It would be several centuries before it began to be cited in political wrangling sessions, slowly gaining traction along the way. The nephew, the son of John's older brother, had a claim to the Plantagenet throne that some considered stronger than John's. On a summer's day in 1215, a beleaguered English monarch met a group of disgruntled barons in a meadow by the River Thames named Runnymede.

Jones has written a magnificently rich and glittering medieval pageant, guiding us into the distant world of the Plantagenets with confidence. The author takes a moment to paint a humorous caricature of John while charming in public, "behind the scenes he 'gnashed his teeth, rolled his eyes, grabbed sticks and straws and gnawed them like a madman.London publishers Guy Fox work closely with schoolchildren in the South East of England on projects to bring history to life. It's amazing that something as mundane as a document can have so much history behind it and have such an influence on the modern world.

Recommended if you have an interest in English history or if you just want more than the Disney version of King John.A milestone in the development of constitutional politics and the rule of the law, the 'Great Charter' established an Englishman's right to Habeas Corpus and set limits to the exercise of royal power. Unfortunately we cannot offer a refund on custom prints unless they are faulty or we have made a mistake. Since the feudal system rested so strongly on the concept of 'might makes right,' John displayed very little might and offered little or no military protection to his nobles.