Magna Carta
The unpopular King John of England was forced by his barons in 1215 to sign this document, guaranteeing their feudal rights. Magna Carta is often considered one of the “founding documents” of English constitutional government.
John, by the grace of God king of England, lord of Ireland, duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, count of Anjou: to the archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, barons, justiciars, foresters, sheriffs, prevosts, serving men, and to all his bailiffs and faithful subjects, greetings: Know that we, by the will of God and for the safety of our soul, and of the souls of all our predecessors and our heirs, to the honour of God and for the exalting of the holy church and the amending of our realm. . . . (the preamble goes on to name all the noble witnesses)
1. First we have granted to God, and for us and for our heirs forever, have confirmed, by this our present charter, that the English Church shall be free and shall have its rights intact and its liberties untouched. And thus we will that it be observed, as is apparent from the fact that we, spontaneously and of our own free will, before dissent broke out between ourselves and our barons, did grant and by our charter confirm and did cause the lord Pope Innocent III to confirm freedom of elections, which is considered most important and most necessary to the church of England. Which charter both we ourselves shall observe, and we will that it be observed with good faith by our heirs forever. We have also granted to all free men of our realm, on the part of ourselves and our heirs forever, all the underwritten liberties, to have and to hold, to them and to their heirs, from us and from our heirs.
paragraphs 2-8 cover vassals’ rights of inheritance and rules regarding wardship and marriage.
9. Neither we nor our bailiffs shall seize any land or rents for any debt, so long as the chattels of the debtor suffice to pay the debt; nor shall the sponsors of that debtor be distrained so long as that chief debtor is able to pay the debt. But if the chief debtor fail in paying the debt, not having the means to pay it, the sponsors shall answer for the debt. And, if they wish, they may hold the lands and revenues of the debtor until satisfaction shall have been given them for the debt previously paid for him; unless the chief debtor shall show that he is quit of his obligation towards those same sponsors.
paragraphs 10 and 11 concern interest on debts and the responsibilities of the heirs of debtors.
12. No scutage or aid shall be imposed in our realm unless by the common counsel of our realm; except for ransoming our body, and knighting our eldest son, and marrying once our eldest daughter. And for these purposes there shall only be given a reasonable aid. In like manner shall it be concerning the aids of the city of London.
13. And the city of London shall have all its ancient liberties and free customs as well by land as by water. Moreover we will and grant that all other cities, boroughs, towns and ports shall have all their liberties and free customs.
14. And, for obtaining the common counsel of the realm in the matter of assessing an aid otherwise than in the aforesaid cases, or of scutage, we shall cause, under seal through our letters, the archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, and greater barons to be summoned for a fixed day for a term, namely, at least forty days distant, and for a fixed place. And, moreover, we shall cause to be summoned in general, through our sheriffs and bailiffs, all those who hold of us directly. And in all those letters of summons we shall express the cause thereof. And when a summons has thus been made, the business shall be proceeded with on the day appointed according to the advice of those who shall be present, even though not all shall come who were summoned.
paragraphs 15 and 16 deal with other minor feudal aids.
17. Common pleas shall not follow our court but shall be held in some certain place.
paragraphs 18 and 19 cover hearings on land disputes.
20. A freeman shall only be amerced for a small offence only according to the measure of that offence. And for a great offence he shall be amerced according to the magnitude of the offence, saving his rank, and a merchant, in the same way, saving his merchandise. And a villein, in the same way, if he fall under our mercy, shall be amerced saving his tillage. And none of the aforesaid fines shall be imposed save upon oath of upright men from the neighbourhood.
21. Earls and barons shall not be amerced but through their peers, and only according to the measure of the offence.
22. No clergyman shall be amerced for his lay property except according to the manner of the other persons aforesaid; and not according to the amount of his ecclesiastical benefice.
23. Neither a town nor a man shall be compelled to make bridges over the rivers, with the exception of those who, from of old and of right ought to do so.
paragraphs 24-26 deal with miscellaneous items.
27. If any free man shall die intestate, his property shall be distributed by his nearest kin and friends, under supervision of the Church, saving debts owed to his creditors.
28. No constable or other bailiff of ours shall take the corn or other chattels of any one except he straightway give payment for them, or can be allowed a postponement in that regard by the will of the seller.
paragraphs 29-31 deal with other property protections.
32. We shall not retain the lands of those convicted of felony longer than a year and a day and then the lands shall be restored to the lords of the fiefs.
paragraphs 33-34 cover other minor concessions.
35. There shall be only one measure of wine throughout our realm, and one of ale, and one of corn, that is, the London quarter, and one breadth of dyed cloth, russets, and haberjets, that is, two ells within the selvages. As with measures so shall it also be with weights.
paragraphs 36 and 37 deal with writs and wardship.
38. In the future no bailiff shall upon his own unsupported accusation bring any man to trial unless he produce credible witnesses to the truth of the charge.
39. No freeman shall be taken, imprisoned, disseized, outlawed, banished, or in any way harmed nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, save by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land.
40. To none will we sell, and to none deny or delay, right or justice.
41. All merchants may safely go out of England, and come into England, and stay in and pass through England, as well by land as by water, for the purpose of buying and selling, free from all illegal taxes, subject to the ancient and just customs save in time of war, if they are of the land at war against us. And if such be found in our realm at the beginning of the war, they shall be held, without harm to their bodies and goods, until it shall be known to us or our chief justiciary how the merchants of our land are being treated who shall, at that time, be found in the land at war against us. And if ours shall be safe there, the others shall be safe with us.
