Magna Carta, which in Latin means great charter, is a document that was drawn up by English Barons, who forced King John to approve it in June 1215. This documents, which played a decisive role in the development of constitutional government in England, granted many rights to the English aristocracy. However the ordinary people did not benefit from it.
Magna Carta did not guaranteed individual liberties to all people. However, subsequently it became a model for establishing democratic government and individual rights for all. The greatest value of Magna Carta was as a beginning of the concept of making the king submit to a law to check royal power.
The Magna Carta was the result of opposition of a group of barons and church leaders to the arbitrary and abusive use of power by John who became king in 1199. In 1213, they jointly called for a halt to the king's injustices, and prepared a list of rights they wanted for themselves. Initially King resisted, and in response, the barons raised an army to force their demands, forcing King to agree to the articles on June 15, 1215. Four days later, the articles were written out in legal form as a royal charter.
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