The Revolution Settlement: Consolidation in Ireland and Scotland (AQA A-Level History): Revision Notes
The Revolution Settlement: Consolidation in Ireland and Scotland
Introduction: The challenge of consolidating revolution across three kingdoms
The 1689 settlement consolidated the Glorious Revolution in England with relatively little bloodshed. However, the situation differed substantially in Ireland and Scotland. James II's religious policies had created distinct political circumstances in each kingdom. Scotland remained predominantly Protestant, whilst Ireland possessed a Catholic majority. These religious differences meant that the revolution of 1688 was received differently in both territories, resulting in bloodshed. The events of 1688–90 established foundations that shaped political and religious identities for generations, particularly in Ireland where these developments became central to Protestant self-understanding.
The key to understanding the different outcomes in each kingdom lies in their religious compositions: Scotland's Protestant majority welcomed the revolution, whilst Ireland's Catholic majority viewed it as a threat to recent gains.
Consolidation of the revolution in Scotland
James II's policies and their impact
Understanding the Scottish response to the Glorious Revolution requires examining James II's brief reign and its effects. James's actions alienated Presbyterian sentiment through his assault on conventicles (unofficial outdoor Presbyterian worship services). Following the suppression of Argyll's rebellion, James pursued bloody repression and used this as justification for promoting Catholics into military and administrative positions. The Protestant reaction proved swift and uncompromising. Preachers actively refused to obey royal directives against anti-Catholic sermons, whilst riots erupted in several towns.
James harboured deep hostility towards Scottish Presbyterians. He held them responsible for the role Covenanters played in the English Civil War and blamed Presbyterianism for his great-grandmother Mary Queen of Scots being expelled from Scotland. In 1687, James issued an Edict of Toleration that suspended all penal laws against Roman Catholics, offered freedom of worship in private to Presbyterians, and permitted Quakers (whom he considered harmless eccentrics) to worship publicly. However, Presbyterians wishing to benefit from this religious tolerance had to swear an oath of non-resistance, thereby confirming the king's absolute power. This measure reinforced Protestant perceptions that Catholicism and royal absolutism were inextricably linked.
James regarded law-making in Scotland as the exclusive prerogative of the crown, relegating the Scottish parliament to a subordinate role. This constitutional stance intensified tensions between monarch and subjects and demonstrated his commitment to absolute monarchy.
The Scottish Convention and the transfer of power
Protestant Scots, especially north of the border, welcomed the Glorious Revolution enthusiastically. Their relief intensified when James was compelled to withdraw his army from Scotland to address William's invasion. Initially, the revolution in Scotland remained relatively bloodless, consisting mainly of Pope-burning processions and attacks on Catholic chapels.
Early in 1689, William summoned a Scottish Convention to determine the political settlement. The Convention offered the Scottish crown to William and Mary, declaring that James had "forfaulted" his throne in Scotland by attempting to transform the "legal limited monarchy" into "an arbitrary despotic power". In July, the Convention abolished prelacy (the system of church governance by bishops) in the Scottish kirk. One year later, in 1690, Presbyterian ministers who had lost their positions following the 1662 Act of Uniformity were restored to their livings. Scottish Presbyterianism seized the opportunity to reassert itself after the revolution, perceiving it as providentially "glorious". The Scots effectively transformed their religious and political fortunes.
The abolition of prelacy marked a crucial victory for Scottish Presbyterianism. This religious settlement proved more radical than the Anglican compromise established in England, reflecting Scotland's stronger Presbyterian traditions.
Jacobite resistance and military conflicts
The revolution did not enjoy universal support in Scotland. The Highlands and islands remained predominantly Catholic, and the Jacobites (supporters who remained loyal to James II and his line) constituted a powerful force in these regions and parts of the Lowlands.
The Battle of Killiecrankie (July 1689)
In July 1689, a Jacobite uprising defeated William III's forces at the Battle of Killiecrankie, employing a Highland charge (a disorganised but effective rushing attack by Highland clansmen designed to close distance with more heavily armed forces for hand-to-hand combat, thereby neutralising their enemies' superior firepower). Using this tactic, the Jacobite rising managed to get amongst the English musketeers before they could reload or deploy bayonets.
This initial Jacobite victory demonstrated the effectiveness of Highland warfare tactics against conventional forces.
However, the Jacobites suffered defeat at the Battle of Dunkeld in August 1689. By September, they were in disarray. Fort William was subsequently established as a military base to maintain armed presence in the Highlands. The conflict officially concluded with the Treaty of Achallader in June 1691. Under this agreement, the clans undertook to swear allegiance to William in exchange for full indemnity and payment of £12,000 to cover war costs. The terms proved generous for the defeated Jacobites.
The Glencoe massacre
The MacDonald clan became victims of a brutal government action. William III's Secretary of State for Scotland, Sir John Dalrymple, exploited the peace settlement to target Catholic Highland clans. In January 1692, he ordered the destruction of Catholic clans in and around the mountain pass at Glencoe, an area from which escape could be easily blocked.
