Revolution, The Great Crisis of the British Monarchy, 1685-1720
When James II’s second wife gave birth to a son in 1688, he believed the succession was at last secure, but their joy was short lived. James was a devout Catholic, and 98% of his English subjects were Protestants who saw that the future under another Catholic king would continue the tyranny and would lead to persecution of Protestants and the sequestration of their property, even overturn the rule of law. Charles II’s prophecy, ‘My brother will lose his kingdom by his bigotry…’ was to come true. Seven dissatisfied individuals known as the Immortal Seven wrote, inviting William of Orange and his wife, Mary (James’s daughter) to invade England and seize the throne. William entered England with 15,000 troops in October 1688, rescuing England from a popish despot and securing Protestant liberties.
This so called ‘Glorious Revolution’ resulted in thousands of deaths and marked a turning point in British politics that exists to the present day. Tim Harris’s expertise in presenting the grand panorama of events and bringing the action and players to life makes for a truly memorable read. Brilliantly researched and written, this is a book that would convert any history phobic.
