3. ‘You Will See Who They Are that Revile, and Lessen Your . . . Glorious Deliverance’. The ‘Memory War’ about the ‘Glorious Revolution’

Type:

Book Chapter

Author:

Ulrich Niggemann

Published:

2013

Chapter three 'You will see who theY are that revile, and lessen Your . . . Glorious deliveranCe'. the 'memorY war' about the 'Glorious revolution' ulrich niggemann revolutions tend to create new pasts, or, in the words of melinda Zook: 'revolutionaries of modern times often imagine themselves not only as creators of a new future, but also as constructors of a new past'.1 in fact, revolutionaries often legitimate their breach with the past by reshaping memories. this applies not only to modern times but also to earlier revolutions such as the 'Glorious revolution' in england when King James ii was dethroned in 1688-89. memories of the revolution itself and of the events immediately preceding it soon became the subject of memory politics and of controversy. the newly established regime of william iii and mary ii sought legitimacy by influencing memories. at the same time, groups and factions tried to establish competing memories to achieve their own political aims and to forge new identities. this article analyses the attempts of the state as well as several pressure groups to shape the public memory of the Glorious revolution. it examines how distinct narratives of the revolution refer to different political and/or religious identities. moreover, in the course of a 'memory war' that began during the reign of anne (1702-14), memories of 1688-89 were used as political weapons by rival parties. it is important to note that this development took place within the camp of the su…

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