The younger son of the King Charles I, James spent much of his early life in exile after the execution of his father during the English Civil War. James' exile on the continent exposed him to Roman Catholicism, and he soon converted to this religion. Unfortunetly for him the insular English people viewed Catholicism with great fear and mistrust.
Despite this, however, James returned from exile with his older brother [Charles II]? to great popular joy. James was made Duke of York by his brother and played an important role in his administartion. When Charles died childless James was next in line for the throne.
Many people in Britain were extremely concerned about a Catholic monarch. These fears were compounded by James' efforts to secure religious toleration for all minorities, including Catholics. They became even more concerned when James tried to create a standing army. This dissatisfaction lead to a conspiracy to replace James with his estranged daughter Mary and her husband William of Orange. both dedicated protestants.
In 1688 William landed in Enlgand with a large Dutch army, the English army deserted to his side and James was left with no supporters and forced to flee the country. The parliament decided that James' flight was an abdication of the throne, and it thus gave William and Mary the legal right to assume the throne. This coup d'état cemented the primacy of parliament over monarch and became known as The Glorious Revolution.
For the rest of his life James fought in France and Ireland, attempting to retake his throne. He was little more than a pawn in the great series of wars between Louis XIV of France and William.
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