Magna Carta 7

Magna Carta 7

42. It shall be lawful in future for anyone (excepting always those

imprisoned or outlawed in accordance with the law of the kingdom, and

natives of any country at war with us, and merchants, who shall be

treated as if above provided) to leave our kingdom and to return, safe

and secure by land and water, except for a short period in time of

war, on grounds of public policy- reserving always the allegiance due

to us.

 

43. If anyone holding of some escheat (such as the honor of

Wallingford, Nottingham, Boulogne, Lancaster, or of other escheats

which are in our hands and are baronies) shall die, his heir shall

give no other relief, and perform no other service to us than he would

have done to the baron if that barony had been in the baron's hand;

and we shall hold it in the same manner in which the baron held it.

 

44. Men who dwell without the forest need not henceforth come before

our justiciaries of the forest upon a general summons, unless they are

in plea, or sureties of one or more, who are attached for the forest.

 

45. We will appoint as justices, constables, sheriffs, or bailiffs

only such as know the law of the realm and mean to observe it well.

 

46. All barons who have founded abbeys, concerning which they hold

charters from the kings of England, or of which they have long

continued possession, shall have the wardship of them, when vacant, as

they ought to have.

 

47. All forests that have been made such in our time shall forthwith

be disafforsted; and a similar course shall be followed with regard

to river banks that have been placed "in defense" by us in our time.

 

48. All evil customs connected with forests and warrens, foresters

and warreners, sheriffs and their officers, river banks and their

wardens, shall immediately by inquired into in each county by twelve

sworn knights of the same county chosen by the honest men of the same

county, and shall, within forty days of the said inquest, be utterly

abolished, so as never to be restored, provided always that we

previously have intimation thereof, or our justiciar, if we should not

be in England.

 

49. We will immediately restore all hostages and charters delivered to

us by Englishmen, as sureties of the peace of faithful service.

 

50. We will entirely remove from their bailiwicks, the relations of

Gerard of Athee (so that in future they shall have no bailiwick in

England); namely, Engelard of Cigogne, Peter, Guy, and Andrew of

Chanceaux, Guy of Cigogne, Geoffrey of Martigny with his brothers,

Philip Mark with his brothers and his nephew Geoffrey, and the whole

brood of the same.

 

51. As soon as peace is restored, we will banish from the kingdom all

foreign born knights, crossbowmen, serjeants, and mercenary soldiers

who have come with horses and arms to the kingdom's hurt.

 

52. If anyone has been dispossessed or removed by us, without the

legal judgment of his peers, from his lands, castles, franchises, or

from his right, we will immediately restore them to him; and if a

dispute arise over this, then let it be decided by the five and twenty

barons of whom mention is made below in the clause for securing the

peace. Moreover, for all those possessions, from which anyone has,

without the lawful judgment of his peers, been disseised or removed,

by our father, King Henry, or by our brother, King Richard, and which

we retain in our hand (or which as possessed by others, to whom we are

bound to warrant them) we shall have respite until the usual term of

crusaders; excepting those things about which a plea has been raised,

or an inquest made by our order, before our taking of the cross; but

as soon as we return from the expedition, we will immediately grant

full justice therein.

 

53. We shall have, moreover, the same respite and in the same manner

in rendering justice concerning the disafforestation or retention of

those forests which Henry our father and Richard our brother

afforested, and concerning the wardship of lands which are of the fief

of another (namely, such wardships as we have hitherto had by reason

of a fief which anyone held of us by knight's service), and concerning

abbeys founded on other fiefs than our own, in which the lord of the

fee claims to have right; and when we have returned, or if we desist

from our expedition, we will immediately grant full justice to all who

complain of such things.

 

54. No one shall be arrested or imprisoned upon the appeal of a woman,

for the death of any other than her husband.

 

55. All fines made with us unjustly and against the law of the land,

and all amercements, imposed unjustly and against the law of the land,

shall be entirely remitted, or else it shall be done concerning them

according to the decision of the five and twenty barons whom mention

is made below in the clause for securing the pease, or according to

the judgment of the majority of the same, along with the aforesaid

Stephen, archbishop of Canterbury, if he can be present, and such

others as he may wish to bring with him for this purpose, and if he

cannot be present the business shall nevertheless proceed without him,

provided always that if any one or more of the aforesaid five and

twenty barons are in a similar suit, they shall be removed as far as

concerns this particular judgment, others being substituted in their

places after having been selected by the rest of the same five and

twenty for this purpose only, and after having been sworn.

 

56. If we have disseised or removed Welshmen from lands or liberties,

or other things, without the legal judgment of their peers in England

or in Wales, they shall be immediately restored to them; and if a

dispute arise over this, then let it be decided in the marches by the

judgment of their peers; for the tenements in England according to the

law of England, for tenements in Wales according to the law of Wales,

and for tenements in the marches according to the law of the marches.

Welshmen shall do the same to us and ours.

