The Glorious Revolution & the Bank of England

1688–1694 CE — British Isles, England

Today: England (London)

England deposed its king in a nearly bloodless coup and installed a new monarch bound by Parliament — then, a few years later, founded the Bank of England, letting the state borrow cheaply and reliably for the first time. This marriage of limited government and credible public debt gave Britain a financial superweapon that would help it out-fight far larger rivals. It shows the succession crisis resolving not in blood but in durable institutions — proof the pattern can end in a settlement, not just a war.

Worth knowing: Britain's national debt was born here in 1694 and has never once been fully repaid in over 300 years — the financial engine behind an empire, running continuously since before the United States existed.

Pattern: Succession / legitimacy crisis — The orderly transfer of power fails because no rule or claimant is accepted as legitimate.

Entry 171 of 240 in Precedent, a walk through the whole human story in order.