[The Seal of King John from the Magna Carta after Unknown artist etching, late 18th to early 19th century NPG D42228
© National Portrait Gallery, London]
As the 800th anniversary of the signing of the original charter by King John on June 15, 1215 approaches later this year, the Magna Carta has been getting even more attention than usual, including a U.S.visit by one of the earliest versions of an original document last year.
[Image source: Linklaters.com]
The recent discovery in Sandwich of a damaged original of the 1300 version issued by King Edward I* has been in the news lately, delighting scholars and opening the possibility that there are more of these documents still to be found. The History Blog has an excellent post about it here.
In case your medieval Latin is a bit rusty, the legal firm of Linklaters has provided us with a Magna Carta Viewer that allows you to examine the document in detail and in translation.
*Succeeding English kings typically issued their own verions of the Charter.
© 2015 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.
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