Patti Ann Miller age 13, of Tacoma, Wash., for her question:
WHAT IS THE MAGNA CARTA?
The Magna Carta is a document that marked an important step forward in the development of constitutional government in England. In later centuries, much of the rest of the world also benefited from the Magna Carta because many other democratic countries, including the United States and Canada, followed English law in creating their own governments.
Magna carts is Latin for "Great Charter."
With the Magna Carts, King John was forced to grant many rights to the English aristocracy. The ordinary Englishman gained little. English barons forced the king to approve the charter in June, 1215.
The historic Magna Carta was signed at a place called Runnymede, a meadow alongside the river Thames southwest of London. A monument now stands there.
The Magna Carta didn't guarantee indivdual liberties to all men. In later centuries however, it became a model for those who demanded democratic government and individual rights for all. But in its own time, the greatest value of the Magna Carta was that it placed the king under the law and decisively checked royal power.
When John became king in 1199, he abused his powers. He demanded more military service from the feudal class than did the kings before him. He sold royal positions to the highest bidder. He increased taxes without obtaining the consent of the barons, which was contrary to feudal custom.
John's courts decided cases according to his wishes, not according to the law. Persons who lost cases had to pay extremely high penalties.
In 1213 a group of barons and church leaders met near London. They called for a halt to the king's injustices. The king twice refused, so the barons raised an army to force the king to meet their demands. John knew he could not defeat the army, and so agreed to the articles.
King John agreed to the articles on June 15, 1215. Four days later the articles were engrossed or written out in legal form as a royal charter. Copies of the charter were made for distribution throughout the kingdom.
Altogether, four copies of the Magna Carta still survive: two is the British Library, one in the cathedral at Salisbury and one in Lincoln Cathedral. No one knows which of the four, if any, was the original document.
Like other medieval charters, the Magna Carta was written in Latin on parchment. Royal charters were sealed rather than signed. The Seal of King John authenticated the Magna Carts.
The Magna Carta did not end the struggle between John and the barons. Neither side intended to abide by the charter completely. War broke out immediately and John died in the midst of it in 1216.
But in the years that followed, other English kings agreed to the terms of the charter. It came to be recognized as part of the fundamental law of England.