Essay On The Glorious Revolution

Improved Essays
How revolutionary was the ‘Glorious Revolution’?

The Glorious Revolution of 1688 resulted in King James II overthrown by various members of the Parliament as well as their Dutch military aide, William of Orange, who was subsequently crowned a joint monarch with his wife Mary. Clearly, this can be seen as a fundamental constitutional change, but it is very much debatable whether the so-called ‘Glorious Revolution’ was in fact ‘revolutionary’. This essay will attempt to answer this question by focusing on… But firstly, the term ‘revolutionary’ must be clarified. A revolution is a form of change. For this question, it can be interpreted more specifically as a major political, economic or social change that is not introduced from the governing
…show more content…
The King vacated the throne on the 22nd of December by fleeing to France, thereby bringing up the issue of succession. As the crown had only ever passed on via succession or defeat in battle, some Tories had wanted James II to remain King. However the convention decided that the crown was to be jointly handed to William and Mary. The significance of this with respect to the nature of the revolution lies in the fact that the monarch had never before received the title by a convention parliament. Edward Vallance argues that this was truly revolutionary, as the succession of the monarchy turned from hereditary to elective as a consequence of the Glorious Revolution. This argument is further corroborated as the “most radical act of the revolution” by the historian Tim Harris, as it completely altered the balance of power between the monarch and the parliament. The King and Queen had not inherited the throne in the rightful way; they were only in their position because the parliament had put them there. Jennifer Carter claims that even the offer of the crown to William and Mary on the 13th of February 1689 was an “implied contract”, as was exemplified by the monarchs’ coronation oaths in which they swore to govern in accordance to the statutes agreed upon by the Parliament. This strengthens Vallance’s argument further; the fact that the monarchy of

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Directly after the American Revolution there were obvious changes in the basic fundamentals of the American society. There was a separation between the church and state, and government was being balanced so they were not overpowering. Socially, women started becoming a more essential part of the American society, and the Natives requested to be more connected with the Americans. Economically, agriculture was highly promoted, but they also had currency problems. The struggle of slavery affects each topic as well.…

    • 1056 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    This paper argues that the American Revolution was inevitable. The American Revolution was inevitable because England kept trying to take full control of a self governing group of people who lived in the colonies. This is evident because Great Britain started raising taxes on stamps, they would not send their soldiers away after the French and Indian War, and the colonies were being taxed but had very little representation in Parliament. The British and the French fought a war called the French and Indian War or the Seven Years War.…

    • 1325 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Glorious Revolution saw the Parliament destroyed the divine right of…

    • 1642 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    This concludes how the patriots who were behind these events were unsure of how their acts would ensure independence. Rebellious acts such as those would not stop the king and would have never on their own been strong enough to gain America’s freedom. The only thing that would do that was complete unity throughout America regarding breaking from Britain. If every colonist was against Britain the king wouldn’t stand a chance. This is exactly what Common Sense did by persuading thousands of colonists to join the cause.…

    • 1585 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    The American Revolution was primarily a conservative revolution, because the rebels weren’t trying to create something that was new, unheard of, or radically different. The rebels were simply trying to restore things back to the way they had been before the Seven Years War. Even some British understood the logic behind the revolution and were not keen on putting forth money, time and effort in order to stop it. The British had been radically changing their policies towards Americans after the Seven Years War, so the Americans were conservative in attempting to restore their ideas of representation and government. But, the rebels were also radical in the sense that they were overthrowing the government and declaring themselves an independent…

    • 1486 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The American Revolution changed and impacted our history. The revolutionary left it’s mark in history and a few familiar names and holidays including The 4th of July, Pulaski Day (Illinois), The Philadelphia 49ers, The New England Patriots, and much more. Towns, sports teams, schools, streets, countries, and even family names can be traced back to the American Revolution (Background Essay). Before the revolution, there was extreme changes in the political system, social system, and the economic system. Due to these changes, the American Revolution was seen as a radical change; because of the ending of slavery, and the equality of women.…

