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{{Short description|English charter of freedoms made in 1215}}
{{about|the English charter of 1215}}
{{good article}}
{{Infobox document
| document_name = Magna Carta
| image = [[File:Magna Carta (British Library Cotton MS Augustus II.106).jpg|frameless|240px]]
| image_alt = A large piece of old parchment, mostly covered in densely-packed handwritten text.
| image_caption = ''[[Cotton MS. Augustus]] II. 106'', one of four surviving [[Exemplified copy|exemplifications]] of the 1215 text
| date_created = {{start date and age|1215}}
| date_ratified =
| location_of_document = Two at the [[British Library]]; one each in [[Lincoln Castle]] and in [[Salisbury Cathedral]]
| writer = {{plainlist|
* [[John, King of England]]
* His barons
* [[Stephen Langton]], [[Archbishop of Canterbury]]
}}
| signers =
| purpose = [[Peace treaty]]
|wikisource = Magna Carta
}}
{{Monarchism}}
<!--No citations are required in the article lead per [[MOS:LEADCITE]], as long as the content is cited in the article body, as it should be. Do not add missing-citation tags like {{cn}} to the lead. If necessary, {{not verified in body}} can be used, or the content removed.-->
'''{{Lang|la-x-medieval|Magna Carta}}''' ([[Medieval Latin]] for "Great Charter"), sometimes spelled '''Magna Charta''',{{Efn|The document's Latin name is spelled either {{lang|la|Magna Carta}} or {{lang|la|Magna Charta}} (the pronunciation is the same), and may appear in English with or without the definite article "the".{{pb}}The spelling {{lang|la|Charta}} originates in the 18th century, as a restoration of [[classical Latin]] {{lang|la|[[:wikt:charta|charta]]}} for the [[Medieval Latin]] spelling {{lang|la|carta}}.<ref>[[Du Cange]] s.v. [http://ducange.enc.sorbonne.fr/charta#CHARTA1 1 carta]</ref> While "Charta" remains an acceptable variant spelling, it never became prevalent in English usage.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Garner|first1=Bryan A.|title=A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage|date=1995|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0195142365|page=541|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=35dZpfMmxqsC&pg=PA541}} "The usual—and the better—form is ''Magna Carta''. [...] ''Magna Carta'' does not take a definite article".{{pb}}''Magna Charta'' is the recommended spelling in German-language literature. ([http://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Magna_Charta Duden online])</ref> {{pb}}The article is more commonly omitted.<ref>{{OED|Magna Carta}} "Usually without article."</ref> Latin does not have a definite article equivalent to "the".}} is a [[royal charter]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/magna-carta-1215|title=Magna Carta 1215|publisher=[[British Library]]|access-date=3 February 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.historyireland.com/volume-23/exporting-magna-carta-exclusionary-liberties-in-ireland-and-the-world/|title=Exporting Magna Carta: exclusionary liberties in Ireland and the world|journal=[[History Ireland]]|volume=23|issue= 4 |date=July 2015|author=Peter Crooks}}</ref> of [[rights]] agreed to by [[King John of England]] at [[Runnymede]], near [[Windsor, Berkshire|Windsor]], on 15 June 1215.{{Efn|Within this article, dates before 14 September 1752 are in the Julian calendar. Later dates are in the Gregorian calendar.}} First drafted by the [[Archbishop of Canterbury]], Cardinal [[Stephen Langton]], to make peace between the unpopular king and a group of rebel [[baron]]s who demanded that the King confirm the [[Charter of Liberties]], it promised the protection of church rights, protection for the barons from illegal imprisonment, access to swift and impartial justice, and limitations on [[feudal]] payments to [[the Crown]], to be implemented through a council of 25 barons. Neither side stood by their commitments, and the charter was annulled by [[Pope Innocent III]], leading to the [[First Barons' War]].

After John's death, the regency government of his young son, [[Henry III of England|Henry III]], reissued the document in 1216, stripped of some of its more radical content, in an unsuccessful bid to build political support for their cause. At the end of the war in 1217, it formed part of the [[Treaty of Lambeth|peace treaty agreed at Lambeth]], where the document acquired the name "Magna Carta", to distinguish it from the smaller [[Charter of the Forest]], which was issued at the same time. Short of funds, Henry reissued the charter again in 1225 in exchange for a grant of new taxes. His son, [[Edward I]], repeated the exercise in 1297, this time confirming it as part of England's [[statute law]]. However, Magna Carta was not unique; other legal documents of its time, both in England and beyond, made broadly similar statements of rights and limitations on the powers of the Crown. The charter became part of English political life and was typically renewed by each monarch in turn, although as time went by and the fledgling [[Parliament of England]] passed new laws, it lost some of its practical significance.

At the end of the 16th century, there was an upsurge in interest in Magna Carta. Lawyers and historians at the time believed that there was an ancient English constitution, going back to the days of the [[Anglo-Saxons]], that protected individual English freedoms. They argued that the [[Norman invasion of 1066]] had overthrown these rights and that Magna Carta had been a popular attempt to restore them, making the charter an essential foundation for the contemporary powers of Parliament and legal principles such as ''[[habeas corpus]]''. Although this historical account was badly flawed, jurists such as Sir [[Edward Coke]] invoked Magna Carta extensively in the early 17th century, arguing against the [[divine right of kings]]. Both [[James VI and I|James I]] and his son [[Charles I of England|Charles I]] attempted to suppress the discussion of Magna Carta. The political myth of Magna Carta that it dealt with the protection of ancient personal liberties persisted after the [[Glorious Revolution]] of 1688 until well into the 19th century. It influenced the early American colonists in the [[Thirteen Colonies]] and the formation of the [[United States Constitution]], which became the supreme law of the land in the new republic of the United States. 

Research by [[Victorian era|Victorian]] historians showed that the original 1215 charter had concerned the medieval relationship between the monarch and [[English feudal barony|the barons]], and not ordinary subjects. The majority of historians now see the interpretation of the charter as a unique and early charter of universal legal rights as a myth that was created centuries later. Despite the changes in views of historians, the charter has remained a powerful, iconic document, even after almost all of its content was repealed from the statute books in the 19th and 20th centuries. Magna Carta still forms an important symbol of liberty today, often cited by politicians and campaigners, and is held in great respect by the British and American legal communities, [[Lord Denning]] describing it in 1956 as "the greatest constitutional document of all {{not a typo|times}}—the foundation of the freedom of the individual against the arbitrary authority of the despot". In the 21st century, four [[Exemplified copy|exemplifications]] of the original 1215 charter remain in existence, two at the [[British Library]], one at [[Lincoln Castle]] and one at [[Salisbury Cathedral]]. These are recognised by [[UNESCO]] on its [[Memory of the World International Register|Memory of the World international register]]. There are also a handful of the subsequent charters in public and private ownership, including copies of the 1297 charter in both the United States and Australia. The 800th anniversary of Magna Carta in 2015 included extensive celebrations and discussions, and the four original 1215 charters were displayed together at the British Library. None of the original 1215 Magna Carta is currently in force since it has been repealed; however, three clauses of the original charter are enshrined in the 1297 reissued Magna Carta and do still remain in force in England and Wales.{{efn|These were 1 (part), 13, 39, and 40 of the 1215 charter, being clauses 1, 9, and 29 of the 1297 statute. Although scholars refer to the 63 numbered "clauses" of Magna Carta, this is a modern system of numbering, introduced by Sir [[William Blackstone]] in 1759; the original charter formed a single, long unbroken text.}}

==History==

===13th century===

====Background====
{{Main|John, King of England}}
[[File:King John from De Rege Johanne.jpg|thumb|alt=An illuminated picture of King John riding a white horse and accompanied by four hounds. The King is chasing a stag, and several rabbits can be seen at the bottom of the picture.|King [[John, King of England|John]] on a [[Deer hunting|stag hunt]]]]
Magna Carta originated as an unsuccessful attempt to achieve peace between royalist and rebel factions in 1215, as part of the events leading to the outbreak of the [[First Barons' War]]. England was ruled by King [[John, King of England|John]], the third of the [[Angevin kings of England|Angevin kings]]. Although the kingdom had a robust administrative system, the nature of government under the Angevin monarchs was ill-defined and uncertain.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=8}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=149}} John and his predecessors had ruled using the principle of {{lang|la|vis et voluntas}}, or "force and will", taking executive and sometimes arbitrary decisions, often justified on the basis that a king was above the law.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=149}} Many contemporary writers believed that monarchs should rule in accordance with the custom and the law, with the counsel of the leading members of the realm, but there was no model for what should happen if a king refused to do so.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=149}}

John had lost most of his ancestral lands in France to King [[Philip II of France|Philip II]] in 1204 and had struggled to regain them for many years, raising extensive taxes on the barons to accumulate money to fight a war which ended in expensive failure in 1214.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=7}} Following the defeat of his allies at the [[Battle of Bouvines]], John had to [[sue for peace]] and pay compensation.{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=168}} John was already personally unpopular with many of the barons, many of whom owed money to the Crown, and little trust existed between the two sides.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=139}}{{sfn|Warren|1990|p=181}}{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=6–7}} A triumph would have strengthened his position, but in the face of his defeat, within a few months after his return from France, John found that rebel barons in the north and east of England were organising resistance to his rule.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=9}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=174}}

The rebels took an oath that they would "stand fast for the liberty of the church and the realm", and demanded that the King confirm the [[Charter of Liberties]] that had been declared by King [[Henry I of England|Henry I]] in the previous century, and which was perceived by the barons to protect their rights.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=174}}{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|pp=256–258}}{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|pp=131–132}} The rebel leadership was unimpressive by the standards of the time, even disreputable, but were united by their hatred of John;{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=130}} [[Robert Fitzwalter]], later elected leader of the rebel barons, claimed publicly that John had attempted to rape his daughter,{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=104}} and was implicated in a plot to assassinate John in 1212.{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=165}}

[[File:Innozenz3.jpg|thumb|A mural of [[Pope Innocent III]], {{Circa|1219}}]]
{{anchor|Unknown Charter of Liberties}}<!--[[Unknown Charter of Liberties]] redirects here-->John held a council in London in January 1215 to discuss potential reforms, and sponsored discussions in [[Oxford]] between his agents and the rebels during the spring.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=178}} Both sides appealed to [[Pope Innocent III]] for assistance in the dispute.{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=132}} During the negotiations, the rebellious barons produced an initial document, which historians have termed "the Unknown Charter of Liberties", which drew on Henry I's Charter of Liberties for much of its language; seven articles from that document later appeared in the "Articles of the Barons" and the subsequent charter.{{sfn|Holt|1992a|p=115}}{{sfn|Poole|1993|pp=471–472}}{{sfn|Vincent|2012|pp=59–60}}

It was John's hope that the Pope would give him valuable legal and moral support, and accordingly John played for time; the King had declared himself to be a papal vassal in 1213 and correctly believed he could count on the Pope for help.{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=132}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=179}} John also began recruiting mercenary forces from France, although some were later sent back to avoid giving the impression that the King was escalating the conflict.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=178}} In a further move to shore up his support, John took an oath to become a [[crusades|crusader]], a move which gave him additional political protection under church law, even though many felt the promise was insincere.{{sfn|Warren|1990|p=233}}{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|pp=258–2}}

Letters backing John arrived from the Pope in April, but by then the rebel barons had organised into a military faction. They congregated at [[Northampton]] in May and renounced their feudal ties to John, marching on [[London]], [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]], and [[Exeter]].{{sfn|Turner|2009|pp=174, 179–180}} John's efforts to appear moderate and conciliatory had been largely successful, but once the rebels held London, they attracted a fresh wave of defectors from the royalists.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=180}} The King offered to submit the problem to a committee of arbitration with the Pope as the supreme arbiter, but this was not attractive to the rebels.{{sfn|Holt|1992a|p=112}} [[Stephen Langton]], the [[archbishop of Canterbury]], had been working with the rebel barons on their demands, and after the suggestion of papal arbitration failed, John instructed Langton to organise peace talks.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=180}}{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=137}}

====Great Charter of 1215====
[[File:Article-barons-add-ms-4838.jpg|thumb|upright|The Articles of the Barons, 1215, held by the [[British Library]]]]
John met the rebel leaders at [[Runnymede]], a [[water-meadow]] on the south bank of the [[River Thames]], on 10 June 1215. Runnymede was a traditional place for assemblies, but it was also located on neutral ground between the royal fortress of [[Windsor Castle]] and the rebel base at [[Staines]], and offered both sides the security of a rendezvous where they were unlikely to find themselves at a military disadvantage.{{sfn|Tatton-Brown|2015|p=36}}{{sfn|Holt|2015|p=219}} Here the rebels presented John with their draft demands for reform, the 'Articles of the Barons'.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=180}}{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=137}}{{sfn|Warren|1990|p=236}} Stephen Langton's pragmatic efforts at mediation over the next ten days turned these incomplete demands into a charter capturing the proposed peace agreement; a few years later, this agreement was renamed Magna Carta, meaning "Great Charter".{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=137}}{{sfn|Warren|1990|p=236}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|pp=180, 182}} By 15 June, general agreement had been made on a text, and on 19 June, the rebels renewed their oaths of loyalty to John and copies of the charter were formally issued.{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=137}}{{sfn|Warren|1990|p=236}}

Although, as the historian [[David Carpenter (historian)|David Carpenter]] has noted, the charter "wasted no time on political theory", it went beyond simply addressing individual baronial complaints, and formed a wider proposal for political reform.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=180}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=182}} It promised the protection of church rights, protection from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, and, most importantly, limitations on taxation and other feudal payments to the Crown, with certain forms of feudal taxation requiring baronial consent.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=9}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|pp=184–185}} It focused on the rights of free men—in particular, the barons.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=182}} The rights of [[serf]]s were included in articles 16, 20 and 28.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/magna-carta-english-translation
|title=Magna Carta|publisher=British Library|access-date=16 March 2016}}</ref>{{efn|The Runnymede Charter of Liberties did not apply to [[Chester]], which at the time was a [[Earl of Chester|separate feudal domain]]. [[Ranulf de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester|Earl Ranulf]] granted his own [[Magna Carta of Chester]].{{sfn|Hewit|1929|p=9}} Some of its articles were similar to the Runnymede Charter.{{sfn|Holt|1992b|pp=379–380}}}} Its style and content reflected Henry I's Charter of Liberties, as well as a wider body of legal traditions, including the royal charters issued to towns, the operations of the Church and baronial courts and European charters such as the [[Statute of Pamiers]].{{sfn|Vincent|2012|pp=61–63}}{{sfn|Carpenter|2004|pp=293–294}} Magna Carta reflected other legal documents of its time, in England and beyond, which made broadly similar statements of rights and limitations on the powers of the Crown.<ref>{{harvnb|Helmholz|2016|p=869}} "First, the formulation of Magna Carta in England was not an isolated event. It was not unique. The results of the meeting at Runnymede coincided with many similar statements of law on the Continent."</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Holt|2015|pp=50–51}}: "Magna Carta was far from unique, either in content or in form"</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Blick|2015|p=39}}: "It was one of a number of such sets of concessions issued by kings, setting out limits on their powers, around this time, though it had its own special character, and subsequently it has become the most celebrated and influential of them all."</ref>  <!--this point about contemporary comparisons could be expanded on -->

Under what historians later labelled "clause 61", or the "security clause", a council of 25 barons would be created to monitor and ensure John's future adherence to the charter.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=189}} If John did not conform to the charter within 40 days of being notified of a transgression by the council, the 25 barons were empowered by clause 61 to seize John's castles and lands until, in their judgement, amends had been made.{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|pp=261–262}} Men were to be compelled to swear an oath to assist the council in controlling the King, but once redress had been made for any breaches, the King would continue to rule as before.{{sfn|Goodman|1995|pp=260–261}}

{{Politics of the United Kingdom}}

In one sense this was not unprecedented. Other kings had previously conceded the right of individual resistance to their subjects if the King did not uphold his obligations. Magna Carta was novel in that it set up a formally recognised means of collectively coercing the King.{{sfn|Goodman|1995|pp=260–261}} The historian [[Wilfred Warren]] argues that it was almost inevitable that the clause would result in civil war, as it "was crude in its methods and disturbing in its implications".{{sfn|Warren|1990|pp=239–240}} The barons were trying to force John to keep to the charter, but clause 61 was so heavily weighted against the King that this version of the charter could not survive.{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|pp=261–262}}

