Magna++Carta

England was in debt from the crusades, forcing the king to charge high taxes on his nobles. This angered the nobles, and caused them to demand certain rights for themselves that the king wouldn't be able to deny them of. These nobles joined together and wrote the Magna Carta (Great Charter in Latin). The king agreed to the document to avoid a possible war with his nobles. The document went into effect however, as shortly after, the pope nullified and voided the document. The magna carta eventually did go into effect however and became the basis for many other documents in the future. Some of the rights it listed were:
 * 1) You could not be kept in jail without a reason.
 * 2) No one could be forced to perform more service than is 'paid for'.
 * 3) People had rights to own property, it could not be unjustly taken.
 * 4) Everyone had the right to a fair trial.



This document did not immediately decrease the power of the king, but did so over hundreds of years. It changed the medieval monarchy from rex lex (a Latin term meaning "king above law") to lex rex ("law above king") over long periods of time. It also enforced habeas corpus (right by trial), which provides peasants with more rights than which they had in the beginning of the Middle Ages. Habeas Corpus said that the king couldn't throw someone in jail just because they did something the king disliked - there had to be a fair trial and the accused must have violated a law.

The Magna Carta was a document that changed the world forever. The U.S. Declaration of independence, constitution, and bill of rights are based on the principles presented in the document. The Magna Carta, although not initially, changed the world forever and is a major enduring impact of the middle ages.

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Thinglink by: Sanchari April 2014

By: Susan December 17, 2009

By: Swathi April 2012

Edited by Jack April 2012

Edited by Gaby March 2013

Edited by Lily March 2013