The English Bill of Rights: The Role Change for the Monarchy

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After William and Mary became the rulers of England, the parliament felt a need to limit the power of the crown. For this, they created The Deceleration of Rights, later known as the Bill of Rights. The English Bill of Rights changed the lives of the people of England and changed the role of citizens in Monarchy. The English Bill of Rights changed the role of citizens in Monarchy by assuring that citizens may petition the King without receiving any punishments, allowing them have the freedom of speech and by assuring that they will not be charged with any odd punishment or a large sum of fine, and making sure that they do not have to give money to the king unless the parliament permits the royalty. This bill mainly reduced the amount of authority a king or queen has over the subject; thus allowing them to live a free and more individual life.
Often people do no naturally receive what they need or want, especially if they live in a kingdom ruled by an absolute monarch. Asking an absolute monarch to fulfil ones need is nothing less than suicide, because history shows that rulers are usually displeased when people petition them. As a result they end up receiving a deadly punishment. The Parliament of England was aware of that when they came up with the Bill of Rights. To prevent such events from occurring, they created a law saying that no king or queen may prosecute subjects for petitioning them. In the English Bill of Rights, it assures the safety of petitioners by saying, “… it is the right of the subjects to petition the king, and all commitments and prosecutions for such petitioning are illegal.” This meant that when a group of people shared a common need and petitioned the king, whether they receive what they want or not, th...

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...aking that all the citizens have the right to petition the king without being endangered, by giving them the freedom of speech and less harsh and expensive punishments and by giving them more power over their property, the parliament made the lives of citizens much better. Through these changes, the role of citizens became more effective and impacting, as well as giving people more individuality and freedom over their lives. The English Bill of Rights changed the role of citizens in monarchy and improved it by giving them more power and control over their lives and their property.

Works Cited

"William III (r. 1689-1702) and Mary II (r. 1689-1694)." The British Monarcy. The Royal Household, n.d. Web. 22 Dec. 2013. .

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