THE TORY REACTION, THE

ACCESSION OF JAMES II, AND

MONMOUTHS REBELLION
c. 1681-1685

Politics in the early 1680s

1. 1681: England is in a potentially revolutionary situation.

The majority of the landed elite are increasingly disturbed

by the political environment, particularly by the efforts of
the Whigs to mobilize public opinion in favor of excluding
James, Duke of York, from the royal succession. The
Whig party is asserting Parliaments power in relationship
to the Crown. Many aristocrats and gentlemen fear that
1641 has come again and that 1648 and 1649 will
follow soon thereafter.
2. During the early 1680s, the majority of the landed elite
decide to support Charles II in his confrontation with the
Earl of Shaftesbury, the Whigs, and the supporters of the
Exclusion Bill.

Politics in the early 1680s, continued

3. 1681-1685: the Tory reaction sets in. The Tory party,

which includes the majority of the landed elite, joins with

Charles II to politically marginalize and stamp out the
Whigs. Parliament does not meet between 1681 and 1685.
4. 1683: the Rye House Plot, which involves an
assassination attempt on Charles II and his brother James,
Duke of York, fails. Whigs and republicans, such as
Algernon Sidney, are rounded up and executed. Whig
leaders and activists, such as the Earl of Shaftesbury and
John Locke, flee into exile on the European continent.
5. The Whig political-party organization is decimated
between 1683 and 1685.

Politics in the early 1680s, continued

6. 1685: the Tory reaction is victorious. The Anglican-

Royalist consensus of the 1660s returns with a

vengeance. The renewed consensus rests on a strong
(but not absolute) monarchy, a persecutory Church of
England, and the Tory-leaning majority of the landed
classes.
7. The Court of Charles II and its supporters hope to
transform the Anglican-Royalist consensus into an
Anglican royal absolutism. The Tories are opposed to
creating an absolute monarchy, but they are even more
opposed to the Whigs during the first half of the 1680s.
The Tories fear another revolution more than they do the
creation of an absolute monarchy.

The accession of James II & VII and

Monmouths rebellion
1. February 6, 1685: Charles II dies and his brother

James accedes to the throne as James II of England and

James VII of Scotland. Despite being a Roman Catholic,
James II promises to uphold the laws of England and to
support the legally established Protestant religion (i.e., the
Church of England). The king calls for Parliament to
meet.
2. May 19, 1685: Parliament meets for the first time during
the reign of James II.
3. May-June, 1685: the Earl of Argyll leads a rebellion
against James IIs rule in Scotland.

Rebel with a cause: the Duke of Monmouth,

Charles IIs illegitimate Protestant son

The accession of James II & VII and Monmouths rebellion,

continued
4. June 11, 1685: the Duke of Monmouth, Charles IIs

illegitimate Protestant son, lands in southwestern England

and leads a rebellion against James IIs rule.
5. July 5-6, 1685: Monmouths forces are defeated at the
Battle of Sedgemoor and both rebellions are brutally
crushed.
6. As the summer of 1685 draws to an end, James II
stands triumphant at home. He is fully supported by the
Church of Englands bishops and clergy, by the Tory party,
and by the majority of the landed elite.