I know you've all been waiting with bated breath so here's part two of my trip to the BL last week.
So, first up. Nicholas Vincent does not possess powerpoint-fu.
But to be honest, he is a fantastic speaker and spoke without notes so a plain powerpoint was really my only criticism.
Vincent is a leading authority, if not THE leading authority on all things Magna Carta and has been part of the Magna Carta project for the last 3 years.
http://magnacarta.cmp.uea.ac.uk/
He began his talk by highlighting that King John never actually signed the Magna Carta.
*insert dramatic pause*
This will most likely be a QI question at some point if it hasn't been already as this is a point of general ignorance. So much so a point of general ignorance that the royal mint's commemorative £2 coin has it emblazoned across the packaging.
He certainly never signed it, he sealed it, and you can buy a replica seal in the BL gift shop (which I of course did).
He then delved into the meat of his lecture which was addressing the 'established' facts concerning the Magna Carta.
It was addressed to God. Not to the people of England, God.
"First, that we have granted to God, and by this present charter have confirmed for us and our heirs in perpetuity, that the English Church shall be free, and shall have its rights undiminished, and its liberties unimpaired" (clause 1)
This he highlighted right at the beginning. The Magna Carta protected as well as separated the church away from the secular country of England, allowing it powers that the people of England did not necessarily have. The City of London's rights were similarly protected (clause 9) and these rights are maintained today and are partly the reason it is so hard to legislate and control the City.
Parts of the charter that are 'well known' are in fact frustratingly vague:
"No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land" (Clause 39)
We all know that we should be tried by our peers, but the definition of a peer is left very vague. Is this social class to social class, or wealth to wealth. The 'law of the land' is equally unclear as the king could change the law!
He highlighted a number of other clauses including one concerning fish weirs:
"All fish-weirs shall be removed from the Thames, the Medway, and throughout the whole of England, except on the sea coast" (Clause 33)
This was actually deceptively important as this clause was key to the navigability of England's waterways. If they're silted up as a result of fish weirs (that trap fish), travel is restricted and therefore, trade. This clause was so important that is was in fact only removed from the statue books during the 1960s.
Vincent has a very engaging style and consistently brought humour into his talk. For example he highlighted the xenophobic character of the British that has been present for centuries:
"As soon as peace is restored, we will remove from the kingdom all the foreign knights, bowmen, their attendants, and the mercenaries that have come to it, to its harm, with horses and arms" (Clause 51)
He then addressed the 'badness' of King John.
A king needed to maintain or increase the lands he inherited, and keep peace in the kingdom. John failed on both counts. He lost lands in France. Fought with and possibly murdered his nephew. Most importantly for those at home, he started interfering. Previous kings had been content to rule from the southeast and leave the rest of the country to get along by itself. Allowing the barons to essentially rule themselves.
John toured his kingdom, collecting taxes and generally, by the looks of it, thoroughly putting the backs up of all his barons.
This discontent led to the creation of the Magna Carta. Despite there being similar contemporary documents granting rights such as the Statute of Pamiers (1212) granted by Simon de Montfort near Toulouse, the creation of the charter was understood to have been important as its earlier drafts were kept.
Vincent even raised the point that the number of barons who signed the document was important and references a commentary on the bible (John, chp. 6) by St Augustine in the fourth century which I've done my best to find:
"As the number five has reference to the Law, the books of Moses being five, the number five and twenty, being made up of five pieces, has the same meaning. And this law was imperfect, before the Gospel came. Now the number of perfection is six, so therefore five is multiplied by six, which makes thirty: i.e. the law is fulfilled by the Gospel. To those then who fulfill the law Jesus comes treading on the waves, i.e. trampling under foot all the swellings of the world, all the loftiness of men: and yet such tribulations remain, that even they who believe on Jesus, fear lest they should be lost."
Basically, 25 is the number you want if you want divine approval in your law making. The handwriting of the different charters is also argued by Vincent to have been important as it is an ecclesiastical hand, not a secular clerk's.
The church was up to its neck in the creation of the Magna Carta and this is crucial to the understanding of its creation and its continuation. The Magna Carta is not some triumph of secular rights, religion was at the heart of it.
The handwriting part appears to have been part of new research that has come to light as part of the Magna Carta as it traces one of the Magna Carta copies to a cathedral, not Dover Castle as previously thought.
Vincent's talk was passionate and fascinating and made me view this musty 'piece of animal skin' in a different light. I have a new appreciation for it's impact on England, but also the world.
The talk was also a masterclass in public speaking. No notes that I could see. Riddled with facts and wit, and thoroughly engaging from start to finish. That's how history should be.
Factual, fun and freely accessible.
Notes
Vincent, N., "Magna Carta: Old and New", British Library, London, 13th March 2015
Magna Carta coing - http://www.royalmint.com/shop/800th_Anniversary_of_Magna_Carta_2015_UK_2_pound_BU_Coin
Magna Carta quotes - http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/magna_carta/translation.html
Statute of Pamiers - http://www.bl.uk/collection-items/mc-the-statute-of-pamiers
St Augustine quote - http://www.catecheticsonline.com/CatenaAurea-John6.php
Fish weir image - Dally, Frederick. Indian Salmon Weir at Quamichan Village on the Cowichan River, Vancouver Island. 1866. Library and Archives Canada, Vancouver.
Magna carta cartoon - http://www.historyextra.com/feature/magna-carta-turning-point-english-history
So, first up. Nicholas Vincent does not possess powerpoint-fu.
But to be honest, he is a fantastic speaker and spoke without notes so a plain powerpoint was really my only criticism.
