who refused to read it would be deprived of position. As the Puritans gained power in Parliament in the lead-up to the English Civil War, hostility to the Book of Sports grew. Attempts to enforce the declaration came to an end with the fall of Archbishop Laud in 1640, and Parliament ordered the book publicly burned in 1643, two years before Laud was executed. Footnotes Bibliography and further reading Craigie, James, ed. Minor Prose Works of James VI and James I. Scottish Text Society, 1982: 217–241. George, David, ed. Records of Early English Drama: Lancashire. University of Toronto Press, 1991. Govett, L. A. The King's Book of Sports: A History of the Declarations of King James I. and King Charles I. as to the Use of Lawful Sports on Sundays. London, 1890. Parker, Kenneth. The English Sabbath: A Study of Doctrine and Discipline from the Reformation to the Civil War. Cambridge University Press, 1988. Semenza, Gregory M. Colón. Sport, Politics, and Literature in the English Renaissance. University of Delaware Press/AUP, 2003. Tait, James. "The Declaration of Sports for Lancashire". English Historical Review 32 (1917): 561–568. External links Text of the Declaration of Sports, 1633: , Digital version of the Lancashire Records of Early English Drama 1617 works 1633 works History of Lancashire Sports law Sport in the United Kingdom 17th century in England 17th century in Scotland Christianity and sports Sabbath in Christianity