Magna Carta 3

Magna Carta 3

Any man who so desires may take an oath to obey the commands of

the twenty-five barons for the achievement of these ends, and to

join with them in assailing us to the utmost of his power. We give

public and free permission to take this oath to any man who so

desires, and at no time will we prohibit any man from taking it.

Indeed, we will compel any of our subjects who are unwilling to

take it to swear it at our command.

* If-one of the twenty-five barons dies or leaves the country, or is

prevented in any other way from discharging his duties, the rest

of them shall choose another baron in his place, at their

discretion, who shall be duly sworn in as they were.

* In the event of disagreement among the twenty-five barons on any

matter referred to them for decision, the verdict of the majority

present shall have the same validity as a unanimous verdict of the

whole twenty-five, whether these were all present or some of those

summoned were unwilling or unable to appear.

* The twenty-five barons shall swear to obey all the above articles

faithfully, and shall cause them to be obeyed by others to the

best of their power.

* We will not seek to procure from anyone, either by our own efforts

or those of a third party, anything by which any part of these

concessions or liberties might be revoked or diminished. Should

such a thing be procured, it shall be null and void and we will at

no time make use of it, either ourselves or through a third party.

 

We have remitted and pardoned fully to all men any ill-will, hurt, or

grudges that have arisen between us and our subjects, whether clergy

or laymen, since the beginning of the dispute.

We have in addition remitted fully, and for our own part have also

pardoned, to all clergy and laymen any offences committed as a result

of the said dispute between Easter 1215 AD and the restoration of

peace.

 

In addition we have caused letters patent to be made for the barons,

bearing witness to this security and to the concessions set out above,

over the seals of Stephen archbishop of Canterbury, Henry archbishop

of Dublin, the other bishops named above, and Master Pandulf.

 

IT IS ACCORDINGLY OUR WISH AND COMMAND that the English Church shall

be free, and that men in our kingdom shall have and keep all these

liberties, rights, and concessions, well and peaceably in their

fulness and entirety for them and their heirs, of us and our heirs, in

all things and all places for ever.

 

Both we and the barons have sworn that all this shall be observed in

good faith and without deceit. Witness the above mentioned people and

many others.

 

Given by our hand in the meadow that is called Runnymede, between

Windsor and Staines, on the fifteenth day of June in the seventeenth

year of our reign .

 

***

 

[There were many missing spaces in this one, not sure I got them all]

 

Magna Carta 1215

 

John, by the grace of God, king of England, lord of Ireland, duke of

Normandy and Aquitaine, and count of Anjou, to the archbishops,

bishops, abbots, earls, barons, justiciars, foresters, sheriffs,

stewards, servants, and to all his bailiffs and liege subjects,

greeting. Know that, having regard to God and for the salvation of our

soul, and those of all our ancestors and heirs, and unto the honor of

God and the advancement of holy church, and for the reform of

our realm, by advice of our venerable fathers, Stephen archbishop of

Canterbury, primate of all England and cardinal of the holy Roman

Church, Henry archbishop of Dublin, William of London, Peter of

Winchester, Jocelyn of Bath and Glastonbury, Hugh of Lincoln, Walter of

Worcester, William of Coventry, Benedict of Rochester, bishops; of

master Pandulf, subdeacon and member of the household of our lord the

Pope, of brother Aymeric (master of the Knights of the Temple in

England), and of the illustrious men William Marshall earl of Pembroke,

William earl of Salisbury, William earl of Warenne, William earl

of Arundel, Alan of Galloway (constable of Scotland), Waren Fitz

Gerald, Peter Fits Herbert, Hubert de Burgh (seneschal of Poitou), Hugh

de Neville, Matthew Fitz Herbert, Thomas Basset, Alan Basset, Philip

d'Aubigny, Robert of Roppesley, John Marshall, John Fitz Hugh, and

others, our liegemen.

 

1. In the first place we have granted to God, and by this our present

charter confirmed for us and our heirs for ever that the English church

shall be free, and shall have her rights entire, and her liberties

inviolate; and we will that it be thus observed; which is apparent from

this that the freedom of elections, which is reckoned most important

and very essential to the English church, we, of our pure and

unconstrained will, did grant, and did by our charter confirm and did

obtain the ratification of the same from our lord, Pope Innocent

III., before the quarrel arose between us and our barons: and this we

will observe, and our will is that it be observed in good faith by our

heirs for ever. We have also granted to all freemen of our kingdom, for

us and our heirs for ever, all the underwritten liberties, to be had

and held by them and their heirs, of us and our heirs for ever.