 

57. Further, for all those possessions from which any Welshman has,

without the lawful judgment of his peers, been disseised or removed by

King Henry our father, or King Richard our brother, and which we

retain in our hand (or which are possessed by others, and which we

ought to warrant), we will have respite until the usual term of

crusaders; excepting those things about which a plea has been raised

or an inquest made by our order before we took the cross; but as soon

as we return (or if perchance we desist from our expedition), we will

immediately grant full justice in accordance with the laws of the

Welsh and in relation to the foresaid regions.

 

58. We will immediately give up the son of Llywelyn and all the

hostages of Wales, and the charters delivered to us as security for

the peace.

 

59. We will do towards Alexander, king of Scots, concerning the return

of his sisters and his hostages, and concerning his franchises, and

his right, in the same manner as we shall do towards our other barons

of England, unless it ought to be otherwise according to the charters

which we hold from William his father, formerly king of Scots; and

this shall be according to the judgment of his peers in our court.

 

60. Moreover, all these aforesaid customs and liberties, the

observances of which we have granted in our kingdom as far as pertains

to us towards our men, shall be observed b all of our kingdom, as well

clergy as laymen, as far as pertains to them towards their men.

 

61. Since, moveover, for God and the amendment of our kingdom and for

the better allaying of the quarrel that has arisen between us and our

barons, we have granted all these concessions, desirous that they

should enjoy them in complete and firm endurance forever, we give and

grant to them the underwritten security, namely, that the barons

choose five and twenty barons of the kingdom, whomsoever they will,

who shall be bound with all their might, to observe and hold, and

cause to be observed, the peace and liberties we have granted and

confirmed to them by this our present Charter, so that if we, or our

justiciar, or our bailiffs or any one of our officers, shall in

anything be at fault towards anyone, or shall have broken any one of

the articles of this peace or of this security, and the offense be

notified to four barons of the foresaid five and twenty, the said four

barons shall repair to us (or our justiciar, if we are out of the

realm) and, laying the transgression before us, petition to have that

transgression redressed without delay. And if we shall not have

corrected the transgression (or, in the event of our being out of the

realm, if our justiciar shall not have corrected it) within forty

days, reckoning from the time it has been intimated to us (or to our

justiciar, if we should be out of the realm), the four barons

aforesaid shall refer that matter to the rest of the five and twenty

barons, and those five and twenty barons shall, together with the

community of the whole realm, distrain and distress us in all possible

ways, namely, by seizing our castles, lands, possessions, and in any

other way they can, until redress has been obtained as they deem fit,

saving harmless our own person, and the persons of our queen and

children; and when redress has been obtained, they shall resume their

old relations towards us. And let whoever in the country desires it,

swear to obey the orders of the said five and twenty barons for the

execution of all the aforesaid matters, and along with them, to molest

us to the utmost of his power; and we publicly and freely grant leave

to everyone who wishes to swear, and we shall never forbid anyone to

swear.

 

All those, moveover, in the land who of themselves and of their own

accord are unwilling to swear to the twenty five to help them in

constraining and molesting us, we shall by our command compel the same

to swear to the effect foresaid. And if any one of the five and

twenty barons shall have died or departed from the land, or be

incapacitated in any other manner which would prevent the foresaid

provisions being carried out, those of the said twenty five barons who

are left shall choose another in his place according to their own

judgment, and he shall be sworn in the same way as the others.

Further, in all matters, the execution of which is entrusted,to these

twenty five barons, if perchance these twenty five are present and

disagree about anything, or if some of them, after being summoned, are

unwilling or unable to be present, that which the majority of those

present ordain or command shall be held as fixed and established,

exactly as if the whole twenty five had concurred in this; and the

said twenty five shall swear that they will faithfully observe all

that is aforesaid, and cause it to be observed with all their might.

And we shall procure nothing from anyone, directly or indirectly,

whereby any part of these concessions and liberties might be revoked

or diminished; and if any such things has been procured, let it be

void and null, and we shall never use it personally or by another.

 

62. And all the will, hatreds, and bitterness that have arisen between

us and our men, clergy and lay, from the date of the quarrel, we have

completely remitted and pardoned to everyone. Moreover, all

trespasses occasioned by the said quarrel, from Easter in the

sixteenth year of our reign till the restoration of peace, we have

fully remitted to all, both clergy and laymen, and completely

forgiven, as far as pertains to us. And on this head, we have caused

to be made for them letters testimonial patent of the lord Stephen,

archbishop of Canterbury, of the lord Henry, archbishop of Dublin, of

the bishops aforesaid, and of Master Pandulf as touching this security

and the concessions aforesaid.

 

63. Wherefore we will and firmly order that the English Church be

free, and that the men in our kingdom have and hold all the aforesaid

liberties, rights, and concessions, well and peaceably, freely and

quietly, fully and wholly, for themselves and their heirs, of us and

our heirs, in all respects and in all places forever, as is

aforesaid. An oath, moreover, has been taken, as well on our part as

on the part of the barons, that all these conditions aforesaid shall be

kept in good faith and without evil intent. Given under our hand -

the above named and many others being witnesses - in the meadow which

is called Runnymede, between Windsor and Staines, on the fifteenth day of June, in the seventeenth year of our reign.