Reluctant Revolutionaries: Englishmen and the Revolution of 1688

by W.A. Speck

In 1688 the Catholic James II was removed from the throne and replaced by the Protestant monarchs William III and Mary. The importance of this "glorious revolution," long seen as a crucial shift in Britain from absolutism to constitutional monarchy, has recently been questioned by historians.

This wide-ranging book takes a fresh look at the people and events of 1688. Challenging recent work and arguing that 1688 did see a decisive, though not inevitable, movement toward mixed, constitutional monarchy, Speck provides a vivid picture of politics and society in the Glorious Revolution.
He explores the nature of the late Stuart monarchy, and its likely development without the "accident" of James II; the personality of James himself, and the significance of his flight; the nature of the conspiracy to invite William of Orange to England and place him on the throne; and the
Revolution's constitutional importance and long-term social and religious implications.

Genres: History

267 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1988

About the author

William Arthur Speck (born 1938) is a British historian specializing in late 17th and 18th-century British and American history.

Speck was educated at Bradford Grammar School and The Queen's College, Oxford, gaining a BA in 1960 and a D.Phil in 1966. He is Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Leeds and a Special Professor in the School of English Studies at the University of Nottingham where he co-convenes an Interdisciplinary Eighteenth-Century Research Seminar.

Reviews

[Jan-Maat]

Nice little study of 1688 and all that divided into two parts. The first is a narrative run through from the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 to William III's victory, the second part takes a thematic approach and looks at constitutional, religious and social issues.

One of the interesting aspects of the book is how far the later Stuarts were able to manipulate the electoral system to produce supportive parliaments. Naturally enough when Charles II called his first parliament the MPs were keen to support the monarch and move away from the conflictual relationship that Charles I had. However in later parliaments the same old unease over Royal spending (presumably spending on those lavishly curly wigs and high-heeled satin shoes, silk stockings and then whatever the women were wearing in those days, keeping up with those French cousins was all terribly costly) opened up the same old debates leading the Government to intervene as subtly and effectively as it could to produce more supportive parliaments.

James II had the cunning idea to extend toleration to Catholics and excluded Protestants groups such as Baptists and Quakers by altering the Charters for urban constituencies with the aim of producing a supportive and sympathetic electorate (not that there were many inclined to trust James II). Still I got a deep appreciation of how much hard work there was getting a parliament together in those days, all that bribery, corruption, voter suppression and manipulation is simply exhausting just to think about.

The downside to James II's plan, apart from the inconvenient fact that hardly anybody trusted him, was that it gave an excuse for his son-in-law, the Good King Billy of happy memory to invade with a small army (as a kind of Busman's holiday from fighting the French).

On the one side there were dramatic nosebleeds and family dynamics expressed with muskets and drums while on the other the awkward unsure fumbling of everybody groping towards a broadly acceptable, workable politics after a complete breakdown and civil war. Difficult to live through no doubt, but it makes for an interesting book.