John and the rebel barons did not trust each other, and neither side seriously attempted to implement the peace accord.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=189}}{{sfn|Poole|1993|p=479}} The 25 barons selected for the new council were all rebels, chosen by the more extremist barons, and many among the rebels found excuses to keep their forces mobilised.{{sfn|Turner|2009|pp=189–191}}{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=262}}{{sfn|Warren|1990|pp=239, 242}} Disputes began to emerge between the royalist faction and those rebels who had expected the charter to return lands that had been confiscated.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=12}}

Clause 61 of Magna Carta contained a commitment from John that he would "seek to obtain nothing from anyone, in our own person or through someone else, whereby any of these grants or liberties may be revoked or diminished".{{sfn|Carpenter|1996|p=13}}<ref name="All clauses"/> Despite this, the King appealed to Pope Innocent for help in July, arguing that the charter compromised the Pope's rights as John's feudal lord.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=12}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=190–191}} As part of the June peace deal, the barons were supposed to surrender London by 15 August, but this they refused to do.{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=190}} Meanwhile, instructions from the Pope arrived in August, written before the peace accord, with the result that papal commissioners [[excommunicated]] the rebel barons and suspended Langton from office in early September.{{sfn|Warren|1990|pp=244–245}}

Once aware of the charter, the Pope responded in detail: in a letter dated 24 August and arriving in late September, he declared the charter to be "not only shameful and demeaning but also illegal and unjust" since John had been "forced to accept" it, and accordingly the charter was "null, and void of all validity for ever"; under threat of excommunication, the King was not to observe the charter, nor the barons try to enforce it.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=12}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=190}}{{sfn|Rothwell|1975|pp=324–226}}{{sfn|Warren|1990|pp=245–246}}

By then, violence had broken out between the two sides. Less than three months after it had been agreed, John and the loyalist barons firmly repudiated the failed charter: the First Barons' War erupted.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=12}}{{sfn|Holt|1992a|p=1}}{{sfn|Crouch|1996|p=114}} The rebel barons concluded that peace with John was impossible, and turned to Philip II's son, the future [[Louis VIII]], for help, offering him the English throne.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=12}}{{sfn|Carpenter|2004|pp=264–267}}{{efn|Louis's claim to the English throne, described as "debatable" by the historian David Carpenter, derived from his wife, [[Blanche of Castile]], who was the granddaughter of King [[Henry II of England]]. Louis argued that since John had been legitimately deposed, the barons could then legally appoint him king over the claims of John's son Henry.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=12}}}} The war soon settled into a stalemate. The King became ill and died on the night of 18 October 1216, leaving the nine-year-old [[Henry III of England|Henry III]] as his heir.<ref>{{harvnb|Warren|1990|pp=254–255}}</ref>

===== Charters of the Welsh Princes =====
Magna Carta was the first document in which reference is made to English and Welsh law alongside one another, including the principle of the common acceptance of the lawful judgement of peers.

<u>Chapter 56:</u> The return of lands and liberties to Welshmen if those lands and liberties had been taken by English (and vice versa) without a law abiding judgement of their peers.

<u>Chapter 57:</u> The return of [[Gruffudd ap Llywelyn ap Iorwerth]], illegitimate son of [[Llywelyn ap Iorwerth]] (Llywelyn the Great) along with other Welsh hostages which were originally taken for "peace" and "good".<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/evolutionofparliament/2015-parliament-in-the-making/2015-historic-anniversaries/magna-carta/magna-carta---wales-scotland-and-ireland/|title=Magna Carta: Wales, Scotland and Ireland|access-date=19 October 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Smith |first1=J. Beverley |title=Magna Carta and the Charters of the Welsh Princes |journal=The English Historical Review |date=1984 |volume=XCIX |issue=CCCXCI |pages=344–362 |doi=10.1093/ehr/XCIX.CCCXCI.344 |issn = 0013-8266}}</ref>

{{hidden begin|title={{center|Lists of participants in 1215|style=border:solid 1px #aaa}}}}
======Counsellors named in Magna Carta======
The preamble to Magna Carta includes the names of the following 27 ecclesiastical and secular magnates who had counselled John to accept its terms. The names include some of the moderate reformers, notably Archbishop [[Stephen Langton]], and some of John's loyal supporters, such as [[William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke]]. They are listed here in the order in which they appear in the charter itself:<ref>{{cite web|title=Preface|url=http://magnacartaresearch.org/read/magna_carta_1215/Preface|publisher=Magna Carta Project|access-date=17 May 2015}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Stephen Langton]], [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] and [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]]
* [[Henry de Loundres]], [[Archbishop of Dublin]]
* [[William of Sainte-Mère-Église]], [[Bishop of London]]
* [[Peter des Roches]], [[Bishop of Winchester]]
* [[Jocelin of Wells]], [[Bishop of Bath and Glastonbury]]
* [[Hugh of Wells]], [[Bishop of Lincoln]]
* [[Walter de Gray]], [[Bishop of Worcester]]
* [[William de Cornhill]], [[Bishop of Coventry]]
* [[Benedict of Sausetun]], [[Bishop of Rochester]]
* [[Pandulf Verraccio]], subdeacon and [[papal legate]] to England
* Aimery de Sainte-Maure, Master of the [[Knights Templar]] in England
* [[William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke]]
* [[William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury|William Longespée, Earl of Salisbury]]
* [[William de Warenne, 5th Earl of Surrey|William de Warenne, Earl of Surrey]]
* [[William d'Aubigny, 3rd Earl of Arundel|William d'Aubigny, Earl of Arundel]]
* [[Alan of Galloway]], [[Constable of Scotland]]
* [[Warin FitzGerold]]
* [[Peter FitzHerbert]]
* [[Hubert de Burgh]], [[Seneschal]] of [[Poitou]]
* [[Hugh de Neville]]
* [[Matthew FitzHerbert]]
* [[Thomas Basset (died 1220)|Thomas Basset]]
* [[Alan Basset]]
* [[Philip d'Aubigny]]
* [[Robert of Ropsley]]
* [[John Marshal (Magna Carta counsellor)|John Marshal]]
* [[John FitzHugh]]
{{div col end}}

======The Council of Twenty-Five Barons======
The names of the Twenty-Five Barons appointed under clause 61 to monitor John's future conduct are not given in the charter itself, but do appear in four early sources, all seemingly based on a contemporary listing: a late-13th-century collection of law tracts and statutes, a [[Reading Abbey]] manuscript now in [[Lambeth Palace Library]], and the {{lang|la|[[Chronica Majora]]}} and {{lang|la|Liber Additamentorum}} of [[Matthew Paris]].{{sfn|Holt|1992b|pp=478–480|ps=:the list in the collection of law tracts is at [[British Library]], [[Harleian Collection|Harley]] MS 746, fol. 64; the Reading Abbey list is at Lambeth Palace Library, MS 371, fol. 56v.}}<ref>{{cite web|title=Profiles of Magna Carta Sureties and Other Supporters |url=http://www.magnacharta.com/bomc/profiles-of-magna-charta-sureties-and-other-supporters/|publisher=Baronial Order of Magna Charta|access-date=17 May 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The Magna Charta Barons at Runnymede|url=http://www.brookfieldpublishing.com/Barons/magna_charta_barons_at_runnymede.htm|publisher=Brookfield Ancestor Project|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref> The process of appointment is not known, but the names were drawn almost exclusively from among John's more active opponents.<ref>{{ODNBweb |first=Matthew |last=Strickland |title=Enforcers of Magna Carta (act. 1215–1216) |year=2005 |edition=online |id=93691 }}</ref> They are listed here in the order in which they appear in the original sources:
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Richard de Clare, 3rd Earl of Hertford|Richard de Clare]], [[Earl of Hertford]]
* [[William de Forz, 3rd Earl of Albemarle|William de Forz]], [[Earl of Albemarle]]
* [[Geoffrey FitzGeoffrey de Mandeville, 2nd Earl of Essex|Geoffrey de Mandeville]], [[Earl of Essex]] and [[Earl of Gloucester|Gloucester]]
* [[Saer de Quincy]], [[Earl of Winchester]]
* [[Henry de Bohun, 1st Earl of Hereford|Henry de Bohun]], [[Earl of Hereford]]
* [[Roger Bigod, 2nd Earl of Norfolk|Roger Bigod]], [[Earl of Norfolk]] and [[Earl of Suffolk|Suffolk]]
* [[Robert de Vere, 3rd Earl of Oxford|Robert de Vere]], [[Earl of Oxford]]
* [[William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke|William Marshal junior]]
* [[Robert Fitzwalter]], baron of [[Little Dunmow]]
* [[Gilbert de Clare, 5th Earl of Gloucester|Gilbert de Clare]], heir to the [[earldom of Hertford]]
* [[Eustace de Vesci]], Lord of [[Alnwick Castle]]
* [[Hugh Bigod, 3rd Earl of Norfolk|Hugh Bigod]], heir to the Earldoms of [[Earl of Norfolk|Norfolk]] and [[Earl of Suffolk|Suffolk]]
* [[William de Mowbray]], Lord of [[Axholme]] Castle
* [[William Hardell]], [[List of Lord Mayors of London|Mayor]] of the [[City of London]]
* [[William de Lanvallei]], Lord of [[Walkern]]
* [[Robert de Ros (died 1227)|Robert de Ros]], Baron of [[Helmsley Castle|Helmsley]]
* [[John de Lacy, 2nd Earl of Lincoln|John de Lacy]], Constable of [[Chester]] and Lord of [[Pontefract Castle]]
* [[Richard de Percy]]
* [[John FitzRobert]] de Clavering, Lord of [[Warkworth Castle]]
* [[William Malet (Magna Carta baron)|William Malet]]
* [[Geoffrey de Saye]]
* [[Roger de Montbegon]], Lord of [[Hornby Castle, Lancashire]]{{efn|Roger de Montbegon is named in only one of the four early sources (BL, Harley MS 746, fol. 64); whereas the others name [[Roger de Mowbray (d. c. 1218)|Roger de Mowbray]]. However, Holt believes the Harley listing to be "the best", and the de Mowbray entries to be an error.}}
* [[William of Huntingfield]], [[Sheriff of Norfolk and Suffolk]]
* [[Richard de Montfichet]]
* [[William d'Aubigny (rebel)|William d'Aubigny]], Lord of [[Belvoir Castle|Belvoir]]
{{div col end}}

======Excommunicated rebels======
In September 1215, the papal commissioners in England—[[Pandulf Verraccio|Subdeacon Pandulf]], [[Peter des Roches]], [[Bishop of Winchester]], and Simon, Abbot of [[Reading Abbey|Reading]]—excommunicated the rebels, acting on instructions earlier received from Rome. A letter sent by the commissioners from [[Dover]] on 5 September to Archbishop Langton explicitly names nine senior rebel barons (all members of the Council of Twenty-Five), and six clerics numbered among the rebel ranks:{{sfn|Powicke|1929}}

'''Barons'''
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Robert Fitzwalter]]
* [[Saer de Quincy]], [[Earl of Winchester]]
* [[Richard de Clare, 3rd Earl of Hertford|Richard de Clare]], [[Earl of Hertford]]
* [[Geoffrey FitzGeoffrey de Mandeville, 2nd Earl of Essex|Geoffrey de Mandeville]], [[Earl of Essex]] and [[Earl of Gloucester|Gloucester]]
* [[Eustace de Vesci]]
* [[Richard de Percy]]
* [[John de Lacy, 2nd Earl of Lincoln|John de Lacy]], Constable of [[Chester]]
* [[William d'Aubigny (rebel)|William d'Aubigny]]
* [[William de Mowbray]]
{{div col end}}
'''Clerics'''
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Giles de Braose]], [[Bishop of Hereford]]
* William, [[Archdeacon of Hereford]]
* Alexander the clerk (possibly Alexander of [[St Albans]])
* Osbert de [[River Somme|Samara]]
* John de Fereby
* Robert, chaplain to Robert Fitzwalter
{{div col end}}
{{hidden end}}

====Great Charter of 1216====
Although the Charter of 1215 was a failure as a peace treaty, it was resurrected under the new government of the young Henry III as a way of drawing support away from the rebel faction. On his deathbed, King John appointed a council of thirteen executors to help Henry reclaim the kingdom, and requested that his son be placed into the guardianship of [[William Marshal]], one of the most famous knights in England.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=14–15}} William knighted the boy, and Cardinal [[Guala Bicchieri]], the [[papal legate]] to England, then oversaw his coronation at [[Gloucester Cathedral]] on 28 October.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=13}}{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=189}}{{sfn|Ridgeway|2010}}

The young King inherited a difficult situation, with over half of England occupied by the rebels.{{sfn|Weiler|2012|p=1}}{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=1}} He had substantial support though from Guala, who intended to win the civil war for Henry and punish the rebels.{{sfn|Mayr-Harting|2011|pp=259–260}} Guala set about strengthening the ties between England and the Papacy, starting with the coronation itself, during which Henry gave [[Homage (feudal)|homage]] to the Papacy, recognising the Pope as his feudal lord.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=13}}{{sfn|Mayr-Harting|2011|p=260}} [[Pope Honorius III]] declared that Henry was the Pope's [[vassal]] and [[Ward (law)|ward]], and that the legate had complete authority to protect Henry and his kingdom.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=13}} As an additional measure, Henry took the cross, declaring himself a crusader and thereby entitled to special protection from Rome.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=13}}

The war was not going well for the loyalists, but Prince Louis and the rebel barons were also finding it difficult to make further progress.{{sfn|Carpenter|2004|p=301}}{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=19–21}} John's death had defused some of the rebel concerns, and the royal castles were still holding out in the occupied parts of the country.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=19–21}}{{sfn|Aurell|2003|p=30}} Henry's government encouraged the rebel barons to come back to his cause in exchange for the return of their lands, and reissued a version of the 1215 Charter, albeit having first removed some of the clauses, including those unfavourable to the Papacy and clause 61, which had set up the council of barons.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=21–22, 24–25}}{{sfn|Powicke|1963|p=5}} The move was not successful, and opposition to Henry's new government hardened.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=25}}

====Great Charter of 1217====
{{see also|First Barons' War|Charter of the Forest|English land law}}
[[File:Forest-charter-1225-C13550-78.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[Charter of the Forest]] re-issued in 1225, held by the [[British Library]]]]
In February 1217, Louis set sail for France to gather reinforcements.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=27}} In his absence, arguments broke out between Louis' French and English followers, and Cardinal Guala declared that Henry's war against the rebels was the equivalent of a religious crusade.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=28–29}} This declaration resulted in a series of defections from the rebel movement, and the tide of the conflict swung in Henry's favour.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=127–28}} Louis returned at the end of April, but his northern forces were defeated by William Marshal at the [[Battle of Lincoln (1217)|Battle of Lincoln]] in May.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=36–40}}{{sfn|McGlynn|2013|p=216}}

Meanwhile, support for Louis' campaign was diminishing in France, and he concluded that the war in England was lost.{{sfn|Hallam|Everard|2001|p=173}} He negotiated terms with Cardinal Guala, under which Louis would renounce his claim to the English throne. In return, his followers would be given back their lands, any sentences of excommunication would be lifted, and Henry's government would promise to enforce the charter of the previous year.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=41–42}} The proposed agreement soon began to unravel amid claims from some loyalists that it was too generous towards the rebels, particularly the clergy who had joined the rebellion.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=42}}

In the absence of a settlement, Louis stayed in London with his remaining forces, hoping for the arrival of reinforcements from France.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=42}} When the expected fleet arrived in August, it was intercepted and defeated by loyalists at the [[Battle of Sandwich (1217)|Battle of Sandwich]].{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=44}} Louis entered into fresh peace negotiations. The factions came to agreement on the final [[Treaty of Lambeth]], also known as the Treaty of Kingston, on 12 and 13 September 1217.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=44}}

The treaty was similar to the first peace offer, but excluded the rebel clergy, whose lands and appointments remained forfeit. It included a promise that Louis' followers would be allowed to enjoy their traditional liberties and customs, referring back to the Charter of 1216.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=41, 44–45}} Louis left England as agreed. He joined the [[Albigensian Crusade]] in the south of France, bringing the war to an end.{{sfn|Hallam|Everard|2001|p=173}}

A [[Magnum Concilium|great council]] was called in October and November to take stock of the post-war situation. This council is thought to have formulated and issued the Charter of 1217.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=60}} The charter resembled that of 1216, although some additional clauses were added to protect the rights of the barons over their feudal subjects, and the restrictions on the Crown's ability to levy taxation were watered down.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=60–61}} There remained a range of disagreements about the management of the royal forests, which involved a special legal system that had resulted in a source of considerable royal revenue. Complaints existed over both the implementation of these courts, and the geographic boundaries of the royal forests.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=61–62}}

