Why Did James II lose his throne in 1688?

James II lost his throne in 1688. He did try to fight for it in 1689, but
was defeated at the Battle of Boyne due to lack of support and
outnumberment. Why did James II lose his throne why did nobody
support him? The aim of this essay is to find out the reasons why.
One of the main reasons was the fact that most of parliament turned
against him. This was because parliament was jealous of James power.
James had a standing army at his disposal and could raise money when
he wanted to. The King could make courts to deal with religious issues
and could suspend any law that he wanted - he could overrule a statue
made by parliament. The most important thing however, was the fact
that the King could interfere with parliamentary votes. This meant that he
could call a re-election if too many people that he didnt like were MPs.
James also ruled without parliament and used his power to over rule
them.
Another important reason was the fact that James believed in divine
right. He believed that whatever he said was true and that nobody
could say no to the king. This meant that he was very arrogant and was
often criticised. He had few friends. James broke the law many times and
used the excuse of divine right to try to overrule parliament. In 1686 he
broke the test act by appointing a Catholic army officer and in 1687 he
tried to pass a law which allowed freedom to all religions. Luck was a
large factor as if James had not ruled when England was protestant, then
he probably would have been quite a good king. James had never
accepted that Parliament was the ultimate authority in England.
Another reason might have been the unpopularity of his ancestors.
Charles I was executed and Charles II had been very unpopular. Charles II
James brother had broken a large amount of laws and had sworn to
make England Catholic (Treaty of Dover.) Charles had ruled without
parliament and had almost created a second civil war. James was like his
brother in many ways, so people must have disliked him as they had
disliked Charles.
The most important reason was religion. In those times religion
brought people together. It was very important. James, being stubborn
and Catholic wanted to carry out his brothers promise of the 1670 Treaty
of Dover. He decided that he would use the help of the French to make
England Catholic. He was unsuccessful. Bishops who had turned against
him were put on trial and found not guilty. Even James own soldiers
cheered at the verdict!

The fact that he himself was a Catholic and had married a

Catholic made many people angry. Memories such as Mary Tudors
burning of Protestants, The Spanish Armada and the Gunpowder plot
made people despise Catholics. The King of Frances cruelty to
Protestants led to people believing that Catholics were evil and all Catholic
rulers were cruel to Protestants. The last and final straw was when a male
heir was born in June 1688. People had believed that his protestant
daughter and her husband might have been able to persuade James, but a
Catholic heir from his second wife had proved them wrong. One mad king
was a misfortune to be patiently borne but the prospect of a whole family
of fanatics was quite another matter.
In conclusion, James II lost his throne due to lack of support.
Parliament now had a large amount of power and opposing them was
very difficult. He was nave and his own brother Charles had said that he
would not rule for long. Nineteen out of Twenty people supported
William of Orange. His religion meant that hardly any of the people of
England supported him and that his army deserted him. James lost his
throne to a number of reasons any one of which could not have made
him lose it. For example, even if most of the people of England were
against him with Parliament on his side and enough money he could have
overcome anyone who disagreed with his religion. However, he made
himself so unpopular that he had no support, no money, no army and no
chance of keeping his throne.