How far was the outbreak of the English Civil War due to the king’s character?

The process concerning the outbreak of the English Civil War was a multifaceted one. Tension was apparent across the social spectrum, with lords, members of the clergy, and ordinary people such as traders, townspeople and peasants, opposing many of the king’s policies; a fact that is perhaps most clearly seen in the decline of church attendance. In the 17th century, church attendance was a social activity as much as it was one in a narrowly religious sense, and for people of all social classes to show their opposition in such a public way was a clear manifestation of the public mood. It is this wide range of opposition that indicates that rather than the Civil War being the cause of a single factor, such as the king’s obstinate personality, it was due to a variety of factors. Indeed, economic, social, political and even religious concerns all contributed to popular discontent which in time would turn into war and revolution. The king himself was a political person, one who occupied a political and religious office, and so his actions cannot be understood as distinct from political causes, such as the imposition of ship money and the awarding of office to Laudian bishops.