2-693-067 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

'King John signing Magna Charta, at the desire of the English Barons who take up Arms in the Cause of Liberty, in Runnemead Meadow, between Stains and Windsor, June 5 1215', (c1780). 18th century depiction of King John signing the Magna Carta Libertatum, an English charter which limited the rights of the monarch and is regarded as being the first step in establishing the rule of constitutional law that applies today. King John was compelled to sign it at Runnymede by the River Thames in Berkshire, in the face of a baronial revolt.