History

Liberty, Power, and the Magna Carta

ABSTRACT

For nearly eight centuries, the Magna Carta has been associated with the cause of individual liberties against the power of the state. In this conference, we read the Great Charter alongside notable historical interpretations and modern commentary to gain greater understanding about its role in the past and future of the free society.

READING LIST

From Liberty Fund

The Selected Writings of Sir Edward Coke

by By Sir Edward Coke
Edited by Steve Sheppard

Sir Edward Coke (1552–1634) successfully defended English liberties against the royal prerogative of the Stuart kings and virtually single-handedly established the rule of law for the English-speaking peoples. Coke’s view of English law has had a powerful influence on lawyers, judges, and politicians through the present day.

It was Coke’s…

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Additional Readings

Bentham, Jeremy. The Works of Jeremy Bentham, Volume 2 [1843]. Edinburgh: published under the Superintendence of his Executor, John Bowring, 1838-1843.

Bentham, Jeremy. The Works of Jeremy Bentham, Volume 3 [1843]. Edinburgh: published under the Superintendence of his Executor, John Bowring, 1838-1843.

Bentham, Jeremy. The Works of Jeremy Bentham, Volume 4 [1843]. Edinburgh: published under the Superintendence of his Executor, John Bowring, 1838-1843.

Bentham, Jeremy. The Works of Jeremy Bentham, Volume 5 [1843]. Edinburgh: published under the Superintendence of his Executor, John Bowring, 1838-1843.

Bentham, Jeremy. The Works of Jeremy Bentham, Volume 1 [1843]. Edinburgh: published under the Superintendence of his Executor, John Bowring, 1838-1843.

Brady, Robert. A Complete History of England. London: Printed by T. Newcomb, 1685.

Burke, Edmund. Writings and Speeches of Edmund Burke, Volume 1: The Early Writings. Edited by T. O. McLoughlin and James T. Boulton. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Holt, James Clarke, “The Ancient Constitution in Medieval England” In The Roots of Liberty: Magna Carta, Ancient Constitution, and the Anglo-American Tradition of Rule of Law, edited by Ellis Sandoz, 32-74. Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 2008.

Hume, David. The History of England, Volume I. Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, Inc., 1983.

Sandoz, Ellis, “Appendix: Text and Translation of Magna Carta” In The Roots of Liberty: Magna Carta, Ancient Constitution, and the Anglo-American Tradition of Rule of Law, edited by Ellis Sandoz, 335-350. Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 2008.

Selden, John. Opera Omnia. London: J. Walthoe, 1726.