The Magna Carta can be defined as the document that was signed by the King John of England in the year 1215 AD. The specific intention of the document was that it would be able to limit the power of the King, and thereafter guarantee the common citizen certain basic rights. The Magna Carta has often been considered to be the beginning of the Constitutional Government in England. The document has also been referred to as the 'Great Charter', according to which the King would agree to be bound by the Law, just the same as anyone else, and would give 'freemen', which primarily meant barons, but which gradually encompassed all social classes, inalienable rights. 1 .

             However, it must be noted that initially, the Magna Carta was deemed a failure. The reason quoted was that although it was intended to be a peace document, it had the result of inflaming passions so that there was war instead. It is said that the document pretended to quote customary law, but it actually promoted disagreement and contention. Therefore, it is no great surprise that the Magna Carta was legally valid for no longer than a period of three months, and even within that time period, the terms of the document were never properly executed. However, all the same, the Magna Carta was revived three times and re-issued, in the years 1216, 1217, and 1225 respectively, and the last and final version became the Law, and recognition was given to it, so that it would be confirmed and interpreted in the Parliament and also enforced in a Court of Law. 2 .

             Although it has been stated in history that at the outset the 'cowardly' King John saw the Magna Carta simply as a sort of bargaining chip that he would be able to use when the need arose, it is a fact that this document did have its uses in the Courts of England. The events that led to the Magna Carta must be mentioned at this point. What had happened was that King John had been excommunicated in the year 1209 in a dispute that had arisen over the appointment of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the King had utilized this opportunity to confiscate property that belonged to the Church, and to sell it back again to the Bishops at a profit.