Melvyn Bragg explores the events of 1215 and the dispute between King John and his barons which led to the issuing of one of the most important documents in English history. As England descended into what seemed an inevitable civil war, a group of rebellious noblemen forced the English king to the negotiating table. Melvyn visits Canterbury, seat of Archbishop Stephen Langton, one of the key figures in the peace negotiations, and comes face to face with the document sealed on the field at Runnymede on June 15th, 1215: Magna Carta.

With: David Carpenter, Professor of Medieval History at King's College London; Claire Breay, Curator of the British Library's Magna Carta exhibition; and Nicholas Vincent, Professor of Medieval History at the University of East Anglia.

Producer: Thomas Morris. Show less