Question

a. Summarize the article below (full and complete sentences)

Standing Up to Absolute Power

1 Rebellions are not always led by the downtrodden. Sometimes, even those with the most to lose have felt the need to challenge accepted social practice. One early example of this occurred in 1215 in England, when a group of wealthy barons rose up against their king. The reasons for their rebellion were many and varied. The results of their rebellion changed the course of history.

The Feudal System

2 The European feudal system gave the king total control over land rights. He owned the land and leased it to barons. In return for the king’s generosity, the barons paid rent or taxes, promised complete loyalty, and provided the king with knights for his army. When they were not busy fighting for the king, the knights leased land from the barons, thus adding the barons’ power and pocketbooks. At the base of the feudal system were the serfs, villeins, or peasants.

3 This system required a king with unquestable authority. Such a king wold have the respect of the barons, who would live happily and wealthily, and of the knights, who would be called into battle only during occasional crises. The system may not have benefited the serfs very much, but they had no power or resources to challenge it.

King John’s Quest

4 England’s King John was not a king with unquestionable authority. He had to compete for the throne when his brother Richard died, and his revenge against his rival’s supporters made the barons unhappy. John also inherited Richard’s debts, accrued during the long and terrible Crusades. To raise money to run the country, John continued Richard’s practice of heavily taxing the barons.

5 Shortly after becoming king in 1199, John went to war against France. In rapid succession, he lost lands in Normandy and other parts of what is now the north coast of France. These losses made him appear weak, and they cost the lives of many of the barons’ knights.

6 In 1213, King John decided to win back those lost lands. He knew he would need an influx of men and money from England’s barons. He demanded knights and gold, but many barons, disgusted with John’s self-defeating foreign policy, resisted. John avenged himself by arresting some barons and attacking others in their manors. He went to war as planned, but once again, he lost.

Rebellion at Last

7 The barons refused to provide yet more money or men to their now-weakened monarch. Instad, they began to make their own demands, which King John rejected. The barons formed their own army, and civil war in England seemed imminent. The archbishop sought to negotiable a short-term peace.

8 In June of 1215, King John agreed to the Articles of the Barons, which would soon become known as Magna Carta, or the “Great Charter.” The document did not overthrow the king--that was too grand of a gesture for the barons, who still enjoyed the benefits of feudal life. Instead, it limited his authority, ensuring that he, too, would be subject to law.

9 The idea that a ruler retains power only through the consent of the governed was genuinely groundbreaking. It would later find its way into the written products of American and French revolutionaries. Many of those later rebels, like the barons of 1215, had much to lose but chose to challenge the status quo anyway.

Answer 1

Standing Up to Absolute Power

Rebellions are not always led by the downtrodden. Sometimes, even those with the most to lose have felt the need to show dissent and challenge accepted social practice. The following example which occured in 1215 in England shows how  a group of wealthy Barons stood up against their King for varied reasons and their rebellion changed the course of history in the Feudal System.

The European Feudal system gave the King complete control over land rights. He leased the owned lands to the Barons and in return the Barons paid rent or taxes, promised complete loyalty, and provided the King with Knights for his Army. When the Knights were not busy fighting for the King, they leased land from the Barons, thus adding the Barons with power and money. At the base of the Feudal system were the Serfs, Villeins, or Peasants.This system required King with unquestionable authority who let Barons live happily and wealthily and call Knights into Battle only on occasional crisis.This system had not benefitted Serfs but they had no power or resources to challenge it.

King John’s Quest

England’s King John was not a king with unquestionable authority. He competed for the Throne on his brother Richard's death and took revenge against his rival’s supporters which made the Barons unhappy. John also inherited Richard’s debts and to run the country he raised money by taxing the Barons heavily.Further, shortly after becoming King in 1199, John went for a war against France and his defeat costed him the lives of many of the Barons,  Knights and loss of lands in Normandy and other parts. In 1213, King John decided to win back those lost lands. He knew he would need an influx of men and money for the War. He demanded Knights and Gold from Barons  but many Barons disgusted with John’s self-defeating Foreign Policy, resisted. John avenged himself by arresting some Barons and attacking others in their Manors who resisted. He went to War as planned but lost once again.The Barons now refused to provide yet more money or Knights to their now-weakened Monarch. Instead, they began to make their own demands, which King John rejected. The Barons formed their own Army, and Civil War in England seemed imminent. The archbishop sought to a negotiable short-term peace.In June 1215, King John agreed to the Articles of the Barons, which is known as Magna Carta, or the “Great Charter.” The Document did not overthrow the King ,instead, it limited his authority, ensuring that he, too, would be subject to law. It was too grand of a gesture for the Barons, who still enjoyed the benefits of Feudal life.

The Idea that a ruler retains power only through the consent of the governed was genuinely groundbreaking. It would later find its way into the History of American and French revolutionaries. Many of those later rebels, like the Barons of 1215, had much to lose but chose to challenge the status quo.