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Period: 1200 to
Seven Steps to a Limited Monarchy
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1215
The Magna Carta
This document was the first establishment of rights of English citizens. While it was a peace agreement between the current king and a group of rebels, it established basic human rights that mustn't be violated in England. This presented some of the first limited on a monarch's power. Even the king is, supposedly, not able to violate these rights. Whether or not that held true throughout history, it was the first step towards limiting the power of the monarch. -
Jan 20, 1265
Establishment of Parliament
This was the year that a Parliament that included elected representatives of the common people was established. Before this, only Lords participated in Parliament. While they had interest in limiting a monarch's power, they did not wish to completely-- the elimination of a monarch's power would also significantly decrease their own. By allowing elected representatives, power was further taken away from the monarch by placing it in the hands of the people. -
The Glorious Revolution of 1688
The Glorious revolution was the deposition of King James II. When he fled the country, a Parliament was called to determine the next course of action. At this time, Parliament was granted the power to officially remove the king as the monarch as appoint the crown to a new monarch. This demonstrated immense power of Parliament over the monarchs. -
The Bill of Rights
As an act of Parliament, it further outlined the rights of citizens. Equally as important , it define how succession to the crown would proceed. This instituted significant control on the part of Parliament over how the monarchy would progress over time. It also further limited the power of the monarchy by passing laws that could not be violated. -
The Act of Settlement
This act determined that the successor to the throne must be a Protestant. Effectively, it abandoned the line of the Stuarts as monarchs. It had the effect of joining the countries of England and Scotland, which had previously shared a ruler but not a Parliament, under one government. With more representative acting in Parliament to limit the power of the monarchs, it became even more difficult to act on the accord of one ruler. -
Creation of the Office of Prime Minister
The introduction of the office of prime minister during the reign of King George I took away significant control from the Monarch. Even though it was a somewhat voluntary transfer of power, as King George just ceased to attend meetings, the position of chief executive is one that hold immense power outside of the reaches of the monarch. -
The Reign of Queen Victoria
The reign of Queen Victoria was essentially the last reign to have significant personal power. While a constitutional monarchy was already mostly established in England, Queen Victoria was the last monarch to exercise any real political power. The end of her reign brought the reality of a constitutional monarchy to an absolute.