42. Henceforth any person may go out of our realm and return to it, safely and securely, by land and water, except perhaps for a brief period in time of war, for the common good of the realm and saving his fealty to us. But prisoners and outlaws are excepted according to the law of the realm; also people of a land at war against us, and the merchants, with regard to whom shall be done as aforesaid.
paragraphs 43-48 concern escheats, forest laws and the like.
49. We shall immediately return all hostages and charters which were delivered to us by Englishmen as security for peace or faithful service.
paragraph 50 requires the King to expel some of his foreign advisors.
51. And immediately after peace is restored we shall banish from the realm all the foreign knights, crossbowmen, servants, and mercenaries, who may have come with horses and arms to the harm of the realm.
52. If any one shall have been disseized by us, or removed, without a legal judgment of his peers, from his lands, castles, liberties or lawful rights, we shall immediately restore them to him. And if a dispute shall arise concerning them it shall be settled according to the judgment of the twenty-five barons who are mentioned below as sureties for the peace. But with regard to all those things of which any man was, by king Henry our father or king Richard our brother, disseized or dispossessed without legal judgment of his peers, which we have in our hand or which others hold, and for which we ought to give a guarantee, we shall have respite until the commonly allowed term for crusaders. Except with regard to those concerning which a plea has arisen, or an inquest made by our order, before we took the cross. But when we return from our pilgrimage, or if, by chance, we desist from our pilgrimage, we shall then do full justice regarding them.
paragraph 53 extends the same consideration to royal forests.
54. No one shall be arrested or imprisoned on a woman’s accusation for the death of any man other than her husband.
55. All fines imposed by us unjustly and contrary to the law of the land, and all amercements levied unjustly and contrary to the law of the land, shall be altogether remitted, or it shall be settled according to the judgment of the twenty-five barons mentioned below as sureties for the peace, or according to the judgment of the majority of them together with Stephen archbishop of Canterbury, if he can be present, and with others whom he may wish to associate with himself for this purpose.
paragraphs 56-59 deal with Wales and Scotland.
60. All the subjects of our realm, clergy as well as laity, shall, as far as pertains to them, observe, with regard to their vassals, all these aforesaid customs and liberties which we have decreed shall, as far as pertains to us, be observed in our realm with regard to our own vassals.
61. Inasmuch as, for the honor of God, and for the amendment of our realm, and for the healing of the discord which has arisen between us and our barons, we have made all these aforesaid concessions, wishing them to enjoy forever complete and firm stability, we make and grant to them the following security: that the barons, namely, may elect at will twenty-five barons from the realm, who ought, with all their strength, to observe, maintain and cause to be observed, the peace and liberties which we have granted to them and confirmed by this our present charter. So that if we, or our justice, or our bailiffs, or any one of our servants shall have transgressed against any man in any respect, or shall have broken some one of these articles of peace or security, and our transgression shall have been shown to four barons of the aforesaid twenty-five: those four barons shall come to us, or, if we are abroad, to our justiciar showing to us our error; and they shall ask us to cause that error to be amended speedily. And if we do not amend that error, or, we being abroad, if our justiciar do not amend it within forty days from the time when it was shown to us or, we being, abroad, to our justiciar: the aforesaid four barons shall refer the matter to the rest of the twenty-five barons, and those twenty-five barons, with the whole land together shall distrain and oppress us in every way in their power, namely, by taking our castles, lands and possessions, and in every other way that they can, until amends shall have been made according to their judgment. Saving the persons of ourselves, our queen and our children. And when amends shall have been made they shall be at peace with us as they had been previously. And anyone in the land wishes to do so, may swear that in carrying out all the aforesaid measures he will obey the commands of the aforementioned twenty-five barons, and that, with them, he will oppress us to the best of his ability. And, to any one who wishes to do so, we publicly and freely give permission to swear; and we will never prevent any one from swearing. Moreover, all those in the land who shall be unwilling, themselves and of their own accord, to swear to the twenty-five barons as to distraining and oppressing us with them: such ones we shall make to swear by our mandate. . . . the paragraph goes on to mention how the 25 barons may be replaced in case of death, etc.
62. We have also fully remitted and pardoned all the ill-will, wrath and malice which have arisen between us and our subjects, clergy and laymen, from the time of the dispute, to and with all men. Moreover we have fully remitted to all, clergy and laity, and as far as pertains to us, have pardoned fully all the trespasses committed, on the occasion of that same dispute, from Easter of the sixteenth year of our reign until the restoration of peace. In witness whereof we have caused to be drawn up for them letters patent of Stephen, archbishop of Canterbury, Henry, archbishop of Dublin, and the aforesaid bishops and master Pandulph, regarding that surety and the aforesaid concessions.
63. Wherefore we will and firmly decree that the English church shall be free, and that all subjects in our realm shall have and hold all the aforesaid liberties, rights and concessions, duly and in peace, freely, quietly, fully and entirely, for themselves and their heirs, from us and our heirs, in all things and in all places, forever, as aforesaid. Moreover it has been sworn, on our part as well as on the part of the barons, that all these abovementioned provisions shall be observed with good faith and without deceit, the witnesses being the abovementioned and many others. Given by our hand, in the meadow which is called Runnymede between Windsor and Staines, on the fifteenth day of June, in the seventeenth year of our reign.
