William and Mary Crowned: Britain's Constitutional Monarchy Begins
William III of Orange and Mary II of England were crowned on April 11, 1689, but only after accepting the Declaration of Rights, later codified as the Bill of Rights 1689. This document permanently limited royal power by prohibiting the monarch from suspending laws, levying taxes, or maintaining a standing army without parliamentary consent. It guaranteed free elections, freedom of speech in Parliament, and prohibited cruel and unusual punishments. William and Mary had been invited to invade England by seven Protestant nobles who opposed the Catholic James II. Their "Glorious Revolution" established the principle that Parliament, not the monarch, held ultimate sovereignty. The American Bill of Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights both trace their lineage to this document.
April 11, 1689
337 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on April 11
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