Discover the remarkable history of the Glorious Revolution... Free BONUS Inside! On August 28, 2019, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson asked Queen Elizabeth II to prorogue Parliament. She approved the request. The elaborate ritual of the queen granting the prime minister permission to do what he intended to do anyway demonstrates how the legacy of the Glorious Revolution of 1688 made the British Parliament, not the monarch, the ultimate source of power in government. But it was not always so. Under the Stuart kings, battles between Parliament and the throne were far from unusual, with no ceremonial rituals to preserve popular fictions regarding who was in power. King Charles I believed ardently in the divine right of kings and went to his execution firmly convinced that he was God’s anointed. His second son, James II, believed the same. However, James II was a Catholic, and his succession to the English throne following the death of his brother Charles II set in motion a series of cataclysmic events which culminated in a largely bloodless revolution to bring James’s daughter Mary and her husband, William of Orange, to the throne as Protestant sovereigns. Under the eleven-year Interregnum following the execution of King Charles I, Parliament got a taste of power, and ordinary men perceived that God might choose rulers from among their own class. The path to parliamentary supremacy over pedigreed royalty, although ultimately achieved without bloodshed, was strewn with religious intolerance, petty rivalries, titanic clashes of ideology, and a belief in the rights of Parliament to govern without royal interference. The evolution of parliamentary supremacy over royal birthright redefined human social evolution, laying the groundwork for a bold new experiment in government that would make democracy the crowning achievement of the modern age. Discover a plethora of topics such as The Roundheads Behead a King The Return of the Charles II James, the Catholic King The Dutch Invasion of England Mary and Joint Sovereigns, One Ruler And much more!So if you want a concise and informative book on the Glorious Revolution, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access!
It was indeed a revolution in the sense that it changed the paradigm of governance. The absolute power of the King of England underwent transformation and the primacy of the Parliament was established without bloodshed. Hourly History once again excels in portraying this historical occurrence quite vividly
This book is a wonderful, well-researched, informative, and easy-to-read tale of William III and Mary II of England and their Glorious Revolution of 1688.
In a nutshell: William and Mary were invited by the English "Parliament" to "save the Protestant Religion." William III was principal Protestant rival to Catholic French King Louis XIV, and Dutch Head of State as Prince of Orange —108 sq mi principality in what is now southern France). William was also the Protestant nephew of England's converted Catholic King James II (successor to and brother of Charles II); William's wife and first cousin Mary was James II's daughter. Under intense pressure, James II “abdicated” — having thrown the Great Seal of the Realm into the Thames River — and was allowed to escape to France. William and Mary ruled as co-regents and were succeeded by Mary’s sister, Anne.
Beyond that, should the reader be curious, here's my own interpretation of what was “glorious” about the “Glorious Revolution”:
First, here is the UK Parliament’s view:
“The fact that William, upon arrival with his army in the English capital, did not claim the throne by conquest, but summoned a Convention of Lords and MPs (not technically called a "Parliament," as it was not summoned by a king) to devise a political settlement, has made him the great hero of Whig historians such as Macaulay.
“These events were, in Macaulay's view, the Glorious Revolution because they saw great constitutional change and parliamentary supremacy definitively asserted with little bloodshed in England - forgetting that the Revolution became very bloody in Ireland and Scotland.”
Bottom line, the “Glorious Revolution” (otherwise known as the Revolution of 1688) was “glorious,” because the historian of the victors, Thomas Babington Macaulay, said and wrote so! Undoubtedly, though, the Glorious Revolution was an expansion of liberty as it further established the rights of the people (through Parliament's increased power) vis a vis monarchical power.
This book refers to what happened in England in relation to Charles I attitude towards his ruling authority. He felt he was appointed by God to rule and so what he says goes. Parliament disagreed with him (which is quite understandable) and so the book goes into how this all led to basically a war between the two power groups in the country.
This also involved another level of intolerance and violence and that was Catholics vs. Protestants. This is the tpe of thing that has been repeated over and over throughout history where one religion thinks it has all the answers and some other religion disagrees so they decided to kill as many of the heathens/nonbelievers/radicals as they can.
Killing kings and wives of kings seems to be the in thing to do at times.
The book does do a good job examining the whole movement behind an arrogant king and people who wanted to share the power of ruling. It was not a pretty time in English history but it was an important time and the book does a very good job exploring just what happened.
If we are in the times of the last two decades of 1600, we will face the end of absolute power in England. As entering to a new century, going to a new way to rule the empire when raising the Parliament's, " the voice of people" and decreasing the power of monarchs. Why monarchy still remains there. The seed were planted by that time and described in brief with this narrative. I do really enjoyed!
Parliament Was the True Winner of the Glorious Revolution
Parliament utilized William of Orange’s desire to be King along with his wife Mary as Queen in order to push through laws that would make England’s Rulers subservient to Parliament. This was the major step to make England a Constitutional Monarchy.
An excellent short to the point historical review and analysis of the Glorious Revolution.
murigieliudn@gmail.com There is clear evidence of the value of institutions for mature handling of leadership. Patience, consultation and tolerance supercede self-styled proclamation of power. Good for all levels of leadership. Highly rated for its order and constructive focus.
Probably a good start for a study of this time period, but I was just bored. I'm not a big fan of the English monarchy and Parliament. Sorry. I usually find Hourly History books good beginnings to a study of certain events or people, but was bored with this one.
This book did exactly what it was designed to do, provide a brief overview on the Glorious Revolution. I only gave it three stars however as it seemed to have been poorly proof-read and some sentences didn’t make sense as a result.
An interesting review of a period of British history that had far reaching effects. I look forward to reading other books in the One Hour History series.
Presented critical facts and events to provide a fair understanding of the subject matter. Was able to pique my interest within a tight time constraint.