England had an unquestionable Power to Limit, Restrain and Qualify the Succession as they pleased, and that in all Ages they have put their power in practise; and that the Historian had reason for saying, That seldom or never the third Heir in a right Descent enjoy'd the Crown of England." - Meaning and context.">
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A Brief History of the Succession, Collected out of the Records and the Most Authentick Historians (1680), quoted in State Tracts: Being a Collection of Several Treatises Relating to the Government. Privately Printed in the Reign of K. Charles II. (1693), p. 397
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That it hath been the constant opinion of all ages, that the Parliament of England had an unquestionable Power to Limit, Restrain and Qualify the Succession as they pleased, and that in all Ages they have put their power in practise; and that the Historian had reason for saying, That seldom or never the third Heir in a right Descent enjoy'd the Crown of England.

— John Somers, 1st Baron Somers

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "That it hath been the constant opinion of all ages, that the Parliament of England had an unquestionable Power to Limit, Restrain and Qualify the Succession as they pleased, and that in all Ages they have put their power in practise; and that the Historian had reason for saying, That seldom or never the third Heir in a right Descent enjoy'd the Crown of England." in the context of "A Brief History of the Succession, Collected out of the Records and the Most Authentick Historians (1680), quoted in State Tracts: Being a Collection of Several Treatises Relating to the Government. Privately Printed in the Reign of K. Charles II. (1693), p. 397" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "John Somers, 1st Baron Somers" (Quotes) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app

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About John Somers, 1st Baron Somers

John Somers, 1st Baron Somers (4 March 1651 – 26 April 1716) was an English Whig jurist and statesman. Somers first came to national attention in the trial of the Seven Bishops where he was on their defence counsel. He published tracts on political topics such as the succession to the crown, where he elaborated his Whig principles in support of the Exclusionists. He played a leading part in shaping the Revolution settlement. He was Lord High Chancellor of England under King William III and was a chief architect of the union between England and Scotland achieved in 1707 and the Protestant succession achieved in 1714. He was a leading Whig during the twenty-five years after 1688; with four colleagues he formed the Whig Junto.