliefs. You have been a Catholic all your life and have raised your children to be Catholics too. You hope King Charles will be more accepting of the Catholics than his father James, who forced you to pay fines when you didn’t go to the Protestant church, prevented you from holding your own Catholic services or even have your children baptised.

12. Sir Arthur Francis You are wealthy and powerful man living in London. You are from one of the most important families in England and your father was a close friend of old King James. As a result you have known his son, King Charles, for many years and he recently chose you to be one of his ministers. This means that you are able to attend private meetings with him and advise him on ruling the country. If you have enemies you can encourage Charles to protect you by putting them on trial.

13. Thomas WentworthEarl of Strafford You are an extremely powerful political figure in England. You have always admired King Charles’s strength and refusal to bow down to Parliament’s demands (unlike that weak James, Charles’ father). Charles noticed your loyalty and you have become one of his senior advisers, and have even been put in charge of controlling Ireland. It might make you unpopular with some but you will do anything you can to ensure the Crown remains more powerful than Parliament.

14. Prince Rupert You are the Duke of Bavaria (a part of Germany) a soldier, a writer and an artist. You are also the nephew of Charles I, the King of England You grew up in the royal family and believe the power of the King should never be questioned. As a teenager you were very rebellious and were known as ‘Rupert the Devil’- however you have grown up to be a strong and skilful soldier. By the age of 20 you had already led battles in France, Spain and the Netherlands.

15. Lady Swaffham You are a wealthy woman living in the Norfolk countryside, on the east coast of England. Your husband owns a lot of land in the area so you do not have to work for living. You believe in the Divine Right of Kings. Yes, Charles spends a lot of money but he is the King and was chosen to rule by God. What he decides must be the right decision. You are a Protestant who always attends church on a Sunday.

16. Lord Swaffham You are a wealthy lord living in the Norfolk countryside, a county on the east coast of England. You own a lot of land in the area and employ several servants. You believe in the Divine Right of Kings. Yes, Charles spends a lot of money but he is the King and was chosen to rule by God. What he decides must be the right decision. You are a Protestant who always attends church on a Sunday.

17. Clare Potter You live in York, one of the few big cities in England. You are married and have four children. Your home is extremely cramped and you do your best to keep it clean but it doesn’t make much difference. You work in the market place where you sell fresh fish that has been brought from the ports on the coast. Most people in your town are fierce supporters of the King and believe he was sent to rule over England by God. You are a Laudian – which means you are a Protestant but agree with the idea of making the church more traditional and bringing back some of the old rituals, like colourful clothes for priests and stained glass windows.

18. Sarah Winkless You are a young woman living in London. You are not yet married and have no children. You share a room in a cramped house with over 15 other people. You have started working in a local tavern serving drinks. Local men often gather there to talk politics and gamble. Many of the men have started to argue about the King and Parliament. You aren’t very well educated and struggle to understand what all the fuss is about. You try your best to attend the nearby church (Protestant) every Sunday.

19. Archie McHatten You have lived in the highlands of Scotland all your life where you work as a carpenter. You have a wife and two sons, one of whom has started working for you. You are a Presbyterian – which is the main Protestant church in Scotland. You have encouraged your children to follow the Presbyterian church too. You are happy for the King to rule as long as he doesn’t interfere with your religion and way of life.

20. Margery McHatten You have lived in the highlands of Scotland all your life where you spin cotton and look after the home. You have a husband and two sons, one of whom has started working as a carpenter too. You are a Presbyterian- which is the main Protestant church in Scotland. You have encouraged your children to follow the Presbyterian church too. You are happy for the King to rule as long as he doesn’t interfere with your religion and your familiy’s way of life.

21. Graham Porter You live in Dover, on the south coast of England. You are a skilled blacksmith and carpenter who helps to repair ships on the docks. When there is a war and ships are needed you have to pay extra taxes because you live near the sea. This annoys you as you already do a lot of work for the ships, but if there is a war you can see it is necessary. You are an Anglican (Church of England) and attend church every Sunday with your wife. You feel that Parliament should have more power in England – maybe they would help to stop all these taxes.

22. Maud Porter You live in Dover, on the south coast of England. Your husband is a skilled blacksmith and carpenter who helps to repair ships on the docks. You are struggling to find work at the moment so you rely on your husband’s earnings. You support the King but hope he listens to Parliament as they represent the needs of the people. You can just about cope with paying Ship Money in war times, but any more taxes would cripple your family.

23. Richard Merrin You are a married father of two living in London. You work as a writer, earning good money for your stories. While you now live and work in London, you used to live in Chester near the border with Wales. You were brought up to see the King as the one true leader, chosen to rule over the people by God. You are a Protestant who helps out regularly at your local church. You were born in the reign of Queen Elizabeth so are quite accepting of the Catholics, as long as they keep to themsleves.

24. Katherine Merrin You are a young woman who has lived in London your whole life, you are the daughter of writer Richard Merrin. Your father is a great supporter of the King, however, you have seen parliament become more and more powerful in your lifetime. You like the idea of the people having a greater say in how their country is run. After all, King Charles is a man like any other, and still needs to listen to advice and obey the rules of the country.

25. Margaret Bleak You are a busy working mother living in York, trying to earn enough money to raise your three children. Your husband died last year and you are struggling to afford the things you used to. You are a Protestant who attends church each Sunday as the King commands. You believe the King is God’s representative on earth but find his taxes hard to cope with and pray there will be no more increases.

26. Robert Talon You are an experienced politician who has been a Member of Parliament for over 20 years. While you have worked in Parliament your whole life, you were brought up to see the King as the one true leader. He was chosen to rule over the people by God. You are a Protestant who helps out regularly at your local church. You are a Laudian – which means you wanted to see some tradition and ritual brought back to the Protestant church, like colourful clothes for priests and stained glass windows.

27. Sarah Wentford You are a mother of two living in the Cambridgeshire countryside. You and your husband work hard in the fields, selling your crops in the town on market day. You are both committed Puritans – this means you are strict Protestants who believe in living pure, uncorrupted lives. The complicated, extravagance of the Catholic church cannot be tolerated. You hope King Charles will be hard on the Catholics living in Ireland.

28. Thomas Harris You are one of four brothers living in Yorkshire. Your family are farmers and have always been loyal to the king, although when it comes to religion, you do not have very strong opinions. You have never thought about fighting in a war in your life, however, you are starting to think that the King should be forced to listen to Parliament. After all, Parliament represents the people of England.

29. Justin Anderson You are a young man living in a small village in Wiltshire. You milk cows and work on the land growing wheat. You have never seen the sea before because you don’t live anywhere near the coastline. You have always been a good boy and done what you were told to do. You have heard stories about some people being unhappy with some of the King’s decisions but things to do with the King and Parliament have never interested you.

30. Lucinda Roberts You are a very old woman living in Cambridge. For years and years you have looked after your children and now your grandchildren. Secretly, you miss the old Catholic ways and used to go to a hidden Catholic church when Elizabeth I was queen and wish those days would come back. However, you know that the religion is Protestant and going to the local Protestant church is something you must do otherwise you will be fined by the King.