Magna Carta
John, by the grace of God, king of England, lord of Ireland, duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, and count of Anjou in the meadow which is called Runnymede, between Windsor and Staines, on the fifteenth day of June, 1215, signed the Great Charter in the presence of assorted heavily armed peers of the realm, who assured him it was the right thing to do.
The British Library has pictures of the Magna Carta available, and Wikipedia has a nice discussion of the document.
The Magna Carta of 1297 is permanently residing in the US National Archives.
The Avalon Project’s translation of the 1215 version with an index and definitions.
John abided by the charter for several months, before he returned to business as normal, but the principle was established – no one is above the law.
5 comments
I love the part about the “assorted heavily armed peers of the realm.”
About 12 years ago, I saw that original copy of the Magna Carta, made available by (of all people) Ross Perot, and displayed (at that time) in our National Archives in the same hall in which the Constitution is displayed for public viewing. Few people took the time to view the much earlier document, and I confess I was in a hurry to see the Bill of Rights. (The guard had to urge me onward; I held up the line while I attempted to read it.) But this first attempt to bring a king of England to the table, even if it failed in the short run, holds a lot of significance for Americans. Thanks for the reminder, Bryan.
Actually up to 1215 the text is taken directly from the Magna Carta, CG, but I felt a need to inject a little reality. It’s not as if John felt like being a nice guy. John and his brothers were all a bunch of murderous thugs, which befitted the “aristocracy” of the time.
Steve, the reason there were some many versions was because of the “memory lapses” of kings as to what the Great Charter said. The executive branch has a long history of resenting restraints.
Thanks for pointing out this date…quite a moment in History to be sure!
I’m putting it in the rotation as an important date and document for the American government, now, more than ever.