Magna Carta

The Birth of Liberty

By: Dan Jones

Narrated by: Dan Jones

Length: 7 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

From the New York Times best-selling author of The Plantagenets, a lively, action-packed history of how the Magna Carta came to be - by the author of Powers and Thrones.

The Magna Carta is revered around the world as the founding document of Western liberty. Its principles - even its language - can be found in our Bill of Rights and in the Constitution. But what was this strange document and how did it gain such legendary status?

Dan Jones takes us back to the turbulent year of 1215, when, beset by foreign crises and cornered by a growing domestic rebellion, King John reluctantly agreed to fix his seal to a document that would change the course of history. At the time of its creation the Magna Carta was just a peace treaty drafted by a group of rebel barons who were tired of the king's high taxes, arbitrary justice, and endless foreign wars. The fragile peace it established would last only two months, but its principles have reverberated over the centuries.

Jones's riveting narrative follows the story of the Magna Carta's creation, its failure, and the war that subsequently engulfed England, and charts the high points in its unexpected afterlife. Reissued by King John's successors it protected the Church, banned unlawful imprisonment, and set limits to the exercise of royal power. It established the principle that taxation must be tied to representation and paved the way for the creation of Parliament.

In 1776 American patriots, inspired by that long-ago defiance, dared to pick up arms against another English king and to demand even more far-reaching rights. We think of the Declaration of Independence as our founding document but those who drafted it had their eye on the Magna Carta.

©2015 Dan Jones (P)2015 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Lively and excellent." (The New York Times)

"By putting the Magna Carta in its proper historical context, the brilliant young historian Dan Jones triumphantly answers the questions he poses in his Introduction, about how it came to be granted, what it meant at the time, and what it should mean to us today." (Andrew Roberts, New York Times best-selling author of Napoleon)

"Dan Jones has an enviable gift for telling a dramatic story while at the same time inviting us to consider serious topics like liberty and the seeds of representative government." (Antonia Frasier)

Insightful Telling of History

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I came into this book with almost no understanding of the history of Europe or the history of the Magna Carta beyond its influence on American political documents and thinking. I chose this book to learn some of the most enduring ideas in this enduring work and I was not disappointed. I found the amazing machinations of history and the real world demands of people that brought together the forces that created the Magna Carta compelling as well. Suffice it to say, I did not have any difficulty in drawing comparisons of the challenges presented by King John to our modern political context and that made me somewhat hopeful The audio book was strengthened by the author being the reader.

Great listen and narration

I really like dan jones. I first discovered him by the series secrets of great British castles and when I saw he wrote and narrated this one I immediately had to get it. I definitely wasn’t disappointed!

Looking back, to look forward

Dan Jones has an excellent grasp of history in a modern context. Enjoyed it immensely.

Complicated period of history made accessible

Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty by historian Dan Jones is excellent. As with his previous books, The Wars of the Roses: The Fall of the Plantagenets and the Rise of the Tudors and The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England , Mr. Jones makes a very complicated period of history accessible.

The Magna Carta is often referred to as the starting point for our own Constitution. Ironically it was never intended as a tool to help the common man. It was intended to benefit the nobility by controlling a despotic king. Mr. Jones does a wonderful job of setting up the circumstances that required the creation of the Magna Carta. He also explains that it was not just one document and done. It was reissued with changes over the course of many years. It is a fascinating timeline to follow how a barons’s rebellion is credited in the creation of some many documents which brought freedom to nation’s citizens.

Honestly I enjoyed John Curless’s narration of War of the Roses better than Mr. Jones’s narration of Magna Carta. I did enjoy Mr. Jone’s narration better than Clive Chafer’s narration of The Plantagenets. Mr. Jones has a pleasant voice. He certainly knows the text having written it. He provides emphasis where it is needed. It just comes down to personal choice in narrators. I would highly recommend Magna Carta. It is wonderful and not dry.

This book was provided free from Audiobook Addicts on Facebook as a prize for a contest.

Good read!!

I love how this book ties into modern day constitutions, I think it could have been expounded upon a little more. Overall a good book!!!

Informative, fascinating, and enlightening

I really enjoyed the learning g the real history behind the Magna Carta as well as the explanations of the spirit of the text. It is very fascinating to see how ideas grow from infancy.

best book I have read in years. informational yet

this chronological explanation kept me on the edge of my seat. I was surprised I even liked it as I thought it would be a text book.

Informative and Fascinating Account

I knew nothing of the Plantagenet kings or of the most diabolical of them all, King John, prior to hearing this audio book. Neither did I know what prompted the barons of his time to write the Magna Carta, a document that is referred to with reverence today. This history is fascinating as are the links the author draws between the Magna Carta and legal documents outlining human rights that have been subsequently put in place in countries around the world. The author is the narrator. He has a wonderful speaking voice, is enthusiastic about his subject, and reads at a fine pace for the listener to take in the story.

Interesting Book

Interesting information and good storytelling. It’s helpful to have a better understanding for the historical context of the Magna Carta.

Nice dive into the history of the MC

Since listening I have a much clearer sense of the events that drove the Barons to rebel against King John. The same frustration the Barons felt would be felt by the founders of the US some 500+ y ears later. Very interesting.