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After the Magna Carta was signed the king allowed a group called the Great Council to convene after the nobles made it clear that to pass tax legislation you needed the support of the nobility. By 1295 the parliament had developed into a more representative body than that of just nobles and advisors. -
The nobility of Britain forced King John to sign the Magna Carta, ensuring certain rights for themselves, including the right to a trial by peers under the rule of law. The rule of law also applied to the King under the new rules. However its important to note that KIng John eventually back tracked causing a civil war. -
The Petition of Right was authored by Parliament about King Charles I's power abuses declaring many of his actions from tax levying to imprisoning rivals to be illegal. Charles initially accepted it but later backtracked. -
The differences in opinion on the monarchy of Charles and Parliament led to a civil war that saw the execution of Charles and the creation of a republic without monarchy under the leadership of Oliver Cromwell. -
Charles II came into power after the collapse of the republic. He was a very cautious ruler considering that the civil war proved that Parliament could oust monarchs from power. He ultimately passed the Habeas Corpus act ensuring that citizens had the right to a trial when imprisoned. -
A group of powerful protestant leaders fearing the growth of Catholicism under King James II invited James's daughter Mary and her husband William of Orange to invade England. William and Mary won the war and were made joint monarchs. -
William and Mary had to accept the Bill of Rights in order to become the monarchs of england. The document cemented parliament's power over the monarchy and by ensuring certain rights and establishing regular elections. This document turned England into a limited monarchy.