In February 1692, government forces attacked the MacDonalds during a snowstorm, killing 43 people in cold blood. Most victims were women and children. This massacre represented a calculated act of state violence against a specific clan, demonstrating the harsh methods employed to consolidate William's authority in the Highlands.
The Glencoe massacre became a symbol of government treachery and remains a deeply controversial episode in Scottish history.
Consolidation of the revolution in Ireland
James II's policy in Ireland and Tyrconnel's work
James II pursued a policy in Ireland that promoted Catholics in both military and administrative spheres. He aimed to emancipate Irish Catholics and establish an Irish parliament that would prove compliant and submissive to royal authority. However, Catholics constituted the majority population in Ireland. Between 1685 and 1688, the Earl of Tyrconnel was assigned the responsibility of purging the Irish army of Ulster Presbyterians and returning property from the Church of Ireland to the Catholic Church. The government not only removed Protestant officers from their commands but also replaced Protestant rank-and-file soldiers with Catholics.
Unlike Scotland, where Protestants formed the majority, Ireland's Catholic majority population meant that James II's pro-Catholic policies actually enjoyed widespread support among the Irish population. This fundamental difference explains why Ireland became a potential base for James's counter-revolution.
The revolution of 1688 threatened to dismantle all of Tyrconnel's efforts. This prompted him to dispatch an embassy to France (where James now resided in exile) to persuade the deposed king to travel to Ireland and assume personal leadership of the monarchy. James's strategy involved using Ireland as a base for the recovery of England and Scotland. Louis XIV recognised that a Jacobite revolution in Ireland could compel William to divert military forces there. The French king actively encouraged James to claim his Irish throne with assistance from a small French contingent.
The siege of Londonderry and the Battle of the Boyne
James landed in Ireland in March 1689 as Jacobite forces established a siege at Londonderry (Derry), the focal point of Protestant plantations. Many Protestants had fled to Derry seeking refuge and now confronted a desperate siege. On 22 June, the Irish Parliament threatened the death penalty for all Protestants who had declared for William of Orange. James's policy of religious toleration was rapidly unravelling, as the civil war developing in Ireland transformed into a confrontation between Protestants and Catholics that would define Irish politics for subsequent generations.
The plight of besieged Protestants in Ireland generated English sympathy, paralleling reactions to the Irish Rebellion of 1641. On 28 July, a relief force from England lifted the siege of Derry. In June 1690, William personally arrived in Ireland to assume command of his forces. Speed proved essential, as he needed to return to England to manage the developing war with France. William therefore sought a decisive confrontation with James and his army.
The Battle of the Boyne (1 July 1690)
James was compelled to comply, disregarding advice from his French counsellors and advancing to engage William. The two armies clashed at the Boyne River on 1 July 1690, resulting in a decisive victory for William of Orange.
This battle became one of the most significant engagements in Irish history, not because it immediately ended the war, but because of its profound symbolic importance for Protestant identity in Ireland.
Aftermath and the formation of Protestant Irish identity
The Battle of the Boyne did not immediately terminate the war in Ireland, but it eliminated any prospect of Jacobite victory. James himself returned to France, where he subsequently died in exile. The Jacobite cause, however, continued to threaten Queen Anne and the Hanoverians (King George I and his descendants, to whom the monarchy passed by the Act of Settlement following Queen Anne's death in 1714) until the defeat of Scottish clans at Culloden in 1745.
The events of 1688–90 acquired profound historical importance, becoming the foundation of Protestant Irish identity. Many Protestants in Northern Ireland continue to regard these events as the birth of their national identity. The confrontation between Protestants and Catholics during this period established patterns that would shape Irish political culture for centuries.
Murals and commemorations in Ulster Protestant communities demonstrate the enduring significance of this period in collective memory and political self-understanding.
Remember!
Key Points to Remember:
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The Glorious Revolution was consolidated differently in Scotland and Ireland compared to England, with substantial bloodshed in both kingdoms due to religious and political divisions.
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In Scotland, James II's promotion of Catholicism and assertion of absolute monarchy alienated Presbyterians, but the revolution ultimately allowed Scottish Presbyterianism to reassert itself through the abolition of prelacy and restoration of ministers.
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Jacobite resistance in Scotland achieved initial success at Killiecrankie (July 1689) but was defeated at Dunkeld (August 1689), ending with the Treaty of Achallader (1691), though the Glencoe massacre (February 1692) demonstrated the brutal methods used to suppress remaining opposition.
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In Ireland, James II's policy of promoting Catholics threatened Protestant interests, leading to the siege of Londonderry and the decisive Battle of the Boyne (1 July 1690), which ended prospects of Jacobite victory.
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The events of 1688–90 became foundational to Protestant Irish identity, establishing a sectarian confrontation between Protestants and Catholics that would define Irish politics for generations.