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Archbishop Stephen Langton a Key Figure in the History of the Magna Carta

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Archbishop Stephen Langton a Key Figure in the History of the Magna Carta Archbishop Stephen Langton A Key Figure in the History of the Magna Carta Stephen Langton (Archbishop of Canterbury 1207-1228) was one of the great theologians and churchmen of the Middles Ages. He was also an important figure in the history of the Magna Carta. Early Life Stephen Langton was born around 1150 in Wragsby, rural Lincolnshire, and was probably educated in the local cathedral school. At about 15 years of age he moved to Paris University to study the arts and theology, in time becoming a respected Master – the equivalent of a university professor today – in his own right. His system for organising Old and New Testament writings into books and chapters is still the basis of the Bible used today. Langton was prolific and influential in his own writings and he looked for guidance from the Bible on how society in his day should be ordered. He argued that God had not intended the world to be ruled by kings predisposed to rule oppressively and without regard to the law. These core beliefs, ultimately, would inform his approach to the dilemma of King John of England who inflicted harsh punishments on his subjects without recourse to the law or seeking to obtain agreement from his Bishops and Barons. Consecration as Archbishop of Canterbury In 1206 he was called from Paris to Rome and made a Exterior Canterbury Cathedral Cardinal and the following year, against the wishes of King John of England, was consecrated by Pope Innocent III as Archbishop of Canterbury, although still in Rome. King John refused to accept his appointment and the Pope imposed an interdict on England, meaning that the Church’s sacraments (such as Confession and the Eucharist) were forbidden to everyone in the Kingdom. Almost all of England’s bishops sided with Langton and left to join Langton in his exile in France. Eventually political unrest at home, the threat of rebellion by his nobles and war with France forced King John to accept the Pope’s appointment. Magna Carta Stephen Langton and his bishops returned to England in the summer of 2013 and began the difficult task of trying to prevent a civil war between the King and the Barons. The Barons placed their trust in Langton and other bishops as mediators and two charters were drawn up, firstly the Articles of the Barons and then, shortly afterwards, the Magna Carta which we celebrate today. It is believed that Langton was a key figure in setting down in writing what the Barons wanted and framing it in a way that would bind the King. But Langton also believed in peaceful resolution and in working for reconciliation and it is said that he knelt in prayer with King John the evening before the charter was signed. The historic charter was sealed at Runnymede in 1215. Whilst the peace that followed its signing broke down almost immediately, Stephen Langton continued in his efforts to end civil strife and refused to excommunicate the rebel barons. A furious King John suspended the Archbishop from office and Langton was again banished from England. Later Life He returned on the death of the King in 1216 and it was during the early years of John’s successor, the young King Henry III, that Stephen Langton became a tirelessly committed negotiator and promoter of the charter and the civil liberties it enshrined. Two earlier revisions had been granted in 1216 and 1217 to woo the still rebellious barons away from France, but in 1225 a newly revised charter was issued which in time became definitive. Its acceptance was undoubtedly helped by the broad sentence of excommunication in support of the Magna Carta issued by Archbishop Langton which meant that anyone – King, royal officers or barons – who violated the terms of the charter would be automatically outlawed from the Church. But it must be imagined also that Langton’s visibly profound beliefs in the freedom of the church, the universal concepts of justice and the right of all men to be treated fairly under the law were important factors. Archbishop Langton’s roles as a defender of the English church and senior statesman continued to the end of his life but in 1227, now in his eighties, he retired from court. On 7th July 1228 he took part in the Feast of St Thomas à Becket in Canterbury. Weakened and ill, he was taken by litter to his manor at Slindon where he died, probably on the 9th July, to be buried a few days later at Canterbury. Stephen Langton’s known legacy in prayer is Stephen Langton crowning Henry III at Westminster as the sequence “Veni, Spiritus Sanctus” (Come, depicted by Matthew Paris at the time Holy Ghost). We celebrate him for his important and lasting contribution to the evolution of human freedoms. Sources: “Oxford Dictionary of National Biography”, Corpus Christi Cambridge, “Magna Carta – The Making & Legacy of the Great Charter” by Dan Jones, “A Brief History of Magna Carta” by Geoffrey Hindley and the website www. magnacarta800th.com .
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