Discuss the tension between England's absolutist monarchy and the conservative Protestant population and how this was reflected in the arts.

What will be an ideal response?

The ideal answer should include:
- As in France, throughout the seventeenth century, the English monarchy sought to assert its absolute authority, although it did not ultimately manage to do so.
- After Charles I married Catholic Henrietta Maria, his reign was beset with religious controversy and civil war erupted.
- Led by Oliver Cromwell, the Puritans defeated and executed the king, and the divine right of kings was permanently suspended.
- Parliament enacted a Bill of Rights endorsing religious toleration, and a constitutional monarchy was established.
- The tension between the Catholic-leaning English monarchy and the Puritan-oriented Parliament was exacerbated by the flamboyant style of the court, which offended more austere Puritan tastes.
- The court style is embodied in Portrait of Charles I Hunting by Flemish artist Anthony van Dyck, which is the very embodiment of the Cavalier as the royalist supporters were known.