| 1215/06/15 |
John of England |
English Sovereign |
King John signs the Great Charter |
Runnymede |
Egham |
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| 1225/02/11 |
Henry III of England |
English Sovereign |
King Henry III himself authenticates the Magna Carta with his Great Seal. As the final and definitive version, clauses of the 1225 charter, not the charter of 1215, are on the Statute Book of the United Kingdom today. |
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| 1226/00/00 |
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A copy of the Magna Carta, now known as the Burnt copy, is most likely deposited at Canterbury Cathedral, perhaps having passed through the hands of Archbishop Stephen Langton. |
Canterbury Cathedral |
Canterbury |
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| 1226/00/00 |
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After the knights of Wiltshire circulate a copy of the 1225 Magna Carta in their county, they deposit the charter for safekeeping in Lacock Abbey. |
Lacock Abbey, Wiltshire |
Lacock |
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| 1630/00/00 |
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From Dover Castle, Sir Edward Dering (1598-1644), sends a copy of the Magna Carta, now known as the Burnt copy, to Sir Robert Cotton (1571-1631). |
Dover Castle |
Dover |
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| 1702/00/00 |
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The library of Sir Robert Cotton, including two copies of the Magna Cartas, enters national ownership. The collection will later be moved to Ashburnham House, Westminster, for safekeeping. |
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| 1731/10/23 |
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Flames from a chimney fire spread to the library, destroying a handful of the Cotton manuscripts completely. A copy of the Magna Carta is burnt while the Great Seal of King John is melted into a shapeless lump of wax. |
Little Deans Yard Ashburnham House |
Westminster School, Little Deans Yard |
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| 1939/05/00 |
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At the New York World's Fair, the Magna Carta is displayed in a case in the British Pavilion (lost). |
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1939 New York World's Fair |
| 1939/06/10 |
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At the New York World's Fair in Queens NY, King George climbs the British Pavilion's steps, guarded by two Saxon lions, and tours the exhibits, stopping longest at the case displaying the Magna Carta. |
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King George and Queen Elizabeth Visit the New York World's Fair |
| 1945/00/00 |
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One of four surviving originals, the knights of Wiltshire's copy of Magna Carta leaves Lacock and is presented to the British Museum. It is now in the collections of the British Library. |
British Museum |
London |
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| 1997/00/00 |
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The British Library moves to new buildings next to St Pancras Station. |
The British Library, London |
London |
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| 1998/00/00 |
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The Burnt copy of Magna Carta with the seal attached, one of the four surviving copies of the 1215 Magna Carta, is moved to the new location of the British Library. |
The British Library, London |
London |
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| 2009/00/00 |
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The British Library's copies of the Magna Carta are inscribed in UNESCO's Memory of the World register. |
The British Library, London |
London |
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| 2009/00/00 |
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The Salisbury Cathedral's copy of the Magna Carta is recorded in UNESCO's Memory of the World register. |
Salisbury Cathedral, Eng |
Salisbury, Eng |
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| 2009/00/00 |
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The Lincoln Cathedral's copy of the Magna Carta is registered in UNESCO's Memory of the World project. |
Lincoln Cathedral, Eng |
Lincoln, Eng |
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