The Magna Carta is one of the most famous documents in history, right up there with the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. Dating from 1215 the “Great Charter” was agreed between unpopular British King John and his nobles, is one of the first documents to state that individual citizens had rights, and underlines that the king cannot simply do as he pleases.
After more than 800 years, 3 clauses of Magna Carta remain in statute in law and England and Wales to this day. The document has also provided international inspiration for many other countries who used it as a foundation for their constitutions.
But, if you’re here, you’re wondering what language it was written in.
The language of Magna Carta
There are four surviving copies of the document in the United Kingdom, two at the British Library, one at Salisbury Cathedral, and one at Lincoln Castle. However, if you decide to visit them in person it’s unlikely you’ll make much sense of them.
This is because the Magna Carta is written in abbreviated medieval Latin. To make it a little more incomprehensible it’s a single unformatted paragraph without any numbered clauses (which hadn’t been invented yet).
If you are curious as to its specifics there is an excellent English translation with modern formatting here. If you’re in the mood for medieval legal documents, we don’t think you can do much better than Magna Carta – the original and the best.
