The Glorious Revolution

Setting the scene

By 1688, James II, a Catholic convert, had alienated England's Protestant majority by appointing Catholics to army and university posts, issuing the Declaration of Indulgence granting religious freedom, and prosecuting seven Anglican bishops who refused to read it. His wife, Mary of Modena, gave birth to a Catholic son, James Francis Edward, in June 1688, ensuring a Catholic dynasty rather than his Protestant daughter Mary succeeding. Parliament feared absolutism like Louis XIV's France.

What happened

A group of seven leading politicians, the 'Immortal Seven,' invited William of Orange, James's Dutch nephew and son-in-law married to Mary, to invade. William landed at Torbay on November 5, 1688, with 15,000 troops. James's army and navy defected, and he fled to France on December 23, dropping the Great Seal in the Thames. Parliament declared the throne vacant and offered the crown jointly to William III and Mary II in February 1689, requiring they accept the Declaration of Rights.

Why it still matters

The Glorious Revolution established parliamentary supremacy over the monarchy, ending divine right in England. The Bill of Rights (1689) banned Catholics from the throne, required parliamentary consent for taxes and armies, and guaranteed free speech in Parliament. It created constitutional monarchy, inspiring American revolutionaries and the U.S. Constitution. The revolution also triggered Jacobite rebellions and reshaped Britain into a financial and naval power that would build a global empire. John Locke's Two Treatises, justifying the revolution, became foundational liberal political theory.

Background

It helped establish parliamentary supremacy in England. Even centuries later, this episode remains a reference point for how empires rise, fracture, and transform.