7 peers invite William to take the throne Flashcards
7 peers invite William to take the throne:
Date
1688
7 peers invite William to take the throne:
Causation
1685: J defeated Duke of Monmouth. Then consolidated his power by modelling his rule on the despotism seen in France under Louis XIV.
- Fears that had caused the Civil War before had come to fruition: a Catholic was aspiring to be an absolute monarch. > preconditions for Parl. intervention
June 1688: Queen gave birth to a son and potential Catholic heir. Destroyed the hopes of many Protestants that J would be succeeded by his Protestant daughter Mary, wife of William of Orange.
Key motives behind overthrow of King:
- Religious conviction: Many Whig MPs shared the view of Locke > Enforcing religious uniformity would lead to social disorder
- Imposing a single ‘true religion’ is impossible as humans are not capable of judging which religious standpoints are the most legitimate.
- Anglican Tories had to find a way to oppose James’ initiatives without contradicting their established principles of non-resistance and passive obedience (not questioning authority of monarch).
GR the result of a foreign invasion and was not instigated by the native population of England.
7 peers invite William to take the throne:
Whig view
Bloodless revolution- Macaulay:
- Macaulay contrasted it with the French Rev. = GR least violent revolution known to history.
GR due to moderate political consensus between Whigs and Tories- Macaulay
- Events of 1688-89 as the ‘Sensible Revolution’- Morrill.
7 peers invite William to take the throne:
Revisionist view
Revolution should be reassessed as one typified by violence- Vallance:
- Ireland and Scotland
7 peers invite William to take the throne:
Marxist view
Continuation of the ‘bourgeoise revolution’ of 1649:
1649- the propertied classes overthrew a monarchy that restricted their economic livelihoods. 1688 was a repeat of this.
