Get the Ricochet app
Ricochet will work fine in a browser on your mobile devices, but for the best experience please download our app.
Several years ago, not long before my dear Auntie Pat died, she sent a few things (at great expense) through the mail, for me to hold onto, or distribute, among the small contingent of family that's here in the US. One of those items was a very old copy of Kings and Queens (pictured here) by Eleanor and Herbert Farjeon, early twentieth-century British siblings with a knack for churning out reliably popular children’s stories, poems, and songs. Eleanor is best known outside the UK for the hymn “Morning has Broken,” which put Yusuf Islam (AKA Cat Stevens) on the map in 1972. Oh, well. It’s a pretty song.
Kings and Queens covers every monarch since William the Bastard with a historically accurate and easy-to-memorize little poem. Pat's copy of the book was given to her by her parents at Christmas in 1936, and covers every monarch from William through George V (Charles III's maternal great-grandfather). The book was originally published in 1932, and Pat's copy appears to be a first edition.
I had my own old copy of the book as a child (it's one of the places I first learned some English history), and--many years ago--I purchased a modern edition from Amazon, just for old times' sake. That edition found three new monarchs added to the original (Edward VIII, George VI, and Elizabeth II). I don't really expect any more updates.
Today's Quote of the Day, though, comes from just the seventh monarch recognized, on page 17 of the original edition:
John, John, bad King John
Shamed the throne that he sat on;
Not a scruple, not a straw,
Cared this monarch for the law;
Promises he daily broke;
None could trust a word he spoke;
So the Barons brought a Deed;
Down to rushy Runnymede,
Magna Carta was it hight,
Charter of the People’s Right,
Framed and fashioned to correct
Kings who act with disrespect –
And with stern and solemn air,
Pointing to the parchment there,
“Sign! Sign! Sign!” they said
“Sign, King John, or resign instead!”John, John, turning pale,
Ground his teeth and bit his nail;
Chewed his long moustache; and then
Ground and bit and chewed again.
“Plague upon the People!” he
Muttered, “What are they to me?
Plague upon the Barons, too!”
(Here he had another chew,)
But the Barons, standing by,
Eyed him with a baleful eye;
Not a finger did they lift;
Not an eyelash did they shift;
But with one tremendous roar,
Even louder than before,
“Sign! Sign! Sign!” they said,
“SIGN, KING JOHN, OR RESIGN INSTEAD!”
Celebrating King John's attachment of the Royal Seal to Magna Carta, on 15 June 1215.
Poor old King John. I've always felt rather sorry for him. The youngest son. Perhaps a bit of a dimwit. His father's favorite child (for a time, at least). Manipulated and played by his parents. By his brothers. By the Church. And by the French.
Perhaps he was the only one of the bunch who was really manipulative and evil. I dunno, but I don't think so.
What I do know is that he is buried in one of my hometown churches, Worcester Cathedral, one that is large enough, and old enough, to enjoy all the wonderful accoutrements of tradition and history that I require in such special places, yet small enough to encompass and get my head around when I’m trying to understand the whole. I highly recommend it as a stop on a tour of England for all those who love, as I do, visiting ancient churches and places of worship.
One of its huge attractions is the tomb of King John.
So, when I’m visiting the English Midlands (please God that if I ever do again I will subsequently be able to make it home to Western Pennsylvania), I make it a point to visit Worcester Cathedral to see King John and say hello.
Here’s Dad, in front of the high altar, the last time I took him to say hello at the tomb of King John:
Discussion (8)
To read this bio, please join Ricochet.
Love it.
To read this bio, please join Ricochet.
Great post. Love the poem.
CONTRIBUTOR
To read this bio, please join Ricochet.
Then there is this one:
The Reeds at Runnymede
by Rudyard Kipling
At Runnymede, at Runnymede,
What say the reeds at Runnymede?
The lissom reeds that give and take,
That bend so far, but never break,
They keep the sleepy Thames awake
With tales of John at Runnymede.
At Runnymede, at Runnymede,
Oh, hear the reeds at Runnymede:
‘You musn’t sell, delay, deny,
A freeman’s right or liberty.
It wakes the stubborn Englishry,
We saw ’em roused at Runnymede!
When through our ranks the Barons came,
With little thought of praise or blame,
But resolute to play the game,
They lumbered up to Runnymede;
And there they launched in solid line
The first attack on Right Divine,
The curt uncompromising “Sign!’
They settled John at Runnymede.
At Runnymede, at Runnymede,
Your rights were won at Runnymede!
No freeman shall be fined or bound,
Or dispossessed of freehold ground,
Except by lawful judgment found
And passed upon him by his peers.
Forget not, after all these years,
The Charter signed at Runnymede.’
And still when mob or Monarch lays
Too rude a hand on English ways,
The whisper wakes, the shudder plays,
Across the reeds at Runnymede.
And Thames, that knows the moods of kings,
And crowds and priests and suchlike things,
Rolls deep and dreadful as he brings
Their warning down from Runnymede!
To read this bio, please join Ricochet.
Decades ago I had a chance to visit The National Archives Museum where the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are on display. Unexpectedly, a 1297 Magna Carta was also there, courtesy of Ross Perot.
I am reminded of my father telling me how King John lost the national treasury while trying to cross "The Wash" when the tide came in. Now I see that there is a lot of uncertainty about the whole episode...
CHARTER MEMBER
To read this bio, please join Ricochet.
One of the other things I love about Worcester Cathedral, and which I forgot to mention in the post is that--although he dissolved the associated monastery--Henry VIII didn't allow too many depredations on the cathedral itself, since another of its well known features is that of Prince Arthur's Chantry, containing the tomb of Henry VIII's older brother who died of "sweating sickness" in 1502. Had Arthur not died, there wouldn't have been a Henry VIII, and English--and Church--history might have evolved quite differently.
Thus, Worcester Cathedral survives largely intact, as an example of Britain's ancient churches, far more authentic than most.
Then there is the library in the attic:
The late Mr. She and I were gifted a tour of the library during one of our visits to the UK. My favorite exhibit related to a story Dad loved to tell, one which was reputed to be a piece of the skin of the Viking who was caught after sailing up (down?) the River Severn on the way to attempting to steal the Sanctus Bell sometime in the eleventh century. He was flayed alive by the monks, and his skin was nailed to the door of the Cathedral as a warning to any others with similar ambitions.
Mr. She, the professional medievalist, was more interested in the manuscripts, which do include among much else (bringing it home!) the original Will of King John.
You're seeing five of eight comments. Sign in, or join for just $5 per month, to read them all and add your own.