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21 March 1679
The First Exclusion Bill is passed by the House of Commons. Following the Popish Plot (see 6 September 1678), a wave of hysteria sweeps the country and triggers the Exclusion Crisis, a period of intense political unrest that lasts until 1681. The main issue is the attempt by Protestant nobles – led by Anthony Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury – to exclude the Catholic James, Duke of York, from the succession in favour of Charles II's bastard son James, Duke of Monmouth, who is a Protestant. But every time Parliament passes an Exclusion Bill, Charles dissolves it and withholds his assent. An immediate consequence of the Exclusion Crisis is the emergence of organised political parties – pro-James Tories and anti-James Whigs (see DIY politics). — • — Charles ... did not allow Parliament to meet, proroguing it seven times, despite a monster petition 100 yards long, demanding a parliamentary session. The very modern campaigning methods, with agents going door to door and manipulating press and populace, belonged to a radical change in the political framework ... From A Century of Troubles by Stevie Davies (Channel 4 Books) |
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