Top of the morning to you blog readers. This time we are going to go back in time and learn about the Magna Carta in this short two-part documentary which is narrated by Hugh Bonneville. It is called The Secrets of the Magna Carta. The run time for this documentary is 50:21.
The Magna Carta was a legendary document that changed the course of history. It is known as the Great Charter and was an agreement between two warring parties. It was a document that highlighted what freedoms the ordinary man had. It legitimized property rights. This document dates back to the time of Robin Hood and is a highly valued document. It is sometimes called the most important document in world history. This series covers the history of the Magna Carta. The episode starts with a trip to the auction house in New York City. A piece of paper is one auction. The document sells for nineteen million dollars. The story of the Magna Carta has its roots in the Robin Hood legend. Robin Hood would symbolize the freedom fighters who waged war against the government officials bent on imposing their will on the ordinary people. However, to further understand how Manga Carta came about one has to go back in time to the Time of William the Conqueror. He had defeated and subjugated the native Anglo-Saxons. He would impose a French-style rule where the King had absolute power. He ruthlessly taxed the people. It was interesting to hear the Domesday Book is described as a mechanism for spying on the people only to tax them. I also found it interesting to hear William the Conqueror being described as a dictator, which past documentaries never really touched. I really did not know what to expect and at the end of this section, I was pleasantly surprised. The people lived under ruthless Kings who thought of England as their hunting grounds and not a country to be ruled. England was described at the time “as a cow, meant to be milked.” By the time King John came to the throne, the people were fed up with their rulers. This was symbolized in the legends of Robin Hood who would rob the government officials and give back to the people. There was a particularly nasty government official, of whom the Sheriff of Nottingham was based, called Philip Mark. He was an unpleasant individual. Eventually, King John is defeated and loses his domain in France. He is forced to live in England. It would be the first time an English King would have to live in England. That was surprising to hear and I wonder how much of it was true. King John was known as a murderer and starved a woman to death. King John wanted to get his French domains back and would raise money off the backs of the people. Everything the people did or did not do was taxed. Justice was sold to the highest bidder. The barons and the people hated him with a passion. King John continued to amass money and he was going to get his French possessions back. However, his expedition back into France was for naught. He had a devasting defeat and was sent back to England with his tail between his legs. The Barons rebelled against a defeated King. King John eventually is forced to agree to the barons’ terms. The Magna Carta is born. Then there is an examination of an original copy of the document. It was fascinating to hear the process by which the document was formed. King John would not have signed the document himself, he would have affixed his seal. It was interesting to discover that he could not write. For the most part English Kings at the time would not have written out their names, they would have just affixed their great seal on the document. How did this document impact the King? How did this document impact the people? To learn more about the Magna Carta continue to watch this episode. I was nervous about doing this documentary about the Magna Carta. I really did not know what to expect while watching this documentary. It was a fascinating watch, especially with all the old film clips that were used. I missed the historians saying that King John was so bad even the Pope excommunicated him. Overall it was a very interesting documentary on the Magna Carta and I would use it for research purposes.
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The purpose of this blog is to share information on what can be used in a classroom, private school, or home school setting as well as serve as a portfolio of my personal and professional work. The reviews are my opinions and should be treated as such. I just want to provide a tool for teachers to select documentaries for their classrooms. |