A Remonstrance of the State of the Kingdom

In this stirring 1641 parliamentary proclamation, the English Commons lay out their urgent appeal for the kingdom’s salvation. Delivered in the tense months before the outbreak of civil war, the document captures the atmosphere of anxiety, factional rivalry, and a desperate quest for stability.

The speakers blame a coalition of Jesuit Catholics, disaffected bishops, and opportunistic courtiers for sowing division between the monarch and his subjects. They argue that these groups manipulate religious doctrine and legal conventions to undermine both royal authority and the common good, threatening liberty, peace, and the very foundations of the realm.

Written in the formal, flourished prose of the era, the remonstrance reads like a courtroom indictment, listing grievances and proposing corrective measures. Listening to it offers a rare glimpse into the political rhetoric that set the stage for England’s tumultuous transformation, letting you hear the voices that once shaped a nation’s fate.