 

2. If any of our earls or barons, or others holding of us in chief by

military service shall have died, and at the time of his death his heir

shall be of full age and owe "relief" he shall have his inheritance on

payment of the ancient relief, namely the heir or heirs of an earl, 100

pounds for a whole earl's barony; the heir or heirs of a baron, 100

pounds for a whole barony; the heir or heirs of a knight, 100 shillings

at most for a whole knight's fee; and whoever owes less let him give

less, according to the ancient custom officers.

 

3. If, however, the heir of any of the aforesaid has been under age

and in wardship, let him have his inheritance without relief and

without fine when he comes of age.

 

4. The guardian of the land of an heir who is thus under age, shall

take from the land of the heir nothing but reasonably produce,

reasonable customs, and reasonable services, and that without

destruction or waste of men or goods; and if we have committed the

wardship of the lands of any such minor to the sheriff, or to any other

who is responsible to us for its issues, and he has made destruction or

waste of what he holds in wardship, we will take of him amends, and the

land shall be committed to two lawful and discreet men of that fee, who

shall be responsible for the issues to us or to him to whom we

shall assign them; and if we have given or sold the wardship of any

such land to anyone and he has there in made destruction or waste, he

shall lose that wardship, and it shall be transferred to two lawful and

discreet men of that fief, who shall be responsible to us in like

manner as aforesaid.

 

5. The guardian, moreover, so long as he has the wardship of the land,

shall keep up the houses, parks, fishponds, stanks, mills, and other

things pertaining to the land, out of the issues of the same land; and

he shall restore to the heir, when he has come to full age, all his

land, stocked with ploughs and "waynage," according as the season of

husbandry shall require, and the issues of the land can reasonably bear.

 

6. Heirs shall be married without disparagement, yet so that before the

marriage takes place the nearest in blood to that heir shall have notice.

 

7. A widow, after the death of her husband, shall forthwith and

without difficulty have her marriage portion and inheritance; nor shall

she give anything for her dower, or for her marriage portion, or for

the inheritance which her husband and she held on the day of the death

of that husband; and she may remain in the house of her husband for

fourty days after his death, within which time her dower shall be

assigned to her.

 

8. No widow shall be compelled to marry, so long as she prefers to

live without a husband; provided always that she gives security not to

marry without our consent, if she holds of us, or without the consent

of the lord of whom she holds, if she holds of another.

 

9. Neither we nor our bailiffs shall seize any land or rent for any

debt, so long as the chattels of the debtor are sufficient to repay the

debt; nor shall the sureties of the debtor be distrained so long as the

principal debtor is able to satisfy the debt; and if the principal

debtor shall fail to pay the debt, having nothing wherewith to pay it,

then the sureties shall answer for the debt; and let them have the

lands and rents of the debtor, if they desire them, until they are

indemnified for the debt which they have paid for him, unless the

principal debtor can show proof that he is discharged thereof as

against the said sureties.

 

10. If one who has borrowed from the Jews any sum, great or small, die

before that loan can be repaid, the debt shall not bear interest while

the heir is under age, of whomsoever he may hold; and if the debt fall

into our hands, we will not take anything except the principal sum

contained in the bond.

 

11. And if any one die indebted to the Jews, his wife shall have her

dower and pay nothing of that debt; and if any children of the deceased

are left underage, necessaries shall be provided for them in keeping

with the holding of the deceased; and out of the residue the debt shall

be paid, reserving, however, service due to feudal lords; in like

manner let it be done touching debts due to others than Jews.

 

12. No scutage nor aid shall be imposed on our kingdom, unless by

common counsel of our kingdom, except for ransoming our person, for

making our eldest son a knight, and for once marrying our eldest

daughter; and for these there shall not be levied more than a

reasonable aid. In like manner it shall be done concerning aids from

the city of London.

 

13. And the city of London shall have all its ancient liberties and

free customs, as well by land as by water; furthermore, we decree and

grant that all other cities, boroughs, towns, and ports shall have all

their liberties and free customs.

 

14. And for obtaining the common counsel of the kingdom anent the

assessing of an aid (except in the three cases aforesaid) or of a

scutage, we will cause to be summoned the archbishops, bishops, abbots,

earls, and greater barons, severally by our letters; and we will

moreover cause to be summoned generally, through our sheriffs and

bailiffs, all others who hold of us in chief, for a fixed date, namely,

after the expiry of at least forty days, and at a fixed place; and in

all letters of such summons we will specify the reason of the summons.

And when the summons has thus been made, the business shall proceed on

the day appointed, according to the counsel of such as are present,

although not all who were summoned have come.

 

15. We will not for the future grant to any one license to take an aid

from his own free tenants, except to ransom his body, to make his

eldest son a knight, and once to marry his eldest daughter; and on

each of these occasions there shall be levied only a reasonable aid.

 

16. No one shall be distrained for performance of greater service for

a knight's fee, or for any other free tenement, than is due therefrom.

 

17. Common pleas shall not follow our court, but shall be held in some fixed place.