Restoration (1660-1688) was the period in English history that began with the return of the royal family, the House of Stuart, to the throne. The Puritan leader Oliver Cromwell, who had ruled as Lord Protector, died in 1658. His son Richard succeeded him. Richard was a weak ruler, and civil war threatened the country. General George Monck seized control of the government and led Parliament in restoring the Stuart Prince Charles to the throne. The prince had lived in exile after the execution of his father, Charles I, in January 1649. A new Parliament, elected in 1660, restored the monarchy in the name of Charles II in May 1660.
The English welcomed Charles back to the throne. His reign was dated back to the execution of Charles I, instead of the actual year of the restoration. Parliament reestablished the Anglican Church as England’s official church and returned property that had been taken from it. Parliament also passed laws against the Puritans and other religious Nonconformists. Their worship was restricted, and their political rights were limited.
During the Restoration, a reaction set in against the strict morality of the Puritans. The court of Charles II was notorious for immorality, gambling, and dueling. However, the arts, particularly poetry and drama, flourished. The theaters, which had been shut down by the Puritans, were reopened. Charles also supported the establishment of the first scientific society, the Royal Society.
The Restoration marked the return of royal power, but governmental power actually was divided between the monarch and Parliament. When King James II succeeded Charles, James refused to maintain this division of power, and English political leaders deposed him in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. This revolution limited the king’s authority and gave Parliament greater power.
