Oxford University Department for Continuing
Education
King John, Magna Carta and the Community of
the Realm
Tutor: Elizabeth Gemmill
1. Exercise based on work done in the session on The Angevin
Monarchy
(a) Gerald of Wales, c. 1190. Source: English Historical Documents, II.
1042-1189, edited by David C. Douglas and George W. Greenaway
(London: Eyre Methuen, 2nd edition, 1981) (hereafter English Historical
Documents, II), pp. 415 - 418.
(b) Walter Map, c. 1190-3. Source: English Historical Documents, II.
418-420.
Please read the contemporary descriptions of Henry II and his style of
kingship and consider the following questions.
(i) How might the background of the writers have influenced the form
and content of their writing?
(ii) What are their strengths and weaknesses as historical sources?
(iii) How do they compare with one another in the way they describe
Henry II and his style of kingship?
2. Exercise based on work done in the session on John Lackland
Richard of Devizes’ account of events in England during the absence of
Richard I on crusade. Source: The Chronicle of Richard of Devizes of the
Time of King Richard the First, edited by John T. Appleby (London:
Nelson, 1963), pp. 48 - 50.
What does this source tell us about John’s ambitions in England, and
what resources appear to have been important in gaining power?
3. Exercise based on work done in the session on Accession and the
Loss of Normandy
The account of Jocelin of Brakelond of relations between the abbey of
Bury St Edmunds and the monarchy. Source: Jocelin of Brakelond,
Chronicle of the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds, edited by Diana Greenway
and Jane E. Sayers (Oxford University Press, 1989), pp. 102-3.
What might the historian learn from this about relations between the
monarchy and the abbey at the time of the new king’s accession?
4. Exercise based on work done in the session on King John and the
Church.
Letter of Pope Innocent III to King John after receipt of his letters of
submission in 1213 following the Interdict. Source: Selected Letters of
Pope Innocent III, edited by C.R. Cheney and W.H. Semple (London:
Nelson, 1953), pp. 149-151.
What sort of a document is this, and what can we learn from it about the
relationships – in the past and as anticipated for the future – between
Pope Innocent III and King John?
5. Exercise based on work done in the session on The Government of
England.
Two accounts of the king’s treatment of William de Braose: that of the
chronicler Roger of Wendover and that of the Crown. Source: J.A.P.
Jones, King John and Magna Carta (London: Longman, 1971 and
reprinted), pp. 122-4.
How do the two accounts of King John’s treatment of William and his
dependants differ, and what might we learn from them about John’s style
of kingship?
6. Exercise based on work done in the session on Ireland, Wales and
Scotland.
Letter of Llywelyn the Great to Philip Augustus, c. 1212. Source: J.A.P.
Jones, King John and Magna Carta (London: Longman, 1971 and
reprinted), p. 125.
What might the historian learn from this letter about the status of
Llywelyn and his relationships with the kings of France and England?
7. Exercise based on work done in the session on The Revolt of the
Barons.
Letter of Pope Innocent III to Archbishop Stephen Langton, 1215.
Source: Selected Letters of Pope Innocent III, edited by C.R. Cheney and
W.H. Semple (London: Nelson, 1953), pp. 196-7.
What was the purpose of Pope Innocent’s letter, and what might the
historian learn from it about Stephen Langton’s involvement in the
baronial rebellion?
8. Exercise based on work done in the session on Magna Carta
The text of the Great Charter of Liberties, 1215 (Magna Carta). Source:
J.C. Holt, Magna Carta (Cambridge University Press, 1992 and
reprinted), pp. 449-473.
What can the historian learn from this document about the nature of royal
authority in the early thirteenth century?
This work by Elizabeth Gemmill is licensed by the University of Oxford under a
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Licence.