Breda, Declaration of

Breda, Declaration of, 1660: see Restoration, in English history.

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Breda, Declaration of 

promulgated on Apr. 4, 1660, by Charles Stuart (the future English king Charles II) in the city of Breda, Holland. It guaranteed the participants in the English Revolution of the mid- 17th century universal political amnesty, freedom of religion, and the retention of ownership rights to property acquired during the revolution. On the basis of the Declaration of Breda, a bloc of the bourgeoisie and the new nobility, who were seeking the restoration of the Stuarts as an instrument against the popular movement, agreed to reestablish the monarchy, which was to be constitutional in nature. After their return to power, the Stuarts began to violate the Declaration of Breda flagrantly. Their feudal-absolutist policies led to the state coup of 1688-89 (the so-called Glorious Revolution).