Magna Carta

American  

[mag-nuh kahr-tuh] / ˈmæg nə ˈkɑr tə /

Or Magna Charta

noun

1. the “great charter” of English liberties, forced from King John by the English barons and sealed at Runnymede, June 15, 1215.

2. any fundamental constitution or law guaranteeing rights and liberties.

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Magna Carta British  

/ ˈmæɡnə ˈkɑːtə /

noun

1. English history the charter granted by King John at Runnymede in 1215, recognizing the rights and privileges of the barons, church, and freemen

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Magna Carta Cultural  

1. A list of rights and privileges that King John of England signed under pressure from English noblemen in 1215. It established the principles that the king could not levy taxes without consent of his legislature, or parliament, and that no free man in England could be deprived of liberty or property except through a trial or other legal process.

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Usage

What is the Magna Carta? The Magna Carta is an English “great charter” that was signed into law by King John on June 15, 1215.Some of the best-known concepts outlined in the Magna Carta include making the monarch subject to the rule of law, basic rights held by citizens (or “free men”), and the social contract between ruler and subjects.

Etymology

Origin of Magna Carta

1425–75; late Middle English < Medieval Latin

Example Sentences

Its aristocrats had the Magna Carta drafted to protect their rights after they rebelled against King John in 1215.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 19, 2026

This tradition is actually older than the United States itself; it can be traced back to medieval England and the Magna Carta and the Petition of Rights.

From Salon • Jul. 11, 2025

But two medieval history professors have concluded it is an extraordinarily rare and lost original Magna Carta from 1300, in the reign of King Edward I, that could be worth millions.

From BBC • May 15, 2025

The rule that kings could not levy taxes without legislative consent has its origins in the Magna Carta of 1215 and was made definite by no later than 1300.

From Slate • Jan. 29, 2025

That flag—it stood for Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights, Charles the First’s head upon a block, centuries of struggle for ‘English liberty.’

From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes