Caption Title Majesties Gracious Declaration (1 results)

4pp. ESTC R255302, Wing J186. [Bound with:] [Caption title:] His Majesties gracious declaration to all His Loving Subjects for Liberty of Conscience. London. Printed by Charles Bill, Henry Hills, and Thomas Newcomb, 1688. 6pp, [2]. ESTC R223694, Wing J190. Folio. Modern black cloth-backed dark brown paper boards, paper label with title in manuscript to upper board. Rubbed and marked. Hinges exposed, bookplate of F. Ridoutt to FEP, leaves browned an spotted, recent paper repairs to leaves of first mentioned title at head and gutter. The first and second reissues of the Declaration of Indulgence for England. The proclamation, first issued by James II of England and VII of Scotland on 4th April 1687, 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 ended the requirement of affirming religious oaths before gaining employment in government office. It was widely opposed by prominent Anglicans on both religious and constitutional grounds, with many objecting to the fact that it had no specified limits and thus, at least in theory, licensed the practice of any religion, including Islam, Judaism, or paganism. The Declaration was reissued 27th April 1688. William Sancroft, then Archbishop of Canterbury, and six other Bishops presented a petition to the King declaring the Declaration of Indulgence illegal. James promptly had the seven bishops tried for rebellion and sedition. The Declaration was voided when James II was deposed in the Glorious Revolution.