Timeline to a Limited English Monarchy

  • June 15,1215: Creation of the Magna Carta
    Jul 15, 1215

    June 15,1215: Creation of the Magna Carta

    After King John II failed to subdue rebellious nobles, the unpopular King was forced to throw his support behind the Magna Carta. the document laid out a series of commitments that both the King and Nobles would make to English Society, and it limited the number of feudal payments that Nobles would have had to make to the King. The document, while quickly ignored and annulled by the Pope, was the first example of a British King being brought to the negotiations table by his Nobles.
  • 1225

    Early 1225: Reissue of the Magna Carta

    The Magna Carta had been ignored by nearly all sides after it was initially signed, and thus while it did technically establish the English parliament, it had a little practical effect. However, King Henry III would reissue the Magna Carta in early 1225, in order to get his Barons support in military endeavors. After Henry III gave the Magna Carta his royal seal it became a more official part of British law, and thus was respected by later British royalty.
  • June 7, 1628: Petition of Right

    Following King Charles I's abusive practices and horrendous violations of individual rights, the House of Commons and House of Lords would come together to force him to sign the Petition of Right. The Petition of Right was a constitutional document that took steps to protect individual rights from the King's abusive power and thus gained a political status as weighty as the Magna Carta which preceded it by several centuries; Parliament had been able to legally check a British King.
  • January 30, 1649: Execution of Charles I

    During the English Civil War King Charles I would be executed by his former subjects, firmly shaking the perspective of a King's divine right to rule. As such, this event would change the perception of King's and the monarchy in general in England, and pace the way for parliament to take a more active role in politics. Also, through the nation of removing the King, this event would play a large role in allowing for the Parliament to triumph in the Civil War over the royalist forces.
  • January 1, 1651: End of the English Civil War

    The English Civil had been fought between the Parliament and their supporters and the King and royalists who believed in his divine authority to rule: and it ended with a Parliamentary victory. This military victory was one of the most important events in shifting England's trajectory from that of an absolute monarchy, as it dramatically decreased the King's actual and perceived power, and increased the shared power of the British sitting parliament.
  • November 5, 1688: The Glorious Revolution.

    King James II was a deeply unpopular ruler in England who strived towards absolute control of the nation, and so the Parliament made the decision to remove him from power. In order to do so, they would invite William of Orange to peacefully take control of England, an offer he would accept, landing in Londen on the 5th of November. As such, parliament was once again demonstrating their ability to remove a King they were unhappy with, shattering the perceived absolute power of the monarchy.
  • January 22, 1689: English Declaration of Rights

    Upon the conclusion of the Glorious Revolution, the British Parliament would offer both the British monarchy and the British Declaration of rights to William and Mary. William and Mary would accept both offers, and so the English Bill of Rights would be accepted into law. The Declaration of RIghts clarified the Parliament's power and suspended the King's ability to simply remove or alter any law he saw fit at any time; the King would now have to share control of the nation with Parliament.