We have also decreed by the common counsel of our whole kingdom that all the unlicensed castles, namely thous which from the beginning of the war waged between the lord J
But because we have not yet obtained a seal, we have caused this
Simplified
By agreement of the whole kingdom, all unauthorized castles built or rebuilt since the civil war between King John and his barons must be demolished immediately.
All those customs aforesaid indeed and the liberties which we hav granted to be held in our kingdom in so far as it appertains to us in respect of our own people, whall
Simplified
All the customs and liberties we've granted shall be upheld not only by us, but also by all others in the kingdom--clergy and laity alike--toward their own people.
Let it not be lawful for anyone henceforth to give his land to any religious house, so that he may take it back as a holding from the same house. Nor let it be lawful for any religious house to accept the land of anyone, so as to hand it back as a holding to him from whom it whall have been received. But if anyone henceforth sallthus have givenhis land to any religious house, and be conficed of this let his gift be utterly voided and that land accrue to his lord of the fee.
Simplified
No one may donate land to a religious house only to receive it back as a tenant. If someone does so and is found out, the gift is void and the land returns to the lord of the fee.
No one is to be apprehended or imprisoned on the appeal of a woman for the death of any man other han her own husband.
No freeman henceforth is to give to anyone or sell any more of his own land that may, from the residue of his land, be sufficient to enable the lord of the fee to obtain the service due him which belongs to that fee.
Simplified
No freeman may sell so much of his land that his remaining estate cannot support the service owed to his feudal lord.
All merchants, unless publicly prohibited beforehand, are to ahve safe and secure conduct to go out of England and to come into England, and to stay and to go throughout England, as much by land as by water, for buying or for selling free of all evil tolls, according to ancient and right customs, except in time of war. And if they be from a land at war against us, and if such
Simplified
All merchants shall have safe passage in and out of England, by land or sea, to trade freely--unless war is declared. If merchants from an enemy land are in England when war begins, they’ll be detained (without harm) until we know how our merchants are treated abroad.
No freeman is to be taken or imprisoned, or dispossesed of his free tenement or liberties or his free customs, or be outlawed or exiled, or in any other way destroyed, nor will we go against him nor send against him,, except through the lawful judgment of his peers or through the law of the land.
Simplified
No freeman shall be arrested, imprisoned, dispossessed, exiled, or harmed, except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land
If anyone may hold from us through fee-farm or socage or through burgage (forms of land-tenre held through various modes of rent or serice), and may hold land from another through knight service, we will not have wardship of the heir, nor of his land which is of another's fee, on account of that fee-farm or socage or burgage; nor will we have wardship of that fee-farm or socage or burgage, unless the fee-farm itself may owe knight service. We will not have the custody of the heir, nor of annyone's land which he holds from another through knight serice, on account of any petty serfeanty (small tenure) which he holds of us through the service of rendering daggers or arrows or the like.
Simplified:
If a person holds land from the Crown by rent (like fee-farm or socage) but also holds land from another by knight service, the Crown has no right to the heir or the land held from the other lord--unless knight service is owed to the Crown directly.
Let there be one measure for wine throughout our whole kingdom, and one measure for ale, and one measure for corn, namely the quarter
Simplified
Let there shall be one standard measure for wine, ale, and corn across the kingdom--the London quarter--and one standard width for cloths: two ells. Weights shall also follow the same uniform standard.
All fish weirs henceforth are to be entirely removed along the Thames or
Simplified
All fish weirs must be removed from the Thames, the Medway, and across England--except along the sea coast."
Neither we nor our own bailiffs nor another’s shall take another man’s wood. For castles or for conducting other business of ours, except by consent of him whose wood that shall have been.
Simplified
Neither the king nor any bailiff shall take another man's wood for castles or royal use without the owner's consent.
No sheriff or bailiff or ours or another’s may take the horses or carts of anyone for the purpose of carriage, unless he hands over the payment established of old: that is, for a cart with two horses ten pence per day, and for a cart with three horses, fourteen pence per day.
Simplified
No sheriff or bailiff shall seize anyone’s horses or carts for transport without paying the established rate: 10 pence per day for a two-horse cart and 14 pence per day for a three-horse cart.
No constable or his bailiff is to take the corn or other goods of anyone who may not be of that settlement where the castle is situated, unless he at once pay money for them or can have respite of the free will of the seller; but if he shall have been of the settlement itself, let the price be rendered within forty days.
