William and Mary Propaganda essays

William and Mary Propaganda essays Throughout history there have been many revolutions where monarchs were removed from their thrones or countries have rebelled against the authority of the monarchs. Possibly the three most famous of these were the American Revolution, the French Revolution and the Bolshevik Revolution. When one thinks of these "fights for freedom", one imagines armies engaging in battles, soldiers brandishing swords or firing cannons. The Glorious Revolution of 1688 was not such a revolution. A King indeed was removed from the throne, in what is termed "The Bloodless Revolution", but without great bloodshed. No great armies met on battlefields, but battles were fought. They were fought with words, letters and documents of propaganda. By todays standards the amount of propaganda used might be considered a media blitz. Like todays political propaganda, words were twisted, facts were given a spin and half truths became truths to further advance the cause of William. This propaganda created an atmosphere in England that allowed William and Mary to come to England and be crowned without massive strife or bloodshed. Prince William of Orange and those who supported him both in England and Holland waged an intense war of propaganda against James II of England. This propaganda was used to present William in a favorable light while portraying James II with the most unfavorable image. Commemorative medals, broadsides, prints, cartoons, printed tracts, and sermons were used portray William as the conquering Protestant hero who came to save England from the evil Catholic monarch. This paper will examine the types of propaganda used, how it was used to shape the public's opinion toward William's assumption of the throne. For many years during the reign of Charles II the majority of the Protestant population as well as parliament had harbored fears that the king had ambitions of making England a Catholic country. Rumo...