IT is one of the central events of modern British history, which still resonates today on the streets of Scotland and shapes the islands upon which we live. But our understanding of the so-called Glorious Revolution of King William of Orange is based on myth and spin. In fact, you would be forgiven for saying it was a case of 17th century fake news.
Historians down the years have described the events of 1688-1690 as a sea change in British history which established the supremacy of parliament over the crown. The 300th anniversary of the ousting of the 'tyrannical' Catholic King James II by his Protestant son-in-law William of Orange was proclaimed in Parliament in 1988 by Margaret Thatcher as one of the "great events in the history of these islands" which helped bring constitutional freedom and was "important in establishing Britain's nationhood".
However, in a new TV series historian Lucy Worsley, describes the official version as one of the biggest myths in British history. The TV show paints William as far from being a hero.
In 'British History's Biggest Fibs', which starts next week, she describes how the revolution began with an act of treason inspired by anti-Catholic politicians and how William was actually foreign invader rather than a liberator who was engaged in "spin" over his motives - which were to prevent a French and British Catholic alliance which would have tipped the balance of power in Europe.
Worsley says the Williamite story has "been manipulated and mythologised to become a cornerstone of our national story".
The historian says a Dutch invasion was "spun into a triumphant liberation...and celebrated ever since as the foundation of our parliamentary democracy...His attack is not remembered as a foreign invasion."
William and his wife Mary, who was the daughter of James, were crowned joint monarchs of England, Scotland and Ireland in 1689. William’s ousting of his predecessor ensured the primacy of the Protestant faith in Britain. His decisive victory over James at the Battle of the Boyne is celebrated annually in Northern Ireland on July 12 and continues to fuel sectarian tensions to this day.
Worsley argues that in a "carefully constructed tale" the Catholic King James II was cast as the villain, a tyrant who believed he had the divine right to rule and to ride roughshod over his subjects.
However, her documentary says James was the victim of an act of treason, as Protestant politicians secretly asked William of Orange to invade in a letter.
"The biggest problem with James was the fact he was a Catholic king in a country that was largely protestant," she says.
One of Worsley's targets for creating the spin is the 19th century historian Thomas Babington Macaulay, the son of a Scottish Highlander who became a colonial governor. His interpretation of the Glorious Revolution in the History of England became the starting point for any discussion about the rebellion.
She says the book transforms the conspirators' "carefully concocted tale into history" and that as a student she was told to read it with great caution "because this was...a powerful person's view of the past".
According to the establishment account, the revolution set Britain on the path towards constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy.
But William already had a plan in place to invade concerned that James would forge an alliance with the French Catholic King Louis XIV who was seen as a threat, and the conspirators' invitation was a perfect excuse.
William produced 60,000 copies of his version of events, a hand written declaration described by Worsley as "an early example of printed propaganda" which talks about how deposing the king would help the British people.
Worsley describes this as "spin" which "becomes history". "The Dutch prince was carefully transforming himself into a very British hero, a Protestant knight in shining armour leading a glorious revolution. Not an invader. Not a usurper, but a liberator," she said.
Although bloodshed in England was limited, the revolution was only secured in Ireland and Scotland by force through the infamous Battle of the Boyne and the Massacre of Glencoe with much loss of life.
After the coronation, a William-inspired Bill of Rights set down Protestant superiority in law and banned Catholics from ever taking the throne.
"Despite brutality and bloodshed in Scotland and Ireland, the narrative of the Glorious Revolution held fast in England," says Worsley. "For William and the English Parliament, of course this was a Glorious Revolution, because despite the rebellions and the bloodshed, they had won - and if you win a conflict, you get to pick it's name."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel