English throne, and were in large numbers reduced to a condition of slavery. Yet during that same period the foundations of the English parliament, the English constitution, and the science of the English common law were laid. On June 15, 1215, King John, at the point of the sword, was compelled by the English barons to affix his seal to the "Great Charter of English Liberties,"—a document upon which the unstinted praise of historians of every school and stamp has ever since been lavished. In one aspect the Magna Charta represents an end and consummation, in another a beginning. It was, for the most part, a compilation of the ancient customs of the realm,[1] or the laws of King Edward the Confessor as they existed before the Norman conquest. On the other hand it was the first great declaration of the rights of the new nation, the various elements of which several causes had combined to unite and consolidate, and from this time forth the constant demand of the people is for a confirmation, not of the "Leges Edwardi," but of the Magna Charta. It was, according to Lord Coke, confirmed no less than thirty-two times by subsequent monarchs. During the long reign of Henry III. the rights which had been wrested from King John were not only preserved, but also increased. During that of Edward I., who attempted to govern arbitrarily, it was the same. One remedial statute after another was passed, until finally every Englishman came to regard the Magna Charta and its confirmations as his birthright. We are told by Hallam that it is doubtful whether there are any essential privileges of Englishmen, "any fundamental securities against arbitrary power, so far as they depend upon positive institution, which may not be traced to the time of the Plantagenets. The same author has characterized the Great Charter as "still the keystone of English liberty. All that has since been obtained is little more than confirmation or commentary; and if every subsequent law were to be swept away, there would still remain the bold features that distinguish a free from a despotic monarchy."
It should be noticed, however, that the main object of those who did most to obtain the charter was to secure their own rights, not those of others. At that time the barons themselves were really the chief oppressors of the people. The king did all he could in that direction; but he was one, the barons many.
- ↑ Blackstone's Law Tracts, p. xii.