    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    All eyes were on England and their colonies in the mid to late 1700’s. Other countries were watching the escalating tensions between the British Colonies and their mother country. To have the audacity to completely mount a rebellion was unheard of, although, the Colonists were left with no choice. England’s actions were radical and disrespectful at the least, and without them, there would not have been a revolution. England brought the revolution upon themselves, by enforcing the Currency Act, the Intolerable Acts and by fighting in the battles of Lexington and Concord.…

    • 1126 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In general, the war between the Colonies and England was irreconcilable because of after the Seven Years of War the British inherited a heavy debt and they look for the colonies to help pay their debt. In our reading, we learned that England expected aid from the colonies and the Native Americans. The loyalist were the people still dependent upon British government such as Anglican clergymen, royal office holders and professional ties to the British government (Reich, 2011, p. 279). Even though, the American colonies had already provided troops to resupply their ranks and financial assistance to help assist in buying supplies and paying the troops (Was the American Revolution Inevitable, 2011). In short, the Seven years of war was costly…

    • 522 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    American Revolution DBQ Since that the Revolution came to a success and the British lost, it made the the Founding Principles important to the amount of value given to the people. In 1776 being excluded was not being able to be apart of the things that were important to be able to have a say about something that they believe in. During the Revolution people were always trying to fight for their rights and beliefs that they had. There was a limit to who was able to do certain things, for example the voting wasn't allowed unless you own land or were in the upper class.…

    • 1037 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The American Revolution was a political revolution that separated North America from Great Britain. This revolution pursued to create a nation based upon the foundation of personal freedom and democracy. Although the American Revolution was widely believed to be an effort to remove British control, it was radical in the principles it established throughout the revolution. The American Revolution was significant in the way it radically affected the American society politically, socially, and economically from 1775 to 1800 by adopting a new political system, having a greater standard of living and the changing women and slave rights. The statuses of women, slaves and loyalists were significantly altered, along with the newly adopted democratic…

    • 1927 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    But they needed to make money so they tried to get the colonies to pay taxes. To this was followed by a series of other rules that the only effect they had, was to incite (even more) the Americans even more. A clear example of this would be the Navigation Acts (1651), the Sugar Act (1764) and the Stamp Act (1765). These laws sometimes were not respected, and had a great opposition among the colonists. By the year of 1770, groups of colonists like the Patriots and Sons of Liberty (of Boston) expressed their opinions and became more popular.…

    • 306 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Glorious Revolution Dbq

    • 715 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The birth of America as a nation was a revolution of thought about the nature of freedom and mankind’s right to choose our own destiny. The onset of the Glorious Revolution, the imperial wars, the Navigation Acts, Salutary Neglect, and people such as John Locke influencing many colonists in America began an era that would contour the path towards revolution. One of the single most important developments in England to affect the self-identity of the colonists was the Glorious Revolution. This event was earth-shattering as the colonists had suffered under James II just as profoundly as the English due to James’ refusal to recognize colonial charters or allow colonists any say over laws or taxes. Colonists saw the applicability of the Glorious Revolution to their situation, and began a series of revolts in 1689.…

    • 715 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When considering the ultimate purpose of the American Revolution, it was widely regarded as incredulous to establish a fresh Constitution that was perceived of having a replicated concept of the monarchical and centralized British government. Suppressing acts, such as the Stamp Act and Quartering Act of 1765, that were implemented by the monarchical British government onto the colonies are only a couple of the several obvious reasons for the prominent rebellion. With the leadership of Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson (though not physically present), Samuel Adams and several more political idols, the anti-federalists expressed the opposition that a powerful central government would threaten the accessibility of natural rights for their citizens.…

    • 589 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The American Revolution was revolutionary for many reasons. Some of the reasons were , because of the battles, the taxes, the protests, and the rebellion of the patriots. Because of the American Revolution, the thirteen colonies were able to change socially, politically and economically. This was one of the major causes that started the war. Major events throughout the American Revolution were the reasons why this war was revolutionary.…

    • 886 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Causes and Effects of the American Revolution After the French and Indian War, Britain needed money. As a result, the British government placed taxes on the American colonists. The British thought that the colonists should help pay for the war since it had been fought partly to defend the colonies. The first tax was the Stamp Act.…

    • 497 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays