Skip to content
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy
Teachers
Pupils
icon-background-square
New
New
Year 8

James II's troubled early reign

I can explain why James II's early reign was so troubled.

Download all resources
arrow-right
Share activities with pupils
arrow-right
icon-background-square
New
New
Year 8

James II's troubled early reign

I can explain why James II's early reign was so troubled.

Download all resources
arrow-right
Share activities with pupils
arrow-right
warning

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.
View new resources
arrow-right

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. In 1685, the Catholic James II succeeded Charles II; his succession was smooth despite England being Protestant.
  2. Soon after, James II had to defeat the Monmouth Rebellion which sought to depose him due to his Catholic beliefs.
  3. James II expanded the size of the army and appointed Catholics to important positions without Parliament's agreement.
  4. James II also attempted to bring greater freedoms to Catholics in England through the Declaration of Indulgence in 1687.
  5. The birth of James' son in 1688 scared his opponents about a possible Catholic succession.

Keywords

  • Parliament - an assembly of people with authority to make laws for a country

  • Anglican - a person who believes in the faith and practices of the Church of England

  • Rebellion - an act of armed resistance to an established government or leader

Common misconception

Only children of the monarch are next in line for the throne, not siblings.

As Charles II did not have any legitimate children, his heir was his brother, James II.


To help you plan your year 8 history lesson on: James II's troubled early reign, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Students could research James II's role in the trade of enslaved Africans through his involvement in the Royal African Company in order to help make links with other important events at this time.
speech-bubble
Teacher tip
content-guidance

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
supervision-level

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

copyright

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

Skip lesson video

Loading...

Starter quiz

Download starter quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
Which word describes an act of armed resistance to an established government or leader?
parliament
Correct answer: rebellion
reign
succession
Q2.
Which word describes an assembly of people with authority to make laws for a country?
Correct answer: parliament
rebellion
heir
reign
Q3.
Which of the following was very important to early modern societies?
social media
television
Correct answer: religion
Correct answer: monarchy
Q4.
Put the following events and time periods in chronological order.
1 - Medieval
2 - Early modern
3 - 19th century
4 - World War One
5 - World War Two
Q5.
In 1685, James II became King of England. What century did this happen in?
Correct Answer: 17th, 17th century, 17th Century, 17th c, 17th C
Q6.
Put the following English monarchs in order of who reigned earliest.
1 - Henry VIII
2 - Elizabeth I
3 - James I
4 - Charles I
5 - Charles II
6 - James II

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
Which keyword describes a person who believes in the faith and practices of the Church of England?
Correct Answer: Anglican, anglican
Q2.
What religion was James II when he came to the throne in 1685?
Correct Answer: Catholic, catholic
Q3.
Complete the sentence with the missing two words: James II had to defeat both the __________ Rebellion in Scotland and __________ Rebellion in the south of England in June 1685.
Correct answer: Argyll
Scottish
Correct answer: Monmouth’s
Charles'
Q4.
What did the Declaration of Indulgence in 1687 introduce?
Correct answer: ended the punishment of people who did not publicly support the Anglican Church
punished people who did not publicly support the Catholic Church
Correct answer: allowed people to worship however they wanted in their own homes
did not allow non-Anglicans to gain employment in the government
Correct answer: allowed non-Anglicans to gain employment in the government
Q5.
What was significant about 10th June 1688?
James' wife gave birth to a Protestant male heir.
Correct answer: James' wife gave birth to a Catholic male heir.
James' wife gave birth to a Protestant female heir.
James' wife gave birth to a Catholic female heir.
Q6.
How many rebels were executed following the 1685 rebellions?
150
Correct answer: 250
800
2500

Additional material

Download additional material