A complementary charter, the [[Charter of the Forest]], was created, pardoning existing forest offences, imposing new controls over the forest courts, and establishing a review of the forest boundaries.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=61–62}} To distinguish the two charters, the term {{lang|la|'magna carta libertatum'}} ("the great charter of liberties") was used by the scribes to refer to the larger document, which in time became known simply as Magna Carta.{{sfn|White|1915|pp=472–475}}{{sfn|White|1917|pp=545–555}}

====Great Charter of 1225====
[[File:Magna Carta (1225 version with seal).jpg|thumb|upright|1225 version of Magna Carta issued by [[Henry III of England|Henry III]], held in the [[The National Archives (United Kingdom)|National Archives]]]]
Magna Carta became increasingly embedded into English political life during Henry III's [[Minor (law)|minority]].{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=402}} As the King grew older, his government slowly began to recover from the civil war, regaining control of the counties and beginning to raise revenue once again, taking care not to overstep the terms of the charters.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=333–335, 382–383}} Henry remained a minor and his government's legal ability to make permanently binding decisions on his behalf was limited. In 1223, the tensions over the status of the charters became clear in the [[royal court]], when Henry's government attempted to reassert its rights over its properties and revenues in the counties, facing resistance from many communities that argued—if sometimes incorrectly—that the charters protected the new arrangements.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=295–296}}{{sfn|Jobson|2012|p=6}}

This resistance resulted in an argument between Archbishop Langton and [[William Brewer (justice)|William Brewer]] over whether the King had any duty to fulfil the terms of the charters, given that he had been forced to agree to them.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=296–297}} On this occasion, Henry gave oral assurances that he considered himself bound by the charters, enabling a royal inquiry into the situation in the counties to progress.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=297}}

In 1225, the question of Henry's commitment to the charters re-emerged, when Louis VIII of France invaded Henry's remaining provinces in France, [[Poitou]] and [[Gascony]].{{sfn|Hallam|Everard|2001|p=176}}{{sfn|Weiler|2012|p=20}} Henry's army in Poitou was under-resourced, and the province quickly fell.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=371–373}} It became clear that Gascony would also fall unless reinforcements were sent from England.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=374–375}} In early 1225, a great council approved a tax of £40,000 to dispatch an army, which quickly retook Gascony.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|pp=376, 378}}{{sfn|Hallam|Everard|2001|pp=176–177}} In exchange for agreeing to support Henry, the barons demanded that the King reissue Magna Carta and the Charter of the Forest.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=379}}{{sfn|Carpenter|2004|p=307}} The content was almost identical to the 1217 versions, but in the new versions, the King declared that the charters were issued of his own "spontaneous and free will" and confirmed them with the royal seal, giving the new Great Charter and the Charter of the Forest of 1225 much more authority than the previous versions.{{sfn|Carpenter|2004|p=307}}{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=383}}

The barons anticipated that the King would act in accordance with these charters, subject to the law and moderated by the advice of the nobility.<ref>{{harvnb|Carpenter|1990|pp=2–3, 383, 386}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Carpenter|2004|p=307}}</ref> Uncertainty continued, and in 1227, when he was declared of age and able to rule independently, Henry announced that future charters had to be issued under his own seal.{{sfn|Clanchy|1997|p=147}}{{sfn|Davis|2013|p=71}} This brought into question the validity of the previous charters issued during his minority, and Henry actively threatened to overturn the Charter of the Forest unless the taxes promised in return for it were actually paid.{{sfn|Clanchy|1997|p=147}}{{sfn|Davis|2013|p=71}} In 1253, Henry confirmed the charters once again in exchange for taxation.{{sfn|Davis|2013|p=174}}

Henry placed a symbolic emphasis on rebuilding royal authority, but his rule was relatively circumscribed by Magna Carta.{{sfn|Ridgeway|2010}}{{sfn|Carpenter|1996|pp=76, 99}} He generally acted within the terms of the charters, which prevented the Crown from taking extrajudicial action against the barons, including the fines and expropriations that had been common under his father, John.{{sfn|Ridgeway|2010}}{{sfn|Carpenter|1996|pp=76, 99}} The charters did not address the sensitive issues of the appointment of royal advisers and the distribution of patronage, and they lacked any means of enforcement if the King chose to ignore them.{{sfn|Carpenter|1990|p=3}} The inconsistency with which he applied the charters over the course of his rule alienated many barons, even those within his own faction.{{sfn|Ridgeway|2010}}

Despite the various charters, the provision of royal justice was inconsistent and driven by the needs of immediate politics: sometimes action would be taken to address a legitimate baronial complaint, while on other occasions the problem would simply be ignored.{{sfn|Carpenter|1996|pp=26, 29, 37, 43}} The royal courts, which toured the country to provide justice at the local level, typically for lesser barons and the gentry claiming grievances against major lords, had little power, allowing the major barons to dominate the local justice system.{{sfn|Carpenter|1996|p=105}} Henry's rule became lax and careless, resulting in a reduction in royal authority in the provinces and, ultimately, the collapse of his authority at court.{{sfn|Ridgeway|2010}}{{sfn|Carpenter|1996|p=105}}

In 1258, a group of barons seized power from Henry in a ''[[coup d'état]]'', citing the need to strictly enforce Magna Carta and the Charter of the Forest, creating a new baronial-led government to advance reform through the [[Provisions of Oxford]].{{sfn|Davis|2013|pp=195–197}} The barons were not militarily powerful enough to win a decisive victory, and instead appealed to [[Louis IX of France]] in 1263–1264 to arbitrate on their proposed reforms. The reformist barons argued their case based on Magna Carta, suggesting that it was inviolable under English law and that the King had broken its terms.{{sfn|Jobson|2012|p=104}}

Louis came down firmly in favour of Henry, but the French arbitration failed to achieve peace as the rebellious barons refused to accept the verdict. England slipped back into the [[Second Barons' War]], which was won by Henry's son, [[the Lord Edward]]. Edward also invoked Magna Carta in advancing his cause, arguing that the reformers had taken matters too far and were themselves acting against Magna Carta.{{sfn|Davis|2013|p=224}} In a conciliatory gesture after the barons had been defeated, in 1267 Henry issued the [[Statute of Marlborough]], which included a fresh commitment to observe the terms of Magna Carta.{{sfn|Jobson|2012|p=163}}

=====Witnesses in 1225=====
{{hidden begin|title={{center|Witnesses to the 1225 charter|style=border:solid 1px #aaa}}}}
The following 65 individuals were witnesses to the 1225 issue of Magna Carta, named in the order in which they appear in the charter itself:{{sfn|Holt|1992b|pp=510–11}}
{{div col|colwidth=18em}}
* [[Stephen Langton]], [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] and [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]]
* [[Eustace of Fauconberg]], [[Bishop of London]]
* [[Jocelin of Wells]], [[Bishop of Bath]]
* [[Peter des Roches]], [[Bishop of Winchester]]
* [[Hugh of Wells]], [[Bishop of Lincoln]]
* [[Richard Poore]], [[Bishop of Salisbury]]
* [[Benedict of Sausetun]], [[Bishop of Rochester]]
* [[William de Blois (bishop of Worcester)|William de Blois]], [[Bishop of Worcester]]
* [[John of Fountains]], [[Bishop of Ely]]
* [[Hugh Foliot]], [[Bishop of Hereford]]
* [[Ralph Neville]], [[Bishop of Chichester]]
* [[William Briwere]], [[Bishop of Exeter]]
* William of Trumpington, [[Abbot of St Albans]]
* [[Hugh of Northwold]], Abbot of [[Bury St Edmunds Abbey|Bury St Edmunds]]
* Richard, [[Abbot of Battle]]
* the Abbot of [[St Augustine's, Canterbury]]
* [[Randulf of Evesham]], Abbot of [[Evesham Abbey|Evesham]]
* Richard of Barking, [[Abbot of Westminster]]
* Alexander of Holderness, [[Abbot of Peterborough]]
* Simon, Abbot of [[Reading Abbey|Reading]]
* Robert of Hendred, [[Abbot of Abingdon]]
* John Walsh, Abbot of [[Malmesbury Abbey|Malmesbury]]
* the Abbot of [[Winchcombe Abbey|Winchcombe]]
* the Abbot of [[Hyde Abbey|Hyde]]
* the Abbot of [[Chertsey Abbey|Chertsey]]
* the Abbot of [[Sherborne Abbey|Sherborne]]
* the Abbot of [[Cerne Abbey|Cerne]]
* the Abbot of [[Abbotsbury Abbey|Abbotsbury]]
* the Abbot of [[Milton Abbey School|Milton]]
* the Abbot of [[Selby Abbey|Selby]]
* the Abbot of [[Whitby Abbey|Whitby]]
* the Abbot of [[Cirencester Abbey|Cirencester]]
* [[Hubert de Burgh]], [[Justiciar]] of England and Ireland
* [[Ranulf de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester|Ranulf, Earl of Chester and Lincoln]]
* [[William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury|William Longespée, Earl of Salisbury]]
* [[William de Warenne, 5th Earl of Surrey|William de Warenne, Earl of Surrey]]
* [[Gilbert de Clare, 5th Earl of Gloucester|Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester and Hertford]]
* [[William de Ferrers, 4th Earl of Derby|William de Ferrers, Earl of Derby]]
* [[William FitzGeoffrey de Mandeville, 3rd Earl of Essex|William de Mandeville, Earl of Essex]]
* [[Hugh Bigod, 3rd Earl of Norfolk|Hugh Bigod, Earl of Norfolk]]
* [[William de Forz, 3rd Earl of Albemarle|William de Forz]], [[Earl of Albemarle]]
* [[Humphrey de Bohun, 2nd Earl of Hereford|Humphrey de Bohun, Earl of Hereford]]
* [[John de Lacy, 2nd Earl of Lincoln|John de Lacy]], Constable of [[Chester]]
* [[Robert de Ros (died 1227)|Robert de Ros]]
* [[Robert Fitzwalter]]
* [[Robert de Vieuxpont]]
* [[William Brewer (justice)|William Brewer]]
* [[Richard de Montfichet]]
* [[Peter FitzHerbert]]
* [[Matthew FitzHerbert]]
* [[William d'Aubigny (fl. 1225)|William d'Aubigny]]
* [[Robert Gresley]]
* [[Reginald de Braose]]
* [[John of Monmouth]]
* [[John Fitzalan, Lord of Oswestry|John FitzAlan]]
* [[Hugh de Mortimer (fl. 1225)|Hugh de Mortimer]]
* [[William de Beauchamp (1185)|William de Beauchamp]]
* [[William de St John]]
* [[Peter de Maulay]]
* [[Brian de Lisle]]
* [[Thomas of Moulton]]
* [[Richard de Argentan]]
* [[Geoffrey de Neville]]
* [[William de Maudit]]
* [[John de Baalun]]
{{div col end}}
{{hidden end}}

====Great Charter of 1297====
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Magna Carta (1297)
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of England
| long_title            = 
| year                  = 1297
| citation              = [[25 Edw. 1]]
| territorial_extent    = {{ubli|[[England and Wales]]|[[Ireland]]}}
| royal_assent          = 1297
| commencement          = 
| repeal_date           = 
| amendments            = {{ubli|[[Continuance, etc. of Laws Act 1623]]|[[Criminal Statutes Repeal Act 1827]]|[[Offences Against the Person Act 1828]]|[[Criminal Law (India) Act 1828]]|[[Offences Against the Person (Ireland) Act 1829]]|[[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]]|[[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]]|[[Civil Procedure Acts Repeal Act 1879]]|[[Sheriffs Act 1887]]|[[Statute Law Revision Act 1887]]|[[Statute Law Revision Act 1892]]|[[Statute Law Revision Act 1894]]|[[Administration of Estates Act 1925]]|[[Crown Proceedings Act 1947]]|[[Statute Law Revision Act 1948]]|[[Northern Ireland (Crown Proceedings) Order 1949]]|[[Administration of Estates Act (Northern Ireland) 1955]]|[[Criminal Law Act 1967]]|[[Criminal Law Act (Northern Ireland) 1967]]|[[Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969]]}} 
| repealing_legislation = 
| related_legislation   = [[Charter of the Forest]], [[Confirmation of the Charters (1297)]], [[A Statute Concerning Tallage (1297)]]
| status                = Amended
| original_text         = https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=pst.000017915496&seq=320
| revised_text          = https://www.legislation.gov.uk/aep/Edw1cc1929/25/9
| use_new_UK-LEG        = yes
| UK-LEG_title          = Magna Carta (1297)
}}

[[File:Magna Carta (1297 version with seal, owned by David M Rubenstein).png|thumb|upright|1297 version of the Great Charter, on display in the [[National Archives Building]] in [[Washington, D.C.]]]]

King [[Edward I]] reissued the Charters of 1225 in 1297 in return for a new tax.{{sfn|Prestwich|1997|p=427}} It is this version which remains on the [[statute]] book today, although with most articles now repealed.<ref name=natarch>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta (1297)|publisher=The National Archive|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/aep/Edw1cc1929/25/9/contents|access-date=29 July 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/aep/Edw1cc1929/25/9/contents|title=Magna Carta (1297)|publisher=Statutelaw.gov.uk|access-date=13 June 2015}}</ref>{{anchor|Confirmatio}}

{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Confirmation of the Charters (1297)
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of England
| long_title            = 
| year                  = 1297
| citation              = [[25 Edw. 1]]
| territorial_extent    = {{ubli|[[England and Wales]]|[[Ireland]]}}
| royal_assent          = 1297
| commencement          = 
| repeal_date           = 
| amendments            = {{ubli|[[Statute Law Revision Act 1887]]|[[Statute Law Revision Act 1948]]|[[Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969]]|[[Wild Creatures and Forest Laws Act 1971]]}} 
| repealing_legislation = 
| related_legislation   = {{ubli|[[Magna Carta (1297)]]|[[Charter of the Forest]]|[[A Statute Concerning Tallage (1297)]]}}
| status                = Amended
| original_text         = https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=pst.000017915496&seq=306
| revised_text          = https://www.legislation.gov.uk/aep/Edw1cc16/25/6
| use_new_UK-LEG        = yes
| UK-LEG_title          = Confirmation of the Charters (1297)
}}

The {{lang|la|Confirmatio Cartarum}} (''Confirmation of Charters'') was issued in [[Norman language|Norman French]] by Edward I in 1297.{{sfn|Edwards|1943}} Edward, needing money, had taxed the nobility, and they had armed themselves against him, forcing Edward to issue his confirmation of Magna Carta and the Forest Charter to avoid civil war.<ref name="EB">{{cite web|url=http://www.britannia.com/history/docs/cartarum.html|title=Confirmatio Cartarum|access-date=30 November 2007|publisher=britannia.com}}</ref> The nobles had sought to add another document, the {{lang|la|De Tallagio}}, to Magna Carta. Edward I's government was not prepared to concede this, they agreed to the issuing of the {{lang|la|Confirmatio}}, confirming the previous charters and confirming the principle that taxation should be by consent,{{sfn|Prestwich|1997|p=427}} although the precise manner of that consent was not laid down.{{sfn|Prestwich|1997|p=434}}

A passage mandates that copies shall be distributed in "cathedral churches throughout our realm, there to remain, and shall be read before the people two times by the year",{{sfn|Cobbett|Howell|Howell|Jardine|1810|p=980}} hence the permanent installation of a copy in [[Salisbury Cathedral]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta|url=http://www.salisburycathedral.org.uk/magna-carta|publisher=Salisbury Cathedral|access-date=25 January 2015}}</ref> In the Confirmation's second article, it is confirmed that:

{{blockquote|...if any judgement be given from henceforth contrary to the points of the charters aforesaid by the justices, or by any other our ministers that hold plea before them against the points of the charters, it shall be undone, and holden for nought.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Statutes at Large Passed in the Parliaments held in Ireland from The Third Year of Edward the Second A.D. 1310 to the First Year of George the Third, A.D. 1761 Inclusive|date=1763|publisher=Boulter Grierson|page=132|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tKZFAAAAcAAJ&q=if+any+judgement+be+given+from+henceforth+contrary+to+the+points+of+the+charters+aforesaid+by+the+justices%2C+or+by+any+other+our+ministers+that+hold+plea+before+them+against+the+points+of+the+charters%2C+it+shall+be+undone%2C+and+holden+for+nought&pg=PA132}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Confirmatio Cartarum [26] October 10, 1297|url=http://www.1215.org/lawnotes/lawnotes/cartarum.htm|publisher=1215.org|access-date=19 January 2015}}</ref>}}

