卤碱李培锋:《大宪章》中文导读（附英文全文）
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《大宪章》签署于1215年，是封建贵族与人民反约翰王起义的产物。
《大宪章》共六十三款。就具体条款而言，《大宪章》是对几百年来国王与贵族之间的封建契约关系的全面“记述”，绝大多数条款只是重申了人所共知的封建习惯，其中，关于贵族们的封建权利，特别是有关免役税、领地继承税、助钱、未成年继承人的监护权等问题占有最突出的地位。因此，如果单纯着眼于《大宪章》的具体条款，它无疑是个封建契约文件。
但《大宪章》首次把过去的封建成规集中在一个统一的文件中，以具体申述陈旧法律的含蓄形式，体现和宣告了一条崇高的宪法原则－－王权有限、法律至上。一位美国学者曾指出：尽管大宪章以其具体性、明确性而著称，但它的重要性在于它宣告了一条基本原则，即：有一组法律高于国王之上，用梅特兰和波洛克的话说就是：“国王低于法律，而且应该低于法律。” 把一般原则寓于具体条款之内，恰恰是《大宪章》的奇妙之处，随着时间的流逝、社会的进步，《大宪章》的大部分具体规定都被抛进了历史的垃圾堆，“但《大宪章》一直作为国王应遵守法律的象征而矗立着。”
《大宪章》是英国历史上第一个分配社会权利的宪法文献。它的主旨在于限制王权即国家权力而保障社会成员的权利，尽管在当时的社会中，受益的社会成员只占少数，仅限于自由人，但随着历史的发展和农奴制的瓦解，越来越多的不自由的农奴摆脱了封建枷锁而成为自由人，从而也纳入了《大宪章》的
保障范围之内，致使社会权利的受益面越来越宽泛。
总之，《大宪章》是英国宪法史上第一个重要的宪法性文件，是英国宪政史上的一个重要里程碑。
（以上文字主要来源于程汉大：《英国法制史》）
英文全文：
The Magna Carta
JOHN, by the grace of God King of England, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, and Count of Anjou, to his archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, barons, justices, foresters, sheriffs, stewards, rvants, and to all his officials and loyal subjects, Greeting.
KNOW THAT BEFORE GOD, for the health of our soul and tho of our ancestors and heirs, to the honour of God, the exaltation of the holy Church, and the better ordering of our kingdom, at the advice of our reverend fathers Stephen, archbishop of Canterbury, primate of all England, and cardinal of the holy Roman Church, Henry archbishop of Dublin, William bishop of London, Peter bishop of Winchester, Jocelin bishop of Bath and Glastonbury, Hugh bishop of Lincoln, Walter Bishop of Worcester, William bishop of Co
ventry, Benedict bishop of Rochester, Master Pandulf subdeacon and member of the papal houhold, Brother Aymeric master of the knighthood of the Temple in England, William Marshal earl of Pembroke, William earl of Salisbury, William earl of Warren, William earl of Arundel, Alan de Galloway constable of Scotland, Warin Fitz Gerald, Peter Fitz Herbert, Hubert de Burgh neschal of Poitou, Hugh de Neville, Matthew Fitz Herbert, Thomas Bast, Alan Bast, Philip Daubeny, Robert de Roppeley, John Marshal, John Fitz Hugh, and other loyal subjects:
(1) FIRST, THAT WE HAVE GRANTED TO GOD, and by this prent charter have confirmed for us and our heirs in perpetuity, that the English Church shall be free, and shall have its rights undiminished, and its liberties unimpaired. That we wish this so to be obrved, appears from the fact that of our own free will, before the outbreak of the prent dispute between us and our barons, we granted and confirmed by charter the freedom of the Church‘s elections - a right reckoned to be of the greatest necessity and importance to it - and caud this to be confirmed by Pope Innocent III. This freedom we shall obrve ourlves, and desire to be obrved in good faith by our heirs in perpetuity.
