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The London shrieval election of 1682 was more than a selection of local civil servants as it erupted into an episode of violent resistance against the Crown as the Whig liverymen asserted liberty and citizens’ rights against arbitrary government. Without a Parliament, both the Tory and Whig factions were forced to find a new forum by which to further their agendas, and in 1682, the City of London served this purpose. Charles sought to assert the Crown’s authority over the City, silencing those who led the resistance to his policies. The shrieval election represented the perfect opportunity for Charles to do just this as he could have the Tory Lord Mayor appoint a fellow Tory as sheriff to choose the jurors who would be responsible for deciding the fate of those Charles found treasonous. Throughout the electoral process from June to September, Whig partisans were already beginning to plot against what they viewed to be an arbitrary government. The events of the election resulted in more than mere plotting, but in actual acts of violent resistance and seditious rhetoric. Charles’s actions only fostered further discontent within the City, forcing the radicals to pursue extra-legal means of political participation even before the election process was complete. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]