The history of England in the 17th century is a time of troubles and severe upheavals. The Glorious Revolution of 1688 also belongs to this period. Many researchers consider this event to be the main event in the history of Great Britain.
History of England: briefly about the situation on the eve of the revolution
After the restoration of the Stuart dynasty until 1685, Charles II ruled in England. After his death, James II, the king's younger brother, ascended the throne. Charles left no heir because he had no legitimate children. James II became the last English Catholic king.
In 1677, the eldest daughter of the future king, Mary, was given, against his will, to William of Orange. She was heir presumptive due to Charles II's childlessness.
Jakov himself was tried by the Liberal Party of Parliament to deprive him of his right to the throne because of his commitment to the Catholic Church. He was suspected of participating in a Catholic conspiracy and was forced to flee the country. But the attempt to deprive the Duke of York of the rights to the throne caused a protest of his supporters against the liberal party of Parliament (the Whigs), and the younger brother of Charles IIwas able to freely ascend the throne after the death of the king.
Reign of James II
To better understand what the "Glorious Revolution" is, we need to consider the reign of James II. Under the new king, Tories (members of the Conservative Party), his adherents, began to represent the majority in parliament. James II did not arouse sympathy among the British, as he was a zealous Catholic.
He had to start his reign with the suppression of the uprising, which was organized by the illegitimate son of Charles II, James Scott. He lived in Holland, which the new English king hated, and was a Protestant. After the execution of Charles I, James Scott and his mother were forced to go into exile. The title of the Duke of Monmouth was created especially for him.
Having landed on the coast of Great Britain, Scott claimed his rights to the English throne. He was joined by the Scottish Marquess of Argyll. In the battle with the royal troops, the conspirators were defeated and were beheaded. But the king and his judges suppressed the uprising with such cruelty that indignation at his actions became one of the reasons for the expulsion of the monarch and resulted in a coup d'etat, which received the following name in the historiography of England - the Glorious Revolution.
False hopes
The last years of the reign of Charles II are a time of reaction, when Parliament was not convened, and the opposition represented by the Whigs was dispersed by the king and disorganized. And although the Duke of York was also spoken of as a reactionary, the opposition had hope for a change in the state of affairs in the country and an end to the reaction.
Hopes were in vain. JacobII, after the suppression of the rebellion, confident in his strength, began to collect an army on a permanent basis under the pretext of fighting the rebels. He appointed adherents of the Catholic faith to all key government posts. In the year of his accession to the throne, he dissolved parliament and never again during his reign. The king absolutely did not accept opposition and criticism of his actions and immediately dismissed those who were dissatisfied. James II undertook all actions for one purpose - the establishment of absolute royal Catholic power in the country. As a result, many members of the opposition were forced to flee to Holland. Extremely dissatisfied with the actions of the king, loyal followers turned away from him - the Tories, who feared the strengthening of the power of the Catholic Church in the country.
Immediate cause for the overthrow of James II
The "Glorious Revolution" that took place in England had a good reason to start. The king, who ascended the throne already at an elderly age, had no children. The wife of James II was considered barren for 15 years. Therefore, those dissatisfied with the policy pursued by the king had the hope that after his death the throne would pass to his eldest daughter Mary, who converted to the Protestant faith and was married to William of Orange.
Quite unexpectedly for everyone, the elderly king had an heir in 1688. Rumors immediately spread that it was someone else's child, who was secretly smuggled into the royal palace. These conversations were also caused by the fact that only representatives of the Catholic faith were present at the birth of the crown prince, and eventhe youngest daughter Anna was not allowed to see her mother.
Revolution
After the birth of the heir to the English throne, the opposition had no hope of changing the situation in England. Together, the Tories and Whigs, as well as some of the army officers, organized a conspiracy. His goal was to remove the king from power and replace him with his son-in-law with his daughter, the Prince of Orange and Mary. The most prominent English politicians, seeing no other way out, wrote a secret message to the prince, urging him to invade England and remove his father-in-law from the throne. The message said that the country's population would support the coup and everyone would be happy to see a Protestant king at the head of England.
After the message was sent, some of the rebels dispersed around the country in search of money and allies.
Jakov II could not help but see the preparations of the conspirators and decided to make concessions until the actions of his opponents go too far. But it was no longer possible to stop the uprising.
The "Glorious Revolution" began on November 15, 1688, when the Prince of Orange's men landed on the English coast. The army he raised was impressive and consisted almost entirely of Protestants. There were also representatives of the opposition who left the country due to Yakov's persecution.
The result of the revolution in England: the overthrow of the king and the accession of William III
The appearance of William's army in England led to the fact that most of the commanders of James II immediately went over to the side of his son-in-law. The king's daughter, Anna, also left him and went to the campPrince of Orange.
Left without an army, Yakov tried to enter into negotiations with the conspirators, and then, in desperation, he tried to flee to France, where he had sent his wife and son in advance. On the way, he was captured and returned to London. Later, with the help of William, who organized his escape, King James II was able to leave England.
The Glorious Revolution ended in 1689 when William and Mary were proclaimed rulers of England by Parliament.
After Mary's death a few years later, her husband ruled the country alone under the name of William III. According to historians, he showed himself to be a wise ruler and reformer. It was under him that the strengthening of the influence of England and its transformation into one of the strongest world powers began. During the reign of William III, the "Bill of Rights" was created, forever eliminating the possibility of establishing an absolute monarchy in England.
