YouGov poll states nearly half of the UK population doesn't know what the Magna Carta is

**Terminator** · 03-13-08, 06:38 AM

Nearly half of the UK population does not know what the Magna Carta is, according to a YouGov poll.

The survey commissioned by the British Library found 45 per cent of the 2,000 people questioned had no knowledge of the English charter.
And only 32 per cent knew that it set written limits on the authority of the monarch.

Jack Straw MP, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, said: "British people struggle to put their finger on one of our own defining documents, Magna Carta.

"Magna Carta remains an epochal moment in British history, with a resonance that still lasts today."
The charter, granted in 1215, is viewed as one of the most important legal documents in the history of democracy, helping shape common law and many constitutional documents.
One of the major principles it established was that the monarchy was not above the law.

The representative sample poll was completed to mark the launch of the British Library's Magna Carta website - www.bl.uk/treasures/magnacarta- which goes live tomorrow.
Claire Breay, head of Medieval and Earlier Manuscripts, said: "Magna Carta is one of the most celebrated manuscripts in English history and the most famous document in the British Library.
"Many misconceptions about its original purpose and content have been generated since it was granted in 1215. Our new website challenges these misconceptions by exploring Magna Carta's meaning, content and legacy."

**Motorwaycop** · 03-13-08, 06:53 AM

Tis because nay persona canst understand the bloody writing!

**Trojan 42** · 03-13-08, 09:56 AM

Probably because half the populaion are immigrants!

Everyone knows it's a type of Ice Cream.

**Standard Dave** · 03-13-08, 02:00 PM

I think it's more likely that half the population are dole scrounging half wits who didn't think school was cool the immigrants probably know more about our history that our home grown idiots.

**gozling** · 03-13-08, 02:02 PM

Originally Posted by Standard Dave

I think it's more likely that half the population are dole scrounging half wits who didn't think school was cool the immigrants probably know more about our history that our home grown idiots.

funny... i think the same thing here! lol

**mack** · 03-13-08, 03:32 PM

Gotta agree with you on that one goz. You ask kids today what half the historical documents are and they won't know what it is. Ask if they even know the Preamble to the Constitution and you will get a blank stare.

**Buttercup** · 03-13-08, 03:42 PM

Originally Posted by mack

Gotta agree with you on that one goz. You ask kids today what half the historical documents are and they won't know what it is. Ask if they even know the Preamble to the Constitution and you will get a blank stare.

Ask kids what a library is and most of them probably won't know.