Critical Analysis Paper Peter Jensen MWF 12:00 12:50 Back in the early eleventh century, King John

n had been leading a country threatened by rebellion from Englands most powerful and influential barons and politicians. The reason for this was years of very unsuccessful foreign policies and heavy taxation demands placed on all of its citizens. Another frustrating factor England was involved in was the Crusades, which by this point had been underway for over one hundred years, with no end in sight. Unless King John wanted to risk open rebellion and a country in upheaval, he needed to do something drastic, and he needed to do it fast. So was the Magna Carta written, a document that took all of the current issues facing the English during this point of time. Not only did this document relinquish a lot of the control from the government and put more of it back in the hands of the powerful, landing owning citizens and those citizens who faced day-to-day challenges with local law enforcements. Magna Carta helped protect families from losing their homes and everything they had accrued during their lives together upon the death of the patriarch of the family. It also helped organize the justice system, keeping judges,

politicians, and local governments from making harsh and unrelenting judgments. The first article secured the rights and freedoms of the English Church irrevocably. It states clearly the disputes between the English government and the local barons, alluding mostly to the disagreements about the churches choices in their freedom of their own elections. It mentions how important these elections are to the church, and even states that Pope Innocent III, the reigning leader over the church during this time, confirmed this stance. This first article still stands to this day, protected and exercised by the English government. The next several articles pertained mostly to the barons and earls who owned lands that were directly from the crown for military services, protecting mainly their heirs, their direct family, and to their belongings upon the death of said baron or earl. Several of these articles protected the rights of the heirs if they were underage, allowing the government to appointment a guardian of the lands who would relinquish all control once the heir became of age. These articles were of immense importance, as this was one of the biggest issues between the government and its more prominent members.

A lot of the other included articles pertained to the ability of members of government and the citizens of higher standing to borrow money from the Crown. It states that the only times that someone could borrow money freely from the government is to rescue an English citizen who being held for ransom, for a family to make their eldest son a knight, and to marry the eldest daughter out, though they could only do this once. All other times anyone needed to borrow money had to have the approval of several members of the government, including bishops, archbishops, abbots, etc., making it more difficult for the government to loan out money. The remaining articles went on to outline the abilities of people to initiate lawsuits, how much others could be held accountable for debts and crimes, the limits of local sheriffs and officers, manmade forests and dams, and the rights of foreigners while in their country during times of war and of peace. The Magna Carta took into account every big problem that was plaguing England and most of its citizens at the time and placed everything into a set perspective to eliminate any unlawful and unfair treatment of any and all peoples. The Magna Carta was extremely well written, clearly outlining all of its claims and all of the laws that they government expected to be followed. Even reading it for the first time, I could fully understand the point each

separate article was trying to convey, though I did have to reread a few as many of the words I didnt fully understand right away. Not only were the laws easily understandable, but also the people that they pertained to and the people that they were meant to protect or limit was made very clear. King John and all of the other people involved in writing this left no room for mistranslation or powerful people to go against it. This article accomplished a great many things that improved England for the better. Not only did it give rights to those who felt that they had none and helped control those who had too many rights, but it also helped make the future Kings and Queens realize that they too had to follow the laws set forth by their government. It also made the monarchy respect the rights of even the lowest class of people, and made it so that they couldnt revoke those rights whenever they felt that it was necessary. The demands that this article set forth were extraordinarily reasonable, as it made for a much better country for everyone. In my opinion, this document saved England from complete chaos and paved the way for centuries or peace and fairness. A lot of historians would argue that the Founding Fathers of America used the Magna Carta as an outline when they made the United States Constitution, and I am inclined to agree with them. Those who wrote this obviously really cared about saving

their country and seeing those who treated others unfairly leashed and controlled so that everyone, even those who were less privileged than others, to be happy and prosperous. If they didnt care or were just doing this to appease the more influential members, then they wouldnt have reined them so far in and limited their control over the governments. When I looked over the Articles of Confederation, the Declaration of Independence, and the American Constitution, I noticed so many similarities and comparisons to the Magna Carta, which makes me thankful that even back in 1215, Kings and the governments they ruled beside could think of the best outcomes possible for their people. Seeing how much the Constitution does for us today and how much happiness it promises and delivers, it makes me realize just how amazing this document was for the people of that time. With the Crusades and disputes going on around the world and on their front doorstep, I could see how necessary this document would have been to provide comfort and security for the nobles, peasants, and politicians alike.