Coffeehouses, the Shift in English National Sentiment in 1673 and the Glorious Revolution

Abstract

This paper seeks to explore and explain some of the distant causes of the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89. It argues that without the fundamental change in English public opinion at the beginning of the 1670s, the Glorious Revolution – which was an Anglo-Dutch achievement – would have been impossible. It discusses the foreign policy of Charles II, the consequences of the third Anglo-Dutch War and some domestic developments, which all combined to change the way well-informed people in England perceived continental affairs. The article also touches upon the role of coffeehouses in the development of a public sphere in later Stuart England.

Keywords

• later stuart england
• public opinion
• third anglo-dutch war
• catholicism