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Simplified
No constable or bailiff shall seize goods from anyone outside the castle’s settlement without immediate payment or the seller’s consent. For locals, payment must be made within 40 days.
No sheriff constable, coroners, or other bailiffs of ours are to hold Pleas of our Crown (legal proceedings in which the crown had a financial interest)
Simplified
No sheriff, constable, coroner, or royal bailiff shall hold legal proceedings in cases reserved for the Crown.
Neither a settlement nor a man is to be distrained to build bridges at [for or?] embankments, except those who of old and of right ought to do it.
Simplified
No settlement or individual shall be forced to build bridges or embankments, except those who are historically obligated to do so by right.
Earls and barons are not to be amerced except through their peers and not except according to the measure of the offence.
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Streamlined
Earls and barons shall only be fined by the judgment of their peers and according to the measure of their offense
Assizes of Last Presentation [cases concerning church patronage or benefices] are always to be taken before our Justiciaries of the Bench and there determined.
Streamlined
Cases concerning church patronage (Assizes of Last Presentation) shall always be heard and decided by our royal judges at Westminster.
Trials of Novel Disseisin [to recover seized property]
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Streamlined
"Trials for recovering seized property (Novel Disseisin) and inheritance disputes (Mort d’Ancestor) will only be held in their respective counties. Justices will be sent to each county once a year to oversee these cases, along with local knights."
Clause 11
No one is to be distrained to do more service for a Knight's fee-holding, nor for any other free tenement, than what is due from it.
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Simplified
No one shall be forced to provide more service for a knight’s fee or any other free holding than what is lawfully owed.
Self-Governance: London had a degree of autonomy, allowing its citizens to elect their own officials, such as the Lord Mayor and sheriffs, without direct interference from the king.
Freedom from Arbitrary Taxation: The citizens of London were often exempt from certain taxes and tolls imposed on other towns. Instead, they paid a fixed annual sum known as a "farm" to the king.
Trade Privileges: London merchants had special rights to trade without undue restrictions, giving them an advantage over traders from other towns. They were also allowed to form guilds and regulate trade within the city.
Justice and Legal Rights: Londoners enjoyed certain legal protections, such as trial by jury of their peers, and could administer justice through their own courts. The city was largely self-regulating in matters of law.
Freedom from Military Service: Citizens of London were sometimes exempted from the requirement of providing military service to the king, in exchange for financial payments.
Control Over the Thames: The city held rights to control and regulate the Thames River, which was essential for commerce and transportation.
The city of London is to have all its ancient liberties and its free customs. Furthermore we desire and grant that all other cities and boroughs and settlements and the Barons of the Cinque Ports (five ports of the south-east coast of England) and all ports may have liberties and their free customs.
----------------------------------
Simplified
The city of London shall retain all its ancient liberties and free customs. Additionally, we grant that all other cities, boroughs, settlements, and the Barons of the Cinque Ports, along with all ports, shall have their liberties and free customs as well."
No widow will be distrained (legally forced) to get married while she shall have wished to live without a husband; but yet she is to give security that she will not get married without our assent if she shall have held
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"No widow shall be forced to remarry if she wishes to remain without a husband. However, if she holds land from the king, she must get his consent before marrying again, and if she holds land from another lord, she must get their consent."
Heirs are to be married without disparagement (dishonour to a woman resulting from marriage to a man of inferior rank)
------------------
Simplified
"Heirs are to be married without disgrace, ensuring that their marriage does not dishonor them by pairing them with someone of significantly lower rank."
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The warden of the land of such an under-age heir is not to take from the heir's land any but reasonable proceeds and reasonable customs and reasonable services, and this without destruction and waste of men or goods. An if we shall have committed the custody of any land or any such heir to a sheriff, or to any other person who ought to answer to us for the proceeds of that land,and he shall have caused destruciton or waste of his wardship, and we shall recover damages from him, and the land is to be committed to two lawful and discreet men of the same fee-holding, who are to answer for the proceeds to us or to him to whom we shall have assigned them. And if we shall have given or sold to anyone the wardship of any such and, and he shall then have made destruction of waste upon it, let him lose the wardship, and let it be handed over to two lawfull and disreet men of the same fee-holding, who are to answer to us in the same way as said above.
