THE MAGNA CARTA

FACTS ON THE MAGNA CARTA

• The Magna Carta is Latin for the Great Charter
• It is also called the Magna Carta Libertatum which is Latin for the Great Character of the Liberties
• The Magna Carta was sealed by King John on June 15, 1215
• King John was confronted by 40 barons that forced him to seal the Magna Carta while his army was away
• The Magna Carta was reissued several times after King John's death

The Magna Carta was old but some of its principles still live today, such as " No freeman shall be taken, imprisoned, dissseied, outlawed, banished, or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land."

INTERESTING FACTS ON THE MAGNA CARTA

• No one knows who wrote it
• It was considered a failure because it didn't stop the fighting
• Before the Magna Carta widows and daughters of barons could be sold by the king in order to make money
• King John never signed the Magna Carta, he sealed it with his royal seal even though paintings show him signing it
• There are only four surviving copies of the Magna Carta, they are in the British Library

INTERESTING FACTS ON THE MAGNA CARTA CON.

• The Magna Carta inspired the US Declaration of Independence and the UN Charter of Human Rights
• In modern English translation the Magna Carta has 4922 words
• The original copy only lasted 3 months before King John violated its terms
• Shakespeare didn't mention the Magna Carta in his Life and Death of King John