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England in the 17th Century – Part II
Establishing a Constitutional Monarchy: From the Stuarts to the Hanoverians & Robert Walpole
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From Absolutism to Constitutionalism And how does England do it???
- ongoing opposition between kings and Parliament
- bloody civil war- execution of a king- military dictatorship- son of executed king returned to throne- bloodless revolution, - finally constitutional monarchy!
The Triumph of Parliament!!!!
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The Restoration of the StuartsCharles II 1660-
1685– Fought for his
father during the Civil War
– Lived in exile in Holland and France
– Attempted failed revolution in 1651
– Invited to return in 1660: crowned on his birthday, 30 May 1660
Division of Power
King could:
choose his own ministers
decide foreign policycall Parliamentveto Parliament’s laws dismiss Parliament
Parliament could: impeach ministercould make lawscontrol of state
finances
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Religious Issues & Charles IICII = Moderate Religious
Toleration– BUT Puritans were punished
Parliament = Anglican Church & Book of Common Prayer ONLY– Clarendon Code, 1661 – all clergyman
MUST swear an oath to Anglicanism– Non-Anglicans = NO PUBLIC worship– Anglicans worried Charles II has
“Catholic tendencies”
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Religious Issues = Political ChangeTreaty of Dover - Secret agreement with
France (Louis XIV), 1670 – Charles would receive 200,000 pounds annually
from France in return for helping Catholics, fighting the Dutch, and pledging to convert to Catholicism
Declaration of Indulgence, 1672– Extends more religious toleration to the Puritans
and Catholics (remember many members of CII’s family are Catholic)
Parliament responds w/ Test Act 1672– Required all officials to take communion in the
Anglican Church and swear an oath against Catholicism
Parliament splits into two parties Whigs (suspicious of king, the French &
Catholics): primarily noblemen, but also merchant class, middle class
Tories (supporters of king): lesser aristocracy & gentry, often poorer classes as well
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1685: the beginning of the end of the StuartsCharles II had no legitimate
childrenJames II, Charles’ younger
brother was in line for the throne Parliament and Anglicans were
fearful– James II was openly Catholic BUT his
heirs at the time were two Protestant daughters: Mary and Anne
– Would he bring back Catholicism?
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James II, 1685 – 1688
Tried to repeal the Test Act
Appointed Roman Catholics and dissenteres to positions in the army, universities, & government
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Glorious Revolution, 1688June 1688, James’
wife gave birth to a son – baptized him Catholic
Members of Parliament and English society have a solution– Offer the throne
to James’ Protestant daughter Mary and her husband, William III of Orange
William and Mary– Arrive in
November 1688– James II fled to
France in December
– Husband and wife were crowned in April 1689
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William and MaryWilliam and Mary
ruled with tolerance
They led jointly between 1689 – 1694
Mary died of smallpox in 1694
William ruled alone from 1694-1702
Section 1 ends here
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Bill of Rights, 1689contractual relationship btw.
king & peopleenacted by Parliament it states:
no law may be suspended by king no taxes may be levied or army
maintained w/o consent of Parliament
no subject could be arrested & detained w/o legal process
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Additional Acts
Toleration Act, 1689: religious toleration (except for Unitarians and Catholics) BUT Test Act still holds for all officeholders
1701– Act of Settlement – no Catholic would ever
be allowed to inherit the English throne– Royal judges given life tenure – attempt to
create a stronger more independent judiciary that would uphold the rule of law
1707 Act of Union: – United Kingdom of Great Britain:
England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland
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Results of Glorious Revolution1. divine-right of kings no longer
valid2. freely elected Parliament3. increased strength of
Parliament4. foundation laid for
constitutional monarchy5. end of religious “persecution” in
England – not all religions have the same rights
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2 Responses to Revolution
Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679)– Leviathan, 1651 – supports idea
of absolute rule BECAUSE• humans = animalistic, “solitary,
poor, nasty, brutish, and short” THEREFORE
• the “commonwealth” must rely on a sovereign ruler and may not rebel
Let’s look at the frontispiece – What do you see?
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2 Responses to RevolutionJohn Locke (1632-1704)
– Two Treatises of Government - mutual agreement btw. government and governed•Gov’t. protects inalienable natural rights
(life, liberty, property) of individuals • Individuals act reasonably toward gov’t
BUT • if gov’t. breaks agreement, people should
rebel
– Who would make up the government? •The landed aristocracy
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The Last Stuart
Anne, Queen 1702-1714– Although she was born
19 children none of them survived SO
– It was determined that Sophia of Hanover and her heirs would be the successors to the English throne•Sophia was the
granddaughter of James I
The HanoveriansGeorge I, 1714-1727
– came to power at the end of the War of Spanish Succession
Treaty of Utrecht granted1.legitimacy to Hanoverian right to rule2.new territories: Gibraltar, Hudson’s
Bay, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland3.the right of asiento (English merchants
now allowed to ship African slaves into Spanish New World territories)
4.limited trade rights w/ Spanish colonies
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Triumph of the Whigs
Sir Robert Walpole, 1st English Prime Minister, 1721-1742 – refused to be
ennobled – Why?
– prized civil decorum in politics – Why?
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Rise of English DominanceSee UEQs #9 and create list
here:
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