Magical history tour

Diana Wright highlights some of the key places to visit to learn more about Magna Carta and its role in British history

The agreement known as Magna Carta, forced upon King John by rebel barons at Runnymede in June 1215, is hailed as our most famous constitutional document, and a cornerstone of English liberty, law and democracy. John and the barons would be astonished – for them it was a peace treaty aimed at curbing John’s tyranny and within weeks the deal fell through, leading to civil war. But the ideas of Magna Carta – protecting the freedom of the church and feudal privileges of the upper ranks, and laying down that not even the king was above the law – could not be unthought. John’s son Henry III and grandson Edward I reissued it to curry political favour and this year marks the 800th anniversary of Henry’s 1225 Magna Carta. Much…

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Discover Britain (Digital) - 1 Issue, April - May - 2025

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