John Locke Timeline

Philosopher Algernon Sidney, who was exploring ideas similar to those in Locke's writings, was executed for treason against Charles II in 1683, highlighting the dangers facing critics of the crown.

Image source: Algernon Sidney

In 1683, Locke slipped away to the Dutch Republic in political exile, spending five years there in various cities beyond the reach of the crown wishing to arrest him.

While in exile and deprived of his connection to Oxford, Locke's senior studentship was revoked in 1684 when Charles II told the head of Christ Church, Oxford that it was to be taken away.

Locke published his method in French in 1686; it was later republished posthumously in English in 1706.

The Glorious Revolution of 1688 ousted Catholic James II and brought Protestants William III and Mary II to the English throne. In the preface to the Two Treatises, Locke says they were written to defend this revolution, though recent scholarship suggests the work was composed well before that.

Image source: Glorious Revolution

Locke arrived back in England in February 1688, aged 57, accompanying Queen Mary II, aided by connections to Pembroke and Mordaunt who were now in positions to help him following the Revolution.

Image source: Mary II of England

In 1689, Locke published A Letter Concerning Toleration anonymously, arguing for religious tolerance. His position was influenced by Baptist theologians like John Smyth and Thomas Helwys, who had demanded freedom of conscience in the early 17th century.

Image source: A Letter Concerning Toleration

Locke's Two Treatises of Government were published anonymously in 1689/90. They are believed to have influenced the language Thomas Jefferson chose in drafting the July 1776 Declaration of Independence, though in the late 17th and early 18th centuries they were rarely cited.

Image source: Two Treatises of Government

Locke's An Essay Concerning Human Understanding was published in 1689/90. Intellectual historians such as Charles Taylor and Jerrold Seigel argue it marks the beginning of the modern Western conception of the self, and it strongly influenced educational theory and psychology.

Image source: An Essay Concerning Human Understanding

In 1691 Locke set out his general theory of value and price, a supply-and-demand theory, in a letter to a member of parliament titled Some Considerations on the Consequences of the Lowering of Interest and the Raising of the Value of Money.

Locke had been resident at Oates Manor since 1691, after returning from exile in Holland, living there until his death.

Locke published The Reasonableness of Christianity in 1695, expressing his conviction that the entire content of the Bible was in agreement with human reason. By this time he was also advocating Socinian views on tolerance and Christology.

Image source: John Locke

Historian Julian Hoppit noted that Locke's Two Treatises made little impression except among some Whigs until 1703, though in Oxford in 1695 it was reported to have made 'a great noise'.

Wainwright notes that in the posthumously published Paraphrase (1707), Locke's interpretation of Ephesians 1:10 differs markedly from Socinians such as Biddle, possibly indicating a shift toward accepting Christ's pre-existence near the end of his life.