Magna Carta, Runnymede

The spot where King John and his barons agreed Magna Carta (the Great Charter) on 15 June 1215 is marked by a memorial commissioned by the American Bar Association , built in 1957. It is in the custody of the Magna Carta Trust under the chairmanship of the Master of the Rolls, the head of civil justice in England and Wales. The memorial is inscribed “To commemorate Magna Carta, symbol of freedom under the law” and it is surrounded by English oak trees. The Charter was the first document to put into writing the principle that the king and his government were not above the law and it is widely considered as a foundation for democratic principles and civil liberties all over the world. A new memorial was unveiled nearby by Prince William on 15 June 2015 to commemorate the 800th anniversary of King John putting his seal to the Charter; it is a sculpture by Hew Locke called ‘The Jurors’, consisting of 12 bronze chairs, each with a story to tell, around an invisible table. The JFK memorial is also nearby and can be visited at the same time.