Which statement about Magna Carta is accurate?

Which statement about Magna Carta is accurate?

• A. It granted universal suffrage
• B. It established the English Parliament
• C. It codified the U.S. Constitution
• D. It limited the king's power and influenced later constitutional documents

Answer: (D)

Restraining the king's power and establishing that rulers are bound by law. Magna Carta, sealed in 1215, was a peace agreement in which the king agreed to limits on his authority. It asserted that the crown could not levy taxes or punish free men without lawful procedures, and it protected certain legal rights, like a fair trial and protection from unlawful imprisonment. The enduring idea is that the monarch’s power is not absolute and must operate within the law. Over time, those ideas shaped the emergence of a governing framework that requires consent for taxation and governance, contributing to the development of the English Parliament and to later constitutional documents such as the Petition of Right, Habeas Corpus, and the Bill of Rights. The influence even extends beyond England, helping to shape concepts found in the United States Constitution regarding limited government and due process. It’s not accurate to say Magna Carta granted universal voting rights, nor that it established Parliament as we know it, and it certainly did not codify the U.S. Constitution.

Restraining the king's power and establishing that rulers are bound by law. Magna Carta, sealed in 1215, was a peace agreement in which the king agreed to limits on his authority. It asserted that the crown could not levy taxes or punish free men without lawful procedures, and it protected certain legal rights, like a fair trial and protection from unlawful imprisonment. The enduring idea is that the monarch’s power is not absolute and must operate within the law.

Over time, those ideas shaped the emergence of a governing framework that requires consent for taxation and governance, contributing to the development of the English Parliament and to later constitutional documents such as the Petition of Right, Habeas Corpus, and the Bill of Rights. The influence even extends beyond England, helping to shape concepts found in the United States Constitution regarding limited government and due process.

It’s not accurate to say Magna Carta granted universal voting rights, nor that it established Parliament as we know it, and it certainly did not codify the U.S. Constitution.