---------------------------
Simplified:
"The guardian of an underage heir’s land must only take reasonable profits and provide reasonable services, without causing destruction or waste. If a sheriff or another person appointed by the crown abuses their role, they must compensate for the damage, and the land will be given to two trustworthy men of the same estate, who will manage it responsibly. If someone who bought or was given wardship causes waste, they lose the wardship, and it will be handed to two responsible men of the same estate."
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If any of our earls or barons or our other tenants in chief through military service (holding lands directly from the king) shall have died, and at this death his heir shall have been of full age and owe a relief (inheritance fee) the heir may posess his inherance through the ancient relief: that is the heir or heirs of an earl, an earl's barony whole for one hundred pounds, the heir or heirs of a knight, a knight's fee-holding whole for 100 schillings at most and he who shall have owed less may give less, according to the ancient custom of fees.
_________________
Simplified
This second clause addresses the issue of inheritance fees, known as "relief," which heirs had to pay to take possession of their lands when a tenant of the king died. The clause ensures that these fees were regulated and set according to long-standing customs, rather than arbitrarily increased by the king, thereby protecting heirs from having to pay exorbitant fees and so ensures a fair inheritance process based on historical precedent.
Drawn from The Magna Carta: 1217 Text and Translation, Bodleian Library, University of Oxford. ISBN: 97831851244522.
The essence of human rights, born in 1215, remains a living legacy.
Closing Reflection:
Magna Carta and Its Living Legacy
The Magna Carta, first sealed in 1215 as a peace treaty between King John and his barons, was never a flawless blueprint--but it was a beginning. Though it spoke primarily to the concerns of a narrow elite, its clauses grew teeth, echoes, and endurance.
It became the cornerstone of a democratic society that would evolve over centuries--through rebellion, redrafting, and reinterpretation. Its most enduring principles--rule of law, due process, protection from arbitrary power--have become foundations not just in England, but around the world.
Yet its voice was not always evenly heard.
In Ireland, liberty came with a condition--and the Magna Carta Hiberniae, issued in 1216, offered protections only to settlers, not the native Irish.
In Wales, Clause 56 acknowledged land rights but remained unenforced. Welsh princes like Llywelyn the Great fought for a charter that was observed more in the breach than in the spirit.
In Scotland, Alexander II marched south in solidarity with the English barons, not to sign the charter, but to leverage its unrest for Scottish autonomy. He married King John’s daughter, linking two thrones divided by chartered promises.
Three castles in Ireland--Dublin, Limerick, and Carlingford--stood not as sites of freedom, but as bastions of control under King John. While the Magna Carta restrained him in Runnymede, his castles reinforced him in Ireland.
And yet, even from these contradictions, the Magna Carta gave birth to something lasting. Over time, the ideals it touched--liberty, fairness, representation--grew far beyond its medieval context.
During a visit to Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon, awhere Shakespeare lies buried, I stood beneath a stained glass window with a dedication from Co. Westmeath. One of the ushers recalled that President Michael D. Higgins had visited the church on a state visit to pay his respects. I left with my copy of the Magna Carta in hand--its legacy suddenly more personal, more connected.
In that moment, I saw how the initials MAGA, recently revived in modern American politics, echo a centuries-old phrase; these gestures remind us that history is often reshaped through old forms made new. Whether naming towns after old homes or reinforcing ideas with ancient language, we carry echoes in our shared cultural soul.
The Magna Carta laid a cornerstone for the democratic societies we value today-- an imperfect, hard-won beginning. It spoke first to a few, but over centuries, its clauses echoed outward: from barons to citizens, parchment to principle, privilege to right.
Let's keep listening to those echoes--and to the voices still asking to be written in.
--Inspired by the 1217 Text and Translation, Bodleian Library, University of Oxford. ISBN: 97831851244522
Saving to the archbishops, bishops, abbots, priors, Temlars, Hospitallers, earls, barons and all other persons, both ecclesiastical and secular, the liberties and free customs which they have formerly had.
Simplified
Archbishops, bishops, abbots, nobles, Templars, Hospitallers, and all others--both clergy and lay--shall retain the liberties and customs they have long held.
Scutlage (tax on knoghts's fees paid chiefly inlieu of military service ) is to be taken henceforth as it used to be taken in the time of King Henry our grandfather.
Simplified
Scutage--a tax in place of military service--shall be collected only as it was in the time of King Henry II.
