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Jun 15, 1215
Signing of the Magna Carta
This was the first document to limit the Kings power since it procclaimed that the English subjects are protected and cannot be punished except through law. It also led to the developement of Parliament, a central drive towards limited monarchy. -
Petition of Right
The passing of the Petition of Right prompted Charles I to disband parliament and begin his years of personal rule. This sets up the clear competition between the power of the king and the power of Parliament. -
The Long Parliament
This Parliamental session passed conditions on the King that limited his power such as Parliament go not go three years without a session and the king could not dissolve it without Parliament's consent. -
Civil War
The defeat of Charles I led to his execution and the abolishment of monarchy. This shows how the English has turned mostly away from the idea of divine rights of the king and England became officially a Puritan Republic. -
Oliver Cromwell becomes dictator
Cromwell's tyranical rule as Lord Protector drove England to reinstate the monarchy after his death in 1660. -
James II becomes king
His pro-Catholic acts as monarch such as the repeal of the Test Act and the Declaration of Indulgence led to English Protestants to ask William of Orange to take the English Throne. -
William III and MaryII recognize the Bill of Rights
When William of Orange and his wife Mary became the monarchs of England, they recognized the Bill of Rights, establishing a limited monarchy in England.