{{anchor|Articuli super Cartas}}

==== Great Charter of 1300 ====
With the reconfirmation of the charters in 1300, an additional document was granted, the {{lang|la|Articuli super Cartas}} (''The Articles upon the Charters'').{{sfn|Holt|2008|p=62}} It was composed of 17 articles and sought in part to deal with the problem of enforcing the charters. Magna Carta and the Forest Charter were to be issued to the [[sheriff]] of each county, and should be read four times a year at the meetings of the county courts. Each county should have a committee of three men who could hear complaints about violations of the Charters.{{sfn|Fritze|Robison|2002|pp=34–35}}

[[Pope Clement V]] continued the papal policy of supporting monarchs (who ruled by divine grace) against any claims in Magna Carta which challenged the King's rights, and annulled the {{lang|la|Confirmatio Cartarum}} in 1305. Edward I interpreted Clement V's [[papal bull]] annulling the {{lang|la|Confirmatio Cartarum}} as effectively applying to the {{lang|la|Articuli super Cartas}}, although the latter was not specifically mentioned.{{sfn|Prestwich|1997|pp=547–548}} In 1306 Edward I took the opportunity given by the Pope's backing to reassert forest law over large areas which had been "disafforested". Both Edward and the Pope were accused by some contemporary chroniclers of "perjury", and it was suggested by Robert McNair Scott that [[Robert the Bruce]] refused to make peace with Edward I's son, [[Edward II]], in 1312 with the justification: "How shall the king of England keep faith with me, since he does not observe the sworn promises made to his liege men&nbsp;...".{{sfn|Menache|2003|pp=253–255}}{{sfn|Scott|2014}}

====Magna Carta's influence on English medieval law====
The Great Charter was referred to in legal cases throughout the medieval period. For example, in 1226, the knights of [[Lincolnshire]] argued that their local sheriff was changing customary practice regarding the local courts, "contrary to their liberty which they ought to have by the charter of the lord king".{{sfn|Holt|2008|pp=44–45}} In practice, cases were not brought against the King for breach of Magna Carta and the Forest Charter, but it was possible to bring a case against the King's officers, such as his sheriffs, using the argument that the King's officers were acting contrary to liberties granted by the King in the charters.{{sfn|Holt|2008|pp=45–46}}

In addition, medieval cases referred to the clauses in Magna Carta which dealt with specific issues such as wardship and dower, debt collection, and keeping rivers free for navigation.{{sfn|Holt|2008|p=56}} Even in the 13th century, some clauses of Magna Carta rarely appeared in legal cases, either because the issues concerned were no longer relevant, or because Magna Carta had been superseded by more relevant legislation. By 1350 half the clauses of Magna Carta were no longer actively used.{{sfn|Holt|2008|pp=56–57}}

===14th–15th centuries===
[[File:Magna charta cum statutis angliae p1.jpg|upright|thumb|{{lang|la|Magna carta cum statutis angliae}} (''"Great Charter with English Statutes"''), early 14th century]]
During the reign of King [[Edward III]] six measures, later known as the ''Six Statutes'', were passed between 1331 and 1369. They sought to clarify certain parts of the Charters. In particular the third statute, in 1354, redefined clause 29, with "free man" becoming "no man, of whatever [[Estates of the realm|estate]] or condition he may be", and introduced the phrase "[[due process of law]]" for "lawful judgement of his peers or the law of the land".{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=123}}

Between the 13th and 15th centuries Magna Carta was reconfirmed 32 times according to Sir [[Edward Coke]], and possibly as many as 45 times.{{sfn|Thompson|1948|pp=9–10}}{{sfn|Turner|2003a}} Often the first item of parliamentary business was a public reading and reaffirmation of the Charter, and, as in the previous century, parliaments often exacted confirmation of it from the monarch.{{sfn|Turner|2003a}} The Charter was confirmed in 1423 by King [[Henry VI of England|Henry VI]].<ref>{{cite web|title=800th anniversary of Magna Carta|url=https://www.churchofengland.org/media/1910459/gs%201945b%20-%20background%20note%20from%20mpa.pdf|publisher=Church of England General Synod|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta|url=http://www.britroyals.com/magnacarta.htm|publisher=Royal Family History|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Johnson|first1=Ben|title=The Origins of the Magna Carta|url=http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/The-Origins-of-the-Magna-Carta/|publisher=Historic UK|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref>

By the mid-15th century, Magna Carta ceased to occupy a central role in English political life, as monarchs reasserted authority and powers which had been challenged in the 100 years after Edward I's reign.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=132}} The Great Charter remained a text for lawyers, particularly as a protector of property rights, and became more widely read than ever as printed versions circulated and levels of literacy increased.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=133}}

===16th century===
[[File:Magna Carta confirmed by Henry III.jpg|thumb|A version of the Charter of 1217, produced between 1437 and {{circa|1450}}]]
During the 16th century, the interpretation of Magna Carta and the First Barons' War shifted.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|pp=185–187}} [[Henry VII of England|Henry VII]] took power at the end of the turbulent [[Wars of the Roses]], followed by [[Henry VIII]], and extensive propaganda under both rulers promoted the legitimacy of the regime, the illegitimacy of any sort of rebellion against royal power, and the priority of supporting the Crown in its arguments with the Papacy.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|pp=185–186}}

Tudor historians rediscovered the [[Barnwell chronicler]], who was more favourable to King John than other 13th-century texts, and, as historian Ralph Turner describes, they "viewed King John in a positive light as a hero struggling against the papacy", showing "little sympathy for the Great Charter or the rebel barons".{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=138}} Pro-Catholic demonstrations during the [[Pilgrimage of Grace|1536 uprising]] cited Magna Carta, accusing the King of not giving it sufficient respect.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=188}}

The first mechanically printed edition of Magna Carta was probably the {{lang|la|Magna Carta cum aliis Antiquis Statutis}} of 1508 by [[Richard Pynson]], although the early printed versions of the 16th century incorrectly attributed the origins of Magna Carta to Henry III and 1225, rather than to John and 1215, and accordingly worked from the later text.{{sfn|Thompson|1948|p=146}}{{sfn|Warren|1990|p=324}}{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=187}} An abridged English-language edition was published by [[John Rastell]] in 1527.
[[Thomas Berthelet]], Pynson's successor as the royal printer during 1530–1547, printed an edition of the text along with other "ancient statutes" in 1531 and 1540.<ref>
''Magna Carta, cum aliis antiquis statutis'' ... London: Thomas Berthelet, 1531 [https://web.archive.org/web/20150922120510/http://digitalspecialcollections.law.umn.edu/magnacarta/1531_s9.php Beale S9; STC 9271].
Magna carta cvm aliis antiqvis statvtis, qvorvm catalogvm, in fine operis reperies. London: Thomas Berthelet, 1540.
[http://digitalspecialcollections.law.umn.edu/magnacarta/1540_s12_s22.php Beale S12; STC 9274] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170112000833/http://digitalspecialcollections.law.umn.edu/magnacarta/1540_s12_s22.php |date=12 January 2017 }}.
revised edition by Thomas Marshe (1556), ''Magna Carta et cetera antiqua statuta nunc nouiter per diuersa exemplaria examinata et summa diligentia castigata et correcta cui adiecta est noua tabula valde necessaria.''</ref>

In 1534, [[George Ferrers]] published the first unabridged English-language edition of Magna Carta, dividing the Charter into 37 numbered clauses.{{sfn|Thompson|1948|pp=147–149}}
[[File:Sir Rowland Hill, Hawkstone - geograph.org.uk - 1245475.jpg|alt=a stone statue of a man in Tudor clothes and down and cap and cahins off office holding a rolled up copy of maga carter|thumb|Magna Carta held by Sir Rowland Hill in his monument in Shropshire: his 16th Century funerary monument in London also showed him holding the document]]
The mid-sixteenth century funerary monument [[Rowland Hill (MP)|Sir Rowland Hill]] of [[Soulton]], placed in [[St Stephen Walbrook|St Stephens Wallbroke]], included a full statue<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brayley |first=Edward Wedlake |url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/The_Beauties_of_England_and_Wales%2C_or%2C_Delineations%2C_topographical%2C_historical%2C_and_descriptive%2C_of_each_county_%28IA_beautiesofenglan1301brit%29.pdf |title=The Beauties of England and Wales, or original delineations, topographical, historical and descriptive of each county}}</ref> of the Tudor statesman and judge holding a copy of Magna Carta.<ref>{{Cite book |author=T. Rodenhurst |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vEcGAAAAQAAJ&q=magna&pg=PA46 |title=A Description of Hawkstone, the Seat of Sir R. Hill, Bart M.P.: With Brief Notices of the Antiquities of Bury Walls and of Red Castle, an Account of the Column, in Shrewsbury and of Lord Hill's Military Actions |date=1840 |publisher=Printed at the Chronicle Office, and sold by J. Watton |language=en}}</ref> Hill was a [[Worshipful Company of Mercers|Mercer]] and a [[Lord Mayor of London]]; both of these statuses were shared with [[Serlo le Mercer|Serlo the Mercer]] who was a negotiator and enforcer of Magna Carta.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://magnacarta800th.com/schools/biographies/the-25-barons-of-magna-carta/william-hardel/ |title=William Hardel |website=Magna Carta Trust 800th Anniversary |first1=Nigel |last1=Saul |date=23 April 2014 |access-date=24 April 2016}}</ref> The original monument was lost in the [[Great Fire of London]], but it was restated on a 110 foot tall column on his family's estates in Shropshire.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Obelisk, Hawkstone Park, Weston Under Redcastle, Shropshire {{!}} Educational Images |url=https://historicengland.org.uk/services-skills/education/educational-images/obelisk-hawkstone-park-weston-under-redcastle-9719 |access-date=2023-04-11 |website=Historic England |language=en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230411213058/https://historicengland.org.uk/services-skills/education/educational-images/obelisk-hawkstone-park-weston-under-redcastle-9719 |archive-date=2023-04-11 }}</ref>

At the end of the 16th century, there was an upsurge in antiquarian interest in Magna Carta in England.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=188}} Legal historians concluded that there was a set of ancient English customs and laws which had been temporarily overthrown by the [[Norman invasion of 1066]], and been recovered in 1215 and recorded in Magna Carta, which in turn gave authority to important 16th-century legal principles.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=188}}{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=140}}{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=280}} Modern historians regard this narrative as fundamentally incorrect, and many refer to it as a "[[Political myth|myth]]".{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=280}}{{efn|Among the historians to have discussed the "myth" of Magna Carta and the ancient English constitution are [[Claire Breay]], Geoffrey Hindley, [[J. C. Holt|James Holt]], [[J. G. A. Pocock|John Pocock]], Danny Danziger, and [[John Gillingham]].{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=280}}{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=183}}{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=46}}{{sfn|Pocock|1987|p=124}}{{sfn|Holt|1992b|p=9}}}}

The antiquarian [[William Lambarde]] published what he believed were the Anglo-Saxon and Norman law codes, tracing the origins of the 16th-century English Parliament back to this period, but he misinterpreted the dates of many documents concerned.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=140}} [[Francis Bacon]] argued that clause 39 of Magna Carta was the basis of the 16th-century jury system and judicial processes.{{sfn|Eele|2013|p=20}} Antiquarians [[Robert Beale (diplomat)|Robert Beale]], [[James Morice]] and [[Richard Cosin]] argued that Magna Carta was a statement of liberty and a fundamental, supreme law empowering English government.{{sfn|Thompson|1948|pp=216–230}} Those who questioned these conclusions, including the Member of Parliament [[Arthur Hall (English politician)|Arthur Hall]], faced sanctions.{{sfn|Pocock|1987|p=154}}{{sfn|Wright|1919|p=72}}

===17th–18th centuries===

====Political tensions====
[[File:Edward coke.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|The [[jurist]] [[Edward Coke]] made extensive political use of Magna Carta.]]
In the early 17th century, Magna Carta became increasingly important as a political document in arguments over the authority of the English monarchy.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|pp=188–189}} [[James VI and I|James I]] and [[Charles I of England|Charles I]] both propounded greater authority for the Crown, justified by the doctrine of the [[divine right of kings]], and Magna Carta was cited extensively by their opponents to challenge the monarchy.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=46}}

Magna Carta, it was argued, recognised and protected the liberty of individual Englishmen, made the King subject to the [[common law]] of the land, formed the origin of the trial by jury system, and acknowledged the ancient origins of Parliament: because of Magna Carta and this [[ancient constitution]], an English monarch was unable to alter these long-standing English customs.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=46}}{{sfn|Hindley|1990|pp=188–189}}{{sfn|Pocock|1987|p=300}}{{sfn|Greenberg|2006|p=148}} Although the arguments based on Magna Carta were historically inaccurate, they nonetheless carried symbolic power, as the charter had immense significance during this period; antiquarians such as Sir [[Henry Spelman]] described it as "the most majestic and a sacrosanct anchor to English Liberties".{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=280}}{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=46}}{{sfn|Hindley|1990|pp=188–189}}

Sir Edward Coke was a leader in using Magna Carta as a political tool during this period. Still working from the 1225 version of the text – the first printed copy of the 1215 charter only emerged in 1610 – Coke spoke and wrote about Magna Carta repeatedly.{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=280}} His work was challenged at the time by [[Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley|Lord Ellesmere]], and modern historians such as Ralph Turner and [[Claire Breay]] have critiqued Coke as "misconstruing" the original charter "anachronistically and uncritically", and taking a "very selective" approach to his analysis.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=46}}{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=148}} More sympathetically, [[J. C. Holt]] noted that the history of the charters had already become "distorted" by the time Coke was carrying out his work.{{sfn|Holt|1992b|pp=20–21}}

[[File:John Lilburne.jpg|thumb|upright=1|The [[Levellers|Leveller]] [[John Lilburne]] criticised Magna Carta as an inadequate definition of English liberties.]]

In 1621, a bill was presented to Parliament to renew Magna Carta; although this bill failed, lawyer [[John Selden]] argued during [[Darnell's Case]] in 1627 that the right of ''habeas corpus'' was backed by Magna Carta.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=156}}{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=189}} Coke supported the [[Petition of Right]] in 1628, which cited Magna Carta in its preamble, attempting to extend the provisions, and to make them binding on the judiciary.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|pp=189–190}}{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=157}} The monarchy responded by arguing that the historical legal situation was much less clear-cut than was being claimed, restricted the activities of antiquarians, arrested Coke for treason, and suppressed his proposed book on Magna Carta.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=189}}{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|pp=280–281}} Charles initially did not agree to the Petition of Right, and refused to confirm Magna Carta in any way that would reduce his independence as King.{{sfn|Russell|1990|p=41}}{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=190}}

England descended into [[English Civil War|civil war]] in the 1640s, resulting in Charles I's execution in 1649. Under the [[Commonwealth of England|republic]] that followed, some questioned whether Magna Carta, an agreement with a monarch, was still relevant.{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=271}} An anti-[[Cromwellian]] pamphlet published in 1660, ''The English devil'', said that the nation had been "compelled to submit to this Tyrant Nol or be cut off by him; nothing but a word and a blow, his Will was his Law; tell him of Magna Carta, he would lay his hand on his sword and cry Magna Farta".{{sfn|Woolwrych|2003|p=95}} In a 2005 speech the [[Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales]], [[Lord Woolf]], repeated the claim that Cromwell had referred to Magna Carta as "Magna Farta".<ref name=woolfspeech/>

The radical groups that flourished during this period held differing opinions of Magna Carta. The [[Levellers]] rejected history and law as presented by their contemporaries, holding instead to an "anti-Normanism" viewpoint.{{sfn|Pocock|1987|p=127}} [[John Lilburne]], for example, argued that Magna Carta contained only some of the freedoms that had supposedly existed under the Anglo-Saxons before being crushed by the [[Norman yoke]].{{sfn|Kewes|2006|p=279}} The Leveller [[Richard Overton (Leveller)|Richard Overton]] described the charter as "a beggarly thing containing many marks of intolerable bondage".{{sfn|Kewes|2006|p=226}}

Both saw Magna Carta as a useful declaration of liberties that could be used against governments they disagreed with.{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|pp=281–282}} [[Gerrard Winstanley]], the leader of the more extreme [[Diggers]], stated "the best lawes that England hath, [viz., Magna Carta] were got by our Forefathers importunate petitioning unto the kings that still were their Task-masters; and yet these best laws are yoaks and manicles, tying one sort of people to be slaves to another; Clergy and Gentry have got their freedom, but the common people still are, and have been left servants to work for them."{{sfn|Hill|2006|pp=111–122}}{{sfn|Linebaugh|2009|p=85}}

