Of foremost relevance, King John signed the Magna Carta most reluctantly--not until he did comply with the request of Stephen Langton, Archbishop of Canterbury, in behalf of Pope Innocent III, did the Pope's Barons reinstate their Oath of Fealty to John. Shakespeare does in fact introduce Stephen Langton in his first history play, King John (3.1.143), and reference to the Oath of Fealty, renewed 4 days after the King signed Magna Carta simultaneously refers to that legal Charter. Furthermore, Shakespeare reminds us of King John's impressions of those who sought the vast quantity of land that his Mother Eleanor of Aquitaine (1122 or 1124 -- 1 April 1204) had inherited, property in France that she did seek most conscientiously to bestow her sons; land that everyone in France and in England did crave. King John's evaluation of his adversaries: "All of the kings of Christendom are led so grossly by this meddling priest; dreading the curse that money buy out...this juggling witchcraft with revenue cherish" (Shakespeare, 1955, 3.1.162-169). Shakespeare does recall that Oath in Act 3, and he does indicate that King John is somewhat innovative in the first Protestant Movement. I am not suggesting that these words be taken out of the context in which the Bard did intend them; nor am I supporting any generalized meaning of them.
One should not forget that neither King John nor his son wrote the Carta; rather, it was written by the very Barons who supported Pope Innocent III and who were represented also by Cardinal Pandulph, the Pope's legate--issues that Shakespeare himself addresses as he introduces us to the Holy See. You know, I am a bit puzzled because I introduced this subject to a distant cousin in ancestry.com more than a year ago with whom I share a family tree with the most distinguishable George Seward whom we trust is in the best of health.
Indeed, another issue about the Magna Carta relates to the entire biographies, not only of Eleanor of Aquitaine, but to those of the Plantagenet descent of her second husband Henry II, whose association in Jerusalem, I witness, is being challenged by those of contemporary Western faiths.
King John's Mother, hence his son Henry III's Grandmother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and Eleanor's first husband, Louis VII (the Younger or the Young) of France with whom she sojourned in the futile Second Crusade, ultimately represented diverse ethical and religious quests.
Geoffrey V Plantagenet (1113-1151), the father of Eleanor's second husband, Henry II, was the first Plantagenet--his Father was Fulk V the Younger of Anjou (1092-1143), documented as a "King of Jerusalem" who died in Israel; his Mother, Ermengarde DuMaine (1096-1126). Henry II's line to William the Conqueror is through his Mother Matilda P. England (1102-1169), the daughter of Henry Beauclerc (1068-1135) and Mathilda of Scotland (1080-1118). Please correct me if this is erroneous information.
We must value and continue to research important concepts, analogies, and examples that are covered by the Oxford English Dictionary (the OED)--Elizabethan and Renaissance times do coincide, as indicated through the importance of the Magna Carta that is at last recognized by leaders who supported and influenced Shakespeare's first history play, which also indicates the adversaries of King John who did accuse him of conspiring in the death of his young nephew Arthur (29 March 1187-1203). Shakespeare in fact quotes some magnificent lines of Eleanor who thought that Arthur was too young to manage the kingdom--Arthur was 20 years younger than John. Even Hubert, a citizen of Angiers before he served King John, did not take the life of 16-year old Arthur. After King John realized the seriousness of the issue, he expressed remorse just before Arthur jumped from a castle tower. Adamantly supported in France and in Italy by those who did not wish to return to Eleanor any property she intended for her sons, Constance, the widow of John's brother Geoffrey, preferred war to win the crown for her son who was 20-years younger than John. This issue is too frequently ignored.
Another issue that Shakespeare remarkably addresses is his introduction of the "Bastard" son of Eleanor's first son, Richard de Coeur (Richard the Lionhearted) who always spoke French and who throughout the Crusades was respected by Muslims--at last knighted as Sir Richard Plantagenet (Philip).
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King John (V, ii)by TheInnerBelow155 views
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