The Monmouth Rebellion of 1685: your guide to the a duke's failed bid to overthrow his uncle, James II and VI

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Who was the Duke of Monmouth?

Born in 1649, Monmouth was the eldest illegitimate son of the previous reigning monarch, Charles II, by his mistress Lucy Walters. He spent many of his early years in the Dutch Republic (where Charles had spent part of his exile during the Civil Wars and Interregnum period), before being brought to England after his father’s restoration to the throne.

In 1663, aged just 14, he married the heiress Anne Scott, 1st Duchess of Buccleuch. Monmouth’s father was fond of him and made him effective commander of the army in 1674. Unlike his Catholic uncle, who was next in line to the throne, Monmouth was a Protestant, and he was a highly popular figure among the people.

Why did the Duke of Monmouth want to overthrow James II and VII?

As Charles II failed to have any legitimate children with his wife, Catherine of Braganza, James II and VII came to the throne in February 1685 following his brother’s death. This worried Parliament, as well as the Protestant population, who feared a restoration of papal authority.

Parliament had previously attempted to pass an Exclusion Bill that would have barred James and his descendants from succeeding, but Charles had dissolved Parliament before it could be allowed to pass. There were also whispers that Monmouth’s parents had secretly married, making him legitimate and entitled to be in the line of succession. However, these rumours were never proven and may have been made up by those who wanted to ensure that James never became king.

How did the Monmouth Rebellion begin?

Due to the growing threat he posed to the succession, Monmouth went into exile in the Dutch Republic in 1679, and in 1683 was identified as a conspirator in the Rye House Plot – a failed plan to assassinate both his father, Charles II, and his uncle, James (then the Duke of York).

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When James then became king two years later, a small number of nobles threw their support behind Monmouth, and he set about attempting to take the throne for himself. On 11 June 1685, an invasion force led by Monmouth landed at Lyme Regis, Dorset, with around 80 men (including a number of Dutch mercenaries) armed with weapons such as pikes, muskets and cannons. The decision to land in southwest England was no accident: the local population was staunchly Protestant, and he was more likely to be able to gather supporters.

As Monmouth made his way inland, rebels from across the region flocked to join him, and upon his arrival in the Somerset town of Taunton, he proclaimed himself king. But, unfortunately for Monmouth, news of his rebellion had already reached James II and VII, and he swiftly assembled his forces in a bid to crush it.

Who joined the Monmouth Rebellion and why?

Those who joined Monmouth’s cause were primarily artisans, labourers and farmers, armed with no more than scythes and pitchforks – hence the alternative name, the ‘Pitchfork Rebellion’. Most men were Protestants or religious nonconformists who feared a Catholic king, and many were frustrated with the present regime due to an economic recession that had befallen the southwest. Among their ranks was a young Daniel Defoe, who later found fame as the author of Robinson Crusoe.

What happened after the Duke of Monmouth proclaimed himself king?

From Taunton, Monmouth and his men headed to Bristol. The royalist army of James II and VII blocked their way by destroying a bridge over the River Avon, and both sides engaged in skirmishes across Somerset before Monmouth was forced to retreat south.

Monmouth had an important ally in Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyll (pictured below), who was supposed to be organising his own simultaneous rebellion in Scotland, but he was captured and executed. On 28 June, Monmouth was informed of Argyll’s failure, and he realised that the king’s royalist troops were now solely focussed on him. Discovering the precarity of their position, rebels began to desert him in droves.

On 3 July, Monmouth reached the town of Bridgwater, where he heard news from a local, Richard Godfrey, that the king’s army was camped a short distance away at Westonzoyland. Those among the royal troops included Henry Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Grafton (another illegitimate son of Charles II), Louis Duras, Earl of Feversham and John Churchill, the future Duke of Marlborough.

Climbing the tower of a local church, Monmouth surveyed his enemies in the moors before him. The royalists had around 2,600 men while Monmouth had around 3,600. Though he had an advantage in numbers, the troops trapping him in Bridgwater were far more experienced than his poorly disciplined and ill-trained rebels, most of whom had never seen battle before.

To make matters worse, the terrain – an area of the Somerset Levels known as Sedgemoor – was a hazardous place to wander around, let alone fight, and the royalists knew that the rebels would not dare attacking them from their current position. So Monmouth planned a surprise night-time assault. As a local, Godfrey knew how to navigate the Levels’ plank bridges and ensure the rebels could reach the enemy without encountering major obstacles.

What happened at the battle of Sedgemoor?

With a plan in place, the rebels departed from Bridgwater during the early hours of 6 July, with Godfrey leading the way in front of the cavalry. However, despite coming from the direction that the royalists least expected, the rebels were spotted struggling across the final ford. As the royalists surged forward in attack, the rebels’ horses fled the scene, leaving the infantry at the mercy of the royalist cavalry.

Though Monmouth had an advantage in numbers, the troops trapping him in Bridgwater were far more experienced than his poorly disciplined and ill-trained rebels, most of whom had never seen battle before

The professional royalist troops made light work of Monmouth’s men, and in the space of around three hours, they were destroyed. Those who managed to flee the initial clash were quickly hunted down, and some were hanged along the roadside. In total, around 1,000 rebels were killed during the battle and many more taken prisoner, while the royalists lost fewer than 100 men. Monmouth’s ambitions for the crown were crushed.

He managed to flee along with one of his most prominent supporters, Lord Grey, but was eventually captured in Hampshire. On 15 July 1685, Monmouth was beheaded in London – it’s believed that the executioner, Jack Ketch, was so inexperienced that he had to use a knife to finish the job. Grey was found guilty of treason but pardoned after giving evidence against Monmouth. Most of the captured rebels faced trial at the so-called ‘Bloody Assizes’.

What were the Bloody Assizes?

In August 1685, James II and VII ordered Lord Chief Justice Judge George Jeffreys down to the city of Winchester to deal with the trials of the rebels who now filled the jails of southwest England. This was only expected to take a few days and was intended as a deterrent against further rebellion. Jeffreys showed little mercy.

One elderly lady, Alice Lisle, was sentenced to death simply for helping two of the rebels, despite not being involved in the uprising herself. While many assumed she would be pardoned, Lisle was ultimately found guilty of treason, and became the last woman in England to be executed by the judicial sentence of beheading.

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The court then moved on to sit in towns and cities such as Dorchester, Salisbury, Wells and Exeter, with a large number of those on trial found guilty and condemned to death. In many cases, this meant a public hanging and disembowelling, with their heads put on display for all to see. It’s believed that around 200 rebels were executed in total, with a similar number imprisoned, fined or whipped. Around 800 people were sentenced to transportation to the colonies of the West Indies, where they were forced to undertake hard labour in often sweltering and harsh conditions.

These were dark days for southwest England. For many centuries, certain trees were known as ‘gallows trees’ where the condemned had been executed. Many across the country saw the punishments handed out as overly harsh, hence the name. The actions fuelled a decline in support for James II and VII, and added to Judge Jeffreys’ fearsome reputation as the ‘Hanging Judge’.

What happened to James II and VII after the Monmouth Rebellion?

To protect himself from further uprisings, the king expanded the size of his army and allowed Catholics to occupy some of the highest offices in the country. When Parliament objected to his attempts to remove the religious oaths people were required to take to hold such positions, he responded by dismissing Parliament altogether.

However, James II and VII’s time on the throne was short-lived. In 1688, he was deposed during the Glorious Revolution, when he was replaced in favour of his Protestant daughter Mary and her husband, William of Orange. He spent most of the rest of his life in exile in France.

This article was first published in the June 2022 issue of BBC History Revealed