Magna Carta has long been considered the foundation stone of the British Constitution, yet few people today understand either its contents or its context. With a full English translation of the 1215 charter, Nicholas Vincent introduces the document to a modern audience; explaining its origins and tracing the significance of its role in our history.

"Dan Jones has an enviable gift for telling a dramatic story while at the same time inviting us to consider serious topics like liberty and the seeds of representative government." —Antonia Fraser From the New York Times bestselling author of The Plantagenets, a lively, action-packed history of how the Magna Carta came to be—by the author of Powers and Thrones. The Magna Carta is revered around the world as the founding document of Western liberty. Its principles—even its language—can be found in our Bill of Rights and in the Constitution. But what was this strange document and how did it gain such legendary status? Dan Jones takes us back to the turbulent year of 1215, when, beset by foreign crises and cornered by a growing domestic rebellion, King John reluctantly agreed to fix his seal to a document that would change the course of history. At the time of its creation the Magna Carta was just a peace treaty drafted by a group of rebel barons who were tired of the king's high taxes, arbitrary justice, and endless foreign wars. The fragile peace it established would last only two months, but its principles have reverberated over the centuries. Jones's riveting narrative follows the story of the Magna Carta's creation, its failure, and the war that subsequently engulfed England, and charts the high points in its unexpected afterlife. Reissued by King John's successors it protected the Church, banned unlawful imprisonment, and set limits to the exercise of royal power. It established the principle that taxation must be tied to representation and paved the way for the creation of Parliament. In 1776 American patriots, inspired by that long-ago defiance, dared to pick up arms against another English king and to demand even more far-reaching rights. We think of the Declaration of Independence as our founding document but those who drafted it had their eye on the Magna Carta.

A classic classroom reference since its 1964 publication, this indispensable volume offers the full text of Magna Carta in English, as well as a chapter-by-chapter discussion of its history and provisions. In his newly revised commentary on this founding document in the history of constitutionally limited governments, A.E. Dick Howard places the charter in context of the extraordinary surge of constitutionalism in the aftermath of the Cold War. Magna Carta: Text and Commentary is a cogent introduction to Magna Carta that students everywhere can readily appreciate.

"Magna Carta and the Rule of Law examines the Great Charter's origins and influence, based on the most current knowledge and research. Distinguished scholars explore the Charter's fascinating story through a series of distinct lenses." -- BOOK COVER.

'A soaring account of the months that transformed a messy feudal squabble into Magna Carta...his crisp storytelling, based around short chapters and rolling rhetoric, is extremely entertaining.' Dan Jones, Mail on Sunday 'I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Good history is descriptive, narrative and analytical. This is good history.' Gerard DeGroot, The Times At Runnymede, on the banks of the River Thames, on 15 June 1215, the seal of King John was attached to the Magna Carta, and peace descended upon the land. Or that's what successive generations have believed. But is it true? And have we been persuaded (or persuaded ourselves) that the events of 15 June 1215 not only ended a civil war between the king and the barons but - as if by magic - established a British constitution beloved and copied throughout the world? Often viewed as a victory for the people over the monarchy and a cornerstone of democracy, the true significance of Magna Carta is misunderstood and misrepresented. In Magna Carta: The True Story Behind the Charter, David Starkey paints a vivid portrait of the years 1215-1225, ten revolutionary years of huge significance that produced not one but four charters. Peopled by colourful historical figures - John, the boy-king Henry, Pope Innocent III, Archbishop Stephen Langton, William Marshal - Starkey tells a story of treachery and idealism, politics and peace-making that is surprising and enthralling. Informative, entertaining and controversial, Magna Carta: The True Story Behind the Charter challenges centuries of myth-making to demonstrate how important it is we understand the true significance of that day beside the Thames, over eight hundred years ago.

Magna Carta (1215) is a peace treaty drafted by Archbishop of Canterbury Stephen Langton in coordination with the English barons. Intended as an appeal to King John of England on behalf of the barons, Magna Carta was agreed to on June 15, 1215. Although it was not initially respected, leading to the First Barons’ War, Magna Carta was later revised and reissued as part of the Treaty of Lambeth in 1217, establishing peace between King Henry III and the rebel barons. Dissatisfied with the rule of King John, rebel barons gathered in Northampton in May of 1215 to renounce their feudal ties to the crown. Unwilling to accept arbitration with the Pope on behalf of the King, the barons forced John to meet with them at Runnymede on June 10, 1215. Over the next ten days, and under the direction of Stephen Langton, they turned their demands into a charter now known as Magna Carta. Agreed to by King John on June 15, the Magna Carta proposed major political reforms, including the protection of the rights of the church, protection from unjust imprisonment, and limits on feudal payments and other forms of taxation due to the King. Although Magna Carta focuses on the rights of barons, it also articulates the rights of serfs and other free men. Recognized as a foundational document on the concept of liberty, Magna Carta is widely respected in Britain and the United States, and served as a major influence on the creation of the United States Constitution. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Magna Carta is a classic of English political history reimagined for modern readers.