No country court henceforth may be held except from month to month; and where a greater term used to be, let it be the greater, Nor may any sheriff of his bailiff make his tourn through the hundred (a court visit through a county division) except twice in the year, and not except in the due and accuntomed place, that is to say, once after Easter and again after the Feast of Saint ichael (29th September). And the view of frank-fledge (court oor investigation of householders' mutual responsibilites) is the to be taken at that term of St. Michael, without exception, that is to say so that every man may have his liberties, which he had and used to ahve in teh time of King Henry our grandfather, or which he acuired afterwards. Indeed the view of frank-pledge is to be taken thus namely that our peace is to be kept, and that the tithing (grop of ten householders) is to be kept complete as if thus used ot be, and that the sheriff is not to seek exception, and that he is to be contet with that which the sheriff used to have from tking his view int eh tie of King Henry our grandfather.
Simplified
County courts shall be held monthly, and sheriffs may only tour each hundred twice a year--after Easter and after Michaelmas (Sept 29). The view of frank-pledge must be held at Michaelmas, preserving all liberties and customs as in King Henry II’s time.
All abbey patrons, who hold charters of the kigs of England by advowson (right of ecclesiasticl patronage) or who hold ancient tenure or possession are to have custory of the abbeys when vacant, as they ought to have and as it has been declared above.
Simplified
Abbey patrons with royal charters or long-held rights of patronage shall have custody of vacant abbeys, as they rightfully should, according to established custom
If any shall have held from any escheat (land lapsed by reversion to its feudal overlord after the tenant's death), such as from the honour of Wallingford, boulogne, Nottingham, Lancaster or from other escheats which are in our hand and which may be baronies, and shall have died, his heir is not to give other relief nor do for us any other service, than he would do for the baron if that
Simplified
If someone held land from an escheated barony now in royal hands and dies, their heir owes no more service or payment than they would have under the original baron. The Crown must treat the land as the baron did, and can only claim wardship if the tenant also held land directly from the king
To on one shall we sell, to no one whall we deny or delay right or justice.
Simplified
To no one will we sell, to no one will we deny or delay, justice or the right to a fair hearing.
No bailiff henceforth may put anyone to his open law (bring him to tral), nor to an oath upon his own plain word, without fiathful witnesses produced for that purpose.
Simplified
No bailiff shall bring anyone to trial or require an oath based solely on his own word--reliable witnesses must be provided.
Nothing is to be given henceforth for a writ of inquest by him who seeks an inquest of life or limbs: but let it be conceded without charge, and not denied.
Simplified
No one shall be charged for a writ requesting an inquest into life or limb; it must be granted freely and without refusal.
Let the writ which is called 'Praecipe' (a writ of covenant, issued in a dispute over a land agreement) is henceforth not to be granted to anyone in respect of any tenement, whereby a freeman may lose his
Simplified
The writ known as 'Praecipe' shall no longer be used in land disputes if it prevents a freeman from having access to his rightful court."
We shall not hold the lands of those who have been convicted of felony except for one year and one day, and then the lands are to be returned to the lords of the fees.
Simplified
The Crown may only hold the lands of those convicted of felony for one year and one day, after which the land must be returned to the rightful feudal lords.
No estate cart of any ecclesiastical person or knight or any lady may be taken by the aforesaid bailiffs.
Simplified
No bailiff shall seize the estate carts of clergy, knights, or ladies for transport or any other purpose.
No constable shall distrain any knight into giving him money for castle guard, if he himself shall have been willing to perform it in his own person or through another able man if he could not perform it himself for a reasonable cause; and if we shall have led or sent him into the army, he shall be excused from guard duty, according to the extent of time that he shall have been with us in the army, on account of the fee for which he has done service in the army.
Simplified
No constable shall force a knight to pay for castle guard if he is willing to serve in person or provide a substitute for a valid reason. If the knight is serving in the army, he is excused from castle duty for the time spent in military service.
If anyone holding a lay fee from us should die, and the sheriff or our bailiff should show our Letters Patent of our summons [royal authorizations} concerning a debt, which the dead man owed to us, let it be lawful for the sheriff or our bailiff to seize and register the chattels of the dead man found on the lay fee, to the value of that debt in the view of lawful men, so that, nothing may be removed from there until the debt be paid to us clear, and the rest is to be left to the executors to fulfil the Will of the dead man; and if nothing may be owing to us from him, all the chattels are to fall to the
Simplified
If someone holding land from the Crown dies owing a debt, the sheriff may seize property equal to the debt's value. Once the debt is paid, the remaining property goes to the executors to fulfil the will, ensuring the wife receives her rightful share.