====Glorious Revolution====
The first attempt at a proper [[historiography]] was undertaken by [[Robert Brady (writer)|Robert Brady]],{{sfn|Pocock|1987|pp=182–228}} who refuted the supposed antiquity of Parliament and belief in the immutable continuity of the law. Brady realised that the liberties of the Charter were limited and argued that the liberties were the grant of the King. By putting Magna Carta in historical context, he cast doubt on its contemporary political relevance;{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=165}} his historical understanding did not survive the [[Glorious Revolution]], which, according to the historian [[J. G. A. Pocock]], "marked a setback for the course of English historiography."{{sfn|Pocock|1987|p=228}}

According to the [[Whig interpretation of history]], the Glorious Revolution was an example of the reclaiming of ancient liberties. Reinforced with [[Lockean]] concepts, the [[Whigs (British political party)|Whigs]] believed England's constitution to be a [[social contract]], based on documents such as Magna Carta, the Petition of Right, and the [[Bill of Rights 1689|Bill of Rights]].{{sfn|Turner|2003b|pp=169–170}} The ''English Liberties'' (1680, in later versions often ''British Liberties'') by the Whig propagandist [[Henry Care]] (d. 1688) was a cheap polemical book that was influential and much-reprinted, in the American colonies as well as Britain, and made Magna Carta central to the history and the contemporary legitimacy of its subject.{{sfn|Breay|Harrison|2015|pp=110–111, 134}}

Ideas about the nature of law in general were beginning to change. In 1716, the [[Septennial Act]] was passed, which had a number of consequences. First, it showed that Parliament no longer considered its previous statutes unassailable, as it provided for a maximum parliamentary term of seven years, whereas the [[Triennial Act]] (1694) (enacted less than a quarter of a century previously) had provided for a maximum term of three years.{{sfn|Linebaugh|2009|pp=113–14}}

It also greatly extended the powers of Parliament. Under this new constitution, monarchical [[Absolute monarchy|absolutism]] was replaced by [[parliamentary supremacy]]. It was quickly realised that Magna Carta stood in the same relation to the King-in-Parliament as it had to the King without Parliament. This supremacy would be challenged by the likes of [[Granville Sharp]]. Sharp regarded Magna Carta as a fundamental part of the constitution, and maintained that it would be treason to repeal any part of it. He also held that the Charter prohibited [[slavery]].{{sfn|Linebaugh|2009|pp=113–114}}

Sir [[William Blackstone]] published a critical edition of the 1215 Charter in 1759, and gave it the numbering system still used today.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|pp=67–68}} In 1763, Member of Parliament [[John Wilkes]] was arrested for writing an inflammatory pamphlet, ''No. 45, 23 April 1763''; he cited Magna Carta continually.{{sfn|Fryde|2001|p=207}} [[Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden#John Wilkes MP|Lord Camden]] denounced the treatment of Wilkes as a contravention of Magna Carta.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Goodrich|first1=Chauncey A.|title=The Speeches of Lord Chatham|url=http://www.classicpersuasion.org/cbo/chatham/chat09.htm|publisher=Classic Persuasion}}</ref> [[Thomas Paine]], in his ''[[Rights of Man]]'', would disregard Magna Carta and the Bill of Rights on the grounds that they were not a written constitution devised by elected representatives.<ref>{{cite web|title=Lord Irvine of Lairg 'The Spirit of Magna Carta Continues to Resonate in Modern Law'|url=http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Senate/Research_and_Education/pops/pop39/lairg|publisher=Parliament of Australia|access-date=7 November 2014|date=December 2002|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106070809/http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Senate/Research_and_Education/pops/pop39/lairg|archive-date=6 November 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

====Use in the Thirteen Colonies and the United States====
[[File:Magna Carta replica and display in the rotunda of the United States Capitol, Washington, DC - 20070517.jpg|thumb|Magna Carta replica and display in the rotunda of the [[United States Capitol]], Washington, D.C.]]
When English colonists left for the New World, they brought royal charters that established the colonies. The [[Massachusetts Bay Company]] charter, for example, stated that the colonists would "have and enjoy all liberties and immunities of free and natural subjects."<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Brink|first1=Robert J.|title=History on display: one lawyer's musings on Magna Carta|journal=Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly|date=18 August 2014|url=http://masslawyersweekly.com/reprints/history-on-display-one-lawyers-musings-on-the-magna-carta/|access-date=20 November 2014}}</ref> The [[Virginia Company|Virginia Charter]] of 1606, which was largely drafted by Sir Edward Coke, stated that the colonists would have the same "liberties, franchises and immunities" as people born in England.{{sfn|Howard|2008|p=28}} The [[Massachusetts Body of Liberties]] contained similarities to clause 29 of Magna Carta; when drafting it, the [[Massachusetts General Court]] viewed Magna Carta as the chief embodiment of English common law.{{sfn|Hazeltine|1917|p=194}} The other colonies would follow their example. In 1638, [[Province of Maryland|Maryland]] sought to recognise Magna Carta as part of the law of the province, but the request was denied by Charles I.{{sfn|Hazeltine|1917|p=195}}

In 1687, [[William Penn]] published ''The Excellent Privilege of Liberty and Property: being the birth-right of the Free-Born Subjects of England'', which contained the first copy of Magna Carta printed on American soil. Penn's comments reflected Coke's, indicating a belief that Magna Carta was a [[Fundamental Laws of England|fundamental law]].{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=210}} The colonists drew on English law books, leading them to an anachronistic interpretation of Magna Carta, believing that it guaranteed trial by jury and ''habeas corpus''.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=211}}

The development of parliamentary supremacy in the British Isles did not constitutionally affect the [[Thirteen Colonies]], which retained an adherence to [[English common law]], but it directly affected the relationship between Britain and the colonies.{{sfn|Hazeltine|1917|pp=183–184}} When American colonists fought against Britain, they were fighting not so much for new freedom, but to preserve liberties and rights that they believed to be enshrined in Magna Carta.<ref name="NARA-legacy">{{cite web|title=Magna Carta and Its American Legacy|url=https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/magna_carta/legacy.html|publisher=[[National Archives and Records Administration]]|access-date=30 January 2015}}</ref>

In the late 18th century, the [[United States Constitution]] became the [[supreme law of the land]], recalling the manner in which Magna Carta had come to be regarded as fundamental law.<ref name="NARA-legacy"/> The Constitution's [[Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fifth Amendment]] guarantees that "no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law", a phrase that was derived from Magna Carta.<ref name="NARA-Magna Carta">{{cite web|title=The Magna Carta|url=https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/magna_carta/|publisher=National Archives and Records Administration|access-date=20 November 2014}}</ref> In addition, the Constitution included a similar writ in the [[Denied powers|Suspension Clause]], Article 1, Section 9: "The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion, the public safety may require it."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Logal |first1=W.A. |title=Federal Habeas in the Information Age |journal=Minnesota Law Review |date=2000 |volume=85 |page=147}}</ref>

Each of these proclaim that no person may be imprisoned or detained without evidence that he or she committed a crime. The [[Ninth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Ninth Amendment]] states that "The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." The writers of the U.S. Constitution wished to ensure that the rights they already held, such as those that they believed were provided by Magna Carta, would be preserved unless explicitly curtailed.{{sfn|Stimson|2004|p=124}}{{sfn|Black|1999|p=10}}

The [[U.S. Supreme Court]] has explicitly referenced Edward Coke's analysis of Magna Carta as an antecedent of the [[Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Sixth Amendment]]'s right to a speedy trial.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=386&invol=213 |title='Klopfer v. North Carolina', 386 U.S. 213 (1967) |work=FindLaw |access-date=2 May 2010}}</ref>

===19th–21st centuries===

====Interpretation====
[[File:A Chronicle of England - Page 226 - John Signs the Great Charter.jpg|thumb|A romanticised 19th-century recreation of King John signing Magna Carta. Rather than signing in writing, the document would have been authenticated with the [[Great Seal of the Realm|Great Seal]] and applied by officials rather than John himself.<ref>{{citation |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-magazine-monitor-30879124 |title=Did King John actually 'sign' Magna Carta? |publisher=BBC |date=19 January 2015 |access-date=14 April 2020}}</ref>]]
Initially, the Whig interpretation of Magna Carta and its role in constitutional history remained dominant during the 19th century. The historian [[William Stubbs]]'s ''Constitutional History of England'', published in the 1870s, formed the high-water mark of this view.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|pp=199–200}} Stubbs argued that Magna Carta had been a major step in the shaping of the English nation, and he believed that the barons at Runnymede in 1215 were not just representing the nobility, but the people of England as a whole, standing up to a tyrannical ruler in the form of King John.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|pp=199–200}}{{sfn|Fryde|2001|p=1}}

This view of Magna Carta began to recede. The late-Victorian jurist and historian [[Frederic William Maitland]] provided an alternative academic history in 1899, which began to return Magna Carta to its historical roots.{{sfn|Simmons|1998|pp=69–83}} In 1904, [[Edward Jenks]] published an article entitled "The Myth of Magna Carta", which undermined the previously accepted view of Magna Carta.{{sfn|Galef|1998|pp=78–79}} Historians such as [[Albert Pollard]] agreed with Jenks in concluding that Edward Coke had largely "invented" the myth of Magna Carta in the 17th century; these historians argued that the 1215 charter had not referred to liberty for the people at large, but rather to the protection of baronial rights.{{sfn|Pollard|1912|pp=31–32}}

This view also became popular in wider circles, and in 1930 [[Sellar and Yeatman]] published their parody on English history, ''[[1066 and All That]]'', in which they mocked the supposed importance of Magna Carta and its promises of universal liberty: "Magna Charter was therefore the chief cause of Democracy in England, and thus a ''Good Thing'' for everyone (except the Common People)".{{sfn|Barnes|2008|p=23}}{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=283}} 

In many literary representations of the medieval past, however, Magna Carta remained a foundation of English national identity. Some authors used the medieval roots of the document as an argument to preserve the social status quo, while others pointed to Magna Carta to challenge perceived economic injustices.{{sfn|Simmons|1998|pp=69–83}} The Baronial Order of Magna Charta was formed in 1898 to promote the ancient principles and values felt to be displayed in Magna Carta.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.magnacharta.com/|title=Home|publisher=The Baronial Order of Magna Charta|access-date=19 November 2014}}</ref> The legal profession in England and the United States continued to hold Magna Carta in high esteem; they were instrumental in forming the Magna Carta Society in 1922 to protect the meadows at Runnymede from development in the 1920s, and in 1957, the [[American Bar Association]] erected the [[Magna Carta Memorial]] at Runnymede.<ref name="NARA-Magna Carta"/>{{sfn|Wright|1990|p=167}}{{sfn|Holt|1992b|pp=2–3}} The prominent lawyer [[Lord Denning]] described Magna Carta in 1956 as "the greatest constitutional document of all times<!-- [sic]; see note above -->—the foundation of the freedom of the individual against the arbitrary authority of the despot".{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=278}}

====Repeal of articles and constitutional influence====
Radicals such as Sir [[Francis Burdett]] believed that Magna Carta could not be repealed,{{sfn|Burdett|1810|p=41}} but in the 19th century clauses which were obsolete or had been superseded began to be repealed. The repeal of clause 26 in 1829, by the [[Offences Against the Person Act 1828]] ([[9 Geo. 4]]. c. 31 s. 1){{efn|I.e., section 1 of the 31st statute issued in the 9th year of George IV; "nor will We not" in clause 29 is correctly quoted from this source.}}<ref name=UKStatute/> was the first time a clause of Magna Carta was repealed. Over the next 140 years, nearly the whole of Magna Carta (1297) as statute was repealed,<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta|url=http://www.sagamoreinstitute.org/library-article/magna-carta/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141105004655/http://www.sagamoreinstitute.org/library-article/magna-carta/|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 November 2014|publisher=Segamore Institute|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref> leaving just clauses 1, 9 and 29 still in force (in England and Wales) after 1969.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The contents of Magna Carta |url=https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/evolutionofparliament/originsofparliament/birthofparliament/overview/magnacarta/magnacartaclauses/#:~:text=Only%20four%20of%20the%2063,%2C%2013%2C%2039%20and%2040. |url-status=live |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=[[UK Parliament]]|archive-date=2022-08-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220828101448/https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/evolutionofparliament/originsofparliament/birthofparliament/overview/magnacarta/magnacartaclauses/}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Magna Carta 1297 at Legislation.gov.uk|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/aep/Edw1cc1929/25/9/section/I |access-date=2022-12-08 |website=[[Legislation.gov.uk]]}}</ref> Most of the clauses were repealed in England and Wales by the [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]], and in modern [[Northern Ireland]] and also in the modern [[Republic of Ireland]] by the [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=UKStatute/>

Many later attempts to draft constitutional forms of government trace their lineage back to Magna Carta. The British dominions, Australia and New Zealand,{{sfn|Clark|2000}} Canada{{sfn|Kennedy|1922|p=228}} (except [[Quebec]]), and formerly the [[Union of South Africa]] and [[Southern Rhodesia]], reflected the influence of Magna Carta in their laws, and the Charter's effects can be seen in the laws of other states that evolved from the [[British Empire]].{{sfn|Drew|2004|pp=pxvi–pxxiii}}

====Modern legacy====
[[File:ABA-wyrdlight-815935.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|The [[Magna Carta Memorial]] at Runnymede, designed by Sir [[Edward Maufe]] and erected by the [[American Bar Association]] in 1957. The memorial stands in the meadow known historically as Long Mede: it is likely that the actual site of the sealing of Magna Carta lay further east, towards [[Egham]] and [[Staines]].{{sfn|Tatton-Brown|2015|p=36}}]]

Magna Carta continues to have a powerful iconic status in British society, being cited by politicians and lawyers in support of constitutional positions.{{sfn|Danziger|Gillingham|2004|p=278}}{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=48}} Its perceived guarantee of trial by jury and other civil liberties, for example, led to [[Tony Benn]]'s reference to the debate in 2008 over whether to increase the maximum time terrorism suspects could be [[Remand (detention)|held without charge]] from 28 to 42 days as "the day Magna Carta was repealed".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/so-will-the-revolution-start-in-haltemprice-and-howden-846938.html|title=So will the revolution start in Haltemprice and Howden?|work=The Independent|location=UK|date=14 June 2008|access-date=16 June 2008}}</ref> Although rarely invoked in court in the modern era, in 2012 the [[Occupy London]] protestors attempted to use Magna Carta in resisting their eviction from [[St. Paul's Churchyard]] by the [[City of London]]. In his judgment the [[Master of the Rolls]] gave this short shrift, noting somewhat drily that although clause 29 was considered by many the foundation of the rule of law in England, he did not consider it directly relevant to the case, and that the two other surviving clauses ironically concerned the rights of the Church and the City of London and could not help the defendants.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Green|first1=David Allen|url=http://blogs.ft.com/david-allen-green/2014/06/16/the-myth-of-magna-carta/|title=The myth of Magna Carta |date=16 June 2014|access-date=21 January 2015|author-link=David Allen Green|work=Financial Times|quote=The sarcasm of the Master of the Rolls was plain|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2012/160.html|title=The Mayor Commonalty and Citizens of London v Samede|date=22 February 2012|access-date=21 January 2015}}</ref>

Magna Carta carries little legal weight in modern Britain, as most of its clauses have been repealed and relevant rights ensured by other statutes, but the historian James Holt remarks that the survival of the 1215 charter in national life is a "reflexion of the continuous development of English law and administration" and symbolic of the many struggles between authority and the law over the centuries.{{sfn|Holt|1992b|p=2}} The historian W. L. Warren has observed that "many who knew little and cared less about the content of the Charter have, in nearly all ages, invoked its name, and with good cause, for it meant more than it said".{{sfn|Warren|1990|p=240}}

It also remains a topic of great interest to historians; [[Natalie Fryde]] characterised the charter as "one of the holiest of cows in English medieval history", with the debates over its interpretation and meaning unlikely to end.{{sfn|Fryde|2001|p=1}} The majority of contemporary historians however see the interpretation of the charter as a unique and early charter of legal rights as a myth that was created centuries later.<ref>{{harvnb|Helmholz|2014|p=1475}} "The latter, a negative opinion that a majority of professional historians seem to share, regards Magna Carta’s exalted reputation as a myth. In its origins, historians say, the Charter did little or nothing to promote good government. Nor, they add, did it serve to protect the legal rights of the great majority of English men and women. It served only the baronial class. Its glorification was a later invention, attributable to myth-making lawyers like Edward Coke in the seventeenth century and William Blackstone in the eighteenth."</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Baker|2017|p=missing}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Radin|1947|p=missing}}</ref> <!--section on current historians' views could do with being expanded -->