TO ALL FREE MEN OF OUR KINGDOM we have also granted, for us and our heirs for ever, all the liberties written out below, to have and to keep for them and their heirs, of us and our heirs:
(2) If any earl, baron, or other person that holds lands directly of the Crown, for military rvice, shall die, and at his death his heir shall be of full age and owe a `relief‘, the heir shall have his inheritance on payment of the ancient scale of `relief‘. That is to say, the heir or heirs of an earl shall pay ?00 for the entire earl‘s barony, the heir or heirs of a knight l00s. at most for the entire knight‘s `fee‘, and any man that owes less shall pay less, in accordance with the ancient usage of `fees‘
(3) But if the heir of such a person is under age and a ward, when he comes of age he shall have his inheritance without `relief‘ or fine.
(4) The guardian of the land of an heir who is under age shall take from it only reasonable revenues, customary dues, and feudal rvices. He shall do this without destruction or damage to men or property. If we have given the guardianship of the land to a sheriff, or to any person answerable to us for the revenues, and he commits destruction or damage, we will exact compensation from him, and the land shall be entrusted to two worthy and prudent men of the same `fee‘, who shall be answerable to us for the revenues, or to the person to whom we have assigned them. If we have given or sold to anyone the guardianship of such land, and he caus destruction or damage, he shall lo the guardianship of it, and it shall be handed over to two worthy and prudent men of the same `fee‘, who shall be similarly answerable to us.
(5) For so long as a guardian has guardi
forkliftanship of such land, he shall maintain the hous, parks, fish prerves, ponds, mills, and everything el pertaining to it, from the revenues of the land itlf. When the heir comes of age, he shall restore the whole land to him, stocked with plough teams and such implements of husbandry as the ason demands and the revenues from the land can reasonably bear.
(6) Heirs may be given in marriage, but not to someone of lower social standing. Before a marriage takes place, it shall be‘ made known to the heir‘s next-of-kin.
(7) At her husband‘s death, a widow may have her marriage portion and inheritance at once and without trouble. She shall pay nothing for her dower, marriage portion, or any inheritance that she and her husband held jointly on the day of his death. She may remain in her husband‘s hou for forty days after his death, and within this period her dower shall be assigned to her.
(8) No widow shall be compelled to marry, so long as she wishes to remain without a husband. But she must give curity that she will not marry without royal connt, if she holds her lands of the Crown, or without the connt of whatever other lord she may hold them of.
(9) Neither we nor our officials will ize any land or rent in payment of a debt, so long as the debtor has movable goods sufficient to discharge the debt. A debtor‘s sureties shall not be distrained upon so long as the debtor himlf can discharge his debt. If, for lack of means, the debtor is unable to discharge his debt, his sureties shall be answerable for it. If they so desire, they may have the debtor‘s lands and rents until they have received satisfaction for the debt that they paid for him, unless the debtor can show that he has ttled his obligations to them.
(10) If anyone who has borrowed a sum of money from Jews dies before the debt has been repaid, his heir shall pay no interest on the debt for so long as he remains under age, irrespective of whom he holds his lands. If such a debt falls into the hands of the Crown, it will take nothing except the principal sum specified in the bond.
(11) If a man dies owing money to Jews, his wife may have her dower and pay nothing towards the debt from it. If he leaves children that are under age, their needs may also be provided for on a scale appropriate to the size of his holding of lands. The debt is to be paid out of the residue, rerving the rvice due to his feudal lords. Debts owed to persons other than Jews are to be dealt with similarly.
(12) No `scutage‘ or `aid‘ may be levied in our kingdom without its general connt, unless it is for th
e ransom of our person, to make our eldest son a knight, and (once) to marry our eldest daughter. For the purpos ouly a reasonable `aid‘ may be levied. `Aids‘ from the city of London are to be treated similarly.
(13) The city of London shall enjoy all its ancient liberties and free customs, both by land and by water. We also will and grant
that all other cities, boroughs, towns, and ports shall enjoy all their liberties and free customs.
(14) To obtain the general connt of the realm for the asssment of an `aid‘ - except in the three cas specified above - or a `scutage‘, we will cau the archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, and greater barons to be summoned individually by letter. To tho who hold lands directly of us we will cau a general summons to be issued, through the sheriffs and other officials, to come together on a fixed day (of which at least forty days notice shall be given) and at a fixed place. In all letters of summons, the cau of the summons will be stated. When a summons has been issued, the business appointed for the day shall go forward in accordance with the resolution of tho prent, even if not all tho who were summoned have appeared.