No embankment is henceforth to be defended, except those which were in defence in the time of King Henry our grandfather, [Henry II] throughout the same places and the same boundaries as they were accustomed to be in his time.
Simplified
No embankment shall be maintained or defended except those established during the time of King Henry II, within the same boundaries and locations as they were in his reign.
No ecclesiastical person is to be amerced according to the greatness of his ecclesiastical benefice, but only according to his lay-fee [land held in return for secular services], and according to the greatness of his offence.
Streamlined
No member of the clergy shall be fined based on the value of their church benefice, but only according to their lay land holdings and the severity of their offense..
A freeman is not to be amerced [fined of punished at a court’s discretion] for a small offence except according to the measure of that offence ; and for a great offence according to the magnitude of that offence, saving his contenement [i.e. without threatening his freeholding or maybe other qualifying property]: and a merchant in the same manner saving his merchandise; and a serf belonging to another rather than ours is to be amerced in the same manner, saving his wainage [means of livelihood or agriculture tools?] , if he shall have fallen at our mercy; and none of the aforesaid amercements is to be imposed except through the oaths of honest and lawful men of the neighbourhood.
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Simplified
A freeman shall only be fined in proportion to the offense committed, protecting his livelihood. Merchants and serfs are to be treated similarly, preserving their means of living. No fine shall be imposed without the judgment of trustworthy local men.
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And those matters, which at that arrival in the county cannot be determinded by the aforesaid justiciaries sent to take the said assizes, are to be determined by them elsewhere in their circuit; and those matters which cannot be determinded by them, because of the difficulty of some articles, are to be referred to our Justiciaries of the Bench [royal judges sitting at Westminister] and there determined.
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Streamlined
"If certain cases can’t be resolved by the justices visiting a county, they will decide them elsewhere in their circuit. If any cases are particularly complex, they will be referred to our royal judges at Westminster for a final decision."
Traditions of governance, law, and checks on royal power, influenced by local customs, Christianity, and regional political structures.
Ethiopian Legal and Governance Traditions
Fetha Nagast (Law of the Kings): The Fetha Nagast, often translated as "Law of the Kings," is Ethiopia's most significant legal document, though it was not created in the same political context as the Magna Carta.
This legal code was compiled in the 13th century and formally adopted in Ethiopia during the 15th century. It was based on Byzantine and Coptic Christian canon law and was deeply influenced by religious and customary law.
Religious Foundation: The Fetha Nagast dealt extensively with ecclesiastical matters, including the conduct of the clergy, church administration, and religious obligations. It also addressed civil law, including marriage, inheritance, property, and criminal matters.
Monarchical Authority: Unlike the Magna Carta, which limited the king’s power, the Fetha Nagast reinforced the king’s divine right to rule, drawing from religious doctrines that gave Ethiopian monarchs legitimacy as divinely appointed leaders, supposedly descending from the biblical King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
The Council of Nobles and Traditional Checks on Power: While the Magna Carta sought to curb the king’s power in England by empowering the barons, Ethiopia’s political structure also had traditional systems that provided some checks on the emperor’s absolute rule.
Council of Nobles: Ethiopian emperors often governed with the support of a council of nobles or regional rulers (called Rases). While this was not a formalized legal contract like the Magna Carta, the emperor’s power was often balanced by regional nobles, who held significant local influence and authority. The loyalty of these nobles was crucial to the emperor’s ability to rule, and they could act as a check on imperial authority through negotiations, alliances, or even rebellion.
Feudalism and Local Autonomy: Similar to the feudal system in medieval Europe, Ethiopia had a decentralized system where local rulers governed large regions with considerable autonomy. These rulers, often of noble descent, had their own armies, administered justice locally, and collected taxes. The emperor’s power, therefore, relied heavily on their cooperation, similar in some ways to how English kings depended on their barons.
Gadaa System (Oromo People): Among the Oromo people, who constitute one of the largest ethnic groups in Ethiopia, there existed a unique system of governance known as the Gadaa system, which dates back to ancient times.
Democratic Elements: The Gadaa system was a democratic form of governance in which power was transferred peacefully every eight years. Leaders were elected by the community, and different groups had specific roles and responsibilities in managing society. While not a document like the Magna Carta, this system of checks and balances between different classes of society offered a form of accountability for leadership.