Vincent is a leading authority, if not THE leading authority on all things Magna Carta and has been part of the Magna Carta project for the last 3 years.
http://magnacarta.cmp.uea.ac.uk/
He began his talk by highlighting that King John never actually signed the Magna Carta.
*insert dramatic pause*
This will most likely be a QI question at some point if it hasn't been already as this is a point of general ignorance. So much so a point of general ignorance that the royal mint's commemorative £2 coin has it emblazoned across the packaging.
He certainly never signed it, he sealed it, and you can buy a replica seal in the BL gift shop (which I of course did).He then delved into the meat of his lecture which was addressing the 'established' facts concerning the Magna Carta.
It was addressed to God. Not to the people of England, God.
"First, that we have granted to God, and by this present charter have confirmed for us and our heirs in perpetuity, that the English Church shall be free, and shall have its rights undiminished, and its liberties unimpaired" (clause 1)
This he highlighted right at the beginning. The Magna Carta protected as well as separated the church away from the secular country of England, allowing it powers that the people of England did not necessarily have. The City of London's rights were similarly protected (clause 9) and these rights are maintained today and are partly the reason it is so hard to legislate and control the City.
Parts of the charter that are 'well known' are in fact frustratingly vague:
"No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land" (Clause 39)
We all know that we should be tried by our peers, but the definition of a peer is left very vague. Is this social class to social class, or wealth to wealth. The 'law of the land' is equally unclear as the king could change the law!
He highlighted a number of other clauses including one concerning fish weirs: "All fish-weirs shall be removed from the Thames, the Medway, and throughout the whole of England, except on the sea coast" (Clause 33)
This was actually deceptively important as this clause was key to the navigability of England's waterways. If they're silted up as a result of fish weirs (that trap fish), travel is restricted and therefore, trade. This clause was so important that is was in fact only removed from the statue books during the 1960s.
Vincent has a very engaging style and consistently brought humour into his talk. For example he highlighted the xenophobic character of the British that has been present for centuries:"As soon as peace is restored, we will remove from the kingdom all the foreign knights, bowmen, their attendants, and the mercenaries that have come to it, to its harm, with horses and arms" (Clause 51)
He then addressed the 'badness' of King John.
A king needed to maintain or increase the lands he inherited, and keep peace in the kingdom. John failed on both counts. He lost lands in France. Fought with and possibly murdered his nephew. Most importantly for those at home, he started interfering. Previous kings had been content to rule from the southeast and leave the rest of the country to get along by itself. Allowing the barons to essentially rule themselves.
John toured his kingdom, collecting taxes and generally, by the looks of it, thoroughly putting the backs up of all his barons.
This discontent led to the creation of the Magna Carta. Despite there being similar contemporary documents granting rights such as the Statute of Pamiers (1212) granted by Simon de Montfort near Toulouse, the creation of the charter was understood to have been important as its earlier drafts were kept.
Vincent even raised the point that the number of barons who signed the document was important and references a commentary on the bible (John, chp. 6) by St Augustine in the fourth century which I've done my best to find:
"As the number five has reference to the Law, the books of Moses being five, the number five and twenty, being made up of five pieces, has the same meaning. And this law was imperfect, before the Gospel came. Now the number of perfection is six, so therefore five is multiplied by six, which makes thirty: i.e. the law is fulfilled by the Gospel. To those then who fulfill the law Jesus comes treading on the waves, i.e. trampling under foot all the swellings of the world, all the loftiness of men: and yet such tribulations remain, that even they who believe on Jesus, fear lest they should be lost."
As
soon as peace is restored, we will remove from the kingdom all the
foreign knights, bowmen, their attendants, and the mercenaries that have
come to it, to its harm, with horses and arms - See more at:
http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/magna-carta-english-translation#sthash.BsCdAsDO.dpuf
As
soon as peace is restored, we will remove from the kingdom all the
foreign knights, bowmen, their attendants, and the mercenaries that have
come to it, to its harm, with horses and arms - See more at:
http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/magna-carta-english-translation#sthash.BsCdAsDO.dpuf
Basically, 25 is the number you want if you want divine approval in your law making. The handwriting of the different charters is also argued by Vincent to have been important as it is an ecclesiastical hand, not a secular clerk's.
The church was up to its neck in the creation of the Magna Carta and this is crucial to the understanding of its creation and its continuation. The Magna Carta is not some triumph of secular rights, religion was at the heart of it.
The handwriting part appears to have been part of new research that has come to light as part of the Magna Carta as it traces one of the Magna Carta copies to a cathedral, not Dover Castle as previously thought.
Vincent's talk was passionate and fascinating and made me view this musty 'piece of animal skin' in a different light. I have a new appreciation for it's impact on England, but also the world.
The talk was also a masterclass in public speaking. No notes that I could see. Riddled with facts and wit, and thoroughly engaging from start to finish. That's how history should be.
Factual, fun and freely accessible.
Notes
Vincent, N., "Magna Carta: Old and New", British Library, London, 13th March 2015
Magna Carta coing - http://www.royalmint.com/shop/800th_Anniversary_of_Magna_Carta_2015_UK_2_pound_BU_Coin
Magna Carta quotes - http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/magna_carta/translation.html
Statute of Pamiers - http://www.bl.uk/collection-items/mc-the-statute-of-pamiers
St Augustine quote - http://www.catecheticsonline.com/CatenaAurea-John6.php
Fish weir image - Dally, Frederick. Indian Salmon Weir at Quamichan Village on the Cowichan River, Vancouver Island. 1866. Library and Archives Canada, Vancouver.
Magna carta cartoon - http://www.historyextra.com/feature/magna-carta-turning-point-english-history
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