(15) In future we will allow no one to levy an `aid‘ from his free men, except to ransom his person, to
make his eldest son a knight, and (once) to marry his eldest daughter. For the purpos only a reasonable `aid‘ may be levied.
(16) No man shall be forced to perform more rvice for a knight‘s `fee‘, or other free holding of land, than is due from it.
(17) Ordinary lawsuits shall not follow the royal court around, but shall be held in a fixed place.
(18) Inquests of novel disisin, mort d‘ancestor, and darrein prentment shall be taken only in their proper county court. We ourlves, or in our abnce abroad our chief justice, will nd two justices to each county four times a year, and the justices, with four knights of the county elected by the county itlf, shall hold the assizes in the county court, on the day and in the place where the court meets.
(19) If any assizes cannot be taken on the day of the county court, as many knights and freeholders shall afterwards remain behind, of tho who have attended the court, as will suffice for the administration of justice, having regard to the volume of business to be done.
(20) For a trivial offence, a free man shall be fined only in proportion to the degree of his offence, an
wdbd for a rious offence correspondingly, but not so heavily as to deprive him of his livelihood. In the same way, a merchant shall be spared his merchandi, and a husbandman the implements of his husbandry, if they fall upon the mercy of a royal court. None of the fines shall be impod except by the asssment on oath of reputable men of the neighbourhood.
(21) Earls and barons shall be fined only by their equals, and in proportion to the gravity of their offence.
(22) A fine impod upon the lay property of a clerk in holy orders shall be assd upon the same principles, without reference to the value of his ecclesiastical benefice.
(23) No town or person shall be forced to build bridges over rivers except tho with an ancient obligation to do so.
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(24) No sheriff, constable, coroners, or other royal officials are to hold
lawsuits that should be held by the royal justices.
(25) Every county, hundred, wapentake, and tithing shall remain at its ancient rent, without increa, except the royal demesne manors.
英语4级分数线
get rid of(26) If at the death of a man who holds a lay `fee‘ of the Crown, a sheriff or royal official produces royal letters patent of summons for a debt due to the Crown, it shall be lawful for them to ize and list movable goods found in the lay `fee‘ of the dead man to the value of the debt, as assd by worthy men. Nothing shall be removed until the whole debt is paid, when the residue shall be given over to the executors to carry out the dead man s will. If no debt is due to the Crown, all the movable goods shall be regarded as the property of the dead man, except the reasonable shares of his wife and children.
失事的意思>neighborhood(27) If a free man dies intestate, his movable goods are to be distributed by his next-of-kin and friends, under the supervision of the Church. The rights of his debtors are to be prerved.
(28) No constable or other royal official shall take corn or other movable goods from any man without immediate payment, unless the ller voluntarily offers postponement of this.
(29) No constable may compel a knight to pay money for castle-guard if the knight is willing to undertake the guard in person, or with reasonable excu to supply some other fit man to do it. A knight taken or nt on military rvice shall be excud from castle-guard for the period of this rvlce.
(30) No sheriff, royal official, or other person shall take hors or carts for transport from any free man, without his connt.
(31) Neither we nor any royal official will take wood for our castle, or for any other purpo, without the connt of the owner.
2009年考研英语真题(32) We will not keep the lands of people convicted of felony in our hand for longer than a year and a day, after which they shall be returned to the lords of the `fees‘ concerned.
(33) All fish-weirs shall be removed from the Thames, the Medway, and throughout the whole of England, except on the a coast.
(34) The writ called precipe shall not in future be issued to anyone in respect of any holding of land, if a free man could thereby be deprived of the right of trial in his own lord‘s court.
(35) There shall be standard measures of wine, ale, and corn (the London quarter), throughout the kingdom. There shall also be a standard width of dyed cloth, rustt, and haberject, namely two ells within the lvedges. Weights are to be standardid similarly.
(36) In future nothing shall be paid or accepted for the issue of a writ of inquisition of life or limbs. It s
hall be given gratis, and not refud.
(37) If a man holds land of the Crown by `fee-farm‘, `socage‘, or `burgage‘, and also holds land of someone el for knight‘s rvice, we will not have guardianship of his heir, nor of the land that belongs to the other person‘s `fee‘, by virtue of the `fee-farm‘, `socage