In many ways still a "sacred text", Magna Carta is generally considered part of the [[uncodified constitution]] [[Constitution of the United Kingdom|of the United Kingdom]]; in a 2005 speech, the [[Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales]], [[Lord Woolf]], described it as the "first of a series of instruments that now are recognised as having a special constitutional status".<ref name=woolfspeech>{{cite web|url=http://magnacarta800th.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Precedent_Recent_Constitutional_Change.pdf|title=Magna Carta: a precedent for recent constitutional change|work=Judiciary of England and Wales Speeches|date=15 June 2005|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref>{{sfn|Holt|1992b|p=21}} Magna Carta was reprinted in [[New Zealand]] in 1881 as one of the Imperial Acts in force there.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.nzlii.org/nz/legis/imp_act_1881/mc25ei84/ |title= Magna Carta (25 Ed I) |publisher= New Zealand Law online }}</ref> Clause 29 of the document remains in force as part of New Zealand law.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=28 March 1297 |title=Magna Carta 1297 s 29 |url=http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/imperial/1297/0029/latest/whole.html#DLM10926 |website=New Zealand Legislation |language=en-NZ}}</ref>
[[File:CAC CC 001 18 9 0000 0840.jpg|thumb|The ceremony in the Capitol rotunda honouring the arrival of Magna Carta in 1976]]
The document also continues to be honoured in the United States as an antecedent of the [[United States Constitution]] and [[United States Bill of Rights|Bill of Rights]].<ref name=ChartersOfFreedom>{{cite web|url=https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_q_and_a.html|title=United States Constitution Q + A|work=The Charters of Freedom|publisher=National Archives and Records Administration|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref> In 1976, the UK lent one of four surviving originals of the 1215 Magna Carta to the United States for their bicentennial celebrations and also donated an ornate display case for it. The original was returned after one year, but a replica and the case are still on display in the [[United States Capitol]] Crypt in [[Washington, D.C.]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta Replica and Display|url=http://www.aoc.gov/capitol-hill/other/magna-carta-replica-and-display|publisher=[[Architect of the Capitol]]|access-date=20 November 2014}}</ref>

====Celebration of the 800th anniversary====

[[File:Four surviving Magna Carta to be brought together for the first time in history.webm|thumb|The plan for four surviving original copies of Magna Carta to be brought together in 2015, at the [[British Library]] in collaboration with [[Lincoln Cathedral]] and [[Salisbury Cathedral]] and supported by the law firm [[Linklaters]]]]
The 800th anniversary of the original charter occurred on 15 June 2015, and organisations and institutions planned celebratory events.<ref name=doward>{{cite news|last1=Doward|first1=Jamie|title=Magna Carta 800 years on: recognition at last for 'England's greatest export'|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2014/nov/01/magna-carta-800-celebrates-anniversary|access-date=7 November 2014|work=The Observer|date=1 November 2014}}</ref> The [[British Library]] brought together the four existing copies of the 1215 manuscript in February 2015 for a special exhibition.<ref>{{cite web|title=Celebrating 800 years of Magna Carta|url=http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/800th-anniversary-programme|publisher=British Library|access-date=7 November 2014}}</ref> British artist [[Cornelia Parker]] was commissioned to create a new artwork, ''[[Magna Carta (An Embroidery)]]'',<ref name="Ina Cole">{{cite book |editor1-last=Cole |editor-first1=Ina |title="From the Sculptor's Studio", conversation with Cornelia Parker, held in 2008 and 2020 |year=2021 |publisher=Laurence King Publishing Ltd |page=174-187|isbn=9781913947590 |oclc=1420954826}}</ref> which was shown at the British Library between May and July 2015.<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta: Law, Liberty, Legacy|url=http://www.bl.uk/events/magna-carta--law-liberty-legacy|publisher=British Library|access-date=7 November 2014}}</ref> The artwork is a copy of the [[Wikipedia]] article about Magna Carta (as it appeared on the document's 799th anniversary, 15 June 2014), hand-embroidered by over 200 people.<ref name=Embroidery>{{cite news |last1=Jones |first1=Jonathan |title=Kings and needles: the Magna Carta gets an embroidery update |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2015/may/14/magna-carta-an-embroidery-cornelia-parker-british-library-wikipedia-prisoners-jarvis-cocker |access-date=14 May 2015 |work=The Guardian |date=14 May 2015}}</ref>

On 15 June 2015, a commemoration ceremony was conducted in Runnymede at the National Trust park, attended by British and American dignitaries.<ref>{{Cite news|title = Magna Carta: leaders celebrate 800th anniversary of the Great Charter|url = https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jun/15/magna-carta-leaders-celebrate-800th-anniversary-runnymede|newspaper = The Guardian|access-date = 2015-06-20|first = Caroline|last = Davies|date = 2015-06-15}}</ref> On the same day, [[Google]] celebrated the anniversary with a [[Google Doodle]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://doodles.google/doodle/800th-anniversary-of-the-magna-carta/|title=800th Anniversary of the Magna Carta|website=Google|date=15 June 2015}}</ref>

The copy held by [[Lincoln Cathedral]] was exhibited in the [[Library of Congress]] in Washington, D.C., from November 2014 until January 2015.<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta: Muse and Mentor|url=https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/magna-carta-muse-and-mentor|publisher=Library of Congress|access-date=30 January 2015|date=2014-11-06}}</ref> A new visitor centre at [[Lincoln Castle]] was opened for the anniversary.<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta 800|url=http://www.visitlincoln.com/magnacarta|publisher=Visit Lincoln|access-date=7 November 2014}}</ref> The [[Royal Mint]] released two commemorative [[Two pounds (British coin)|two-pound coins]].<ref>{{cite web|title=800th Anniversary of Magna Carta 2015 UK £2 BU Coin|url=http://www.royalmint.com/shop/800th_Anniversary_of_Magna_Carta_2015_UK_2_pound_BU_Coin|publisher=[[Royal Mint]]|access-date=27 December 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title = Magna Carta 800th Anniversary 2015 UK £2 Silver Piedfort Coin {{!}} The Royal Mint|url = http://www.royalmint.com/shop/Magna_Carta_800th_Anniversary_2015_UK_2_pound_Silver_Piedfort_Coin?tab=detail#productdetails|website = The Royal Mint|access-date = 2015-11-24|url-status=dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151125052803/http://www.royalmint.com/shop/Magna_Carta_800th_Anniversary_2015_UK_2_pound_Silver_Piedfort_Coin?tab=detail#productdetails|archive-date = 25 November 2015|df = dmy-all}}</ref>

In 2014, [[Bury St Edmunds]] in [[Suffolk]] celebrated the 800th anniversary of the barons' Charter of Liberties, said to have been secretly agreed there in November 1214.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bury St Edmunds Magna Carta 800|url=http://magnacarta800.org.uk|publisher=The Bury Society|location=[[Bury St Edmunds]]|access-date=28 December 2014}}</ref>

==Copies==

===Physical format===
Numerous copies, known as [[Exemplified copy|exemplifications]], were made of the various charters, and many of them still survive.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=37}} The documents were written in heavily abbreviated medieval Latin in clear handwriting, using [[quill]] pens on sheets of [[parchment]] made from sheep skin, approximately {{convert|15|by|20|in}} across.{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=37–38}}{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=143}} They were sealed with the [[Great Seal of the Realm|royal great seal]] by an official called the spigurnel, equipped with a special seal press, using beeswax and resin.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=143}}{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=38–39}} There were no signatures on the charter of 1215, and the barons present did not attach their own [[Seal (emblem)|seals]] to it.{{sfn|Browning|1898|p=50}} The text was not divided into paragraphs or numbered clauses: the numbering system used today was introduced by the jurist Sir [[William Blackstone]] in 1759.{{sfn|Turner|2003b|pp=67–68}}

===Exemplifications===

====1215 exemplifications====
At least thirteen original copies of the charter of 1215 were issued by the royal [[Chancery (medieval office)|chancery]] during that year, seven in the first tranche distributed on 24 June and another six later; they were sent to county sheriffs and bishops, who were probably charged for the privilege.{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=34–35}} Slight variations exist between the surviving copies, and there was probably no single "master copy".{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=34}} Of these documents, only four survive, all held in England: two now at the [[British Library]], one at [[Salisbury Cathedral]], and one, the property of [[Lincoln Cathedral]], on permanent loan to [[Lincoln Castle]].{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=35}} Each of these versions is slightly different in size and text, and each is considered by historians to be equally authoritative.{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=34–36}}

[[File:Magna Carta - John Pine engraving 1733.jpg|thumb|upright|1733 engraving by [[John Pine]] of the 1215 charter (''Cotton Charter XIII.31A'')]]
The two 1215 charters held by the British Library, known as ''Cotton MS. Augustus II.106'' and ''Cotton Charter XIII.31A'', were acquired by the antiquarian [[Sir Robert Cotton, 1st Baronet, of Connington|Sir Robert Cotton]] in the 17th century.{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=35–36}} The first had been found by Humphrey Wyems, a London lawyer, who may have discovered it in a tailor's shop, and who gave it to Cotton in January 1629.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=36}} The second was found in [[Dover Castle]] in 1630 by [[Sir Edward Dering, 1st Baronet|Sir Edward Dering]]. The Dering charter was traditionally thought to be the copy sent in 1215 to the [[Cinque Ports]],{{sfn|Turner|2003b|p=65}} but in 2015 the historian [[David Carpenter (historian)|David Carpenter]] argued that it was more probably that sent to [[Canterbury Cathedral]], as its text was identical to a transcription made from the Cathedral's copy of the 1215 charter in the 1290s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.canterbury.ac.uk/news/newsRelease.asp?newsPk=2372|title=Canterbury's Magna Carta rediscovered in time for 800th anniversary|publisher=Canterbury Christ Church University|access-date=31 January 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150123005702/http://www.canterbury.ac.uk/news/newsRelease.asp?newsPk=2372|archive-date=23 January 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kentnews.co.uk/news/remarkable_discovery_says_copy_of_magna_carta_in_british_library_was_canterbury_charter_1_3923530|title=Remarkable discovery says copy of Magna Carta in British Library was 'Canterbury charter'|publisher=kentnews|access-date=31 January 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150123010037/http://www.kentnews.co.uk/news/remarkable_discovery_says_copy_of_magna_carta_in_british_library_was_canterbury_charter_1_3923530|archive-date=23 January 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref>{{sfn|Breay|Harrison|2015|pp=57, 66}} This copy was damaged in the [[Cotton library#Ashburnham House fire|Cotton library fire]] of 1731, when its seal was badly melted. The parchment was somewhat shrivelled but otherwise relatively unscathed. An engraved [[facsimile]] of the charter was made by [[John Pine]] in 1733. In the 1830s, an ill-judged and bungled attempt at cleaning and [[Conservation and restoration of parchment|conservation]] rendered the manuscript largely illegible to the naked eye.{{sfn|Breay|Harrison|2015|pp=66, 216–219}}<ref>{{cite web |last=Duffy |first=Christina |title=Revealing the secrets of the burnt Magna Carta|url=http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/revealing-the-secrets-of-the-burnt-magna-carta |publisher=British Library|access-date=8 June 2016}}</ref> This is the only surviving 1215 copy still to have its great seal attached.{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=36–37}}{{sfn|Davis|1963|p=36}}

Lincoln Cathedral's copy has been held by the county since 1215. It was displayed in the Common Chamber in the cathedral, before being moved to another building in 1846.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=35}}<ref name=NationalSocietyMagna>{{cite web|url=http://www.magnacharta.org/DeanofLincolnsRemarks2004.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040821184913/http://www.magnacharta.org/DeanofLincolnsRemarks2004.htm |archive-date=21 August 2004 |publisher=National Society Magna Charta Dames and Barons|title=Magna Charta: Our Heritage and Yours|last=Knight|first=Alec|date=17 April 2004|access-date=2 September 2007}}</ref> Between 1939 and 1940 it was displayed in the British Pavilion at the [[1939 New York World's Fair|1939 World Fair]] in [[New York City]], and at the [[Library of Congress]].<ref name=":0"/> When the Second World War broke out, [[Winston Churchill]] wanted to give the charter to the American people, hoping that this would encourage the United States, then neutral, to enter the war against the [[Axis powers]], but the cathedral was unwilling, and the plans were dropped.{{sfn|Vincent|2012|p=107}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Proposed Gift of Magna Carta to America, 1941|quote=May we give you – at least as a token of our feelings – something of no intrinsic value whatever: a bit of parchment, more than seven hundred years old, rather the worse for wear.|url=https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/magna-carta/magna-has-no-intrinsic-value/|access-date=2022-01-29|website=The National Archives|language=en-GB}}</ref>

After December 1941, the copy was stored in [[United States Bullion Depository|Fort Knox]], [[Kentucky]], for safety, before being put on display again in 1944 and returned to Lincoln Cathedral in early 1946.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://loc.gov/exhibits/magna-carta-muse-and-mentor/magna-carta-comes-to-america.html|title=Magna Carta: Muse and Mentor Magna Carta Comes to America|website=[[Library of Congress]]|date=2014-11-06}}</ref>{{sfn|Vincent|2012|p=107}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.britishpathe.com/video/magna-carta-as-exhibit-for-new-york-world-fair|title=Magna Carta As Exhibit For New York World Fair|website=British Pathé|access-date=2016-09-15}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://blogs.loc.gov/law/2014/04/magna-carta-in-the-us-part-i-the-british-pavilion-of-the-1939-new-york-worlds-fair/|title=Magna Carta in the US, Part I: The British Pavilion of the 1939 New York World's Fair|date=2014-04-30}}</ref> It was put on display in 1976 in the cathedral's [[Lincoln Cathedral Library|medieval library]].<ref name=NationalSocietyMagna/> It was displayed in San Francisco, and was taken out of display for a time to undergo conservation in preparation for another visit to the United States, where it was exhibited in 2007 at the [[Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art|Contemporary Art Center of Virginia]] and the [[National Constitution Center]] in Philadelphia.<ref name=NationalSocietyMagna/><ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.constitutioncenter.org/PressRoom/PressReleases/2007_05_30_17687.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927032707/http://www.constitutioncenter.org/PressRoom/PressReleases/2007_05_30_17687.shtml |archive-date=27 September 2007|publisher=[[National Constitution Center]]|title=Magna Carta on Display Beginning 4&nbsp;July|date=30 May 2007|access-date=2 September 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.virginiamoca.org/magna-carta-four-foundations-freedom|title=Magna Carta & Four Foundations of Freedom|publisher=Contemporary Art Center of Virginia|year=2007|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref> In 2009 it returned to New York to be displayed at the [[Fraunces Tavern]] Museum.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/14/nyregion/14magna.html|title=Copy of Magna Carta Travels to New York in Style|author=Kahn, Eve M|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=13 September 2009|access-date=4 January 2015}}</ref> It is currently on permanent loan to the [[David Ross (businessman)|David P. J. Ross]] Vault at [[Lincoln Castle]], along with an original copy of the 1217 [[Charter of the Forest]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta|url=https://www.lincolncastle.com/content/magna-carta|website=Lincoln Castle|access-date=11 April 2018|date=2015-02-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta|url=https://lincolncathedral.com/education-learning/magna-carta/|website=Lincoln Cathedral|access-date=11 April 2018}}</ref>

The fourth copy, held by Salisbury Cathedral, was first given in 1215 to its predecessor, [[Old Sarum Cathedral]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Salisbury Cathedral|title=The Salisbury Connection|work=Salisbury Cathedral |url=http://www.salisburycathedral.org.uk/magna-carta-how-did-magna-carta-come-about/salisbury-connection|access-date=13 November 2014|date=2013}}</ref> Rediscovered by the cathedral in 1812, it has remained in Salisbury throughout its history, except when being taken off-site for restoration work.{{sfn|Vincent|2012|p=104}}<ref name="Salisbury Cathedral 2013">{{cite web|author=Salisbury Cathedral|title=The Document|url=http://www.salisburycathedral.org.uk/magna-carta-what-magna-carta/document|access-date=13 November 2014|date=2013}}</ref> It is possibly the best preserved of the four, although small pin holes can be seen in the parchment from where it was once pinned up.<ref name="Salisbury Cathedral 2013"/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wiltshire/8182987.stm|title=Award for cathedral Magna Carta|work=[[BBC News Online]]|date=4 August 2009|access-date=4 January 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Salisbury Cathedral|title=Visiting Magna Carta|work=Salisbury Cathedral |url=http://www.salisburycathedral.org.uk/magna-carta/visiting-magna-carta|access-date=13 November 2014|date=2013}}</ref> The handwriting on this version is different from that of the other three, suggesting that it was not written by a royal scribe but rather by a member of the cathedral staff, who then had it exemplified by the royal court.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=37}}{{sfn|Vincent|2012|p=104}}

