Constitutional Archive · 1 Will. & Mary Sess. 2 c. 2

The Bill of Rights 1688 / 1689

An archival examination of the original Parliamentary parchment rolls, documenting the exact ink inscription of Article 5 (The Right to Petition) and the chronological mapping of the 13 statutory articles of rights and liberties.

🖋️ Article 5 Inked into the Original Parchment Roll

In Force · Constitutional Statute

Article 5 Inked into the Bill of Rights 1689 Scroll

“That it is the right of the Subjects to petition the King and all Commitments and prosecutions for such petitioning are illegall.”

The Historical Context: In 1688, King James II issued his Second Declaration of Indulgence and ordered all bishops to read it from their pulpits. Seven bishops, led by Archbishop William Sancroft, submitted a humble petition requesting to be excused. In retaliation, the Crown had them arrested, sent to the Tower of London, and prosecuted in the Court of King's Bench for seditious libel. Their celebrated acquittal led directly to the Glorious Revolution, and Parliament codified Article 5 into the statutory roll to guarantee that no subject could ever again be prosecuted, arrested, or harassed for petitioning the Crown or Parliament.

📜 The Original Statute Rolls of 1689

The Bill of Rights was enacted by the Convention Parliament in December 1689 as An Act Declareing the Rights and Liberties of the Subject and Setleing the Succession of the Crown. Preserved in the Parliamentary Archives at the Victoria Tower, Palace of Westminster, the roll consists of attached vellum membranes inscribed in Chancery hand with the Royal Assent endorsed in Norman French: “Le Roy et la Reyne le veult”.

Bill of Rights 1689 Statute Roll Head with Royal Assent

The Roll Head & Royal Assent Handwritten Chancery script bearing the Norman French endorsement: Le Roy le veult (“The King wills it”) and statutory preamble settling the Crown.

Bill of Rights 1689 Statute Roll Membrane — Declaration of Rights

The Declaration Roll Membrane The main parchment sheet containing the recitals of abuses under James II and the declaration of the ancient rights and liberties of the English people.

📑 Mapping the Articles on the Parchment Roll

These archival photographic studies show where the grievances, statutory articles, and parliamentary oaths were inked across each membrane of the official roll, marked with orange margin brackets identifying each specific constitutional clause:

Sheet 1 · Grievances

The Crown's Abuses Recited

Lists James II's illegal assumption of dispensing laws, the commission for ecclesiastical causes, levying money without consent of Parliament, and prosecuting the Seven Bishops for humbly petitioning.

Membrane 2: Abuses of Justice, Excessive Bail & Abdication

Sheet 2 · Justice & Abdication

Corrupt Juries & Excessive Bail

Recital of corrupt and unqualified jurors in treason trials, excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishments, followed by the declaration that James II abdicated the government.

Membrane 3: The 13 Declared Rights & Article 5

Sheet 3 · The Declarations

The Articles & Article 5 (Petition)

The core 13 articles of rights: suspending and dispensing powers illegal, levying money illegal, Article 5 (Right to Petition), standing armies, arms for Protestants, free elections, and parliamentary free speech.

Membrane 4: Frequent Parliaments & Crown Settlement

Sheet 4 · Settlement & Redress

Frequent Parliaments & Succession

Articles 10–13: No excessive bail, impartial freeholder juries, illegal fines, and that Parliaments ought to be held frequently for redress of grievances; followed by the resolution settling the Crown.