Dismantling the Monarchy: English Revolutions and the Birth of British Liberalism

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering key people, events, political concepts, and literary ideas discussed in the lecture on the English Revolutions and the development of British liberal thought.

Absolutism

A system of government in which the monarch holds unrestricted, centralized power justified as divinely sanctioned.

Divine Right of Kings

Doctrine asserting that monarchs derive authority directly from God and are accountable only to Him, not to subjects or Parliament.

Constitutional Monarchy

Form of monarchy limited by a constitution, with sovereignty shared between crown and Parliament.

Daniel Defoe

English writer (1660-1731); Puritan background; author of Robinson Crusoe and political pamphleteer.

Robinson Crusoe

1719 novel portraying individualism, colonization, and governance on a desert island—often read as political allegory.

Island Metaphor

Use of Crusoe’s island as a microcosm for England, exploring rulership, freedom, and colonial experimentation.

Tudor Dynasty

English royal house ruling 1485-1603, preceding the Stuarts.

Stuart Dynasty

Royal house ruling England & Scotland 1603-1714, marked by civil wars, interregnum, and revolution.

Interregnum / Commonwealth

Period 1649-1660 when monarchy was abolished and England was governed as a republic under Parliament and Cromwell.

Petition of Right (1628)

Parliamentary petition to Charles I affirming no taxation or imprisonment without Parliament’s consent.

Gunpowder Plot (1605)

Failed Catholic conspiracy led by Guy Fawkes to blow up King James I and Parliament.

Guy Fawkes

Conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot; now symbol of rebellion in popular culture.

English Civil Wars

Series of armed conflicts (1642-1651) between Royalists and Parliamentarians over governance and religion.

New Model Army

Disciplined Parliamentary force created 1645, instrumental in defeating Royalists.

Puritanism

Broad term for English Protestants seeking further reform of the Church of England and opposing Anglican ritual.

Levellers

Radical faction within New Model Army advocating popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, and legal equality.

Diggers

Small radical group advocating common ownership of land during the Commonwealth period.

Agreement of the People (1647)

Leveller manifesto calling for biennial parliaments, extended franchise, and religious freedom—early constitutional proposal.

Oliver Cromwell

Parliamentary general; Lord Protector (1653-1658) governing republican England.

Lord Protector

Title held by Cromwell (and briefly his son Richard) as head of state during the Commonwealth.

Restoration

Return of Charles II and monarchy in 1660 after Cromwell’s Commonwealth.

Charles I

Stuart king (1625-1649) executed for treason after the Civil War, symbolizing fall of absolutism.

Charles II

Restored Stuart king (1660-1685) whose reign re-established monarchy and Anglican Church.

James I / VI

First Stuart king of England (1603-1625); strong advocate of divine right.

James II

Catholic Stuart king (1685-1688) deposed in the Glorious Revolution.

Glorious Revolution (1688-89)

Overthrow of James II and accession of William III & Mary II, leading to constitutional monarchy.

William III and Mary II

Dutch-English couple invited by Parliament to rule jointly after the Glorious Revolution.

Bill of Rights (1689)

Statute limiting royal power—no taxes or standing army without Parliament, free elections, due process.

Act of Settlement (1701)

Law securing Protestant succession and reinforcing Parliament’s authority to determine monarchy.

British Liberalism

17th-century political philosophy emphasizing individual rights, consent of the governed, and limited government.

John Locke

English philosopher (1632-1704) whose Two Treatises articulated natural rights and social contract theory.

Two Treatises of Government (1690)

Locke’s work arguing for government by consent, right of rebellion, and protection of life, liberty, property.

Social Contract Theory

Idea that political authority arises from an agreement among free individuals to form a government.

Thomas Hobbes

English philosopher (1588-1679); author of Leviathan advocating absolute sovereignty to escape the state of nature.

Leviathan (1651)

Hobbes’s treatise describing state of nature as “nasty, brutish, and short” and justifying absolute government.

State of Nature

Hypothetical pre-political condition used by Hobbes and Locke to explore origins of government.

Anti-Catholic Fear

Widespread 17th-century English anxiety over Catholic plots and influence, fueling political crises.

Exclusion Crisis

1679-1681 Parliamentary attempt to bar Catholic James, Duke of York, from succession.

Massacre of Glencoe (1692)

Killing of MacDonald clan members in Scotland for delayed oath to William III, showing Revolution’s violence.

Battle of the Boyne (1690)

Key battle in Ireland where Williamite forces defeated Jacobite supporters of James II.

Jacobite Rebellions

Uprisings in 1715 and 1745 aiming to restore the Stuart line deposed by the Glorious Revolution.

Commonwealth (definition)

According to OED: the body politic or republic in which supreme authority rests with the people.

Puritan "Topsy-Turvy World"

Image of social order inverted during Interregnum debates about authority and equality.

Divine Right Tracts

Writings like James I’s True Law of Free Monarchies defending monarchical absolutism by scripture.

Petition of Right vs. Bill of Rights

1628 and 1689 documents both limiting royal prerogative and affirming Parliamentary consent.