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The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Magna Carta

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Title: The Magna Carta

Author: Anonymous

Release date: March 1, 2006 [eBook #10000]

Most recently updated: October 28, 2024

Language: English

Credits: Michael Hart

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MAGNA CARTA ***

The Magna Carta

Contents

The Text of Magna Carta

Magna Carta 1215

The text of THE MAGNA CARTA

A note from Michael Hart, preparer of the 0.1 version.

This file contains a number of versions of the Magna Carta, some of

which were a little mangled in transit. I am sure our volunteers will

find and correct errors I didn’t catch, and that version 0.2 - 1.0 will

have significant improvements, as well as at least one more version in

Latin.

Version 1.0 may contain a dozen different versions.

The Text of Magna Carta

JOHN, by the grace of God King of England, Lord of Ireland, Duke of

Normandy and Aquitaine, and Count of Anjou, to his archbishops,

bishops, abbots, earls, barons, justices, foresters, sheriffs,

stewards, servants, and to all his officials and loyal subjects,

Greeting.

KNOW THAT BEFORE GOD, for the health of our soul and those of our

ancestors and heirs, to the honour of God, the exaltation of the holy

Church, and the better ordering of our kingdom, at the advice of our

reverend fathers Stephen, archbishop of Canterbury, primate of all

England, and cardinal of the holy Roman Church, Henry archbishop of

Dublin, William bishop of London, Peter bishop of Winchester, Jocelin

bishop of Bath and Glastonbury, Hugh bishop of Lincoln, Walter Bishop

of Worcester, William bishop of Coventry, Benedict bishop of Rochester,

Master Pandulf subdeacon and member of the papal household, Brother

Aymeric master of the knighthood of the Temple in England, William

Marshal earl of Pembroke, William earl of Salisbury, William earl of

Warren, William earl of Arundel, Alan de Galloway constable of

Scotland, Warin Fitz Gerald, Peter Fitz Herbert, Hubert de Burgh

seneschal of Poitou, Hugh de Neville, Matthew Fitz Herbert, Thomas

Basset, Alan Basset, Philip Daubeny, Robert de Roppeley, John Marshal,

John Fitz Hugh, and other loyal subjects:

(1) FIRST, THAT WE HAVE GRANTED TO GOD, and by this present charter

have confirmed for us and our heirs in perpetuity, that the English

Church shall be free, and shall have its rights undiminished, and its

liberties unimpaired. That we wish this so to be observed, appears from

the fact that of our own free will, before the outbreak of the present

dispute between us and our barons, we granted and confirmed by charter

the freedom of the Church’s elections - a right reckoned to be of the

greatest necessity and importance to it - and caused this to be

confirmed by Pope Innocent III. This freedom we shall observe

ourselves, and desire to be observed in good faith by our heirs in

perpetuity.

TO ALL FREE MEN OF OUR KINGDOM we have also granted, for us and our

heirs for ever, all the liberties written out below, to have and to

keep for them and their heirs, of us and our heirs:

(2) If any earl, baron, or other person that holds lands directly of

the Crown, for military service, shall die, and at his death his heir

shall be of full age and owe a ‘relief’, the heir shall have his

inheritance on payment of the ancient scale of ‘relief’. That is to

say, the heir or heirs of an earl shall pay 100 for the entire earl’s

barony, the heir or heirs of a knight 100s. at most for the entire

knight’s ‘fee’, and any man that owes less shall pay less, in