The following was written by COS Regional Captain James Peters. This was originally published in The Daily News-Record.
There seems to be a tendency today to either ignore history or simply try to destroy it. People, on both sides of the political picture, tend to select only those things in history that support their causes and throw out the rest. These two famous sayings are often quoted as a warning: “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it;” and “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” If these are true, then ignorance is not bliss; it is dangerous.
Ask most American citizens today about the Magna Carta of 1215 A.D. and you will get a blank look. Those Latin words mean “Great Charter,” but how do they fit into our nation’s history? The Declaration of Independence of July 4, 1776 — to many — is the beginning of the United States of America. However, many of the concepts of law and freedom came from that original Magna Carta.
Although ignorant of the actual history, most people know of the tales of Robin Hood that grew out of folklore, poetry, and ballads. The sly bandit would steal from the rich and give to the poor. King Richard the Lionheart and his younger brother John were real people. Unlike folklore, King Richard had already died when John took the throne in 1199. John was unable to hold the lands he had inherited in France, and was defeated in battle by Phillip II of France. John spent much of the next decade attempting to regain these lands, raising huge revenues, reforming his armed forces and rebuilding continental alliances. John’s attempt to defeat Philip failed in 1214. When he returned to England, John faced a rebellion by many of his barons, who were unhappy with his fiscal policies and his treatment of many of England’s most powerful nobles. Many historians agree that John had many faults as king, with distasteful — even dangerous — personality traits, such as pettiness, spitefulness and cruelty.
The Magna Carta was first drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury to make peace between the unpopular king and a group of rebel barons ready to declare war on John. The Magna Carta received the royal seal by King John on June 15, 1215. It promised the protection of church rights, protection for the barons from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, and limitations on taxes paid to the Crown. The changes would be implemented by a council of 25 barons. The Magna Carta declared the king to be subject to the rule of law and documented the liberties held by “free men.” It provided the legal foundation for individual rights both in Great Britain and later in the United States of America. Once the treaty was agreed upon, about 250 identical copies were made and sent out to legal and religious officials across the country to make sure it was carried out. There are in fact 17 copies of the Magna Carta which are known to have survived over nearly 800 years. After King John’s death the Magna Carta was reissued in 1216, 1217, 1225 and in 1297 when it became part of English statute law. Many of those protections from tyrannical rule have been adopted in the constitutions of countries all over the world.
For political thinkers like Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, the Magna Carta was a potent symbol of liberty and the natural rights of man against an oppressive or unjust government. The Founding Fathers’ reverence for the Magna Carta had less to do with the actual text of the document — which is mired in medieval law and outdated customs — than what it represented: an ancient safeguarding of individual liberty. Today we are seeing many of the freedoms we once enjoyed in our great nation being taken away by those in D.C., “who would be kings.” Many federal officials enjoy the power they have over those they should be serving. Our Constitution begins with, “We the People,” not “We the Politicians” and it is the job of our citizens to make sure we renew the checks and balances that are the key to the success of our form of government. “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety,” said Benjamin Franklin. There is a solution to federal tyranny, it is contained in Article V of our Constitution, and it is time for us to use it. Remember, the only money the federal government has was taken from us in taxes. We need to make sure Congress is spending those dollars wisely by making them live within a reasonable, balanced budget, mandated by a Constitutional Amendment.
