Political Changes Timeline
By Jillian Less
December, 1167
King John was born on December 24th, 1167. He was born in Oxford, England during his father's, King Arthur II, reign. This is important because King John was a major key in political developments, without his birth lots of today's current events wouldn't have happened.
April, 1199
On April 6th, 1199, King John's brother, Richard the Lionheart, or King Richard, dies. John is crowned king and takes the throne of England. This would set the stage for his kingship and start his journey to multiple issues, but with political development along the way.
May, 1199
May 27th, 1199, King John's coronation takes place. It was over a month after his elder brother's demise.
????, 1205
King John became involved with the Pope Innocent III in 1205, they began to have issues with one another. King John didn't like the way the pope had threatened his leadership and power over his own people.
????, 1209
King John is excommunicated from the Church, meaning he wasn't allowed to attend Church, nor were his people. He was excommunicated due to now accepting Stephen Langton as the new Archbishop. He was officially let back into religious activity after he finally accepted the new religious figure.
July, 1214
On July 27th, 1214 Frace defeats England at the Battle of Bouvines. King John accepts an unwanted truce between the two nations. This is important because it's what started the issues between the barons and King John.
????, 1214
Rebel barons begin to stand up against King John due to taxing that had been going on during the past two years. They started to betray him, hoping he would change. This is important because it made King John realize that he truly needed his barons, and would change because of them regardless if he wanted to or not.
June, 1215
On June 15th, 1215, King John signs the Magna Carta, a document giving more rights to the people than they've had before. The barons had forced him to sign it. This is a major point in early political thought, and the downfall of feudalism. This started to bring the idea of democratic thought about.
????, 1264
The parliament begins to take shape. The parliament still exists today and is a large legislative branch in the United Kingdom, these things from the past still exist today.
????, 1297
King Edward I reissues the Magna Carta, giving even more rights to the people and updating it further. This really was a large change for the people of England and other nations.