Editing Church of Scotland (section)

=== Wars of the Three Kingdoms ===

[[File:Reformed Scots Church Denominations.svg|thumb|right|upright=2.25| Timeline of the evolution of the churches of Scotland from the Reformation]]

[[Charles I of England|Charles I]] inherited a settlement in Scotland based on a balanced compromise between Calvinist doctrine and episcopal practice. Lacking his father's political judgment, he began to upset this by moving into more dangerous areas. Disapproving of the 'plainness' of the Scottish service, he, together with his [[Archbishop of Canterbury]], [[William Laud]], sought to introduce the kind of liturgical practice in use in England. The centrepiece of this new strategy was the [[Scottish Prayer Book (1637)|''Scottish Prayer Book'' of 1637]], a slightly modified version of the Anglican ''[[Book of Common Prayer]]''. Although a panel of Scottish bishops devised this, Charles's insistence that it be drawn up secretly and adopted sight unseen led to widespread discontent. When the Prayer Book was finally introduced at [[St Giles Cathedral]] in Edinburgh in mid-1637, it caused an outbreak of rioting, which, starting with [[Jenny Geddes]], spread across Scotland. In early 1638, the [[National Covenant]] was signed by large numbers of Scots, protesting the introduction of the Prayer Book and other liturgical innovations that had not first been tested and approved by free Parliaments and General Assemblies of the Church. In November 1638, the General Assembly in Glasgow, the first to meet for twenty years, not only declared the Prayer Book unlawful but went on to abolish the office of bishop itself. The Church of Scotland was then established on a Presbyterian basis. Charles' attempt to resist these developments led to the [[Bishops' Wars]]. In the ensuing [[Wars of the Three Kingdoms| civil wars]], the Scots [[Covenanters]] at one point made common cause with the English parliamentarians—resulting in the [[Westminster Confession of Faith]] being agreed by both. This document remains the [[subordinate standard]] of the Church of Scotland but was replaced in England after the [[English Restoration|Restoration]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Sweeney |first=Joanne |date=21 November 2014 |title=A Centuries Old Rift that Created Two Disciplines|url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/a-centuries-old-rift-that-created-two-disciplines-30764721.html|newspaper=Belfast Telegraph|access-date=30 July 2022}}</ref>