In 2009, [[UNESCO]] added these four surviving exemplars to the [[Memory of the World Programme|Memory of the World international register]], recognising them as documentary heritage of global importance.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Magna Carta, issued in 1215 |url=https://www.unesco.org/en/memory-world/magna-carta-issued-1215 |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240701100906/https://www.unesco.org/en/memory-world/magna-carta-issued-1215 |archive-date=2024-07-01 |access-date=2025-05-21 |publisher=UNESCO Memory of the World Programme |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2009-07-31 |title=Surviving Magna Carta copies granted UN World Heritage status |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/5942599/Surviving-Magna-Carta-copies-granted-UN-World-Heritage-status.html |access-date=2025-05-21 |website=The Telegraph |language=en}}</ref>

====Later exemplifications====
[[File:Magna-carta-1225-C6257-03.jpg|thumb|upright|1225 charter, held in the British Library, with the [[Great Seal of the Realm|royal great seal]] attached]]
Other early versions of the charters survive today. Only one exemplification of the 1216 charter survives, held in [[Durham Cathedral]].{{sfn|Vincent|2012|p=106}} Four copies of the 1217 charter exist; three of these are held by the Bodleian Library in Oxford and one by [[Hereford Cathedral]].{{sfn|Vincent|2012|p=106}}<ref name="Magna Carta pulls in the crowds">{{cite web|title=Magna Carta pulls in the crowds|url=http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/news/2008/2007_dec_19|website=Bodleian Libraries|publisher=University of Oxford|access-date=13 June 2015}}</ref> Hereford's copy is occasionally displayed alongside the [[Hereford Mappa Mundi|Mappa Mundi]] in the cathedral's [[chained library]] and has survived along with a small document called the {{lang|la|Articuli super Cartas}} that was sent along with the charter, telling the sheriff of the county how to observe the conditions outlined in the document.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/herefordandworcester/content/articles/2009/06/15/magna_carta_3108_event_feature.shtml|title=Magna Carta at Hereford Cathedral|publisher=BBC|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref> One of the Bodleian's copies was displayed at San Francisco's [[California Palace of the Legion of Honor]] in 2011.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Magna Carta|url=http://www.famsf.org/press-room/magna-carta|publisher=Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco|access-date=4 January 2015|date=2011-04-05}}</ref>

Four exemplifications of the 1225 charter survive: the British Library holds one, which was preserved at [[Lacock Abbey]] until 1945; Durham Cathedral also holds a copy, with the Bodleian Library holding a third.<ref name="Magna Carta pulls in the crowds"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta, 1225|url=http://www.bl.uk/collection-items/magna-carta-1225|publisher=British Library|access-date=22 November 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Campbell|first1=Sophie|title=Magna Carta: On the trail of the Great Charter|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/uk/11098674/Magna-Carta-On-the-trail-of-the-Great-Charter.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/uk/11098674/Magna-Carta-On-the-trail-of-the-Great-Charter.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=4 November 2014|work=Telegraph|date=16 September 2014}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The fourth exemplification of 1225 was held by the museum of the [[Public Record Office]], and is now held by [[The National Archives (United Kingdom)|The National Archives]].{{sfn|Lewis|1987|p=494}}<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta|url=http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C3540504|publisher=The National Archives|access-date=19 January 2015}}</ref> The [[Society of Antiquaries of London|Society of Antiquaries]] also holds a draft of the 1215 charter (discovered in 2013 in a late-13th-century register from [[Peterborough Abbey]]), a copy of the 1225 third re-issue (within an early-14th-century collection of statutes) and a roll copy of the 1225 reissue.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Moss|first1=Richard|title=Society of Antiquaries to restore and display Magna Carta for 800th anniversary|url=http://www.culture24.org.uk/history-and-heritage/art485564-Society-of-Anitiquaries-to-restore-and-display-its-copies-of-the-Magna-Carta-for-800th-anniversary|publisher=Culture 24|access-date=13 June 2015}}</ref>

[[File:Magna Carta (1297 version, Parliament House, Canberra, Australia) - 20080416.jpg|thumb|left|A 1297 copy of Magna Carta, owned by the Australian Government and on display in the Members' Hall of [[Parliament House, Canberra]]]]

Four exemplifications of the 1297 charter also survive, of which two are held outside England. One was purchased in 1952 by the Australian Government for £12,500 from [[King's School, Bruton]], England.<ref>{{cite web |last=Evans |first=Harry |author-link=Harry Evans (Australian Senate clerk) |date=June 1998 |title=Bad King John and the Australian Constitution: Commemorating the 700th Anniversary of the 1297 Issue of Magna Carta |url=http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Senate/Research_and_Education/~/~/link.aspx?_id=8DC4A294677941F3806E20CFFF4D3053&_z=z |website=[[Parliament of Australia]] |series=Papers on Parliament No. 31 |publisher=}}</ref> Restored in 2024, this copy is now on display in the Members' Hall of [[Parliament House, Canberra|Parliament House]], Canberra.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2024-12-04 |title=Magna Carta |url=https://www.aph.gov.au/Visit_Parliament/Art/Icons/Magna_Carta |access-date= |website=[[Parliament of Australia]] |language=en-AU}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2024-12-04 |title=Conservation of the Magna Carta |url=https://www.aph.gov.au/Visit_Parliament/Art/Icons/Conservation_of_the_Magna_Carta |access-date= |website=[[Parliament of Australia]] |language=en-AU}}</ref> The second was originally held by the [[Earl of Cardigan|Brudenell family]], earls of [[Cardigan, Ceredigion|Cardigan]], before they sold it in 1984 to the [[Perot Foundation]] in the United States, which in 2007 sold it to U.S. businessman [[David Rubenstein]] for US$21.3&nbsp;million.<ref>{{Cite news|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/25/nyregion/25magna.html|title=Magna Carta is going on the auction block|date=25 September 2007|access-date=19 December 2007| first=James| last=Barron}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|work=Sydney Morning Herald|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/magna-carta-copy-fetches-24m/2007/12/19/1197740327098.html|title=Magna Carta copy fetches $24m|date=19 December 2007|access-date=19 December 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Edgers|first1=Geoff|title=Two Magna Cartas in D.C.|date=31 October 2014|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/museums/two-magna-cartas-in-dc/2014/10/30/a24d2853-79ac-47cb-84c0-e200ba6591f7_story.html|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=4 November 2014}}</ref> Rubenstein commented "I have always believed that this was an important document to our country, even though it wasn't drafted in our country. I think it was the basis for the Declaration of Independence and the basis for the Constitution". This exemplification is now on permanent loan to the [[National Archives and Records Administration|National Archives]] in Washington, D.C.{{sfn|Vincent|2015|p=160}}<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hossack|first1=James|title=Magna Carta Sold at Auction for $21.3 Million|url=http://www.smh.com.au/world/magna-carta-sold-for-213-million-at-new-york-auction-20071219-1i1k.html|access-date=14 June 2015|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=19 December 2007}}</ref> Of the other two surviving 1297 exemplifications,<ref name="magnacartacanada.ca">{{cite web|last1=Harris|first1=Carolyn|title=Where is Magna Carta Today?|url=http://www.magnacartacanada.ca/883/|publisher=Magna Carta 2015 Canada|access-date=13 June 2015}}</ref> one is held in the UK's National Archives,<ref>{{cite web|title=Magna Carta|url=http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C3540630|publisher=National Archives|access-date=13 June 2015|year=1297}}</ref> and the other in the [[Guildhall, London]].<ref name="magnacartacanada.ca"/>

Eight exemplifications of the 1300 confirmation by Edward I survive,<ref name="magnacartacanada.ca"/><ref name="bbc.co.uk">{{cite news|title=Magna Carta edition found in Sandwich archive scrapbook|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-31242433|access-date=13 June 2015|work=BBC|date=8 February 2015}}</ref> in [[Faversham]],<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.canterburytimes.co.uk/Faversham-gets-ready-celebrate-Magna-Carta/story-22936779-detail/story.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150212202659/http://www.canterburytimes.co.uk/Faversham-gets-ready-celebrate-Magna-Carta/story-22936779-detail/story.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=12 February 2015|title=Faversham gets ready to celebrate its Magna Carta artefact|access-date=13 June 2015|work=Faversham Times|date=17 September 2014}}</ref> [[Oriel College, Oxford]], the [[Bodleian Library]], [[Durham Cathedral]], [[Westminster Abbey]], the [[City of London]] (held in the archives at the [[London Guildhall]]),<ref>{{cite web|title=New City of London Heritage Gallery to open at the Guildhall|date=27 August 2014 |url=http://advisor.museumsandheritage.com/features/new-city-of-london-heritage-gallery-to-open-at-the-guildhall/|publisher=Museums and Heritage Advisor|access-date=13 June 2015}}</ref> [[Sandwich, Kent|Sandwich]] (held in the [[Sandwich Guildhall|Sandwich Guildhall Museum]])<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sandwichguildhallmuseum.co.uk/home  |title=About us|publisher= Sandwich Guildhall Museum| access-date=13 September 2023}}</ref> and [[Cambridge, Massachusetts]] (held at [[Harvard Law School]]).<ref name="nyt2025">{{Cite news |last=Castle |first=Stephen |date=2025-05-15 |title=Harvard Law Paid $27 for a Copy of Magna Carta. Surprise! It's an Original. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/15/world/europe/harvard-law-magna-carta-original.html |access-date=2025-05-15 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The Sandwich copy was rediscovered in early 2015 in a Victorian scrapbook in the town archives of [[Sandwich, Kent]], one of the [[Cinque Ports]].<ref name="bbc.co.uk"/> In the case of the Sandwich and Oriel College exemplifications, the copies of the [[Charter of the Forest]] originally issued with them also survive.<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|title=£10m Magna Carta found in council archives. Expert says discovery of 1300 edition of historic document raises hopes that there are more than the 24 copies currently known about in existence|author=Press Association|authorlink= PA Media |date=8 Feb 2015|url= https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2015/feb/08/10m-magna-carta-found-in-council-archives}}</ref> The Harvard copy, previously thought to be an unofficial secondary copy, was identified as an original exemplification in 2025.<ref name="nyt2025"/><ref>{{Cite news |last=Lee |first=Olivia |title=Harvard's unofficial copy of Magna Carta is actually an original, experts say |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/may/15/harvards-unofficial-copy-of-magna-carta-is-actually-an-original-experts-say |date=2025-05-15 |access-date=2025-05-15 |work=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Harvard Law School's 'copy' of Magna Carta revealed as original |work=Harvard Law Today |publisher=Harvard Law School |date=15 May 2025 |url=https://hls.harvard.edu/today/harvard-law-schools-copy-of-magna-carta-revealed-as-original/ |access-date=15 May 2025 }}</ref>

== Clauses ==
[[File:John penny.jpg|thumb|alt=A photograph of the "heads" side of a silver King John penny|upright|A [[silver]] King John [[penny]]. Much of Magna Carta concerned how royal revenues were raised.]]
Most of the 1215 charter and later versions sought to govern the feudal rights of the Crown over the barons.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=28}} Under the Angevin kings, and in particular during John's reign, the rights of the King had frequently been used inconsistently, often in an attempt to maximise the royal income from the barons. [[Feudal relief]] was one way that a king could demand money, and clauses 2 and 3 fixed the fees payable when an heir inherited an estate or when a minor came of age and took possession of his lands.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=28}}

[[Scutage]] was a form of medieval taxation. All knights and nobles owed military service to the Crown in return for their lands, which theoretically belonged to the King. Many preferred to avoid this service and offer money instead. The Crown often used the cash to pay for mercenaries.{{sfn|Poole|1993|pp=16–17}} The rate of scutage that should be payable, and the circumstances under which it was appropriate for the King to demand it, was uncertain and controversial. Clauses 12 and 14 addressed the management of the process.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=28}}

The English judicial system had altered considerably over the previous century, with the royal judges playing a larger role in delivering justice across the country. John had used his royal discretion to extort large sums of money from the barons, effectively taking payment to offer justice in particular cases, and the role of the Crown in delivering justice had become politically sensitive among the barons. Clauses 39 and 40 demanded due process be applied in the royal justice system, while clause 45 required that the King appoint knowledgeable royal officials to the relevant roles.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=29}}

Although these clauses did not have any special significance in the original charter, this part of Magna Carta became singled out as particularly important in later centuries.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=29}} In the United States, for example, the [[Supreme Court of California]] interpreted clause 45 in 1974 as establishing a requirement in common law that a defendant faced with the potential of incarceration be entitled to a trial overseen by a legally trained judge.<ref>''Gordon v. Justice Court'', [http://online.ceb.com/calcases/C3/12C3d323.htm 12 Cal. 3d 323] (1974).</ref>

[[File:John of England (John Lackland).jpg|thumb|upright|[[John, King of England|King John]] holding a church, painted {{Circa|1250–1259}} by [[Matthew Paris]]]]
[[Royal forest]]s were economically important in medieval England and were both protected and exploited by the Crown, supplying the King with hunting grounds, raw materials, and money.{{sfn|Huscroft|2005|p=97}}{{sfn|Poole|1993|pp=29–30}} They were subject to special royal jurisdiction and the resulting forest law was, according to the historian Richard Huscroft, "harsh and arbitrary, a matter purely for the King's will".{{sfn|Huscroft|2005|p=97}} The size of the forests had expanded under the Angevin kings, an unpopular development.{{sfn|Poole|1993|p=29}}

The 1215 charter had several clauses relating to the royal forests. Clauses 47 and 48 promised to deforest the lands added to the forests under John and investigate the use of royal rights in this area, but notably did not address the forestation of the previous kings, while clause 53 promised some form of redress for those affected by the recent changes, and clause 44 promised some relief from the operation of the forest courts.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=32}} Neither Magna Carta nor the subsequent Charter of the Forest proved entirely satisfactory as a way of managing the political tensions arising in the operation of the royal forests.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=32}}

Some of the clauses addressed wider economic issues. The concerns of the barons over the treatment of their debts to Jewish moneylenders, who occupied a special position in medieval England and were by tradition under the King's protection, were addressed by clauses 10 and 11.{{sfn|Poole|1993|pp=353, 474}} The charter concluded this section with the phrase "debts owing to other than Jews shall be dealt with likewise", so it is debatable to what extent the Jews were being singled out by these clauses.{{sfn|Hillaby|Hillaby|2013|p=23}} Some issues were relatively specific, such as clause 33 which ordered the removal of all [[fishing weir]]s—an important and growing source of revenue at the time—from England's rivers.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=32}}

The role of the English Church had been a matter for great debate in the years prior to the 1215 charter. The Norman and Angevin kings had traditionally exercised a great deal of power over the church within their territories. From the 1040s onwards successive popes had emphasised the importance of the church being governed more effectively from Rome, and had established an independent judicial system and hierarchical chain of authority.{{sfn|Huscroft|2005|p=190}} After the 1140s, these principles had been largely accepted within the English church, even if accompanied by an element of concern about centralising authority in Rome.{{sfn|Huscroft|2005|p=189}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=121}}

[[Investiture Controversy|These changes]] brought the customary rights of lay rulers such as John over ecclesiastical appointments into question.{{sfn|Huscroft|2005|p=189}} As described above, John had come to a compromise with Pope Innocent III in exchange for his political support for the King, and clause 1 of Magna Carta prominently displayed this arrangement, promising the freedoms and liberties of the church.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=28}} The importance of this clause may also reflect the role of Archbishop Langton in the negotiations: Langton had taken a strong line on this issue during his career.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=28}}

