American Minute -- June 15th
The Legend of Robinhood speaks of Richard the Lionhearted.
The real King Richard the Lionhearted, so named for his courage in battle, joined the Third Crusade in 1190AD to win back Jerusalem from the Muslims, who had taken it away from the Byzantine Christian and Jewish inhabitants in a bloody siege in 636AD.
Though he did not retake Jerusalem, Richard made a truce with Saladin to open the region to religious pilgrims.
On his return trip to England, Richard was captured by a rival king in Austria and spent three years in prison. He was eventually found and purchased back with an enormous "king's ransom."
He returned to England and took back the throne from his brother John. Just five years later Richard died and John again ruled oppressively in England.
The angry barons responded by capturing London and, on this date, June 15, 1215, surrounded King John on the plains of Runnymeade, forcing him to sign the Magna Carta. This was the first time in history that the arbitrary powers of a king were limited.
The Magna Carta ends with the words: "for the salvation of our souls, and the souls of all our...heirs, and unto the honor of God."
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