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Fiction: While the story of the Duke of Monmouth is fictional, it’s inspired by the scandal of real-life Victorian social reformer and writer Caroline Norton, according to Lily Travers, the...
- The House of Stuart
- Protestant Rebellion
- Battle of Sedgemoor
- Vengeance
- Aftermath
When Charles II of England died without an heir in 1685, the crown was passed on to his younger brother who became James II of England (and James VII of Scotland). There had been another choice, though: James Scott, Duke of Monmouth (b. 9 April 1649), the illegitimate son of Charles II (although some modern historians question if Monmouth was his s...
King James had at least played down his Catholic sympathies in his coronation ceremony when he eliminated the communion part. Still, the rumours would not go away that he intended to return England to Catholicism. There were even wild claims that the queen was actually the daughter of a pope, such was the atmosphere of suspicion. In May 1685, the E...
Monmouth's shabby-looking army did well at first, defeating the county militia in several minor battles. London seemed too big a target for the rebels, and so Monmouth opted to try and take the important port of Bristol instead. Then they were met by a professional royal army on 6 July at Sedgemoor outside Bridgewater in Somerset, and it was an ent...
Monmouth begged an audience with his uncle to seek his forgiveness, but although the king granted such a meeting where Monmouth threw himself at his sovereign's feet, James would not be moved. Monmouth offered to disclose the names of his fellow rebels, but the king was determined to be done with his challenger. Obviously guilty of treason and so d...
After the rebellion, James began to turn more overtly pro-Catholic. He appointed Catholics in key positions in the government, courts, navy, and army; even university appointments took on a distinct Catholic bias. The king also ignored laws, extended others, and waived sentences when they applied to Catholic individuals he favoured, what became kno...
- Mark Cartwright
Defeated in battle, James, Duke of Monmouth, was executed for treason in 1685. He was 36. Keay credits Monmouth with championing parliamentary democracy and helping prepare the way for the Glorious Revolution which unseated James II. This highly readable biography brings to life a flawed but fascinating young man.
One of the most harrowing episodes in the history of England’s West Country began on 11th June 1685, when Charles II’s illegitimate son, the Duke of Monmouth, sailed into Lyme Regis harbour and the Monmouth Rebellion began…
James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, 1st Duke of Buccleuch, KG, PC (9 April 1649 – 15 July 1685) was a Dutch-born English nobleman and military officer. Originally called James Crofts or James Fitzroy , he was born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands , the eldest illegitimate son of Charles II of England with his mistress Lucy Walter .
Monmouth was present at the naval victory off Lowestoft in 1665 and fought as an army officer in the second and third Dutch wars. The conversion of James, duke of York, to catholicism brought Monmouth into play as a possible protestant successor to Charles II.
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James Scott, duke of Monmouth, an illegitimate son of Charles II, was Shaftesbury’s personal choice for the throne had Exclusion succeeded. Monmouth recruited tradesmen and farmers as he marched through the West Country on the way to defeat at the Battle of…