Conflict Resolution and Law: The Gadaa system also included a legal framework that governed community disputes, land rights, and other civil matters, embodying a more egalitarian approach than Ethiopia’s monarchy-centered system.
Common Pleas [civil actions at law] are not to follow our court
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Streamlined
Civil cases (Common Pleas) shall not travel with the royal court but will instead be held in a fixed location.
This highlights the intent to separate the royal court’s movements from regular civil cases, ensuring greater consistency and accessibility!
Also on the Magna Carta timeline of 1142-1217
The Great Law of Peace of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy is believed to have been established between 1142 and 1450 CE, though the exact date is uncertain because it predates written records.
It was a constitution that governed the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, a union of six Indigenous nations (Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora) in what is now the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada . This constitution influenced early American democratic thinkers, including Benjamin Franklin, and some scholars argue that the principles of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy impacted the formation of the U.S. Constitution.. This law laid out a complex system of government that balanced power among different groups and outlined the roles and responsibilities of leaders. The original was kept in the oral tradition, and passed down through word of mouth.
Other Indigenous groups had their own forms of governance. These systems of governance often included practices and principles that emphasized collective well-being, balance, respect for the natural world, and consensus-based decision-making, underscoring a deeply rooted commitment to shared values and justice within their communities.
While the Great Law of Peace irepresents a similar foundational approach to governance, liberty, and justice.
A Few Passages
The Opening Address:
“We shall consider each other the flesh and blood of each other. We shall have one body, one mind, and one heart. If any of the five nations shall be in distress, we shall all rush to their aid as a single nation, ever striving to keep the Great Peace."
On Leadership and the Role of Chiefs:
“The Chiefs of the League of Five Nations shall be mentors of the people for all time. The thickness of their skin shall be seven spans -- which is to say that they shall be proof against anger, offensive actions, and criticism. Their hearts shall be full of peace and good will, and their minds filled with a yearning for the welfare of the people of the League. With endless patience, they shall carry out their duty. Their firmness shall be tempered with a tenderness for their people."
The Tree of Peace:
"I, Dekanawidah, and the Union Lords, plant the Tree of Great Peace. We plant it in your territory. At the top of the tree, the white eagle shall perch, who is able to see far. If he sees in the distance any evil approaching or any danger threatening, he will at once warn the people of the League. We place at the top of the Tree of the Long Leaves an Eagle who is able to see afar. If he sees in the distance any danger threatening the people of the Five Nations, he will at once warn the people of the Confederacy."
On Consensus:
“Whenever the Confederate Lords shall assemble for the purpose of holding a council, the Onondaga Lords shall open it by expressing their gratitude to their cousin Lords, and greeting them, and they shall make an address and offer thanks to the earth where men dwell, to the streams of water, the pools, the springs, and the lakes, to the maize and the fruits, to the medicinal herbs and trees, to the forest trees for their usefulness, to the animals that serve as food and give their pelts for clothing, to the great winds and the lesser winds, to the Thunderers, to the Sun, the mighty warrior, to the moon, to the messengers of the Creator who reveal his wishes and to the Great Creator who dwells in the heavens above who gives all the things useful to men, and who is the source and the ruler of health and life."
We indeed or our bailiffs will not seize any land or rent for any debt, as long as the pressent chattlels of the debtor are sufficient for paying the debt, and the debtor himself may be prepared to make satisfaction of it; or may the guarantors of the debtor himself be distrained, as long as the principle debtor himself may be good for the payment of the debt. And if the principal debtor shall have failed in payment of the debt, not having the wherewithal to discharge it, or is unwilling to discharge when he could, the guarantors are to answer for the debt; and if they wish let them have the lands and rents of the debtor until satifaction be made to them, for the debt which they shall have paid for him before, unless the principal debtor shall have shown himself acquited of it against the same guarantors.
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Simplified
Neither the king nor his officials will seize any land or rent for a debt as long as the debtor has enough personal property to cover the payment and is willing to pay. Guarantors of the debt won’t be forced to pay if the debtor can still meet the obligation. However, if the debtor fails or refuses to pay, the guarantors must cover the debt and may take possession of the debtor’s land or rent until they are reimbursed, unless the debtor can prove they have already settled the debt.
