Dan Jones

Light Paperback (1 lb or less)

Texas

The Birth of Liberty

"Dan Jones has an enviable gift for telling a dramatic story while at the same time inviting us to consider serious topics like liberty and the seeds of representative government." --Antonia Fraser

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Plantagenets, a lively, action-packed history of how the Magna Carta came to be--by the author of Powers and Thrones.
 
The Magna Carta is revered around the world as the founding document of Western liberty. Its principles--even its language--can be found in our Bill of Rights and in the Constitution. But what was this strange document and how did it gain such legendary status?

Dan Jones takes us back to the turbulent year of 1215, when, beset by foreign crises and cornered by a growing domestic rebellion, King John reluctantly agreed to fix his seal to a document that would change the course of history. At the time of its creation the Magna Carta was just a peace treaty drafted by a group of rebel barons who were tired of the king's high taxes, arbitrary justice, and endless foreign wars. The fragile peace it established would last only two months, but its principles have reverberated over the centuries. 

Jones's riveting narrative follows the story of the Magna Carta's creation, its failure, and the war that subsequently engulfed England, and charts the high points in its unexpected afterlife. Reissued by King John's successors it protected the Church, banned unlawful imprisonment, and set limits to the exercise of royal power. It established the principle that taxation must be tied to representation and paved the way for the creation of Parliament. 

In 1776 American patriots, inspired by that long-ago defiance, dared to pick up arms against another English king and to demand even more far-reaching rights. We think of the Declaration of Independence as our founding document but those who drafted it had their eye on the Magna Carta.

Magna Carta

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"[Puts] the Magna Carta in its proper historical context... Dan Jones triumphantly answers the questions he poses in his Introduction, about how it came to be granted, what it meant at the time, and what it should mean to us today." --Andrew Roberts, New York Times bestselling author of Storm of War and Napoleon From the New York Times bestselling author of The Plantagenets, a short, lively, action-packed history of how the Magna Carta came to be. The Magna Carta is revered around the world as the founding document of Western liberty. Its principles can be found in our Bill of Rights and in the Constitution. But what was this strange document that dwells on tax relief and greater fishing rights, and how did it gain legendary status? In this 800th anniversary year, Dan Jones takes us back to 1215, the turbulent time when the Magna Carta was just a peace treaty between England's King John and a group of self-interested, violent barons who were tired of his high taxes and endless foreign wars. The treaty would fail within two months of its confirmation. But this important document marked the first time a king was forced to obey his own laws. Jones's Magna Carta follows the story of the Magna Carta's creation, its failure, and the war that subsequently engulfed England and is a book that will appeal to fans of microhistories of pivotal years like 1066, 1491, and especially 1776--when American patriots, inspired by that long-ago defiance, dared to pick up arms against another English king.

Category - Non Fiction / History

Format - Paperback

Condition - Excellent

Listed - 16 days ago

Views - 2

Ships From - Texas

Est. Publication Date - Nov 2016

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Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty

ISBN: 9780143108955

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Category - Non Fiction / History

Format - Paperback

Condition - Excellent

Listed - 16 days ago

Views - 2

Ships From - Texas

Est. Publication Date - Nov 2016

Additional Information

Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty

ISBN: 9780143108955

Publisher Description

Tags

Magna Carta

By:

$4.00

Meet the seller

Discover more

Magna Carta

By: Dan Jones

Pango Buyer Protection

More from this seller

Additional titles by Dan Jones

'Magna Carta' readers also enjoyed:

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