The Glorious Revolution was an English civil war to overthrow King James II. The entire ordeal was hardly a war, however. The Protestant forces moving to overthrow James saw little resistance from the Catholic monarch, hence the name “Glorious Revolution.”  When James II ascended the throne, Protestant forces were highly skeptical. As a Catholic, they … More Glorious Revolution (1688-1689)

Contrary to popular belief and standard textbook education, the Levellers were not socialists who believed in common ownership. Rather, the Levellers—led by Richard Overton, John Lilburne, and William Walwyn—were a 16th-century classical liberal movement born during the English Civil War, giving inspiration to modern-day libertarianism.  The root of their beliefs was in the principle of … More The Levellers

Asher K. Sisneros Western Civilization Since 1492 Tom Woods September 4, 2024 The English Civil War was a war over sovereignty and whether it resided in kings or Parliament. Since James I, the Stuart dynasty toyed with implementing absolutism in England. However, even James I, who supported the political theory, could not implement it effectively, … More The English Civil War

Asher K. Sisneros Western Civilization Since 1492 Tom Woods September 4, 2024 The Thirty Years’ War (AD 1619-1648) was a multi-decade and highly complicated civil war within the Holy Roman Empire. It is often touted as a religious war between Protestant and Catholic forces, and that is true, but it would be unfair to characterize … More The Defenestration of Prague and Peace of Westphalia

Queen Elizabeth I (r. 1558-1603) succeeded Queen “Bloody Mary” Tudor to the throne. Unlike her two siblings, Queen Mary and King Edward VI, she adopted religious agnosticism. Under both of their leaderships, she had conformed to be politically accepted. Under Edward’s reign, she acted Protestant; under Mary, Catholic. Some argue that her faith was disingenuous. … More Religious Policy of Elizabeth I

Throughout the 16th century, France was tattered with religious wars; wars to squash religious pluralism in the country. The Protestant Huguenots were growing in numbers. By 1560, 10 percent of the nation was Protestant. The monarchy tried to mitigate this growth by launching repressive measures against the Huguenots, but those decrees were ignored.  Nobles sided … More Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre

Under Philip II’s reign as the king of Spain, 7 northern provinces declared their independence as the Dutch Republic. The conflict between Spain and the 7 provinces is commonly known as the Dutch Revolt.  As king, Philip adopted militant Catholicism. All the citizens of Spain were forced to participate in religious conformity, including Protestants and … More The Dutch Revolt

The Spanish Revolt was a series of riots that broke out across Spain during Charles V’s coronation as Holy Roman Emperor in 1519. During that era, there was immense segregation between people of the Low Countries and Spain. Typically, citizens in the Low Countries perceived themselves as more educated and higher class, meanwhile looking down … More The Spanish Revolt