Well, yesterday I published 'MeGath' the third book in 'The Tessellation Saga' series, on the amazing Smashwords site and will over the next few weeks work on number four, 'Trial and Time,' but for today I have other plans...
Hubby is home today, I've also got the day off and (hopefully) the weather will be bright and dry. As I speak its still dark, however optimism has ever been my thing and I'm sure we'll have a good day. The plans are for us to do a little Geocaching. I happen to know of a new cache only published yesterday somewhere in the Royal Airforce Memorial grounds in Runnymead on the river Thames. You know that amazing place where the Magna Carta was first agreed in 1215 by King John. (Wow, I've impressed myself remembering the date, but still had to drift off to ensure I got it right!!! lol)
Got this from Wikipedia...
| Magna Carta | |
One of only four surviving exemplifications of the 1215 text, Cotton MS. Augustus II. 106, property of the British Library
| |
| Created | 1215 |
| Location | Various copies |
| Author(s) | Barons of King John of England |
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Magna Carta (Latin for Great Charter),[1] also called Magna Carta Libertatum or The Great Charter of the Liberties of England, is an Angevin charter originally issued in Latin in the year 1215.
Magna Carta was the first document forced onto a King of England by a group of his subjects, the feudal barons, in an attempt to limit his powers by law and protect their privileges.
The charter was an important part of the protracted historical process that led to the rule of constitutional law in the English speaking world. Magna Carta was important in the colonization of America as England's legal system was used as a model for many of the colonies as they were developing their own legal systems.
The 1215 charter required King John of England to proclaim certain liberties and accept that his will was not arbitrary—for example by explicitly accepting that no "freeman" (in the sense of non-serf) could be punished except through the law of the land, a right that still exists.
It was preceded and directly influenced by the Charter of Liberties in 1100, in which King Henry I had specified particular areas wherein his powers would be limited.
It was translated into vernacular French as early as 1219,[2] and reissued later in the 13th century in modified versions. The later versions excluded the most direct challenges to the monarch's authority that had been present in the 1215 charter. The charter first passed into law in 1225; the 1297 version, with the long title (originally in Latin) "The Great Charter of the Liberties of England, and of the Liberties of the Forest," still remains on the statute books of England and Wales.
Despite its recognised importance, by the second half of the 19th century nearly all of its clauses had been repealed in their original form. Three clauses currently remain part of the law of England and Wales, however, and it is generally considered part of the uncodified constitution. Lord Denning described it as "the greatest constitutional document of all times – the foundation of the freedom of the individual against the arbitrary authority of the despot".[3] In a 2005 speech, Lord Woolf described it as the "first of a series of instruments that now are recognised as having a special constitutional status",[4] the others being the Habeas Corpus Act (1679), the Petition of Right (1628), the Bill of Rights (1689), and the Act of Settlement (1701).
It was Magna Carta, over other early concessions by the monarch, which survived to become a "sacred text".[5] In practice, Magna Carta in the medieval period did not generally limit the power of kings, but by the time of the English Civil War it had become an important symbol for those who wished to show that the King was bound by the law. It influenced the early settlers in New England[6]and inspired later constitutional documents, including the United States Constitution.[7]
I've pasted the whole article as I think its interesting, probably not to everyone but I quite like a bit of History, interestingly also at Runnymead and just down the hill from the Royal Airforce Memorial is a little bit of The United States of America. In fact 1 whole Acre of land is actually American soil.
The Runnymede Memorial
The Kennedy Memorial is situated at Runnymede, the meadow on the banks of the Thames where King John sealed the Magna Carta in 1215.
Although the Kennedy Trust is responsible for the Memorial, it is maintained by the National Trust and you can find out more about the area and see a map at the National Trust website.
The Memorial was designed by Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe, who drew on The Pilgrim's Progress, Bunyan's allegory of life as a journey, as inspiration for the design of the site.
There are three elements to the Memorial:
- a stepped pathway, made up of 60,000 granite setts winds up through woodland to bring the visitor to the glade where ...
- ... a seven ton block of Portland stone (pictured) stands on a plinth and is inscribed with words taken from President Kennedy's inaugural address in 1961
- a paved pathway leads to the Seats of Contemplation (the end of the journey) from where there is a superb view of Runnymede
The Memorial was opened by the Queen on the 14th May 1965 in the presence of the Prime Minster and many members of the Kennedy family. It was listed in 1998.
If you follow the link you'll find a very moving piece of film showing the memorial and its design. I've been there quite a few times and its peaceful, beautiful and serene.
So, like I said...
I'm looking forward to my day, a spot of 'caching', a walk around the RAF Memorial and a visit to the Kennedy Memorial. I'll take my camera and show you what the day brings another time!
Gotta go, the sun has got his hat on, (well its a sou'wester actually but hey ho, my skin is waterproof!)
bye................
:)
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