“Law, Liberty, Legacy” 800 Years of Magna Carta at the British Library
King John on a Hunt Tapestry
Is 2015 modern democracy’s birthday? Will there be fireworks on June 15? Democracy, the idea that the people of a society would have a say over those who governed them, was not a completely new idea in 1215. It had existed for some periods in Greece and Rome before, but had vanished for the most part in the “Dark Ages” of pure feudal rule only to reappear on the fields of England at the beginning of the 13th Century. Until then the kings of Europe had ruled with near absolute power and the rights granted to the governed with the signing of the “Great Charter” at Runnymeade near Windsor Castle, on June 15, 1215, was certainly not what we envision as the rights of the people today, but only the beginning.
King John Signs Magna Carta 19th Century Illustration
The original document was drafted to make peace between the unpopular Plantagenet King John and a group of rebellious Barons, promising the protection of the rights of the church, prohibitions on illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, limitations on feudal payments to the Crown, and the establishment of a council of barons. The charter would be abandoned soon after it was signed and then reestablished by Henry III, but not made a part of English law until Edward I.. The rights granted to the landed barons of England to seek redress with the king was the result of a particular narrow political dispute, and its terms violated more than once in its advance of rights, but formed the basis of what we think of as a modern government by and of the governed today. King John comes down to us mostly as the villainous foil in Robin Hood movies. The thief of Sherwood who robbed from the rich and gave to the poor, was probably fictional, but the king, who was quite real, played a starring part in the foundation of the world we live in today, if only by his royal seal on a document he never really intended to enforce.
The Magna Carta celebrates its 800 year anniversary in 2015. There are a more than a few copies of the document to be found around England and at times on touring exhibitions and will be celebrated locally. In London, just footsteps away from the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras, a special celebratory exhibition, the largest exhibit of the subject ever offered, will be presented at the British Library “Magna Carta: Law, Liberty, Legacy” from March 13 to September 1, 2015. But it is not only the British Legacy on display, but the American one as well. Together on display for the first time in the UK, not only the rare documents and artefacts that tell the story of Magna Carta, including illustrated manuscripts, paintings, statues, royal relics, and two of the four original signed 1215 Magna Carta documents , but also Thomas Jefferson’s handwritten copy of the Declaration of Independence, and one of the original copies of the U.S. Bill of Rights. Explore the centuries of dramatic history, from King John through medieval battles, wars of succession, empires and revolution, to the struggle for the right to vote. If you’re traveling to or through London for the summer of 2015, this is a rare opportunity.
Magna Carta British Library
Prices for the Exhibition
£12.00 Adult
£11.00 Senior 60+
£10.00 Student
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