The Five Members
In January 1642, King Charles I ordered the attorney-general to indict for treason the five members of the House of Commons and one member of the House of Lords who were most prominent in Parliament's attempt to transfer control of the armed forces away from the Crown. The King believed that these members had encouraged the Scots to invade England in the recent Bishops' Wars and that they were intent on stirring up riots and tumults against him in London. A rumour that they were planning to impeach Queen Mary for alleged involvement in Catholic conspiracies prompted Charles into taking drastic action.
On 4 January 1642, King Charles marched to Westminster intending to arrest the Five Members in person. The King entered the chamber of the House of Commons and occupied the Speaker's chair. This was unprecedented in parliamentary history. Charles' intrusion was regarded as another major breach of privilege.
Warned of the King's approach, the Five Members had already escaped and gone into hiding in London. Asked by the King whether he saw any of them present or knew where they were, the Speaker of the House, William Lenthall, famously replied, "..I have neither eyes to see nor tongue to speak in this place but as this House is pleased to direct me." Realising that his "birds were flown", King Charles was obliged to leave the House empty-handed to angry shouts of "Privilege, Privilege."
The Five Members were: John Pym, John Hampden, Denzil Holles, Sir Arthur Hesilrige and William Strode. The King's disregard of parliamentary custom and privilege did great political damage to his cause. The House of Commons presented the intrusion as an armed assault on Parliament itself, and the King's reputation never recovered. Amid uproar and wild rumours of civil war, the London trained bands were mobilised in support of Parliament
| Date"Date" is a type and predefined property provided by Semantic MediaWiki to represent date values. | |
|---|---|
| Act Abolishing the Office of King | 17 March 1649 |
| Army Remonstrance | 18 November 1648 |
| Civil War - Regicide | 6 December 1648 30 January 1649 |
| Civil War - Restoration | 4 April 1660 |
| Commissions of Array | 1 June 1642 |
| Execution of Archbishop William Laud | 10 January 1645 |
| Execution of Charles I | 30 January 1649 |
| Execution of Thomas Wentworth | 12 May 1641 |
| Four Bills | 24 December 1647 |
| Grand Remonstrance | 22 November 1641 |
| Heads of Proposals | 22 September 1647 |
| Instrument of Government | 16 December 1653 |
| Militia Ordinance | 7 December 1641 |
| Naseby | 14 June 1645 |
| National Covenant | 27 February 1638 |
| Newcastle Proposals | 1 July 1646 |
| Nineteen Propositions | 1 June 1642 |
| Petition of Right | 7 June 1628 |
| Petition of the Leveller Women | 11 September 1649 |
| Putney Debates | 1 October 1647 |
| Representation of the Army | 5 June 1647 |
| Root and Branch Petition | 11 December 1640 |
| Saffron Walden | 1 May 1647 |
| Scottish Prayer Book | 23 July 1637 |
| Short Parliament | 13 April 1640 |
| The Bishop's War | 1 January 1639 |
| The Five Members | 4 January 1642 |
| The Second Civil War | 22 February 1648 |
| The Self Denying Ordinance | 19 December 1644 |
| Treaty of Uxbridge | 29 January 1645 |
