On today’s episode of Dave Does History, we journey back to 1688 and the quiet revolution that changed how people worshipped and thought about liberty.

The Toleration Act may not sound like headline news, but it marked the first legal crack in England’s ironclad religious conformity. It gave dissenting Protestants just enough space to breathe—and sparked ideas that would echo across the Atlantic.

From English pulpits to Virginia meetinghouses, this modest law planted the seeds of the First Amendment. Tune in as we explore how toleration, once a reluctant compromise, became the cornerstone of American religious freedom.