Magna Carta 1215
Also called: Great Charter · Topic: Medieval Europe: Feudalism and the Three Orders · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Magna Carta, or Great Charter, was a document that rebel barons (great nobles) forced King John of England to accept in June 1215. It limited the king's power. It promised that no free man would be punished except by lawful judgement of his peers (people of equal rank) or by the law of the land. It was first a deal between a king and his nobles. Later it became a lasting symbol of the rule of law, the idea that even the ruler must obey the law.
Example
King John put his seal on the Magna Carta at Runnymede, a meadow beside the River Thames, in June 1215, after his barons rebelled against his heavy taxes.