Question

conclusion of England-the glorious revolution

Answer 1

Well, Queen Anne was the last Queen of England, and she did possess some real power, so clearly that’s your pedantic answer. George I, who succeeded her, had much the same levels of power in principle, but was King of Great Britain. But I assume by “real power” you’re comparing the constitutional monarchs of England and its successor states with the absolute monarchs of, say, Game of Thrones.

In England, the monarchy had largely ceased to be absolute in theory with King John in 1217 (with the Magna Carta and Carta de Foresta), in principle with King Edward I - who enshrined the Magna Carta into Statute Law in 1297, and in practise after Henry VIII. Edward VI, his successor, never took full control of the crown - his was essentially a regency reign - and while Mary I still had a fairly hefty chunk of power, she was held in check - just barely - by Parliament. As an example, she was coerced into reigning as joint monarchs with Philip I (II of Spain).

Elizabeth I reigned unchallenged by Parliament, but equally she primarily made uncontroversial decisions, and therefore avoided being in that position.

James I was, on the other hand, an experienced monarch when he came to the English throne - but in Scotland he ruled absolute. In England, he could not - Parliament and the Judiciary ruled against him several times (for example, he wanted to create a political union of Great Britain which England rejected, he wanted to act as judge in court which the Judiciary rejected, and so on). His reign really marks the crystallization of the constitutional monarchy, where “The Crown” and “The King” become distinct entities with different rights.

Each successive King generally lost rights, and those that tried to regain them (Charles I, James II) were not successful… James II, in particular, effectively established that the monarch’s succession is determined by Parliament. William and Mary were, therefore, monarchs only after agreement with Parliament, and William’s absence meant that much of the day-to-day operations of the country - what would become the Executive in political theories a century or so later - fell to Ministers operating largely independently, even if ultimately answerable to William or Mary.

Queen Anne was the first Queen to deliberately aim at being apolitical, and set this tradition in motion. While she could, and did, exert power over Parliament, she and her husband were careful to avoid aligning themselves with either political party. The Georges who succeeded her - at the behest of Parliament of course - rapidly lost rights in part by being unable to perform the related duties. Sometimes this was due to a language barrier, sometimes this was due to financial ruin.

Increasingly, though, monarchs have aimed very deliberately at being - publicly - politically neutral figureheads whose job is primarily one of morale and pomp. Recent monarchs have, in general, offered advice behind closed doors only, and guarded very carefully what that advice might be - and whether or not it’s followed.

Answer 2

The Glorious Revolution was a bloodless coup in which Catholic King James II of England was deposed and replaced by his Protestant daughter Mary II and her Dutch husband, Prince William III of Orange, from 1688 to 1689. The revolution, which was motivated by both politics and religion, resulted in the adoption of the English Bill of Rights in 1689, which forever changed the way England was governed. The seeds of modern political democracy were sown as Parliament gained more control over the previously absolute authority of the royal monarchy.

Significance of the Glorious Revolution:

1. The Glorious Revolution harmed English Catholics both socially and politically. Catholics were denied the right to vote, sit in Parliament, or serve as commissioned military officers for over a century. Until 2015, it was illegal for the reigning monarch of England to be Catholic or marry a Catholic. The English Bill of Rights of 1689 marked the beginning of the era of English parliamentary democracy. Since its adoption, no English king or queen has wielded absolute political power.
2. The Glorious Revolution was also important in the history of the United States. The American colonies' Protestant Puritans were liberated by the Revolution from several harsh laws imposed on them by Catholic King James II. The news of the Revolution fueled American colonists' hopes for independence, sparking a series of protests and uprisings against English rule.
3. Perhaps most importantly, the Glorious Revolution laid the groundwork for constitutional law, which established and defined governmental power as well as the granting and limitation of rights. These principles of well-defined executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government have been incorporated into the constitutions of England, the United States, and many other Western countries.

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