Criticizing the Monarch: Treasonable Words and Political Development in Early Modern England
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Abstract
In England between the 16th and 18th centuries, laws and justice system for prosecuting the crime of “treasonable words” against the monarch were fueled largely by the events of Reformation, the English Civil War, and the French Revolution. During the period, the popular concern for the monarch’s private life and the royal circle had evolved in several aspects. The phenomena of slandering and gossiping the monarch can be viewed as one of indicators for making sense of the political development of the time. Christian ideals, dynamics of oral culture, and the development of modern political value had also played important roles in shaping the understanding of “treasonable words” and the legal procedure concerning the crime.
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