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The Charter

A meditation on Magna Carta and the foundations of liberty

Today Key Clauses History Legacy Surviving Copies Meditate About

The Road to Runnymede

King John was not a beloved monarch. He lost his French lands, quarreled with the Pope, and taxed his barons heavily. By 1215, rebellion was brewing.

1199: King John takes the throne after Richard I dies

1204: John loses Normandy to Philip II of France

1209: Pope Innocent III excommunicates King John

1214: John's army defeated at Battle of Bouvines

January 1215: Rebel barons demand reform, John refuses

May 1215: Rebels capture London

June 10, 1215: Negotiations begin at Runnymede

June 15, 1215: Magna Carta sealed at Runnymede

August 1215: Pope annuls Magna Carta

October 1216: King John dies; Henry III crowned

1217: Magna Carta reissued by Henry III's regents

1225: Definitive version issued by Henry III

1297: Edward I confirms Magna Carta in statute law

1628: Petition of Right invokes Magna Carta

1679: Habeas Corpus Act builds on Clause 39

1776: American founders cite Magna Carta principles

1789: U.S. Bill of Rights echoes Magna Carta

1948: Universal Declaration of Human Rights

2015: 800th anniversary celebrations worldwide

The Scene at Runnymede

Runnymede is a water meadow along the River Thames, between Windsor and Staines. Its name comes from Old English: rūnieg (regular meeting) + mǣd (meadow). A place where councils gathered.

On June 15, 1215, King John arrived to meet his rebellious barons. Archbishop Stephen Langton served as mediator. The document had been drafted over several days of negotiation.

John did not 'sign' Magna Carta — he sealed it. The royal seal was pressed into hot wax. Multiple copies were made and distributed throughout England.

Within two months, Pope Innocent III annulled the charter at John's request. But John died in October 1216, and his nine-year-old son Henry III's regents reissued it to gain support. The charter survived.