Intellectual background of Stuart England was rooted in medieval concept of a hierarchical, ordered universe: God/Angels/Mankind/Animals/Plants/Stones
Most people believed the
world was composed of four elements; the body, four humors. Each
had related characteristics:
Earth/melancholy/cold
and dry
Water/phlegm/cold
and moist
Air/blood/hot and
moist
Fire/choler/hot and
dry
King was “personification of the state, the anointed of God, a being of sanctity and a legend.” Was fountain of justice, supreme governor of Church, director of foreign policy, dispenser of patronage
Privy Council was administrative
organization of the King, responsible for foreign and domestic affairs
Ministers of State – Lord
Chancellor, Lord Treasurer, Lord President of the Privy Council, Lord Privy
Seal, Secretaries of State, Lord Chamberlain, Lord High Admiral
Parliament assisted king in devising legislation and raising revenue. House of Commons had approximately 440 members; the House of Lords, 80
Church of England was compromise between Catholicism and Reformed Protestantism; Parish was basic unit of English church and state (approximately 8000 parishes in 1603)
Justices of the Peace (JPs) were responsible for local law and government (approximately 40 per shire)
Sheriffs (one per shire) gathered rents, annuities, and fees from crown lands and carried out policies of Council in shire
Most of revenue for central government came from custom and excise duties and sales taxes (only 8 percent of royal revenues came from direct taxation).