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A widow after the death of her husband, is to have immediately and without any difficulty her marriage portion (land assigned for her upkeep before her husband’s death) and her inheritance; nor is she to give anything for her dower (land assigned for her use after her husband’s death), and for her marriage portion, or for her inheritance which her husband and she shall have held on the day of his death, and she is to remain in the principal messuage (dwelling house and lands) of her husband for forty days after her husband’s death, within which time her dower is to be assigned to her, unless it has been assigned to her before, or unless the house is a castle, and if she shall have departed from the castle, let there at once be provided for her a suitable house in which she may decently dwell, until her dower may be assigned to her as said above. And she is to have her reasonable estovers of the common (necessaries for maintenance). And for her dower, let there be assigned to her the third part of all the land of her husband which was his in his lifetime, unless she shall have been dowered with less at the church door (at her marriage ceremony).
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Simplified
"After her husband’s death, a widow is to receive her marriage portion and inheritance immediately and without difficulty, without having to pay for her dower or inheritance. She can remain in her husband's main residence for 40 days, during which her dower must be assigned, unless the residence is a castle. If the castle is unsuitable, she will be provided with a proper home until her dower is assigned. A widow is entitled to one-third of her husband’s land unless a smaller portion was agreed at their marriage."
Magna Carta is chequered with a long list of charaters that populated the timeline. Like the Butlers, the cup-bearers of Lord John's father King Henry who gained immense favour in Ireland.
Robert Fitzwalter - One of the most prominent leaders of the rebellion and sometimes called the “Marshal of the Army of God and Holy Church. - He played a significant role in organizing the barons against John.
Eustace de Vesci - A powerful baron from the North, he was an early critic of King John and had personal grievances with him. He supported Prince Louis of France during the barons' rebellion.
William de Mowbray - A baron from Yorkshire, de Mowbray was another influential figure among the rebel barons and a signer of the Magna Carta.
Richard de Clare, Earl of Hertford - Known as a key rebel leader, he was among the most influential barons and one of the Magna Carta's signatories.
William d'Aubigny - Lord of Belvoir Castle, he played a pivotal role in the baronial rebellion and was another Magna Carta signatory.
Geoffrey de Mandeville - The Earl of Essex, he was a strong opponent of King John’s policies and fought against him until his death.
Saher de Quincy, Earl of Winchester - He joined the rebellion early on and was instrumental in pushing the Magna Carta forward.
Roger de Montbegon - Although less prominent than others, he held lands in northern England and supported the barons’ demands for reform.
Robert de Ros - He held extensive lands and was one of the most committed barons, aiding in the drafting and enforcement of the Magna Carta.
John de Lacy - The constable of Chester, he was a significant northern baron and actively involved in the rebellion.
The warden however, as long as he shall have had wardship of the land, is to maintain the houses, parks, warrens, ponds, mills and other things belonging to that land, out of the proceeds of the same land, and is to hand back to the heir, when he shall have reached full age, his whole estate restored, with ploughs and all other things, as least in as far as he received it. All these things are to be observed i the wardships of vacant archbishoprics. bishoprics, abbeys, priories, churches and dignities. which appertain to us, except that wardships of this type ought not to be sold.
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Simplified
"The guardian must maintain all buildings, parks, ponds, mills, and other parts of the estate using the proceeds from the land, and return the estate to the heir fully restored when they come of age. This rule also applies to the guardianship of vacant archbishoprics, bishoprics, abbeys, priories, and churches, but wardships of these religious estates should not be sold."
If however the heirs of any such persons shall have been underage, his lord is not to have the wardship of him or his land before receiving his homage. and after such an heir shall have in ward, when he shall come of age, that is twenty-one years, he may have his inheritance without relief and without fine; so that, however,even if he shall have been made an knight
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Revised to simplify the text
"If an heir is underage when they inherit, their land stays in the wardship of their lord until they come of age at 21. Once of age, the heir can claim their inheritance without paying a fee. Even if they are knighted before turning 21, their land remains under their lord’s control until they reach full age."
First, that we have granted to God, and by this present charter have confirmed on behalf of us and our heirs forever that the English church is to be free and is to have her rights in full and her liberties unharmed. We have also granted to all the freeman of our kingdom, on behalf of us and our heirs forever, all the underwritten liberties to be held by them and by their heirs from us and from our heirs.
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Simplified
This first clause emphasizes the freedom and autonomy of the Church in England, which was a key issue during the reign of King John, the liberties mentioned, referred to specific rights and freedoms. and are outlined later within the document.