Monmouth’s Rebellion in 1685, also known as the Pitchfork Rebellion, was an abortive attempt to overthrow the newly-crowned English monarch James II (VII of Scotland). To widespread Protestant dismay, the Roman Catholic James had succeeded his brother Charles II in February 1685. James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, claimed to be the rightful heir and attempted to foment uprisings in Great Britain, including one led by himself in the South West.

Monmouth was the illegitimate son of Charles II. Although there were rumours that Charles had married Monmouth’s mother, Lucy Walter, no evidence supports this. Monmouth’s Protestantism and military reputation, acquired during the Third Anglo-Dutch War, made him po

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Published 25 August 2005

Citation: Seager, Nicholas. "Monmouth’s Rebellion". The Literary Encyclopedia. 25 August 2005.
[http://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=735, accessed 9 February 2010.]