James II of England

About James II of England

James II of England (1633–1701) was a significant political figure whose reign was defined by religious and political tension that ultimately led to the Glorious Revolution. As the last Catholic monarch to rule over England, Scotland, and Ireland, his attempts to promote religious tolerance for Catholics-while simultaneously undermining the established Anglican Church-directly impacted the future direction of the British monarchy and state. His deposition by his Protestant daughter Mary II and her husband William III in 1688 solidified the primacy of Parliament and Protestant succession, earning him a high standing at #213 in MIT's Historical Popularity Index.

Despite this crucial role in shaping modern constitutional monarchy, James II's modern internet attention is disproportionate to his historical rank. He garnered 1.1 million Wikipedia views in 2025. This level of attention places him in a curious overattention category, indicated by an Attention Gap of +2x, suggesting that relative to his historical importance, he receives twice the expected online visibility. For context, the highly influential Charles, Prince of Wales, ranked #63 in importance, yet received significantly fewer views at only 317K in 2025.

While his overall attention is high, the 2025 data also hints at a short-term surge in interest, with Q1 versus Q3 momentum showing a strong +32% increase, contrasting with a negative year-over-year change of -21.8%.