4th Parliament of William III facts for kids

The 4th Parliament of William III was an important meeting of English lawmakers. It was called together by William III of England, who was the King at the time. This Parliament started on 13 July 1698, but its first official meeting was on 6 December 1698.

In the House of Commons, there were different groups of politicians. The main groups were the Whigs and the Tories. The Whigs had 246 members, the Tories had 208, and 59 members belonged to other groups. Sir Thomas Littleton, a Whig from Woodstock, was chosen as the Speaker. The Speaker is like the referee of the House, making sure debates run smoothly.

The House of Commons was split into two main sides. One side supported the King and was led by a group of Whigs called the Whig Junto. The other side was a mix of Whigs and Tories who wanted more control over the King's power. This group was called the New Country party, and their leader was Robert Harley.

Key Decisions and Debates

Reducing the Army Size

When Parliament first met, a big topic was the size of the army. Many people worried that a large army could be used by the King to gain too much power. Robert Harley suggested that the English army should be reduced to 7,000 soldiers. The House agreed to this plan. They also decided that the army in Ireland should be limited to 12,000 soldiers.

Changes in Government Leadership

By the end of the first part of Parliament's meeting, the Whig Junto, who supported the King, were facing many challenges from the other side. During the summer break, some important leaders resigned. Edward Russell, who was in charge of the Navy, stepped down. Also, Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of Halifax, who managed the country's money, left his position.

Budget Cuts and Irish Lands

Parliament met again in November 1699. Robert Harley continued to push for more ways to save money. He wanted to reduce the size of the Navy to 7,000 sailors.

Another big issue was land in Ireland. After some conflicts, the King had taken land from certain people in Ireland. He then gave this land to his loyal supporters. Experts calculated that these lands were worth about £1,600,000. Harley argued that this land should be considered public property, meaning it belonged to the country, not just the King's friends. After a lot of debate, especially in the House of Lords, a bill about these issues was finally approved by the King on 11 April 1700.

End of the Parliament

In the autumn of 1700, King William III chose new government leaders, mostly from the Tory party. On 19 December, the King officially ended this Parliament.

Important Laws Passed

This Parliament passed several important laws, including:

• Billingsgate, etc. Act 1698: This law likely dealt with trade or markets.
• Exportation Act 1698: This law probably controlled what goods could be sent out of the country.
• Governors of Plantations Act 1698: This law would have set rules for the governors of English colonies.
• Piracy Act 1698: This law was created to deal with pirates and their crimes.
• Popery Act 1698: This law likely had rules related to the practice of Catholicism in England.

See also

• 1698 English general election
• Acts of the 4th Parliament of William III
• List of parliaments of England