Jacobite risings

Jacobitism was a political ideology advocating the restoration of the senior line of the House of Stuart to the British throne. When James II of England chose exile after the November 1688 Glorious Revolution, the Parliament of England ruled he had "abandoned" the English throne, which was given to his Protestant daughter Mary II of England, and his nephew, her husband William III. In April 1689, on the same basis, the Scottish Convention awarded Mary and William the throne of Scotland. The Revolution created the principle of a contract between monarch and people, which if violated meant the monarch could be removed. Jacobites argued kings held their office through divine right, making the post-1688 regime illegitimate. However, since Jacobitism served as an outlet for popular discontent, it contained a complex mix of ideas, many opposed by the Stuarts themselves. Conflict between Prince Charles and his Scots supporters over Unionism and divine right seriously undermined the 1745 rising. Jacobitism was strongest in Ireland, the Western Scottish Highlands, Perthshire, and Aberdeenshire. Pockets of support were also present in Wales, Northern England, the West Midlands and South West England, all areas strongly Royalist during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. In addition, the Stuarts received intermittent backing from countries like France, usually dependent on their own strategic objectives. In addition to the 1689–1691 Williamite War in Ireland and Jacobite rising of 1689 in Scotland, there were serious revolts in 1715, 1719 and 1745, French invasion attempts in 1708 and 1744, and numerous unsuccessful plots. While the 1745 Rising briefly seemed to threaten the Hanoverian monarchy, its defeat in 1746 ended Jacobitism as a serious political movement.