=== Clauses in detail ===
{{hidden begin|title={{center|Magna Carta clauses in the 1215 and later charters}}|style=border:solid 1px #aaa}}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%;"
! scope="col" | {{ubl|1215 clause|{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=49–54}}}}
! scope="col" | {{ubl|Description|{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=49–54}}<ref name="All clauses">{{cite web|title=All clauses|url=http://magnacarta.cmp.uea.ac.uk/read/magna_carta_1215/!all|website=The Magna Carta Project|publisher=University of East Anglia|access-date=9 November 2014}}</ref>}}
! scope="col" | {{ubl|Included in later charters|{{sfn|Breay|2010|pp=49–54}}<ref name=sharples>{{harvnb|Thomson|2011}}</ref>}}
! scope="col" | Notes
|-
! scope="row" |1
|Guaranteed the freedom of the English Church.
| Y
| Still in UK (England and Wales) law as clause 1 in the 1297 statute.
|-
! scope="row" |2
| Regulated the operation of [[feudal relief]] upon the death of a baron.
| Y
|Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives>{{harvnb|UK Government|1297}}</ref>
|-
! scope="row" |3
| Regulated the operation of feudal relief and minors' coming of age.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |4
| Regulated the process of [[wardship]], and the role of the guardian.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |5
| Forbade the exploitation of a ward's property by his guardian.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |6
| Forbade guardians from marrying a ward to a partner of lower social standing.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |7
| Referred to the rights of a [[widow]] to receive promptly her [[dowry]] and inheritance.
| Y
|Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |8
| Forbade the forcible remarrying of widows and confirmed the royal veto over baronial marriages.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Administration of Estates Act 1925]], [[Administration of Estates Act (Northern Ireland) 1955]] and [[Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |9
| Established protection for debtors, confirming that a debtor should not have his lands seized as long as he had other means to pay the debt.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |10
| Regulated Jewish money lending, stating that children would not pay interest on a debt they had inherited while they were under age.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |11
| Further addressed Jewish money lending, stating that a widow and children should be provided for before paying an inherited debt.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |12
| Determined that [[scutage]] or aid, forms of medieval taxation, could be levied and assessed only by the common consent of the realm.
| N
| Some exceptions to this general rule were given, such as for the payment of ransoms.
|-
! scope="row" |13
| Confirmed the liberties and customs of the [[City of London]] and other boroughs.
| Y
| Still in UK (England and Wales) law as clause 9 in the 1297 statute.
|-
! scope="row" |14
| Described how senior churchmen and barons would be summoned to give consent for scutage and aid.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |15
| Prohibited anyone from levying aid on their free men.
| N
| Some exceptions to this general rule were given, such as for the payment of ransoms.
|-
! scope="row" |16
| Placed limits on the level of service required for a [[knight's fee]].
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1948]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |17
| Established a fixed law court rather than one which followed the movements of the King.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Civil Procedure Acts Repeal Act 1879]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |18
| Defined the authority and frequency of county courts.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Civil Procedure Acts Repeal Act 1879]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |19
| Determined how excess business of a county court should be dealt with.
| Y
|
|-
! scope="row" |20
| Stated that an amercement, a type of medieval fine, should be proportionate to the offence, but even for a serious offence the fine should not be so heavy as to deprive a man of his livelihood. Fines should be imposed only through local assessment.
| Y
|Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |21
| Determined that earls and barons should be fined only by other earls and barons.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |22
| Determined that the size of a fine on a member of the clergy should be independent of the ecclesiastical wealth held by the individual churchman.
| Y
|Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |23
| Limited the right of feudal lords to demand assistance in building bridges across rivers.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |24
| Prohibited royal officials, such as sheriffs, from trying a crime as an alternative to a royal judge.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |25
| Fixed the royal rents on lands, with the exception of royal demesne manors.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |26
| Established a process for dealing with the death of those owing debts to the Crown.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Crown Proceedings Act 1947]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |27
| Laid out the process for dealing with [[intestacy]].
| N
|-
! scope="row" |28
| Determined that a royal officer requisitioning goods must offer immediate payment to their owner.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |29
| Regulated the exercise of [[castle-guard]] duty.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |30
| Prevented royal officials from requisitioning horses or carts without the owner's consent.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |31
| Prevented royal officials from requisitioning timber without the owner's consent.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |32
| Prevented the Crown from confiscating the lands of felons for longer than a year and a day, after which they were to be returned to the relevant feudal lord.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1948]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |33
| Ordered the removal of all [[fish weirs]] from rivers.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |34
| Forbade the issuing of [[writ]] ''precipes'' if doing so would undermine the right of trial in a local feudal court.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |35
| Ordered the establishment of standard measures for wine, ale, corn, and cloth.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1948]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |36
| Determined that writs for loss of life or limb were to be freely given without charge.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Offences Against the Person Act 1828]] and [[Offences Against the Person (Ireland) Act 1829]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |37
| Regulated the inheritance of Crown lands held by "fee-farm".
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |38
| Stated that no one should be put on trial based solely on the unsupported word of a royal official.
| Y
|Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |39
| Stated that no free man could be imprisoned or stripped of his rights or possessions without [[due process]] being legally applied.
| Y
| Still in UK (England and Wales) law as part of clause 29 in the 1297 statute.
|-
! scope="row" |40
| Forbade the selling of justice, or its denial or delay.<ref name="PAMadisonDPC">{{cite web|last=Madison|first=P. A.|title=Historical Analysis of the first of the 14th Amendment's First Section|url=http://www.federalistblog.us/mt/articles/14th_dummy_guide.htm#equal|publisher=The Federalist Blog|access-date=19 January 2013|date=2 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191118145152/http://www.federalistblog.us/mt/articles/14th_dummy_guide.htm#equal|archive-date=November 18, 2019|quote="The words "We will sell to no man" were intended to abolish the fines demanded by King John in order to obtain justice. "Will not deny" referred to the stopping of suits and the denial of writs. "Delay to any man" meant the delays caused either by the counter-fines of defendants, or by the prerogative of the King."}}</ref>
| Y
| Still in UK (England and Wales) law as part of clause 29 in the 1297 statute.
|-
! scope="row" |41
| Guaranteed the safety and the right of entry and exit of foreign merchants.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |42
| Permitted men to leave England for short periods without prejudicing their allegiance to the King, with the exceptions for outlaws and wartime.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |43
| Established special provisions for taxes due on estates temporarily held by the Crown.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |44
| Limited the need for people to attend forest courts, unless they were actually involved in the proceedings.
| Y
|
|-
! scope="row" |45
| Stated that the King should appoint only justices, constables, sheriffs, or bailiffs who knew and would enforce the law.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |46
| Permitted barons to take guardianship of monasteries in the absence of an abbot.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |47
| Abolished those royal forests newly created under King John's reign.
| Y
|
|-
! scope="row" |48
| Established an investigation of "evil customs" associated with royal forests, with an intent to abolishing them.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |49
| Ordered the return of hostages held by the King.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |50
| Forbade any member of the [[Gérard d'Athée|d'Athée family]] from serving as a royal officer.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |51
| Ordered that all foreign knights and mercenaries leave England once peace was restored.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |52
| Established a process for giving restitution to those who had been unlawfully dispossessed of their "lands, castles, liberties, or of his right".<ref>{{cite web|title=The 1215 Magna Carta: Clause 52|url=http://magnacarta.cmp.uea.ac.uk/read/magna_carta_1215/Clause_52|website=The Magna Carta Project|publisher=University of East Anglia|access-date=22 July 2021}}</ref>
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |53
| Established a process for giving restitution to those who had been mistreated by forest law.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |54
| Prevented men from being arrested or imprisoned on the testimony of a woman, unless the case involved the death of her husband.
| Y
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |55
| Established a process for remitting any unjust fines imposed by the King.
| N
| Repealed by [[Statute Law Revision Act 1863]] and [[Statute Law Revision (Ireland) Act 1872]].<ref name=natarchives/>
|-
! scope="row" |56
| Established a process for dealing with Welshmen who had been unlawfully dispossessed of their property or rights.
| Y
|
|-
! scope="row" |57
| Established a process for returning the possessions of Welshmen who had been unlawfully dispossessed.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |58
| Ordered the return of Welsh hostages, including [[Prince Llywelyn]]'s [[Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Fawr|son]].
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |59
| Established a process for the return of Scottish hostages, including [[Alexander II of Scotland|King Alexander]]'s sisters.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |60
| Encouraged others in England to deal with their own subjects as the King dealt with his.
| Y
|
|-
! scope="row" |61
| Provided for the application and observation of the charter by twenty-five of the barons.
| N
|
|-
! scope="row" |62
| Pardoned those who had rebelled against the King.
| N
| Sometimes considered a subclause, "Suffix A", of clause 61.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=201}}<ref name="All clauses"/>
|-
! scope="row" |63
| Stated that the charter was binding on King John and his heirs.
| N
| Sometimes considered a subclause, "Suffix B", of clause 61.{{sfn|Hindley|1990|p=201}}<ref name="All clauses"/>
|}
{{hidden end}}

=== Clauses remaining in English law ===
Only three clauses of Magna Carta still remain on statute in England and Wales.{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=48}} These clauses concern 1) the freedom of the English Church, 2) the "ancient liberties" of the City of London (clause 13 in the 1215 charter, clause 9 in the 1297 statute), and 3) a right to due legal process (clauses 39 and 40 in the 1215 charter, clause 29 in the 1297 statute).{{sfn|Breay|2010|p=48}} Using the numbering system from the 1297 statute, these clauses state that:

{{blockquote|{{ordered list|type=upper-roman|style=font-size:initial
| FIRST, We have granted to God, and by this our present Charter have confirmed, for Us and our Heirs for ever, that the Church of England shall be free, and shall have all her whole Rights and Liberties inviolable. We have granted also, and given to all the Freemen of our Realm, for Us and our Heirs for ever, these Liberties under-written, to have and to hold to them and their Heirs, of Us and our Heirs for ever.
|item2_value=9| THE [[City of London]] shall have all the old Liberties and Customs which it hath been used to have. Moreover We will and grant, that all other Cities, Boroughs, Towns, and the Barons of the [[Cinque Ports|Five Ports]], and all other Ports, shall have all their Liberties and free Customs.
|item3_value=29| NO Freeman shall be taken or imprisoned, or be disseised of his Freehold, or Liberties, or free Customs, or be outlawed, or exiled, or any other wise destroyed; nor will We not pass upon him, nor condemn him, but by lawful judgment of his Peers, or by the [[Law of the land]]. We will sell to no man, we will not deny or defer to any man either Justice or Right.<ref name=UKStatute>{{cite web|url=http://www.statutelaw.gov.uk/content.aspx?activeTextDocId=1517519 |title=(Magna Carta) (1297) (c. 9) |work=UK Statute Law Database |access-date=2 September 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070905014018/http://www.statutelaw.gov.uk/content.aspx?activeTextDocId=1517519 |archive-date=5 September 2007 }}</ref><ref name="PAMadisonDPC"/>
}}}}

=== Clauses in force in other countries ===<!-- The status of Magna Carta in other former British colonies could also be added. -->
Clauses of Magna Carta also remain in force in several countries that were formerly British colonies. British colonies received the common and statutory law in force at a particular time in England, often through specific [[reception statutes]] or by adoption into local law. As a result chapter 29 of the 1297 Magna Carta remains in force in [[New Zealand]]<ref name=":1" /> and the [[Australia|Australian]] states of [[New South Wales]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Imperial Acts Application Act 1969 (NSW) s 6 |url=https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-1969-030#sec.6 |website=NSW Legislation}}</ref> [[Victoria (state)|Victoria]],<ref>{{Cite Legislation AU|Vic|act|iaaa1980240|Imperial Acts Application Act 1980}}</ref>  [[Queensland]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Imperial Acts Application Act 1984 (Qld) sch 1 |url=https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-1984-070#sch.1 |website=Queensland Legislation}}</ref> and the [[Australian Capital Territory]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Magna Carta (1297) 25 Edw 1 c 29 |url=https://www.legislation.act.gov.au/a/db_1781/ |website=ACT Legislation Register}}</ref> The entirety of Magna Carta apart from chapter 26 remains in force in the Australian states of [[Western Australia]], [[Tasmania]], [[South Australia]] and the [[Northern Territory]].{{Sfn|Clark|2000|page=866}}

==See also==
{{Portal|United Kingdom|Law}}
* [[Civil liberties in the United Kingdom]]
* [[Charter of Liberties]]
* [[Charter of the Forest]]
* [[Fundamental Laws of England]]
* [[Haandfæstning]]
* [[History of democracy]]
* [[History of human rights]]
* [[List of most expensive books and manuscripts]]
* ''[[Magna Carta (An Embroidery)]]'', 2015 artwork
* {{lang|la|[[Magna Carta Hiberniae]]}} – an issue of the English Magna Carta, or Great Charter of Liberties in Ireland
* [[Ordinances of 1311]]
* [[Statutes of Mortmain]]

== Explanatory notes ==
{{Notelist|notes=|30em}}

==References==
{{Reflist|21em}}

==Sources==
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* {{cite book|last1=Vincent|first1=Nicholas|editor-last1=Vincent|editor-first1=Nicholas|title=Magna Carta: The Foundation of Freedom, 1215–2015|chapter=From World War to World Heritage: Magna Carta in the Twentieth Century|pages=154–169|date=2015|publisher=Third Millennium Publishing|location=London|isbn=978-1908990488}}
* {{cite book|last1=Warren|first1=W. Lewis|author-link=W. L. Warren|title= King John|date=1990|publisher=Methuen|location=London|isbn=978-0413455208}}
* {{cite book | last = Weiler | first = Björn K.U. | year = 2012 | title = Henry III of England and the Staufen Empire, 1216–1272 | publisher = Royal Historical Society: Boydell Press | location= Paris | isbn = 978-0861933198 }}
* {{cite journal|last1=White|first1=Albert Beebe|title=The Name Magna Carta|journal=The English Historical Review|date=1915|volume=XXX|issue=CXIX|pages=472–475|doi=10.1093/ehr/XXX.CXIX.472}}
* {{cite journal|last1=White|first1=Albert Beebe|title=Note on the Name Magna Carta|journal=The English Historical Review|date=1917|volume=XXXII|issue=CXXVIII|pages=545–555|doi=10.1093/ehr/XXXII.CXXVIII.554}}
* {{cite book|last1=Woolwrych|first1=Austin Herbert|author-link=Austin Herbert Woolrych|editor-last=Smith|editor-first=David Lee|title=Cromwell and Interregnum: The Essential Readings|date=2003|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=978-0631227250|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sW8ycm-sC9cC}}
* {{cite book|last1=Wright|first1=Herbert G.|title=The Life And Works Of Arthur Hall Of Grantham, Member Of Parliament, Courtier And First Translator Of Homer Into English|date=1919|publisher=Book on Demand}}
* {{cite book|last1=Wright|first1=Patrick|title=The River: A Thames Journey|date=1990|publisher=BBC Books|location=London|isbn=978-0563384786}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal|journal=English Historical Review|first=S. T. |last=Ambler |author-link=Sophie T. Ambler |title=Magna Carta: Its Confirmation at Simon de Montfort's Parliament of 1265|date=August 2015|volume=CXXX|number=545|pages=801–830|doi=10.1093/ehr/cev202}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Davies|first=Stephen |author-link= |editor-first=Ronald |editor-last=Hamowy |editor-link=Ronald Hamowy |title=The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism |chapter=Magna Carta|chapter-url=https://sk.sagepub.com/reference/libertarianism/n188.xml|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=yxNgXs3TkJYC  |doi=10.4135/9781412965811.n188 |year=2008 |publisher= [[SAGE Publishing|Sage]]; [[Cato Institute]] |location= Thousand Oaks, CA  |isbn= 978-1412965804 |oclc=750831024| <!-- lccn = 2008009151 | -->pages=313–314 |url-access=subscription }}
* {{cite book|last1=McKechnie|first1=William Sharp|title= Magna Carta: A Commentary on the Great Charter of King John with an Historical Introduction|location=Glasgow, UK|publisher=James Maclehose and Sons|year=1914|url=http://lf-oll.s3.amazonaws.com/titles/338/0032_Bk.pdf|author-link=William Sharp McKechnie}}

==External links==
{{Wikisource|1=Source_Problems_in_English_History/Appendix/Magna_Carta._1215|2=Magna Carta}}
{{Wikisourcelang|la|Magna Carta}}
{{Commons category|Magna Carta}}
{{Wikiquote}}

===Government websites===
* [http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta British Library]
* [http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/medieval/magna-carta/ National Archives UK]
* [http://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/evolutionofparliament/originsofparliament/birthofparliament/overview/magnacarta/ British Parliament]

===Academic websites===
*[https://magnacartaresearch.org/ The Magna Carta Project]
*[https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/collections/charters-and-seals/ Digital Bodleian: Charters and Seals] (high-resolution scans of three 1217 exemplifcations)

===Texts===
* {{UK-LEG|title=Magna Carta 1297|norig=yes|path=aep/Edw1cc1929/25/9/contents}}
* [http://www.orbilat.com/Languages/Latin/Texts/06_Medieval_period/Legal_Documents/Magna_Carta.html ''Magna Carta Libertatum''] Latin and English text of the 1215 charter
* [https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/magnacarta.asp Text of Magna Carta] English translation, with introductory historical note. From the [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
* {{librivox book | title=Magna Carta | author=Unknown}}

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