bill of rights

• Bill of Rights

  • james II tried to reinstate Catholicism in the UK and became increasingly authoritarian
  • james' daughter mary was married to william of orange (dutch) who invaded the UK in 1688 to support the king's opponents
  • james II fled to france and was deemed to have abdicted by parliament
  • william and mary were approached by parliament to become the new monarchs, provided that they agreed to the declaration of rights, which eventually became the bill of rights
  • reflects many of the ideas of political thinker john locke
• Bill of Rights - Main points

  • reinforced the petition of right
  • reinforced the habeas corpus act
  • protected freedom of speech in parliament
  • only parliament - not the monarch - can levy taxed
  • parliament must be held frequently
  • free election of MPs
  • no excessive bail, or cruel punishment
• bill of rights - sovereignty in parliament

  • a key feature today of our political system
  • limited royal prerogrative
  • democracy and freedom of speech remain relevant and still debated
• Bill of Rights - Basis for Future Constitutional Statutes

  • licensing act (1695) - publications no longer needed censorship - led to huge numbers of books and newspapers
  • act of settlement 1701 (succession to the crown)
• Bill of rights - Influence on other countries

  • many of the provisions in the english bill of rights were transferred almost transferred, almost word for word, into the US bill of rights which is part of the US codified constitution