ipl-logo

Chapter Summary: The Story Of The Magna Carta

3429 Words14 Pages

The story of the Magna Carta began about one hundred fifty years before it was written. In 1066 Edward the Confessor king of England died without children, and William, Duke of Normandy, believed he had a right to the English throne. There were other claimants, so he had to conquer England to make his claim good. When William the Conqueror died, he left Normandy to his eldest son, Robert Curthose. “Curthose” indicates that he was a short man. His second son, William II (called William Rufus--”Rufus” because his hair was red), inherited England. The Conqueror’s third son, Henry received no land, but did receive a large sum of money.
William Rufus was not a popular king in England. Like his father, he ruled with energy and a very heavy hand. His favorites received lands and castles while those not favored were deprived of their lands. Taxes were heavy and many. Additionally, Rufus was known as “a mocker and a blasphemer...one who took a strange pleasure in dealing with his maker as a personal enemy.” While this alone would not have made William unique in European …show more content…

In print the whole document including witnesses, takes only two pages. However the content and wording display evidence of careful thought. Chapter one announced that Henry had been crowned King of England “by the mercy of God (and by) the common counsel of the barons of the whole of England”. In fact, there were few barons present when he was chosen, but the appeal to God and the barons shows that he is not King by conquest or self appointment. His charter next indicates that the King was going to correct the wrong done to the kingdom through oppressive taxes, and that the Church would be free. Henry promised that he would not steal from the church as William Rufus notoriously had. The chapter also gave hope that there would be further reforms like the ones Henry had already

Show More
Related
646 Words | 3 Pages

In this case, Henry criticized the King of England, proclaiming

Read More
528 Words | 3 Pages

Henry used restatement in his speech in an effective manner in hopes of convincing the Virginia Convention that they need to rebel against the British

Read More
541 Words | 3 Pages

The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone." Here Henry is speaking to the convention to tell them that God rules the nations and that he will not fail them. Furthermore, Henry states, "...if we make a proper use of those means

Read More
1370 Words | 6 Pages

January 1066 was a time of chaos for medieval England. There were three people claiming the throne for themselves, and the result changed Europe forever. There was Harold Godwinson, the most powerful noble in England, who claimed that the king had promised to him the throne at the last minute, as he lay dying. There was William, Duke of Normandy, whom Edward had been friends with since they were children. Lastly, there was Harald Hadraada, a Norwegian noble who was given a claim to the English throne by King Magnus of Norway.

Read More
717 Words | 3 Pages

Henry begins with syntax to persuade his audience. One example is parallelism. “Are we disposed to be of the number of those who, having eyes, see not, and, having ears, hear not, the things which so nearly concern their temporal salvation?” paragraph two.

Read More
1230 Words | 5 Pages

This is shown through Henry recognising the importance of finance in methods of gaining power through loyalty and outside the country, as stated above and in the use of bonds and recognisances to consolidate his dynasty. This is demonstrated additionally in Henry’s use of the Chamber System where Henry would personally check all the items of income received in the chamber and sign each one, and the position of Treasurer of the Chamber was held by two of the king’s most beloved servants; Sir Thomas Lovell and Sir John Heron. However there is one unconvincing phrase in the interpretation of Henry’s attitude towards money, that his reputation as a miser was a result of a ‘misunderstanding of his policies’ which doesn’t take into account the extortionate reputation of Empsen and Dudley through their exploitation, therefore not showing the full extent of Henry’s dedication to

Read More
308 Words | 2 Pages

Cromwell’s next revolutionary, perhaps controversial idea for the Church of England was the translation of the bible, converting it from Latin to English. As previously mentioned, Henry was reluctant in directing his new church away from Catholicism, rather shaping it around the same traditional practices. Nonetheless, Cromwell pursued the king, who was at this time with his new love, Jane Seymour and in a particularly good mood. Persuading the king was almost like a second language for Cromwell at this point and after the pull of his ear, Henry consented. John Schofield describes this as Cromwell’s “Crowning mercy” by convincing Henry.

Read More
592 Words | 3 Pages

In paragraph three, Henry mentions that one of man’s nature to crave for hope although most of the times we ought ourselves to “shut our eyes against a painful truth” such as many of the men at the convention who wished of not revolting against Great Britain although all of them wished of being free and independent away from England. He gave a comparison to most of the people who opposed the idea to revolution as to people who have eyes but do not see, in other words blind people, or people who have ears but do not hear, in other words deaf people due to everything that the 13 colonies have gone through having to deal with all the unfair laws passed by the king and not being able to do anything about

Read More
854 Words | 4 Pages

The implication is that the people are being ruled. Henry used his skills in speech to persuade the Council or Parliament that trying to rule over others was wrong. He spoke out against the way things had always been done and

Read More
610 Words | 3 Pages

But they put themselves in a level with wood and earth and stones [...] than men of straw or a lump of dirt’’. Henry’s ethos shows the audience of his strategy of going against the government corruption. Henry’s speech was well-planned out to shows his audience of his experience when rebelling the government; in addition, receiving forced punishment for not paying his poll-tax. He thought out things that made himself to commit this disobedience against the government and wanted to express his experience of his ideas and strategy to disobey the government.

Read More
1545 Words | 7 Pages

‘The consolidation of royal authority, in the years 1487-1509, was due to Henry VII’s control over the nobility.’ Explain why you agree or disagree with this view. It can be argued to a certain extent that the consolidation of royal authority for Henry VII, in the years 1487-1509, was a result of control over the nobility. The challenge lied in the ability to decrease their power without alienating them whilst removing their position of threat. However, there were other contributory factors in Henry’s consolidation of his royal authority, such as his diplomatic skills in dealing with foreign powers and the indispensable use of royal finances.

Read More
705 Words | 3 Pages

Throughout William Shakespeare’s 1597 History “The First Part of King Henry the Fourth”, the importance of individual reputation proves to be a catalyst for character advancement and plot development alike. King Henry’s repeated emphasis on the superior characteristics of himself and Hotspur earlier in the scene establish a dichotomy between the ideal leader and Prince Henry. In a rebuttal to his father 's disapproving tone, Hal vows to reclaim both his honor as a prince and his honor as a son. Shakespeare’s use of language through lines 129-159 in act III.2 foreshadows events to come while reinforcing Prince Henry’s earlier assertion that he will be the victor when battling Hotspur.

Read More
802 Words | 4 Pages

Henry’s flawed nature and inner desire to be morally upright are revealed as he escapes the battle and as he justifies himself

Read More
756 Words | 4 Pages

Drawing upon his established ethos, Henry alludes to the Bible, implying that if the Convention ignored him they would face destruction. Henry develops this idea of destruction throughout his speech, creating an emotional sense of fear and urgency around his argument with words such as “snare,” “war and subjugation,” “chains,” and “tyrannical.” Despite this heavy pathos throughout his speech, Henry also incudes logic, speaking of how he must judge the future by the past, and for that reason can only find proof that Britain will continue to mistreat the Colonies. He additionally utilizes logos through recounting all the acts they have tried so far, which had all been in vain, as well as through a series of “if… then” statements, such as “if we wish to be free… [then] we must

Read More
1000 Words | 4 Pages

but he has different views than his audience, the Virginia Convention, does. Throughout the speech, Henry uses words like “we” and “ourselves” to show that he is still with the audience, and not against them. Henry continues on in that same paragraph by using pathos. When he said, "Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offense, I should consider myself guilty of treason towards my own country, and of an act of disloyalty toward the Majesty of Heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings. " He is saying that this is what he needs to do for his God.

Read More

More about Chapter Summary: The Story Of The Magna Carta

Related Topics

Open Document