MAGNA CARTA- PART 2

EXTENSIVE READING MATERIAL

1. Below, you have a summary of why the King sealed the Magna Carta.
Richard, the Lionheart

Richard, the Lionheart, King of England had spent much of his reign outside England fighting wars in the
Middle East and France. To pay for these he had taxed the English heavily. In 1199, Richard died and his
brother, John became king. John continued to fight wars in France but he kept losing battles. He needed
more money so his government in England ruthlessly demanded more taxes from the nobility who were
expected to pay tax if the King asked. The Barons became very unhappy about John exploiting their loyalty
and belief in his complete power. They rebelled and took over London and forced John to negotiate.

Magna Carta

On the 19 June 1215 at Runnymede King John sealed the Magna Carta. (This means Great Charter.)

It was the first formal document stating that a King had to follow the laws of the land and it guaranteed the
rights of individuals against the wishes of the King. This meant people couldn't be arrested, imprisoned of
have their possessions taken away except by the judgement of his equals and/or the law of the land. This
laid the way for trial by jury which means people are tried by their peers and guaranteed the civil rights of
the individual.
The Magna Carta established the principle that the people of England, at this stage represented by the
Barons, could limit the power of a King, if he was doing things that were not good for the country

Medieval Latin

This is one of the four surviving copies of the Magna Carta that were sent out across England to tell people
what had happened. It is written in Medieval Latin on parchment.

Parchment is made by soaking sheepskin in lime and the stretching it very tightly between pegs in the
ground and then leaving it to dry. The skin is then scrapped with a knife which creates a smooth writing
surface.

It was very expensive so scribes wrote in small letters and often abbreviated words.

● Before the Magna Carta, widows and daughters of Barons could be sold by the King in marriage in
order to make money.
● The scribes made many copies of the Magna Carta which were sent across England but now only 4
survive.
● It was not written on the day at Runnymede but was written down at a later date by scribes working in
the Royal Chancery.
● It is the basis for constitutions throughout the world including the United States of America.
● The scribes used tiny writing and abbreviated words to save space because parchment was so
expensive.
● Runnymede was selected for both sides to meet because it was a large meeting place near Staines
where the Barons had their HQ and the King's place at Windsor.
● The Magna Carta was authenticated by a royal seal rather than a signature and there is no evidence
that King John could write at all.
 An important legacy

The right to a trial by jury, one of the most time-honored inheritances from Magna Carta in United States
law, refers to the guarantee that courts will depend on a body of citizens to render judgments in most civil
and criminal cases. The origins of the jury trial precede the creation of Magna Carta. However, Chapter 39
of King John‘s Magna Carta includes the guarantee that no free man may suffer punishment without ―the
lawful judgment of his peers.‖ By this measure the barons sought to force the king to delegate part of his
judicial authority to men who were peers of the individual on trial. While Magna Carta did not institute the
jury system in the modern sense, its political intent—to prevent the king‘s domination of the courts—
inspired later generations to view the right to a trial by jury as one of the basic safeguards of freedom from
arbitrary government.

Now, answer the following questions:

a. Why did Richard and John demand so much money from taxes?
b. Why did The Baron rebel and what did they do?
c. Mention some examples of the limits the Barons set to the King when they sealed the
Magna Carta.
d. Why did scribes write in very small letters? What language did they write in?
e. Explain in your own words the right to a trial by jury. Why do we say that this right was
inspired by the Magna Carta?
f. What do we call ―Carta Magna‖ in our system of law? Why is it expressed as ―Magna
Carta‖ in English? Compare the position of adjectives in both languages.

2. Read the following text and answer the questions below

Magna Carta

No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled.
Nor will we proceed with force against him. Except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the
land. To no one will we sell, to no one deny or delay right or justice.

1. Which human rights are covered in this extract from the Magna Carta?
2. Is there a group of people in society who are not mentioned in this document? Who are they? Why is
this, do you think?

3. Which other important human rights would you include if you had to write a similar charter?
A- Match the words and their definitions

inalienable hearing in court to decide whether someone

is guilty or innocent of a crime

violate being able to keep one‘s own personal life a secret

injustice protect from harm

responsibility freedom or power to act or think in the way

one chooses trial destroy or disobey a law or right

safeguard unfair treatment

right to privacy duty to act in a particular way

liberty cannot be removed or taken away

B- Use one of the words from the list above to complete the following expressions

1. Everyone has a to protect the rights of others.

2. Documents such as the Magna Carta established the notion that we all
have
rights, and nobody can take these from us.
3. It is illegal to someone‘s human rights.
4. In some places, there are many examples of , in spite of
international human rights legislation.
5. is one of the most fundamental human rights.
6. The right to a fair in court and to be judged by one‘s
peers was established by the Magna Carta.
7. Amnesty International exists to human rights all over the world.