The Full Story
The Glorious Revolution of 1688 wasn't glorious because of the fighting. There wasn't much. It was glorious because of what came after: the Bill of Rights of 1689.
When Parliament invited William of Orange to take the throne from James II, they attached conditions. William and Mary had to accept limits on royal power. The Bill of Rights spelled them out.
The king could not suspend laws. Could not levy taxes without Parliament's consent. Could not maintain a standing army in peacetime without permission. Could not interfere with elections or freedom of speech in Parliament.
Subjects had rights too: to petition the king, to bear arms (if Protestant), to be free from excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishment, and fines.
This wasn't a bill of rights in the modern sense. It protected Parliament's power more than individual liberty. But it established a revolutionary principle: the monarch ruled by consent, under law, with enumerated limits on power.
When the Americans wrote their Bill of Rights a century later, they drew heavily on England's 1689 precedent. The English Bill of Rights shaped constitutional government worldwide.
Why This Matters
The Bill of Rights ended absolute monarchy in England. After 1689, no English monarch could claim unlimited power. The king or queen served under law, not above it.