June 19, 2013
In Honour of Magna Carta
Rt Hon Lord Judge (Master Judge of Middle Temple), Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, on 12 June 2013
Rt Hon Lord Judge (Master Judge of Middle Temple), Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, In Honour of Magna Carta, Temple Church, London, 12th June 2013.
39. 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 other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgement of his equals or by the law of the land
40. To no one will we sell, to no one deny or delay right or justice
On 15 June 1215 two sides in a forgotten English Civil War met at Runnymede by the banks of the Thames to see if they could, at long last, negotiate a peace. A document was prepared, but it was never signed. It was simply sealed. Although it is dated 15 June, its terms were probably not concluded until 19 June. No one called it the Great Charter, or Magna Carta. It was just another Charter.
Click here to read the full speech.
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