From King Charles II to the Glorious Revolution 1688

King Charles II was crowned at Westminster Abbey, 1661.
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There was a widely-held belief that British Cath­olics were actively plotting the overthrow of church and state, to establish Britain as a satellite state under the control of an all-powerful Catholic monarch.

In the late 1670s, anxieties were raised by the succession issue. King Charles II (1630–85) had no legitimate offspring, meaning the crown would pass to his brother James, Duke of York, who'd converted to Catholicism.

Whig politicians in Parliament, led by Earl Shaftesbury, promoted exclusion bills to prevent James from taking the throne. But the mass petitions and demonstrations deployed by the king’s opponents gradually alienated some initial supporters of exclusion. So it is interesting that in 1677 James attempted to appease Protestants by allowing his daughter, Mary, to marry the Protestant Prince of Orange, William III.

Charles had to bar his brother from succession yet he very nearly lost control of his government, having to allow his Whig supporters to occupy positions of power. Three general elections led to unmanageable parliaments, so Charles sent James into exile. This proved to be unacceptable to the Whigs and when Charles sickened in 1679, civil conflict threatened. So Charles recovered control of his government, earning a nationwide surge of loyalty. He had made another secret treaty with France, counting on a healthy public revenue from them. Reforms at the Treasury provided the crown with firm administrative control, Charles’ most valuable legacy at home.

King James II’s authority appeared to be secure when he succeeded his late brother in Feb 1685. The new king’s initial promises to defend the existing government in church and state reassured many citizens.

King James’ first parliament was dominated by loyal Tories. Parl­iament even voted James considerable emergency sums to suppress the rebellion raised by Charles II’s illegitimate son, Duke of Monmouth in June 1685. James’ soldiers easily crushed Monmouth’s rebels.

Left: Catholic King James II

Centre: James' Protestant daughter, Queen Mary II

Right: James' Protestant son in law, King William III

Initial support for King James ebbed away once it became clear that he wished to secure a] freedom of worship for Catholics and b] removal of the Test and Corporation Acts so that Catholics could occupy public office. In 1686 James suspended the negative provisions of the Test Acts that had previously imposed civil disabil­it­ies on Catholics and non-conformists. The next year the king issued a Declaration of Indulgence, which suspended penal laws against Catholics and granted acceptance of some Protestant dissenters.

In summer 1687, James formally dissolved Parliament. He wanted to begin a purge of corporations, aimed at producing a pliable parl­iam­ent which would agree to James’ wishes. Naturally these measures were increasing opposed by the Anglican-Tory establish­ment.

In May 1688, seven leading Protestant bishops refused to read the king’s Second Declaration of Indulgence in church. So James had them arrested for sedit­ious libel and taken to the Tower of London.

Seven important English peers made contact with the Dutch leader, Prince William of Orange. They wrote to Will­iam and begged him to intervene militarily, especially since James’ Catholic second wife finally became pregnant. The birth of a healthy male Catholic heir in June 1688 dashed hopes that the crown would soon pass to James’  Protestant daughter Mary (1662–94). The seven peers to pledge their support to the prince, IF he invaded against James.

Even before this letter was sent, William’s main reason for interfering in English affairs was to bring Britain into his war against Louis XIV’s France. Clearly William already began making military prep­ar­ations for an invasion of Britain.

In early Nov 1688, one of the greatest invasion fleets in British history was sailing towards the Devon coast. With 40,000 men aboard 463 ships, Prince William of Orange’s Dutch invasion was very ser­ious. This Protestant prince would topple King James II, secure the Ang­lican faith and save Britain from Catholicism.

But William’s pilot steered too far to the west, missing Torbay. The wind was too strong for them to turn back, but the next port was Plymouth, where James had already posted a garrison. Then the breeze changed; the Protestant Wind proved God was clearly on the Protestant side again. So William was able to turn back to Torbay, and by the time he stepped ashore, the quay was crowded with well-wishers and the Glorious Revolution was safely under way.

James’ army, encamped on Hounslow Heath, had more men than William’s. But news of the Prince’s arrival had sparked off waves of anti-Catholic rioting in towns across Britain. Important defections to William followed - the Duke of Marlborough; James’ son-in-law, Prince of Denmark; and James’ nephew. The worst was when James discovered that his daughter, Princess Anne (1665 –1714), had also joined the Orangists.

Having reached Salisbury in Nov, King James announced he was will­ing to agree to William’s main demand - to call a free parliament. However, the king was now convinced that his own life was in danger and prepared to flee the country. In mid Dec, in the wake of renewed anti-Catholic rioting in London, James tried to escape but was captured in Kent. By now William was now looked upon as the only individual capable of restoring order to the country. So in late Dec 1688, James fled the country with William’s collusion.

Before they were offered the crown, William and Mary were presented with the Declaration of Rights document. This affirmed some cons­tit­utional principles eg the prohibition of taxation without parl­iamentary consent and the need for regular parliaments. Pressure from the now-King William III (1689-1702) also ensured the passage in May 1689 of the Toleration Act. William and Mary agreed and formally accepted the joint-throne in 1689.

Parliament gained powers over taxation; the royal succession; appointments; and the right of the crown to wage war independently. Did Queen Mary and King William truly support these limit­ations? Or were they concessions that William paid, in return for parliament’s financial support for his war against France?

Though the Revolution in England was largely peaceful, the Revolution was secured in Ireland & Scotland by force. In both countries the settlements were politically and relig­iously divisive eg Irish Protestants ignored the big peace terms of the Treaty of Limerick (Oct 1691) and established a monopoly over land-ownership and political power.

So the Glorious Revolution was the underpinning of Whig history, propelling Britain towards constitutional monarchy and parliam­entary democracy. But did the Tories, Scots and Irish believe this version of the Revolution?

NB The Act of Union wasn’t until 1707 but I have used the name Britain even before that date.