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| 1679–1681 (Exclusion Crisis) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Exclusion Crisis |
| Start | 1679 |
| End | 1681 |
| Location | Kingdom of England |
| Key figures | Charles II; James, Duke of York; Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury; Thomas Osborne, Earl of Danby; John Locke; William of Orange |
| Outcome | Failure of Exclusion; strengthened royal prerogative; precursor to Glorious Revolution |
1679–1681 (Exclusion Crisis) was a series of parliamentary confrontations, legislative campaigns, and political conflicts in the Kingdom of England over the succession of Charles II and the position of his brother James, Duke of York. The crisis involved debates in the Exclusion Bill proposals, shifting alliances among the Tories and Whigs, public demonstrations, and legal actions that shaped the lead-up to the Glorious Revolution and the later passage of the Bill of Rights 1689.
By 1679 England faced the legacy of the English Civil War, the restored monarchy under Charles II, and the contentious tenure of ministers such as Thomas Osborne, Earl of Danby and Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury. International tensions with the Dutch Republic, the memory of the Anglo-Dutch Wars, and religious fears stemming from the Popish Plot alleged by Titus Oates combined with the succession question about James, Duke of York to produce a volatile political environment. Previous crises, including the impeachment of Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon and the controversy over the Test Acts and Declaration of Indulgence, had already polarized the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The return of veterans from the Second Anglo-Dutch War and the influence of pamphleteers tied to figures like John Locke intensified debates over constitutional limits associated with the Petitions of Right and the interpretation of the Habeas Corpus Act 1679.
The first Exclusion Bill emerged in the Habeas Corpus Parliament of 1679 when MPs proposed legislation to bar James, Duke of York from the succession; proponents sought to bind succession through statute rather than royal prerogative. Subsequent sessions, including the Exclusion Parliaments of 1679 and 1680, saw repeated drafts of the Exclusion Bill reintroduced against opposition from supporters of Charles II and allies in the House of Lords. Key legislative maneuvering involved speakers such as Sir William Williams and ministers like Sir William Temple, while royal responses invoked royal writs and prorogation powers used by Charles II and advisers drawn from the circle of George Savile, 1st Marquess of Halifax. The culmination at the Oxford Parliament of 1681 ended with the dissolution of Parliament after the refusal of Charles II to accept statutory alteration of succession.
The crisis crystallized emergent party alignments labeled as Whigs and Tories and featured leaders including Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury for the Exclusionists and royalist defenders such as John Maitland, 1st Duke of Lauderdale and Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington. International actors like William of Orange and domestic jurists like Edward Coke served as intellectual reference points for contestants, while pamphletists including Andrew Marvell and Samuel Pepys—connected to networks that involved Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of Halifax—influenced factional rhetoric. The crisis implicated legal personalities such as Sir Matthew Hale and political operatives like Robert Spencer, 2nd Earl of Sunderland, who negotiated court patronage and alliances with provincial magnates like Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer.
Pamphleteering, broadsheets, and print culture driven by printers in London fueled public engagement; pamphlets by anonymous writers invoked histories of Magna Carta and appealed to memories of the English Interregnum. Crowds gathered in locations such as Trafalgar Square predecessors in the City of London wards and at coffeehouses where readers discussed texts by John Locke and polemics referencing the Habeas Corpus Act 1679. Cartoons, ballads, and petitions circulated from port towns like Plymouth and Bristol, while London publishers exploited networks stretching to Amsterdam and the Low Countries. The press polarized opinions between supporters of the Exclusion Bill who celebrated suspected conspiracies of Popery and opponents who warned of sedition and republicanism associated with the memory of Oliver Cromwell.
The Popish Plot prosecutions, including trials driven by witnesses such as Edmund Berry Godfrey, produced convictions and panic that fed Exclusion momentum; countermeasures included prosecutions for libel and riot overseen by judges from the King's Bench and legal officers like the Attorney General. Mob actions, street skirmishes, and disturbances in the Temple and along the Thames targeted figures aligned with court patronage and led to arrests sanctioned by authorities in Whitehall. High-profile cases—some involving alleged conspirators with links to expatriates in France and the Spanish Netherlands—provoked interventions by Charles II who used royal prerogative to suspend or pardon indictments, while local militia and constables confronted assemblies linked to Shaftesbury's supporters.
After the dissolution of the Oxford Parliament, Charles II consolidated power by arresting prominent Exclusionists, including Shaftesbury, and by securing patronage networks among peers like James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde and colonial administrators in Ireland. Although the Exclusion movement failed legislatively, its legacy persisted: the formation of persistent Whig and Tory identities, the radicalization of some activists who later cooperated with William of Orange during the Glorious Revolution, and the eventual enactment of the Bill of Rights 1689 which addressed succession and liberties contested in 1679–1681. Figures sidelined during the crisis, such as John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and intellectuals like Hugo Grotius-influenced theorists, reemerged in the politics of the 1680s, while European geopolitics involving the Grand Alliance and the diplomacy of Louis XIV of France shaped the broader consequences for the British Isles and the subsequent constitutional settlement.