ABSTRACT
It is the anniversary of Magna Carta, the “Great Charter” that baronial rebels forced King John to sign on 15 June 1215. The Magna Carta is considered to be the origin of many rights and liberties now guaranteed by countries in North America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Australasia, and the Caribbean, including the right to a trial by one’s peers and the writ of habeas corpus. At the time, however, such limitations on royal power overwhelmingly protected John’s rebellious aristocratic comrades.
