Declaration of Indulgence (1687)

This article is about the 1687 declaration of James II. For the 1672 declaration of Charles II, see Declaration of Indulgence (1672).

The Declaration of Indulgence, also called Declaration for Liberty of Conscience,[1] was a pair of proclamations made by James II of England and Ireland and VII of Scotland in 1687. The Indulgence was first issued for Scotland on 12 February and then for England on 4 April 1687.[2] An early step towards establishing freedom of religion in Great Britain and Ireland, it was cut short by the Glorious Revolution.

The Declaration granted broad religious freedom in England by suspending penal laws enforcing conformity to the Church of England and allowing people to worship in their homes or chapels as they saw fit, and it ended the requirement of affirming religious oaths before gaining employment in government office.

By use of the royal suspending power, the king lifted the religious penal laws and granted toleration to the various Christian denominations, Catholic and Protestant, within his kingdoms. The Declaration of Indulgence was supported by William Penn, who was widely perceived to be its instigator.[3] The declaration was greatly opposed by Anglicans in England on both religious and constitutional grounds. Some Anglicans objected to the fact that the Declaration had no specified limits and thus, at least in theory, licensed the practice of any religion, including Islam, Judaism or paganism.[4]

  1. ^ Sowerby, Scott (2009). "Of Different Complexions: Religious Diversity and National Identity in James II's Toleration Campaign" (PDF). The English Historical Review. 124 (506): 29–52. doi:10.1093/ehr/cen363 – via Oxford Academic.
  2. ^ Harris, Tim. Revolution: The Great Crisis of the British Monarch, 1685–1720, Allen Lane (2006) p. 211
  3. ^ Lodge, Richard. The History of England – From the Restoration to the Death of William III 1660–1702 (1910) p. 268
  4. ^ Sowerby, Scott. Making Toleration: The Repealers and the Glorious Revolution. Harvard University Press (2013) p. 171