James II of England

About James II of England

James II of England, who reigned from 1660 to 1688, is ranked #213 in historical importance by the Pantheon project due to his profound, though controversial, impact on British political and religious life. As a Catholic monarch attempting to assert royal prerogative and religious tolerance for non-Anglicans, his policies directly challenged the established Anglican power structure. His reign ultimately culminated in the Glorious Revolution of 1688, leading to his deposition by his Protestant daughter Mary II and her husband William III, fundamentally reshaping the English monarchy toward parliamentary supremacy.

Despite this significant historical role, James II's modern internet attention appears notably robust, showing an "overattention" relative to his importance. He garners approximately 1.1 million annualized Wikipedia views in 2025. This places him in a position of relative overexposure compared to figures like Mehmed the Conqueror (#128 importance), who only receives about 98,000 views, indicating a local or specific niche interest is driving significant traffic for the deposed king.

Interestingly, while his 2025 total attention is high, the trend shows a 23.7% year-over-year decline, suggesting that while he is currently paid attention to, this interest is waning compared to the previous year. However, a slight positive momentum of +4% between Q1 and Q3 suggests recent events or academic interest may have briefly paused the decline.