William and Mary: A History of Their Most Important Places and Events

William and Mary, Britain's most mysterious monarchs, were married for reasons of dynasticconvenience. Their union gradually developed into a happy and successful one, despiteWilliam's frequent absences on military campaign. They shared interests such as art andgardening, both of which they practised at their palace retreat, Het Loo. Despite the fact thatMary was heir presumptive to her father, the Duke of York, they might have expected toremain in the Netherlands for the rest of their lives. Midway through their marriage, their way of life changed substantially when Mary's father,now King James II, was rejected by his English and Scottish subjects because of his ferventCatholicism. William, a foreigner, was accepted as a replacement primarily because of hisBritish queen. The couple had Kensington Palace built, to a design by Sir Christopher Wren,and their renovations at Hampton Court Palace, also by Wren, gave the palace much of itspresent character. The monarchy was now fully answerable to Parliament, but wives were still generallysubservient to their husbands. William and Mary ruled jointly for only seven years, with Maryworking conscientiously to maintain order in the country during her husband's absences.William continued to reign alone for only a further seven years after Mary's death. Theirfourteen years on the throne were critical ones in the history of the British Isles, and theworld of William and Mary was one that in many ways would be recognisable to us today.